Jonah 2:
A Prayer from
the Psalms
Scripture Connections from the Book of Psalms
Jonah 2:2 → God Hears in Distress
“In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me.”
Psalm 18:6: “In my distress I called to the Lord… He heard my voice.”
Psalm 120:1: “I call on the Lord in my distress, and he answers me.”
Psalm 3:4: “I call out to the Lord, and he answers me.”
Jonah 2:3 → Swept Away by the Waters
“You hurled me into the depths… all your waves and breakers swept over me.”
Psalm 42:7: “All your waves and breakers have swept over me.”
Psalm 88:6–7: “You have put me in the lowest pit… You have overwhelmed me with all your waves.”
Jonah 2:4 → Longing Toward God’s Holy Temple
“I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.”
Psalm 31:22: “I am cut off from your sight! Yet you heard my cry for mercy.”
Psalm 5:7: “I will bow down toward your holy temple…”
Jonah 2:5–6a → Near Death in the Deep
“The deep surrounded me… seaweed wrapped around my head… to the roots of the mountains I sank down.”
Psalm 69:1–2: “I sink in the miry depths… the deep waters engulf me.”
Psalm 40:2: “He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire.”
Psalm 30:3: “You, Lord, brought me up from the realm of the dead.”
Jonah 2:6b → God Brings Up from the Pit
“But you, Lord my God, brought my life up from the pit.”
Psalm 103:4: “[He] redeems your life from the pit.”
Psalm 16:10: “You will not abandon me to the realm of the dead.”
Psalm 49:15: “God will redeem me from the realm of the dead.”
Jonah 2:7 → Prayer Rises to God’s Temple
“When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, Lord, and my prayer rose to you.”
Psalm 142:3 – “When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way.”
Psalm 18:6 – “My cry came before him, into his temple.”
Psalm 77:2–3 – A weary prayer from the depths of trouble.
Jonah 2:8 → Warning Against Idols
“Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them.”
Psalm 31:6 – “I hate those who cling to worthless idols; as for me, I trust in the Lord.”
Psalm 115:4–8 – A contrast between idols and the true God.
Jonah 2:9 → Thanksgiving and Salvation Belong to the Lord
“But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you… Salvation comes from the Lord.”
Psalm 3:8 – “From the Lord comes deliverance.”
Psalm 50:14 – “Sacrifice thank offerings to God.”
Psalm 116:17–18 – “I will sacrifice a thank offering… and call on the name of the Lord.”
Praying Scripture in Dark Seasons
When you feel overwhelmed: Pray Psalm 61:1–2 — “Lead me to the Rock that is higher than I.”
When you feel guilt or regret: Pray Psalm 51 — “Create in me a clean heart, O God.”
When you feel anxious: Pray Psalm 46 — “God is our refuge and strength.”
When you feel abandoned: Pray Psalm 13 — “How long, Lord?”
When you need hope: Pray Psalm 42 — “Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him.”
Just as Jonah prayed the Psalms from the depths, you can pray Scripture even when you cannot find the words. Let God's Word become your prayer until your own praise returns.