The Sign of Jonas

Jan 07, 2025Jan 12, 20256 min readedit

Article source: https://notefp.link/pattern-matching-gospel/sign-of-jonas

jonah in the whle

Abstract

Jonah’s three-day experience in the whale parallels Christ’s death and resurrection. Jonah’s prayer from the whale’s belly prophetically mirrors Christ’s crucifixion experience, including separation from God, suffering, and triumph over death. Biblical passages from Matthew, Luke, and Isaiah demonstrate how Jonah’s story foreshadowed Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection, serving as a divine sign of these future events.

Matthew 12:38-41 - KJV

  1. Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee.
  2. But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:
  3. For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
  4. The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.

Matthew 16:1-4 - KJV

  1. The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would shew them a sign from heaven.
  2. He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.
  3. And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?
  4. A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.

Luke 11:29-32 - KJV

  1. And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet.
  2. For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation.
  3. The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.
  4. The men of Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.

This “sign” points both to Jesus’ resurrection and the need for repentance in response to His message.

Do we have a description of what happened to Jonah during his three days in the belly of the fish? In Jonah 2, we are given his prayer. If Jonah’s experience of being “three days and three nights in the whale’s belly” serves as a type of Christ being “three days and three nights in the heart of the earth,” could Jonah’s prayer be understood as a reflection of Christ’s prayer in the resurrection? Let us read Jonah’s prayer as though it were Christ Himself praying after the resurrection.

Jonah 2:1-10 - KJV

  1. Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish’s belly,
  2. And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice.
  3. For thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about: all thy billows and thy waves passed over me.
  4. Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward thy holy temple.
  5. The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head.
  6. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God.
  7. When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.
  8. They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.
  9. But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD.
  10. And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.

We see the pattern matching. Here, Christ is praying to His Father from the “belly of hell”—which is the “heart of the earth” or His grave. He is praying to the Father, who has cast Jesus “into the deep” because “it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin” (Isaiah 53:10). While hanging upon the cross, bearing the sins of the whole world—which separated Him from His Father—He felt that His Father had left Him (Matthew 27:46). He said, “I am cast out of thy sight,” but by the faith of Christ, He looked unto His Father “toward thy holy temple.”

Hanging upon the cross, “peoples, multitudes, and nations” (Revelation 17:15) compassed about Christ, even to His soul. The depth closed round Him, and the thorny crown was wrapped about His head. Christ willingly laid down His life (John 10:18). He “went down to the bottoms of the mountains” in “the heart of the earth” (Matthew 12:40). “The earth with her bars was about [Him] for ever,” yet God raised Him up from the dead. He “brought up [His] life from corruption.”

When crushed under sin, when His soul fainted within Him, He remembered the LORD, His Father, and His prayer came unto Him, into His holy temple. For Christ had sacrificed unto God with the voice of thanksgiving. He paid the ransom for fallen man, fulfilling what He had vowed to the Father. Salvation is of the LORD!

I will pay that that I have vowed

The primary meaning of the word ‘pay’ (shâlam) is “to be in a covenant of peace, be at peace” (BDB definition)covenantOfPeace