Jonah 2.5-6-Jonah Reflects Back On His Drowning Experience And His Lord And God Delivering Him
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Thursday October 21, 2010
Jonah: Jonah 2:5-6-Jonah Reflects Back On His Drowning Experience And His Lord And God Delivering Him
Lesson # 29
Please turn in your Bibles to Jonah 2:1.
This evening we will note Jonah 2:5-6 and in this passage Jonah reflects back on his drowning experience and his Lord and God delivering him.
Jonah 2:1, “Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the stomach of the fish, 2 and he said, ‘I called out of my distress to the Lord, and He answered me. I cried for help from the depth of Sheol; You heard my voice. 3 ‘For You had cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the current engulfed me. All Your breakers and billows passed over me. 4 So I said, ‘I have been expelled from Your sight. Nevertheless I will look again toward Your holy temple.’ 5 Water encompassed me to the point of death. The great deep engulfed me, weeds were wrapped around my head. 6 I descended to the roots of the mountains. The earth with its bars was around me forever, but You have brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God. 7 While I was fainting away, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came to You, into Your holy temple. 8 Those who regard vain idols forsake their faithfulness, 9 but I will sacrifice to You with the voice of thanksgiving. That which I have vowed I will pay. Salvation is from the Lord.’ 10 Then the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah up onto the dry land.” (NASU)
Let’s look at verse 5.
Jonah 2:5, “Water encompassed me to the point of death. The great deep engulfed me, weeds were wrapped around my head.” (NASU)
This verse contains the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh descriptions of Jonah’s experience in drowning and echoes Psalm 18:4 and 69:1.
Psalm 18:4, “The waves of death engulfed me, the currents of chaos overwhelmed me.” (NET Bible)
Psalm 69:1, “Deliver me, O God, for the water has reached my neck.” (NET Bible)
“Encompassed” is the third person plural qal active perfect form of the verb ʾā∙p̄ǎp̄ (אָפַף) (aw-faf), which is used in a literal sense of the waves of the turbulent Mediterranean Sea “engulfing” Jonah.
“To the point of death” is composed of the preposition ʿǎḏ (עַד) (ode), “to the point of” and the feminine singular form of the noun ně∙p̄ěš (נֶפֶשׁ) (neh-fesh), “death.”
The noun ně∙p̄ěš means “neck” since the preposition ʿǎḏ refers to the turbulent waters of the Mediterranean Sea approaching a particular point on the body of Jonah.
This use of the noun appears in Psalm 69:2 (ET 69:1); 105:18 and this preposition is used in a spatial sense conveying distance to a point, approach to a point and the arrival at that point.
It indicates that the turbulent waves of this violent storm on the Mediterranean Sea went up to the neck of the disobedient prophet.
The picture is that of Jonah struggling desperately to keep his head above water to catch some air.
So the statement “Water encompassed me to the point of death” in the Hebrew means that “the waves encompass me up to the neck” and is the third description of Jonah’s drowning experience.
The first two appear in verse 2.
This statement describes the prophet as struggling against the swirling waters of the Mediterranean Sea with water up to his neck.
Jonah 2:5, “Water encompassed me to the point of death. The great deep engulfed me, weeds were wrapped around my head.” (NASU)
“Engulfed” is the third person masculine singular piel active imperfect form of the verb sā∙ḇǎḇ (סָבַב) (saw-bab), which speaks of Jonah being “enshrouded” by the raging ocean depths.
The statement “The great deep engulfed me” in the Hebrew means “the raging ocean depths enshroud me” and is the fourth description of drowning and describes Jonah as submerged in the raging ocean depths.
“Weeds” is the masculine singular form of the noun sûp̄ (סוּף) (sofe), which refers to “seaweed” since Jonah is drowning in seawater where this plant grows.
Seaweed grows at many depths thus it is not inappropriate or inaccurate to say that seaweed was bound around the head of Jonah as he was drowning.
“Were wrapped” is the masculine singular qal passive participle form of the verb ḥā∙ḇǎš (חָבַשׁ) (khaw-bash), which means “to bind” indicating that seaweed was “bound” around the head of Jonah as he was drowning.
The statement “weeds were wrapped around my head” in the Hebrew means that “seaweed is wrapped around my head” and is the fifth description of Jonah drowning describing him as having seaweed wrapped around his head like a shroud.
It describes the rebellious prophet at this point as submerged in the Mediterranean Sea and loosing oxygen and at the brink of death.
Jonah 2:6, “I descended to the roots of the mountains. The earth with its bars was around me forever, but You have brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God.” (NASU)
“I descended” is the first person singular qal active perfect form of the verb yā∙rǎḏ (יָרַד) (yaw-rad), which refers to Jonah “descending” into the depths of the Mediterranean Sea.
This is the third time that the verb has appeared in the book of Jonah (1:3, 5) and signifies the third and final stage of the disobedient prophet’s spiritual descent.
“The roots of the mountains” is composed of the preposition le (לְ), “to” and the masculine plural construct form of the noun qě∙ṣěḇ (קֶצֶב) (keh-tseb), “the roots of” and the masculine plural form of the noun hǎr (הַר) (har), “the mountains.”
The noun hǎr refers to the mountains and the noun qě∙ṣěḇ refers to the “extremities” or “foundations” of the mountains.
The preposition le is a marker of a degree extending to a particular point indicating that Jonah descended “to the point of” the foundations of the mountains.
The statement “I descended to the roots of the mountains” in the Hebrew means “I descended to the foundations of the mountains” and is Jonah’s sixth description of what it was like to drown.
It expresses the hopelessness he felt and the utter impossibility of his being delivered.
“The earth with its bars” is composed of the articular feminine singular form of the noun ʾě∙rěṣ (אֶרֶץ) (eh-rets), “the earth” and the masculine plural construct form of the noun berîaḥ (בְּרִיחַ) (ber-ee-akh), “with bars” and the third person feminine singular pronomial suffix hî(ʾ) (הִיא) (he), “its.”
The noun ʾě∙rěṣ usually refers to “the earth” but here it refers to the “netherworld” or in other words the place of the dead.
The noun berîaḥ is used in a figurative sense of bars of a gate shutting Jonah out from the land of the living.
“Was around me forever” is composed of the preposition bǎ∙ʿǎḏ (בַּעַד) (beh-ad), “around” and the first person singular pronomial suffix ǎnî (אֲנִי), “me” and the preposition le (לְ) and the masculine singular form of the noun ʿô∙lām (עֹולָם) (o-lawm), “forever.”
The preposition bǎ∙ʿǎḏ means “behind” and describes that the gates of the earth, i.e. the land of the living were barred “behind” Jonah.
This word denotes that from Jonah’s perspective at this point there was no possibility of him surviving.
The noun ʿô∙lām means “forever” or “eternity” pertaining to an unlimited duration of time with emphasis upon the future.
The word is the object of the preposition le which is a marker of an extent of time indicating that Jonah at this point in the poem is describing himself as having the gates of the earth barred behind him forever or “unto eternity.”
Jonah is describing himself at this point as having no possibility of living again.
The statement “The earth with its bars was around me forever” in the Hebrew means “the earth bar’s are behind me forever” is the seventh and final description of drowning and expresses the fact that at this point Jonah had no hope of surviving and considered himself as good as dead.
It echoes Jonah 2:2 and the expression “belly of Sheol,” which does not refer to any of the four compartments of Hades but rather that Jonah was near death or in a life threatening situation.
Jonah 2:6, “I descended to the roots of the mountains. The earth with its bars was around me forever, but You have brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God.” (NASU)
The adversative clause “but You have brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God” means that the Lord caused Jonah’s life to be brought up out from death.
It refers to the immanent and transcendent God delivering Jonah from drowning to death.
It is an expression of praise and is recognition of God’s sovereign power.
It speaks of the fact that God was gracious to him and compassionate even though he was deserving of death for his disobedience.
It speaks of the Lord as a God of deliverance.