Now the Lord provided a huge fish to
swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three
nights. Jonah 1:17
From inside
the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. He said:
“In my distress I called to the Lord,
and he answered me.
From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help,
and you listened to my cry. Jonah 2:1-3
and he answered me.
From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help,
and you listened to my cry. Jonah 2:1-3
And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry
land. Jonah 2:10
For
as Jonah was three days and
three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days
and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Matthew 12:40
The
people of Jesus’ day were looking for Him to perform a sign. He told them to look to Jonah for a
sign. That sign was Jonah being in the
belly of a fish for three days and three nights. Jonah called it “the realm of the dead.” Then the fish vomited him out of that place
and back to dry land.
In
the same way, Jesus said He would be in the belly of the grave for three days
and nights then be released from the tomb and back to life, on dry land.
Jonah’s
story was incredible, but Jesus’ story was unbelievable. While we will never find ourselves in a fish
stomach, we will find ourselves in a grave, knowing that it won’t hold us for
long.