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Bible Question: Did Jesus fulfill the sign of Jonah? In Matthew 12:40 Jesus said that He would be in the grave three days and three nights. Did Jonah die in the fish or did he stay alive? That would mean that Jesus died or stayed alive.
Bible Answer: In Matthew 12:38-40 some scribes and Pharisees asked Jesus for a sign. Jesus responded with,
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An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign shall be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. (NASB) Matt. 12:39-40 |
Historic Event. Jonah was an Old Testament prophet who attempted to disobey God. He may have "successfully" disobeyed God before, but he was not going to this time. God caused a fierce storm that terrified the sailors of Jonah's ship. The sailors wanted to understand the reason for the storm and eventually discovered that Jonah was the cause of the storm. What a reminder to us that God may use the forces of nature or people to discipline us. So they threw Jonah overboard and he was swallowed by a large fish. Jonah was in the fish for three days and three nights. So Jesus gave the scribes and Pharisees a sign. He would be in the earth three days and three nights too! It was the sign of Jonah.
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But the LORD provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights. (NIV) Jonah 1:17 |
In The Stomach. Jonah's suffering had just started. The second chapter of Jonah covers the entire time he was in the fish's stomach. We do not know all that Jonah suffered but the passage is clear that.
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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 the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry. You hurled me into the deep, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me. I said, ‘I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again towards your holy temple.’ The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in for ever. But you brought my life up from the pit, O LORD my God. When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple. Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD.” And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land. (NIV) Jonah 2:1-10 |
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