Jonah 2:7 (LSB)

Passage

While my soul was fainting within me, I remembered Yahweh, And my prayer came to You, To Your holy temple.

Nearby Context

Jonah 2:5 Water encompassed me to my very soul. The great deep surrounded me, Weeds were wrapped around my head.

Jonah 2:6 I went down to the base of the mountains. The earth with its bars closed behind me forever, But You have brought up my life from the pit, O Yahweh my God.

Jonah 2:7 While my soul was fainting within me, I remembered Yahweh, And my prayer came to You, To Your holy temple.

Jonah 2:8 Those who regard worthless idols Forsake their lovingkindness,

Jonah 2:9 But as for me, I will sacrifice to You With the voice of thanksgiving. That which I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to Yahweh.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "soul", "fainting", "within", "remembered", "yahweh", "prayer", "came", and "holy". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "soul" and "fainting", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 6's "I went down to the base of..." into verse 8's "Those who regard worthless idols Forsake their...", so "soul" and "fainting" belong inside that flow. In Jonah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "soul" and "fainting" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.