The Church Fathers on this verse

Jonah 2:5Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

And I said: I am cast away out of the sight of thy eyes: but yet I shall see the holy temple again.

Douay-Rheims

וַאֲנִ֣י אָמַ֔רְתִּי נִגְרַ֖שְׁתִּי מִנֶּ֣גֶד עֵינֶ֑יךָ אַ֚ךְ אוֹסִ֣יף לְהַבִּ֔יט אֶל־הֵיכַ֖ל קָדְשֶֽׁךָ׃

Hebrew (Masoretic text)

The Church Fathers on this verse

3 Church Fathers comment on this verse

Cyrill of Alexandria

5th centuryChurch Father

When will I set my eyes upon Your holy sanctuary? He is aware that he was sustained by God's might, granted assistance from on high, and lived on unharmed, all this occurring within the great fish's belly, in a way that defies understanding. Yet, he likely questions whether he will once again be restored to life on earth. Consequently, he deems it a cherished and deeply yearned-for experience to enter the most holy temple and glorify God the Redeemer. Thus, he earnestly requests this favor, attesting, as previously mentioned, that God is capable of all things.

Jerome of Stridon

4th centuryChurch Father

I proclaimed, "I have turned from Your gaze." In my sorrow, I cried out, and You answered me because I assumed the likeness of a servant, sharing in human frailty, saying, "I am cast away from Your presence." While I basked in Your light and drew upon Your radiance, I did not utter the words, "I am cast away." Yet, upon my descent into the abyss and cloaking myself in human form, I took on the state of mankind and declared, "I am cast away from Your presence." As a mortal I made this declaration; however, as God, embodying Your image and not finding it beneath me to be Your equal (Philippians 2), I yearned to reunite humanity with You, so that where I am and where You are, those who have faith in both of us may find their place.

Read more (253 words)

Therefore, I proclaim: "Yet I shall see Your holy temple again." The Septuagint renders this: "Shall I not see again Your holy temple?" The Greek ἆρα, unlike the common translation which posits "do you not think," may instead indicate certainty, forming a decisive conclusion drawn from its preceding premises, unwavering and assured. Thus, we have translated it as, "Yet I will again see Your holy temple," reflecting the sentiments expressed on His behalf in another psalm: "Lord, I cherish the beauty of Your house and the dwelling place of Your glory" (Psalm 25:8), and aligning it with the Gospel, which states: "Glorify Me, O Father, with the glory I shared with You before the world existed" (John 17:5), to which the Father replies from heaven: "And I will glorify, and I will glorify again" (John 12:28). Moreover, as it is stated, "The Father is in Me, and I in the Father" (John 14:11), just as the Son is the temple of the Father, so too is the Father the temple of the Son. For He declares, "I departed from the Father and came" (John 16:27-28), and "The Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1). The same Savior speaks as man, while also promising and instilling hope concerning what He has eternally possessed. In reference to Job, one may interpret it that, even in the depths of despair, he yearned to behold the Lord’s temple, while, in the spirit of prophecy, he remained in a different realm contemplating another sanctuary.

Vissarion (Nechaev)

19th centuryCommentator

In deep anguish, Jonah questioned whether he had been forsaken by God, pondering if the Lord had turned His face away from him in His anger due to his transgressions. The Psalmist reflects a similar sentiment, declaring, ‘I say in my distress, I am rejected out of Thy sight’ (Psalm 30:23). Jonah's internal battle between hope in God's mercy and uncertainty is further conveyed in his lamentation: ‘I will not be able to see my homeland, and I will not be able to stand before Thy face again in Thy temple.’

Cross references

Passages read together with this verse.