Blessed Jonah’s fast 🐳⁣ ⁣ Now when we study the story of Jonah the force of the resemblance becomes striking. Jesus was sent to preach repentance. So was Jonah. Though Jonah fled, not knowing what was to come, Jesus came willingly, to grant repentance for salvation. Jonah slumbered in the ship and was fast asleep amid the stormy sea; while Jesus by God’s will was sleeping, the sea was stirred up, for the purpose of manifesting thereafter the power of him who slept. They said to Jonah, “What are you doing asleep? Rise up, call upon your God, that God may save us,” but the apostles say, “Lord, save us!” In the first instance they said, Call upon your God, and in the second, save us. In the first Jonah said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea, that it may quiet down for you”; in the other Christ himself “rebuked the wind and the sea, and there came a great calm.” Jonah was cast into the belly of a great fish, but Christ of his own will descended to the abode of the invisible fish of death. He went down of his own will to make death disgorge those it had swallowed up, according to the Scripture: “I shall deliver them from the power of the nether world, and I shall redeem them from death.” – St Cyril of Jerusalem ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #coptic ⁣#orthodox #fast #jonah #jonahsfast #preparation #threedays #orthodoxy #Nineveh #repent #saviour #salvation #faith