en_tn/jon/02/02.md

He said

"Jonah said"

I called out to Yahweh about my distress

"I prayed to Yahweh about my great trouble." Even though Jonah was praying to Yahweh, he used Yahweh's name here and not "you." Alternate translation: "Yahweh, I called out to you about my distress"

he answered me

"Yahweh responded to me" or "he helped me"

from the belly of Sheol

"from the center of Sheol" or "from the deep part of Sheol." Possible meanings are 1) Jonah was speaking as being in the belly of the whale was being in Sheol or 2) Jonah believed that he was about to die and go to Sheol or 3) He spoke as if he already had died and gone there. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor)