Jonah chapter 1 part 2

We left off with Jonah explaing to his shipmates why the lots chose him as the reason for their peril. The other seamen were terrified and asked Jonah what could be done to appease his god and calm the seas. Jonah told them they must throw him overboard. Being reluctant to do that, they tried to row back to land. I looked up ancient sailing vessels that need to be rowed and found a list with illustrations here: http://www.rodlangton.com/ancient/desc.htm

They were unable to return to land, so they prayed to Yahweh not to hold them accountable for his life before they threw him in. The sea was quickly calmed. The seamen decided to offer a sacrifice to Yahweh and make vows to him, in gratitude. Yahweh provided a great fish to swallow Jonah and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights. This does not say Jonah was swallowed by a whale, but ancient people may not have recognized the distinction between whales and giant fish. 

Could a whale swallow a person whole? (Link)

Could a human survive being swallowed by a whale or big fish? (Link)

The gist of those articles is that a person swallowed by a wahale or fish would have no air to breath and would die. My personal thought is that humans also need water, and three days is hitting the maximum time possible to have no (fresh) water. Drinking seawater will kill you. A person swallowed by a whale would have to deal with the corrosive digestive juices, lack of oxygen, possible methane gas, and no fresh water. The conclusion is, no it's not possible for a person to live thre days and nights inside a fish or a whale. But, you know what, that won't matter to a fervent believer, because: miracles happen! God can do anything,  dontcha know, even make the impossible possible. When you get that response, there is often no option but to move on. You are talking to a brick wall. I know, it's extraordinarily frustrating. 

I've decided to have regular posts on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, unless there are other obligations that keep me from posting on a particular day. Maybe having a definite schedule will help keep me from procrastinating. Thanks to anyone who is still hanging around and reading.