When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.
When my soul fainted within me I remembered the Lord - beautifully exemplifying the triumph of spirit over flesh, of faith over sense, (Psalms 73:26; Psalms 42:6, "O my God, my soul is cast down within me; therefore will I remember thee from the land of Jordan," etc.) For a time troubles shut out hope; but faith revived when Jonah "remembered the Lord," what a gracious God He is, and how now He still preserves his life and consciousness in his dark prison house. Jonah "remembered the Lord" now, as he forgat him during his rebellion and flight.
And my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple - the temple at Jerusalem (Jonah 2:4). As there he looks, in believing prayer, toward it, so here he regards his prayer as already heard in that temple wherein God especially manifested His presence to His people. Jonah had thought himself cast out from the presence of God, but his prayer came in unto Him, and was heard.