Many of us are familiar with the biblical tale of Jonah, who was swallowed by a whale. He remained in the belly of the whale for three days and three nights and while his life lay in the balance, he prayed to God vowing to live a righteous life. The whale eventually spat him out and he kept his promise to God.

Last week a lobster diver named Michael Packard was swallowed by a humpback whale off the coast of Provincetown in Massachusetts, United States.

Unlike Jonah, Michael only spent around 40 seconds in the belly of the whale before being spat out on the sea’s surface.

Michael Packard explained: “I was on my second dive and I was headed towards the bottom in about 45 feet of water. I was just about to get to the bottom when I felt a truck hit me and everything just went dark.

“I said, oh my God, I’m in the mouth of a whale with its mouth shut. I reached for the regulator and stuck it back into my mouth while the whale was swimming and I thought, ‘this is how you are going to go Michael; this is how you are going to die. In the mouth of a whale.”

Packard recounted how he thought he would run out of air and suffocate. At that point he wasn’t sure whether the whale would swallow him but he sensed the whale was a massive creature and that there was no escape for him.

“All of a sudden I saw a light and I could feel the head of the whale shaking and I got thrown out of his mouth into the water. There was white water everywhere. I lay on the surface floating and saw its tail before it went back down. I survived,” said a relived Michael  Packard of his close encounter with one of the largest creatures on this earth.

He was taken to Cape Cod Hospital where it was discovered that he had soft tissue damage in his legs and a dislocated knee.

His family has cautioned him against going out lobster diving but Michael says he will be back at it again as soon as he is fully recovered.

What an extraordinary tale from the deep! Miracles do happen. Perhaps you should listen to your family, Michael. One would hate to think you might end up being some sea creature’s lunch, after having a close escape once already.