Leviathan – A Creature Without Fear
Job 41:1-34 describes a creature that God referred to as Leviathan. Let’s see how God describes this creature:
1 ”Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook or press down his tongue with a cord?
2 Can you put a rope in his nose or pierce his jaw with a hook?
3 Will he make many pleas to you? Will he speak to you soft words?
4 Will he make a covenant with you to take him for your servant forever?
5 Will you play with him as with a bird, or will you put him on a leash for your girls?
6 Will traders bargain over him? Will they divide him up among the merchants?
7 Can you fill his skin with harpoons or his head with fishing spears?
8 Lay your hands on him; remember the battle—you will not do it again!
9 Behold, the hope of a man is false; he is laid low even at the sight of him.
10 No one is so fierce that he dares to stir him up. Who then is he who can stand before me?
11 Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine.
12 “I will not keep silence concerning his limbs, or his mighty strength, or his goodly frame.
13 Who can strip off his outer garment? Who would come near him with a bridle?
14 Who can open the doors of his face? Around his teeth is terror.
15 His back is made of rows of shields, shut up closely as with a seal.
16 One is so near to another that no air can come between them.
17 They are joined one to another; they clasp each other and cannot be separated.
18 His sneezings flash forth light, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the dawn.
19 Out of his mouth go flaming torches; sparks of fire leap forth.
20 Out of his nostrils comes forth smoke, as from a boiling pot and burning rushes.
21 His breath kindles coals, and a flame comes forth from his mouth.
22 In his neck abides strength, and terror dances before him.
23 The folds of his flesh stick together, firmly cast on him and immovable.
24 His heart is hard as a stone, hard as the lower millstone.
25 When he raises himself up the mighty are afraid; at the crashing they are beside themselves.
26 Though the sword reaches him, it does not avail, nor the spear, the dart, or the javelin.
27 He counts iron as straw, and bronze as rotten wood.
28 The arrow cannot make him flee; for him sling stones are turned to stubble.
29 Clubs are counted as stubble; he laughs at the rattle of javelins.
30 His underparts are like sharp potsherds; he spreads himself like a threshing sledge on the mire.
31 He makes the deep boil like a pot; he makes the sea like a pot of ointment.
32 Behind him he leaves a shining wake; one would think the deep to be white-haired.
33 On earth there is not his like, a creature without fear.
34 He sees everything that is high; he is king over all the sons of pride.”
God described Leviathan as having tremendous strength, scales on his back like shields, and his teeth bring terror to anything near them. He lives in the sea, has no fear of anyone or anything and man’s weapons cannot penetrate his skin.
Many people try to say that Leviathan was not a real animal so again, let’s turn to Scripture to see if it was real or not.
In Job 39, God asks Job about mountain goats, wild donkeys, wild ox, ostrich, horse and hawk. They are all very real animals and ones that Job knew because he understood what God was describing. Then in Job 40, God asks Job about Behemoth and describes it as a real animal that Job knew just he did the animals mentioned in Job 39. After God talks to Job about Behemoth, He then asks him about another real animal in Job 41, the Leviathan. Therefore, Leviathan had to be a real animal.
But what kind of animal was the Leviathan?
The Bible doesn’t tell us what kind of animal Leviathan was. Some Bibles have notes in them that describe Leviathan as a crocodile, but you have to remember that those notes were written by men and not inspired by God.
Does the description of Leviathan sound like a crocodile to you?
God asks if Job could catch Leviathan with a hook in a way that indicates it to be a very difficult task if not impossible. Yet there are people today that catch crocodiles with a large baited hook tied to a rope. Then God asks if spears could penetrate the skin of Leviathan again indicating it to be very difficult, but there are people today that spear crocodiles all the time.
Next, God asks Job who can strip off Leviathan’s outer garment (skin). Crocodile and alligator skin is used all the time for fancy leather products including shoes, belts, wallets and purses.
There is one part of the description that definitely does not describe a crocodile and that is that it sneezes out flashes of light and smoke comes out of its nostrils. There is no animal alive today that matches that description. However there are a number of descriptions from all over the world of dragons that breathed fire. Isn’t it possible that Leviathan could have been one of those dragons?
God also describes Leviathan’s neck as having great strength yet you really don’t notice the neck of a crocodile. How many times have you seen an animal handler or trainer sit on the back of a crocodile and hold its jaws closed? Have you ever seen the crocodile use the strength in its neck to shake off the person on its back? They just don’t have that much strength in their neck.
None of the descriptions of Leviathan fit a crocodile as some Bible notes suggest, so if it isn’t a crocodile, what is it?
Some creationists believe that Leviathan could have been a large aquatic reptile such as a Mosasaurus or Kronosaurus that we only know from the fossil records. Both of these animals grew to 40 feet or more in length. Their skeletons indicate they had great strength and probably ruled the seas. Fossil evidence also indicates that they had thick hardened plates on their backs which could have made it difficult for a spear or harpoon to penetrate.
Another possible candidate for Leviathan may have been a dinosaur we call Parasaurolophus. This dinosaur had a series of hollow tubes in the top of its skull that formed what looked like a single horn that curved backward. Some scientists suggest that these tubes could have been used to make sounds and others have suggested the possibility that they may have served as chambers that contained different chemicals. When these chemicals were released into the air, they could have combusted, much like the hot spray of the bombardier beetle.
One more possibility is that Leviathan may have been a huge creature known as Sarcosuchus or Super Croc. Its skeleton looks quite similar to a crocodile, only this this crocodile was nearly as long as a school bus. This would have been a most formidable creature and may have had much thicker plates on its skin than do the crocodiles of today making it harder for spears to penetrate.
Can you imagine trying to hunt a 40 foot long super crocodile? It would have been a fearful task indeed.
All of these animals are only possible candidates for the real creature that God referred to as Leviathan, as there is no way to know for sure which one or if any of them are the Leviathan from the Book Job. The one thing I can say is that Leviathan was real. It was big and strong and terrifying and I’m looking forward to finding out exactly what it was when I get to heaven and meet the One who created it, Jesus Christ, our Lord, Savior and Creator.
Dragons of the Deep
Ocean Monsters Past and Present
From the predator Mosasaurus, called the ocean equivalent of T. rex, to the gigantic Archelon, the beasts who glided through the planet’s oceans no doubt were the inspiration for ancient sightings by mariners who described fantastic encounters on the open ocean. Wieland’s riveting text and easy descriptions are complemented by the beautiful full-color illustrations by acclaimed artist Darrell Wiskur. Readers will be amazed at these complex, huge beasts, some of which still live today.
The author also provides a thoroughly biblical analysis of these “dragons of the sea” within the framework of the literal history outlined in Genesis. Dragons of the Deep is totally evolution-free, explaining the facts about fossils and much more, from a biblical perspective. The exciting evidence about sea monsters repeatedly confirms how most fossils were rapidly buried, caused by the upheavals that occurred during the Genesis flood.
The facts presented in this book will help build biblically based scientific foundations in a young person, providing training to refute the atheistic, evolutionary world view that is encountered throughout life.
2 Responses to Leviathan – A Creature Without Fear
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Job 41:1
Leviathan
(leviathan, sea monster, dragon Strongs # 3882) occurs five times in the text of the Authorized Version, and once in the margin of (Job 3:8) where the text has “mourning.” perhaps the extinct dinosaur, plesiosaurus, exact meaning unknown. Some think this to be a crocodile but from the description in Job 41 this is patently absurd. It appears to ba a large fire breathing animal of some sort. Just as the bomardier beetle has an explosion producing mechanism, so the great sea dragon may have an explosive producing mechanism to enable it to be a real fire breathing dragon.
In the Hebrew Bible the word livyathan , which is, with the foregoing exception, always left untranslated in the Authorized Version, is found only in the following passages: (Job 3:8; 41:1; Psalms 74:14; 104:26; Isaiah 27:1) In the margin of (Job 3:8) and text of (Job 41:1) Some believe the crocodile is most clearly the animal denoted by the Hebrew word. (Psalms 74:14) also, it clearly points to this same saurian. The context of (Psalms 104:26) seems to show that in this passage the name represents some animal of the whale family, which is common in the Mediterranean; but it is somewhat uncertain what animal is denoted in (Isaiah 27:1) As the term leviathan is evidently used in no limited sense, it is not improbable that the “leviathan the piercing serpent,” or “leviathan the crooked serpent,” may denote some species of the great rock-snakes which are common in south and west Africa.
However, some sybolism is used in Job 41. Thus, some translation is needed. God, having in the foregoing verses shown Job how unable he was to deal with the leviathan, here sets forth his own power in that massy mighty creature. Here is, I. God’s sovereign dominion and independency laid down, v. 11. 1. That he is indebted to none of his creatures. If any pretend he is indebted to them, let them make their demand and prove their debt, and they shall receive it in full and not by composition: “Who has prevented me?’’ that is, “who has laid any obligations upon me by any services he has done me? Who can pretend to be before-hand with me? If any were, I would not long be behind-hand with them; I would soon repay them.’’ The apostle quotes this for the silencing of all flesh in God’s presence, Rom. 11:35. Who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed to him again? As God does not inflict upon us the evils we have deserved, so he does bestow upon us the favours we have not deserved. 2. That he is the rightful Lord and owner of all the creatures: “Whatsoever is under the whole heaven, animate or inanimate, is mine (and particularly this leviathan), at my command and disposal, what I have an incontestable property in and dominion over.’’ All is his; we are his, all we have and do; and therefore we cannot make God our debtor; but of thy own, Lord, have we given thee. All is his, and therefore, if he were indebted to any, he has wherewithal to repay them; the debt is in good hands. All is his, and therefore he needs not our services, nor can he be benefited by them. If I were hungry I would not tell thee, for the world is mind and the fulness thereof, Ps. 50:12. II. The proof and illustration of it, from the wonderful structure of the leviathan, v. 12. 1. The parts of his body, the power he exerts, especially when he is set upon, and the comely proportion of the whole of him, are what God will not conceal, and therefore what we must observe and acknowledge the power of God in. Though he is a creature of monstrous bulk, yet there is in him a comely proportion. In our eye beauty lies in that which is small (inest sua gratia parvis — little things have a gracefulness all their own) because we ourselves are so; but in God’s eye even the leviathan is comely; and, if he pronounce even the whale, event he crocodile, so, it is not for us to say of any of the works of his hands that they are ugly of ill-favoured; it is enough to say so, as we have cause, of our own works. God here goes about to give us an anatomical view (as it were) of the leviathan; for his works appear most beautiful and excellent, and his wisdom and power appear most in them, when they are taken in pieces and viewed in their several parts and proportions.
The leviathan, even prima facie — at first sight, appears formidable and inaccessible, v. 13, 14. Who dares come so near him while he is alive as to discover or take a distinct view of the face of the garment, the skin with which he is clothed as with a garment, so near him as to bridle him like a horse and so lead him away, so near him as to be within reach of his jaws, which are like a double bridle? Who will venture to look into his mouth, as we do into a horse’s mouth? He that opens the doors of his face will see his teeth terrible round about, strong and sharp, and fitted to devour; it would make a man tremble to think of having a leg or an arm between them. His scales are his beauty and strength, and therefore his pride, v. 15–17. The crocodile is indeed remarkable for his scales; if we understand it of the whale, we must understand by these shields (for so the word is) the several coats of his skin; or there might be whales in that country with scales.
That which is remarkable concerning the scales is that they stick so close together, by which he is not only kept warm, for no air can pierce him, but kept safe, for no sword can pierce him through those scales. Fishes, that live in the water, are fortified accordingly by the wisdom of Providence, which gives clothes as it gives cold. (3.) He scatters terror with his very breath and looks; if he sneeze or spout up water, it is like a light shining, either with the froth or the light of the sun shining through it, v. 18. The eyes of the whale are reported to shine in the night-time like a flame, or, as here, like the eye-lids of the morning; the same they say of the crocodile. The breath of this creature is so hot and fiery, from the great natural heat within, that burning lamps and sparks of fire, smoke and a flame, are said to go out of his mouth, even such as one would think sufficient to set coals on fire, v. 19–21. Probably these hyperbolical expressions are used concerning the leviathan to intimate the terror of the wrath of God, for that is it which all this is designed to convince us of. Fire out of his mouth devours, Ps. 18:7, 8. The breath of the Almighty, like a stream of brimstone, kindles Tophet, and will for ever keep it burning, Isa. 30:33. The wicked one shall be consumed with the breath of his mouth, 2 Th. 2:8.
He is of invincible strength and most terrible fierceness, so that he frightens all that come in his way, but is not himself frightened by any. Take a view of his neck, and there remains strength, v. 22. his head and his body are well set together. Sorrow rejoices (or rides in triumph) before him, for he makes terrible work wherever he comes. Or, Those storms which are the sorrow of others are his joys; what is tossing to others is dancing to him. His flesh is well knit, v. 23. The flakes of it are joined so closely together, and are so firm, that it is hard to pierce it; he is as if he were all bone. His flesh is of brass, which Job had complained his was not, ch. 6:12. His heart is as firm as a stone, v. 24. He has spirit equal to his bodily strength, and, though he is bulky, he is sprightly, and not unwieldy. As his flesh and skin cannot be pierced, so his courage cannot be daunted; but, on the contrary, he daunts all he meets and puts them into a consternation (v. 25): When he raises up himself like a moving mountain in the great waters even the mighty are afraid lest he should overturn their ships or do them some other mischief.
By reason of the breakings he makes in the water, which threaten death, they purify themselves, confess their sins, betake themselves to their prayers, and get ready for death. We read (ch. 3:8) of those who, when they raise up a leviathan, are in such a fright that they curse the day. It was a fear which, it seems, used to drive some to their curses and others to their prayers; for, as now, so then there were seafaring men of different characters and on whom the terrors of the sea have contrary effects; but all agree there is a great fright among them when the leviathan raises up himself.
All the instruments of slaughter that are used against him do him no hurt and therefore are not error to him, v. 26–29. The sword and the spear, which wound nigh at hand, are nothing to him; the darts, arrows, and sling-stones, which wound at a distance, do him no damage; nature has so well armed him cap-a-pie—at all points, against them all. The defensive weapons which men use when they engage with the leviathan, as the habergeon, or breast-plate, often serve men no more than their offensive weapons; iron and brass are to him as straw and rotten wood, and he laughs at them. It is the picture of a hard-hearted sinner, that despises the terrors of the Almighty and laughs at all the threatenings of his word. The leviathan so little dreads the weapons that are used against him that, to show how hardy he is, he chooses to lie on the sharp stones, the sharp-pointed things (v. 30), and lies as easy there as if he lay on the soft mire. Those that would endure hardness must inure themselves to it.
His very motion in the water troubles it and puts it into a ferment, v. 31, 32. When he rolls, and tosses, and makes a stir in the water, or is in pursuit of his prey, he makes the deep to boil like a pot, he raises a great froth and foam upon the water, such as is upon a boiling pot, especially a pot of boiling ointment; and he makes a path to shine after him, which even a ship in the midst of the sea does not, Prov. 30:19. One may trace the leviathan under water by the bubbles on the surface; and yet who can take that advantage against him in pursuing him? Men track hares in the snow and kill them, but he that tracks the leviathan dares not come near him.
A friend of mine {Lebanese} was involved with Rolls Royce as a mechanic.he said the Arabic text about Levitian was crystal clear,he said it perfectly describes an “internal Cobustion Engine” the neck is very strong=crankshaft.no air can get between them,scales =valves ,the millstone=flywheel ,sneezings =alternating combustion cycles ,minus manifold,very strong no air =head bolted down .just an abreviated view of what he told me ,Eric Jones