Job 40:15-24
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
15 “Look at Behemoth,
which I made just as I made you;
it eats grass like an ox.(A)
16 Its strength is in its loins
and its power in the muscles of its belly.
17 It makes its tail stiff like a cedar;
the sinews of its thighs are knit together.
18 Its bones are tubes of bronze,
its limbs like bars of iron.
19 “It is the first of the great acts of God;
only its Maker can approach it with the sword.(B)
20 For the mountains yield food for it
where all the wild animals play.(C)
21 Under the lotus plants it lies,
in the covert of the reeds and in the marsh.
22 The lotus trees cover it for shade;
the willows of the wadi surround it.(D)
23 Even if the river is turbulent, it is not frightened;
it is confident though Jordan rushes against its mouth.
24 Can one take it with hooks[a]
or pierce its nose with a snare?(E)
Footnotes
- 40.24 Cn: Heb in his eyes
Job 40:15-24
International Standard Version
On Behemoth
15 “Please observe[a] Behemoth,[b] which I made along with you.
He eats grass like an ox.
16 Now take a look at the strength that he has in his loins,
and in the muscles of his abdomen.
17 His tail protrudes stiffly, like cedar;[c]
the sinews of his thigh interlink for strength.
18 His bones are conduits[d] of bronze;[e]
his strong bones are like bars of iron.
19 He is the grandest[f] of God’s undertakings,[g]
yet his creator is approaching him with his sword.[h]
20 Mountains produce food for him,
where all the wild animals frolic.
21 He lies under the lotus trees,
hiding under reeds and marshes.[i]
22 The lotus trees cover him with their shade,
and willows that line the wadis[j] surround him.
23 What you see as a raging river doesn’t alarm him;
he is confident when the Jordan overflows.
24 Are your eyes looking to capture him,
or to pierce his snout with a bridle?”
Footnotes
- Job 40:15 Lit. look
- Job 40:15 I.e. an ancient, gigantic herbivore, living in Job’s time but now apparently extinct
- Job 40:17 I.e. a genus of coniferous evergreen in the family Pinaceae
- Job 40:18 Or channels
- Job 40:18 Or copper
- Job 40:19 Or first
- Job 40:19 Lit. ways
- Job 40:19 I.e. God was about to make Behemoth extinct
- Job 40:21 Lit. reed and marsh
- Job 40:22 I.e. seasonal streams that channel water during rain seasons but are dry at other times
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