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Job 41
New Living Translation
Job 41
New Living Translation
The Lord’s Challenge Continues
41 [a]“Can you catch Leviathan[b] with a hook
or put a noose around its jaw?
2 Can you tie it with a rope through the nose
or pierce its jaw with a spike?
3 Will it beg you for mercy
or implore you for pity?
4 Will it agree to work for you,
to be your slave for life?
5 Can you make it a pet like a bird,
or give it to your little girls to play with?
6 Will merchants try to buy it
to sell it in their shops?
7 Will its hide be hurt by spears
or its head by a harpoon?
8 If you lay a hand on it,
you will certainly remember the battle that follows.
You won’t try that again!
9 [c]No, it is useless to try to capture it.
The hunter who attempts it will be knocked down.
10 And since no one dares to disturb it,
who then can stand up to me?
11 Who has given me anything that I need to pay back?
Everything under heaven is mine.
12 “I want to emphasize Leviathan’s limbs
and its enormous strength and graceful form.
13 Who can strip off its hide,
and who can penetrate its double layer of armor?[d]
14 Who could pry open its jaws?
For its teeth are terrible!
15 The scales on its back are like[e] rows of shields
tightly sealed together.
16 They are so close together
that no air can get between them.
17 Each scale sticks tight to the next.
They interlock and cannot be penetrated.
18 “When it sneezes, it flashes light!
Its eyes are like the red of dawn.
19 Lightning leaps from its mouth;
flames of fire flash out.
20 Smoke streams from its nostrils
like steam from a pot heated over burning rushes.
21 Its breath would kindle coals,
for flames shoot from its mouth.
22 “The tremendous strength in Leviathan’s neck
strikes terror wherever it goes.
23 Its flesh is hard and firm
and cannot be penetrated.
24 Its heart is hard as rock,
hard as a millstone.
25 When it rises, the mighty are afraid,
gripped by terror.
26 No sword can stop it,
no spear, dart, or javelin.
27 Iron is nothing but straw to that creature,
and bronze is like rotten wood.
28 Arrows cannot make it flee.
Stones shot from a sling are like bits of grass.
29 Clubs are like a blade of grass,
and it laughs at the swish of javelins.
30 Its belly is covered with scales as sharp as glass.
It plows up the ground as it drags through the mud.
31 “Leviathan makes the water boil with its commotion.
It stirs the depths like a pot of ointment.
32 The water glistens in its wake,
making the sea look white.
33 Nothing on earth is its equal,
no other creature so fearless.
34 Of all the creatures, it is the proudest.
It is the king of beasts.”
Footnotes
- 41:1a Verses 41:1-8 are numbered 40:25-32 in Hebrew text.
- 41:1b The identification of Leviathan is disputed, ranging from an earthly creature to a mythical sea monster in ancient literature.
- 41:9 Verses 41:9-34 are numbered 41:1-26 in Hebrew text.
- 41:13 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads its bridle?
- 41:15 As in some Greek manuscripts and Latin Vulgate; Hebrew reads Its pride is in its.
Job 41
New International Version
Job 41
New International Version
41 [a]“Can you pull in Leviathan(A) with a fishhook(B)
or tie down its tongue with a rope?
2 Can you put a cord through its nose(C)
or pierce its jaw with a hook?(D)
3 Will it keep begging you for mercy?(E)
Will it speak to you with gentle words?
4 Will it make an agreement with you
for you to take it as your slave for life?(F)
5 Can you make a pet of it like a bird
or put it on a leash for the young women in your house?
6 Will traders barter for it?
Will they divide it up among the merchants?
7 Can you fill its hide with harpoons
or its head with fishing spears?(G)
8 If you lay a hand on it,
you will remember the struggle and never do it again!(H)
9 Any hope of subduing it is false;
the mere sight of it is overpowering.(I)
10 No one is fierce enough to rouse it.(J)
Who then is able to stand against me?(K)
11 Who has a claim against me that I must pay?(L)
Everything under heaven belongs to me.(M)
12 “I will not fail to speak of Leviathan’s limbs,(N)
its strength(O) and its graceful form.
13 Who can strip off its outer coat?
Who can penetrate its double coat of armor[b]?(P)
14 Who dares open the doors of its mouth,(Q)
ringed about with fearsome teeth?
15 Its back has[c] rows of shields
tightly sealed together;(R)
16 each is so close to the next
that no air can pass between.
17 They are joined fast to one another;
they cling together and cannot be parted.
18 Its snorting throws out flashes of light;
its eyes are like the rays of dawn.(S)
19 Flames(T) stream from its mouth;
sparks of fire shoot out.
20 Smoke pours from its nostrils(U)
as from a boiling pot over burning reeds.
21 Its breath(V) sets coals ablaze,
and flames dart from its mouth.(W)
22 Strength(X) resides in its neck;
dismay goes before it.
23 The folds of its flesh are tightly joined;
they are firm and immovable.
24 Its chest is hard as rock,
hard as a lower millstone.(Y)
25 When it rises up, the mighty are terrified;(Z)
they retreat before its thrashing.(AA)
26 The sword that reaches it has no effect,
nor does the spear or the dart or the javelin.(AB)
27 Iron it treats like straw(AC)
and bronze like rotten wood.
28 Arrows do not make it flee;(AD)
slingstones are like chaff to it.
29 A club seems to it but a piece of straw;(AE)
it laughs(AF) at the rattling of the lance.
30 Its undersides are jagged potsherds,
leaving a trail in the mud like a threshing sledge.(AG)
31 It makes the depths churn like a boiling caldron(AH)
and stirs up the sea like a pot of ointment.(AI)
32 It leaves a glistening wake behind it;
one would think the deep had white hair.
33 Nothing on earth is its equal(AJ)—
a creature without fear.
34 It looks down on all that are haughty;(AK)
it is king over all that are proud.(AL)”
Job 41
Contemporary English Version
Job 41
Contemporary English Version
The Lord Continues
Can You Catch a Sea Monster?
41 (A) Can you catch a sea monster[a]
by using a fishhook?
Can you tie its mouth shut
with a rope?
2 Can it be led around
by a ring in its nose
or a hook in its jaw?
3 Will it beg for mercy?
4 Will it surrender
as a slave for life?
5 Can it be tied by the leg
like a pet bird
for little girls?
6 Is it ever chopped up
and its pieces bargained for
in the fish-market?
7 Can it be killed
with harpoons or spears?
8 Wrestle it just once—
that will be the end.
9 Merely a glimpse of this monster
makes all courage melt.
10 And if it is too fierce
for anyone to attack,
who would dare oppose me?
11 I am in command of the world
and in debt to no one.
12 What powerful legs,
what a stout body
this monster possesses!
13 Who could strip off its armor
or bring it under control
with a harness?
14 Who would try to open its jaws,
full of fearsome teeth?
* 15 Its back[b] is covered
with shield after shield,
16 firmly bound and closer together
17 than breath to breath.
When This Monster Sneezes
18 When this monster sneezes,
lightning flashes, and its eyes
glow like the dawn.
19 Sparks and fiery flames
explode from its mouth.
20 And smoke spews from its nose
like steam
from a boiling pot,
21 while its blazing breath
scorches everything in sight.
22 Its neck is so tremendous
that everyone trembles,
23 the weakest parts of its body
are harder than iron,
24 and its heart is stone.
25 When this noisy monster appears,
even the most powerful[c]
turn and run in fear.
26 No sword or spear can harm it,
27 and weapons of bronze or iron
are as useless as straw
or rotten wood.
28 Rocks thrown from a sling
cause it no more harm
than husks of grain.
This monster fears no arrows,
29 it simply smiles at spears,
and striking it with a stick
is like slapping it with straw.
30 As it crawls through the mud,
its sharp and spiny hide
tears the ground apart.
31 And when it swims down deep,
the sea starts churning
like boiling oil,
32 and it leaves behind a trail
of shining white foam.
33 No other creature on earth
is so fearless.
34 It is king of all proud creatures,
and it looks upon the others
as nothing.
New Living Translation (NLT)
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Contemporary English Version (CEV) 
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