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Commentary on Job 41 verses 11–34
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, Job 41:11. 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, Psa 50:12.
II. The proof and illustration of it, from the wonderful structure of the leviathan, Job 41:12.
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. (1.) The leviathan, even prima facie - at first sight, appears formidable and inaccessible, Job 41:13, Job 41:14. 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. (2.) His scales are his beauty and strength, and therefore his pride, Job 41:15-17. 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, Job 41:18. 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, Job 41:19-21. 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, Psa 18:7, Psa 18:8. 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, Th2 2:8. (4.) 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, Job 41:22. 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, Job 41:23. 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, Job 6:12. His heart is as firm as a stone, Job 41:24. 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 (Job 41:25): 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 (Job 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. (5.) All the instruments of slaughter that are used against him do him no hurt and therefore are not error to him, Job 41:26-29. 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 (Job 41:30), and lies as easy there as if he lay on the soft mire. Those that would endure hardness must inure themselves to it. (6.) His very motion in the water troubles it and puts it into a ferment, Job 41:31, Job 41:32. 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, Pro 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.
2.Having given this particular account of his parts, and his power, and his comely proportion, he concludes with four things in general concerning this animal: - (1.) That he is a non-such among the inferior creatures: Upon earth there is not his like, Job 41:33. No creature in this world is comparable to him for strength and terror. Or the earth is here distinguished from the sea: His dominion is not upon the earth (so some), but in the waters. None of all the savage creatures upon earth come near him for bulk and strength, and it is well for man that he is confined to the waters and there has a watch set upon him (Job 7:12) by the divine Providence, for, if such a terrible creature were allowed to roam and ravage upon this earth, it would be an unsafe and uncomfortable habitation for the children of men, for whom it is intended. (2.) That he is more bold and daring than any other creature whatsoever: He is made without fear. The creatures are as they are made; the leviathan has courage in his constitution, nothing can frighten him; other creatures, quite contrary, seem as much designed for flying as this for fighting. So, among men, some are in their natural temper bold, others are timorous. (3.) That he is himself very proud; though lodged in the deep, yet he beholds all high things, Job 41:34. The rolling waves, the impending rocks, the hovering clouds, and the ships under sail with top and top-gallant, this mighty animal beholds with contempt, for he does not think they either lessen him or threaten him. Those that are great are apt to be scornful. (4.) That he is a king over all the children of pride, that is, he is the proudest of all proud ones. He has more to be proud of (so Mr. Caryl expounds it) than the proudest people in the world have; and so it is a mortification to the haughtiness and lofty looks of men. Whatever bodily accomplishments men are proud of, and puffed up with, the leviathan excels them and is a king over them. Some read it so as to understand it of God: He that beholds all high things, even he, is King over all the children of pride; he can tame the behemoth (Job 40:19) and the leviathan, big as they are, and stout-hearted as they are. This discourse concerning those two animals was brought in to prove that it is God only who can look upon proud men and abase them, bring them low and tread them down, and hide them in the dust (Job 40:11-13), and so it concludes with a quod erat demonstrandum - which was to be demonstrated; there is one that beholds all high things, and, wherein men deal proudly, is above them; he is King over all the children of pride, whether brutal or rational, and can make them all either bend or break before him, Isa 2:11. The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and thus the Lord alone shall be exalted.
The spiritual weapons [of humans], he says, are unable to kill him, and [the devil] considers as straw and rotten wood those weapons that cannot inflict a lethal wound on him.
21. For what do we understand by ‘arrows’ but the words of preachers? For when they are drawn forth by the voice of holy livers, they transfix the hearts of the hearers. With these arrows Holy Church had been struck, who was saying, I am wounded with love. [Cant. 2, 5] Of these arrows it is said by the voice of the Psalmist, The arrows of children are made their wounds; [Ps. 64, 7] because, that is, the words of the humble have penetrated the minds of the proud. Of these arrows it is said to the coming champion, Thine arrows are sharp, O Thou most mighty, people shall fall under Thee in their heart. [Ps. 45, 5] An ‘archer’ then is he, who by the bow of holy intention fixes in the hearts of his hearers the words of sound exhortation. Because then this Leviathan despises the words of preachers, and when he has wounded the minds of the reprobate by his evil persuasions, does not, in his hardness, in any wise abandon them even in the midst of darts, it is rightly said, The archer shall not put him to flight. As if it were plainly said, The arrow of a holy preacher does not dislodge him from the hearts of the reprobate; because, whoever is seized by him, scorns at once to listen to the words of preachers. Whence the Lord, being deservedly angry for their former sins, says by the Prophet of those whom He abandons in the hands of the ancient enemy, I will send among you serpents, basilisks, for whom there is no charm. [Jer. 8, 17] As if He were saying, I will deliver you up by just judgment to such unclean spirits, as cannot be shaken off by you, by the exhortation of preachers, as if by the word of charmers. But because this Leviathan is not driven from the hearts of the reprobate by the darts of holy preaching, his very contempt for holy men is also added, when it is immediately observed;
The stones of the sling are turned with him into stubble.
22. What is typified by the ‘sling,’ but Holy Church? For when a sling is whirled round, so do stones fly out of it, for the breasts of the adversaries to be struck therewith. In like manner when Holy Church is led through a circuit of tribulations, in the whirl of time, mighty men come forth from her, by whom the hearts of the wicked are to be beaten as if by the blows of stones. Whence the Lord says to the Prophet concerning good teachers, They shall devour, and subdue with sling stones. [Zech. 9, 15] For holy teachers who train others also in virtue, devour their enemies, when they change them within [one Ms. ‘into’] their own body by the power of conversion. And they subdue them with sling stones, because while they train all the mighty men in Holy Church, they crush by their means the hard breasts of proud adversaries. Whence also the giant Goliath is killed by the stone of the sling; [l Sam. 17, 49] because the lofty height of the devil is overcome by a single stone of Holy Church. Because then this Leviathan, when he has assumed that accursed man, despises all the mighty ones of the Church, as if they were weak, and crushes their strength for a season, is it now rightly said, The stones of the sling are turned with him into stubble. As if it were plainly said, He reduces as it were into the softness of stubble the strength of Saints, whose tongue before smote his breast with hard blows. For then putting forth all the strength of his iniquity, the more he grieves at being vanquished by them spiritually, the more fiercely does he prevail against them bodily. And because he considers that he has no power against their spirit, he carries out in their flesh all the methods of his cruelty. But what wonder if he despises the strength of men, since he scorns even the very torments of the heavenly judgment against him.
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SUMMARY
Job 41:28 stands as a profound declaration within God's extended discourse to Job, vividly portraying the untameable and formidable nature of Leviathan. This verse specifically highlights the creature's imperviousness to conventional human weaponry, asserting that even the most potent projectiles of the ancient world—arrows and slingstones—are rendered utterly useless against its impenetrable hide, likened to mere stubble. Through this vivid imagery, God underscores His absolute sovereignty and incomparable power, revealing the limits of human strength and understanding in contrast to His boundless wisdom and creative might, thereby humbling Job and recalibrating his perspective on divine governance.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Job 41:28 employs several powerful literary devices to convey its message. Hyperbole is evident in the description of arrows and slingstones being "turned into stubble." While literal transformation is not implied, the exaggerated language vividly expresses the absolute ineffectiveness of human weaponry against Leviathan's impenetrable hide. This extreme imagery serves to magnify the creature's invincibility. Imagery is central, painting a clear picture of common projectiles becoming as fragile and useless as dry straw, allowing the reader to visualize the futility of human attempts. This sensory detail enhances the impact of the verse. Furthermore, Symbolism is at play, as Leviathan itself functions as a potent symbol of untamed creation, raw power, and the limits of human dominion. By demonstrating humanity's inability to conquer Leviathan, the text indirectly symbolizes the insurmountable gap between human strength and divine omnipotence.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Job 41:28, in its stark portrayal of Leviathan's invincibility, serves as a profound theological statement on the nature of God's power and humanity's place within creation. It is a masterful rhetorical device by God to humble Job, not by explaining suffering, but by revealing the sheer scale of divine wisdom and might that far transcends human comprehension or control. If a creature of God's making is so utterly beyond human conquest, how much more is its Creator? This verse challenges any anthropocentric view of the cosmos, asserting that God's power is not merely greater than human power, but of an entirely different order, sovereign even over the most chaotic and fearsome elements of the created world. It compels a posture of awe, humility, and absolute trust in the One who holds all things in His hand.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Job 41:28 offers a powerful spiritual lesson for believers today. In a world that often encourages self-reliance and the belief that every problem has a human solution, this verse serves as a humbling reminder of our inherent limitations. We frequently encounter "Leviathans" in our lives—overwhelming challenges, seemingly unconquerable circumstances, or deeply entrenched spiritual battles that defy our best efforts, strategies, and resources. Just as arrows and slingstones were futile against Leviathan, our own strength, wisdom, and plans can sometimes be utterly inadequate against the formidable "stubble" of life's difficulties. This verse calls us to shift our gaze from our limited capabilities to the infinite power and sovereignty of God. It encourages us to cultivate a profound humility, recognizing that true peace and victory come not from our ability to conquer every "Leviathan," but from placing our unwavering trust in the God who created and controls even the most fearsome aspects of His creation. When our own "arrows" fail, we are invited to rest in the boundless might of the One who is sovereign over all.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What is the significance of Leviathan in the Book of Job?
Answer: Leviathan, as described in Job 41, is a creature of immense power and untameable nature, serving as a climactic example in God's discourse to Job. Its primary significance is to illustrate God's absolute sovereignty and incomparable power over all creation, including its most formidable and chaotic elements. If humanity cannot subdue Leviathan, then how much less can Job (or any human) challenge or comprehend the Creator of such a being? Leviathan symbolizes the limits of human dominion and the boundless wisdom and might of God, effectively humbling Job and recalibrating his perspective on divine governance and the mystery of suffering. It is not merely a zoological description but a profound theological metaphor for God's unchallengeable authority.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
While Job 41:28 primarily highlights God's sovereign power over creation, its Christ-centered fulfillment points to Jesus Christ as the ultimate demonstration and embodiment of that divine power, particularly over the forces of chaos, evil, and death. Just as Leviathan represents an untameable force beyond human control, the New Testament reveals spiritual "Leviathans"—the powers of darkness, sin, and death—that humanity is utterly helpless against. Yet, Christ, the Son of God, not only created all things, including Leviathan (Colossians 1:16), but He also triumphed decisively over these spiritual adversaries. The "arrows" and "slingstones" of human effort are futile against sin and death, but Christ, through His crucifixion and resurrection, disarmed the powers and authorities, making a public spectacle of them (Colossians 2:15). He is the one who has "destroyed him who has the power of death, that is, the devil" (Hebrews 2:14). Ultimately, the untameable power of Leviathan, subject only to God, foreshadows the absolute authority of Christ, who has been given "all authority in heaven and on earth" (Matthew 28:18). He is the true conqueror of all chaos, the one before whom every knee will bow (Philippians 2:10).