Study notes

Job 41

Introducing JobWho wrote it, when, why, and what to look for as you read

40:6–42:6 Section

In his second answer to God Job recognised something important. He hadn’t understood what he was talking about when he spoke with his friends. He had talked about things that were too wonderful for him to know. This means that they were things that human beings can’t understand.

Recognising this made Job humble. Job said that he hated himself. This doesn’t mean that Job thought he was a terrible person. It doesn’t mean that he had no love for himself. It means that he no longer wanted to argue against God. Job stopped bringing charges against God for treating him unfairly.

God had showed Job how much care he takes of all of his creatures. Job came to understand that he was one of God’s creatures. So Job understood that he could trust God because God was his creator. God had shown himself to Job. When Job heard and understood God, he saw that God was worthy of his trust.

41:1

Unlike the peaceful Behemoth (Job 40:15–24), Leviathan was a threat (see also Job 3:8; Psalms 74:14; 104:26; Isaiah 27:1). Most scholars think Leviathan was like a crocodile, with its powerful jaws and tough skin twisting and turning in the water (Job 41:14; 41:15–17, 23; 41:31–32). But Leviathan is a fire-breathing dragon that wraps around the sun to cause the sun to seem covered (41:18–21; 3:8–9).

The background for Leviathan is the seven-headed sea monster symbolizing chaos in ancient Near Eastern mythology. In the Bible, this wild sea creature often represents chaos and evil, whose head the Lord crushes (Psalm 74:14; Isaiah 27:1; compare Job 9:13; 26:12; Psalm 89:9–10; Isaiah 30:7; 51:9). Later in the Bible, Satan is linked to the ancient serpent and great dragon (Genesis 3; Revelation 12:9; 20:2). Christ and his followers crush his head (Romans 16:20).

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