Historical

¹⁰ Adorn yourself with majesty^(G) and splendour,
and clothe yourself with honour and glory.
¹¹ Pour out your raging anger;^(H)
look on every proud person and humiliate him.^(I)
12 Look on every proud person and humble him;^(J)
trample the wicked where they stand.^[b]
13 Hide them together in the dust;
imprison them in the grave.^[c]
14 Then I will confess to you
that your own right hand^(K) can deliver you.^(L)

¹⁵ Look at Behemoth,
which I made along with you.
He eats grass like cattle.
¹⁶ Look at the strength of his back^[d]
and the power in the muscles of his belly.
¹⁷ He stiffens his tail like a cedar tree;
the tendons of his thighs are woven firmly together.
¹⁸ His bones are bronze tubes;
his limbs are like iron rods.
¹⁹ He is the foremost of God’s works;^(M)
only his Maker can draw the sword against him.
²⁰ The hills yield food for him,
while all sorts of wild animals play there.
²¹ He lies under the lotus plants,
hiding in the protection^[e] of marshy reeds.
²² Lotus plants cover him with their shade;
the willows by the brook surround him.
²³ Though the river rages, Behemoth is unafraid;
he remains confident, even if the Jordan surges up to his mouth.
²⁴ Can anyone capture him while he looks on,^[f]
or pierce his nose with snares?

41 Can you pull in Leviathan^(N) with a hook^(O)
or tie his tongue down with a rope?
² Can you put a cord^[g] through his nose
or pierce his jaw with a hook?^(P)
3 Will he beg you for mercy
or speak softly to you?
⁴ Will he make a covenant with you
so that you can take him as a slave for ever?^(Q)
5 Can you play with him like a bird
or put him on a leash^[h] for your girls?
⁶ Will traders bargain for him
or divide him among the merchants?
⁷ Can you fill his hide with harpoons
or his head with fishing spears?
⁸ Lay a^[i] hand on him.
You will remember the battle
and never repeat it!
⁹ Any hope of capturing him proves false.
Does a person not collapse at the very sight of him?
¹⁰ No one is ferocious enough to rouse Leviathan;^(R)
who then can stand against me?
¹¹ Who confronted me, that I should repay him?
Everything under heaven belongs to me.^(S)

¹² I cannot be silent about his limbs,
his power, and his graceful proportions.
¹³ Who can strip off his outer covering?
Who can penetrate his double layer of armour?^[j](T)
14 Who can open his jaws,^[k]
surrounded by those terrifying teeth?
¹⁵ His pride is in his rows of scales,
closely sealed together.
¹⁶ One scale is so close to another^[l]
that no air can pass between them.
¹⁷ They are joined to one another,
so closely connected^[m] they cannot be separated.
¹⁸ His snorting^[n] flashes with light,
while his eyes are like the rays^[o] of dawn.
¹⁹ Flaming torches shoot from his mouth;
fiery sparks fly out!
²⁰ Smoke billows from his nostrils^(U)
as from a boiling pot or burning reeds.
²¹ His breath sets coals ablaze,
and flames pour out of his mouth.
²² Strength resides in his neck,
and dismay dances before him.
²³ The folds of his flesh are joined together,
solid as metal^[p] and immovable.
²⁴ His heart is as hard as a rock,
as hard as a lower millstone!
²⁵ When Leviathan rises, the mighty^[q] are terrified;
they withdraw because of his thrashing.
²⁶ The sword that reaches him will have no effect,
nor will a spear, dart, or arrow.
²⁷ He regards iron as straw,
and bronze as rotten wood.
²⁸ No arrow can make him flee;
slingstones become like stubble to him.
²⁹ A club is regarded as stubble,
and he laughs^(V) at the sound of a javelin.
³⁰ His undersides are jagged potsherds,
spreading the mud like a threshing sledge.^(W)
31 He makes the depths seethe like a cauldron;
he makes the sea like an ointment jar.
³² He leaves a shining wake behind him;^[r]
one would think the deep had grey hair!
³³ He has no equal on earth –
a creature devoid of fear!
³⁴ He surveys everything that is haughty;
he is king over all the proud beasts.^[s](X)(Y)