The Meaning of Job 41:1 Explained

Job 41:1

KJV: Canst thou draw out leviathan with an hook? or his tongue with a cord which thou lettest down?

YLT: Dost thou draw leviathan with an angle? And with a rope thou lettest down -- his tongue?

Darby: Wilt thou draw out the leviathan with the hook, and press down his tongue with a cord?

ASV: Canst thou draw out leviathan with a fishhook? Or press down his tongue with a cord?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Canst thou draw out  leviathan  with an hook?  or his tongue  with a cord  [which] thou lettest down? 

What does Job 41:1 Mean?

Context Summary

Job 41:1-34 - The Parable Of The Crocodile
The last paragraph described the hippopotamus; the whole of this chapter is devoted to the crocodile. In a series of striking questions the voice of the Almighty suggests his greatness. He is not an animal with whom you can play, or to whom you can speak soft words, or whose skin can be reached withsharpened weapons. His scales, Job 41:12-17; his eyes, mouth, and nostrils, Job 41:18-24; his fearlessness of human attack, Job 41:25-29; his power to lash the sea into a fury, making it to boil, Job 41:30-34 -each of these features is described in graphic terms.
As before, it is clear that the object is to throw into strong contrast the puniness and littleness of man. We may not be so much given to speculations about the organic world in which we live. But we are able to appreciate the argument. Surely He who tells the number of the stars, and weighs the mountains in scales, will have His pathway through the deep, and His footsteps in mighty waters. Being all that He is, He cannot but baffle the eye of man, but the heart can fully trust Him. We know that He does all things well. [source]

Chapter Summary: Job 41

1  Of God's great power in the leviathan

What do the individual words in Job 41:1 mean?

Can you draw out Leviathan with a hook Or with a line [which] you lower [snare] his tongue
תִּמְשֹׁ֣ךְ לִוְיָתָ֣ן ؟ בְּחַכָּ֑ה וּ֝בְחֶ֗בֶל תַּשְׁקִ֥יעַ ؟ לְשֹׁנֽוֹ

תִּמְשֹׁ֣ךְ  Can  you  draw  out 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: מָשַׁךְ  
Sense: to draw, drag, seize.
לִוְיָתָ֣ן  Leviathan 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: לִוְיָתָן  
Sense: leviathan, sea monster, dragon.
؟ בְּחַכָּ֑ה  with  a  hook 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular
Root: חַכָּה  
Sense: hook, angle, hook fastened in jaw, fish hook.
וּ֝בְחֶ֗בֶל  Or  with  a  line 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular
Root: חֶבֶל 
Sense: a cord, rope, territory, band, company.
תַּשְׁקִ֥יעַ  [which]  you  lower 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: שָׁקַע  
Sense: to sink, sink down, subside.
؟ לְשֹׁנֽוֹ  [snare]  his  tongue 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: לָשֹׁון  
Sense: tongue.

What are the major concepts related to Job 41:1?

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