Britannica classifies the Leviathan as a sea serpent that represents Israel’s enemies and the Behemoth as a powerful hippopotamus. But what are they really? Do they have a deeper meaning? Or are they simply animals that walked the earth? Both of these creatures appear in the book of Job. The Leviathan is also found in other places throughout the Bible in Psalm, Revelation, Isaiah and even sources of mythology. However, the Behemoth is only found in Job 40:14-24. These creatures have puzzled Christians for a number of years, and due to their air of mystery, a lot of self-interpretation goes along with these creatures. Needless to say, there are many possible theories surrounding these creatures of mystery. In order to come to a more solid conclusion, we will be shedding some light on a few of these possible explanations, including what each creature is and its role in the book of Job. Finally, based on our research, we will give our personal thoughts on what we feel is the most accurate theory.
The first theory surrounding the Behemoth and Leviathan is that they are actual creatures that walk (or walked) the earth. Wilson suggests that when the Bible mentions them and talks about how large they are that it is simply the author making them more colorful due to a lack of true knowledge about them (3). The name Behemoth is the “plural of majesty” of the ordinary word for animal, or in other words, an animal of excellence. The most common animal that the Behemoth is attributed to is the hippopotamus. There is a focus on the strength of the loins and belly, which is true of the common hippo. Some scholars believe that the section about the “tail of cedar” is a major downfall for the hippo theory, since hippos have a very small tail. H...
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...n J. Allen. Vol. 4. Nashville: Broadman, 1971. 145-49. Print.
Life Application Study Bible. NIV ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005. Print.
26 Mar. 2012.
"Leviathan." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2012. Web. 23 Mar. 2012. .
The New Interpreter's Bible. Vol. 4. Nashville: Abingdon, 1996. Print.
Smick, Elmer B. "Another Look At The Mythological Elements In The Book Of Job." Westminster Theological Journal 40.2 (1978): 213-228.
Walton, John H., ed. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary. Vol. 5. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009: 296-302. Print.
Wilson, Kinnier, J V. "Return To The Problems Of Behemoth And Leviathan." Vetus Testamentum 25.1 (1975): 1-14. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials. Web
The Model Hippopotamus is small and three dimensional, it can fit in a person’s hands. Small objects and artifacts were popular during the Middle Kingdom. Although, the hippopotamus is small, it does not take away from the viewpoint. One can see the Model Hippopotamus
Joines, Karen Randolph. Serpent Symbolism in the Old Testament: A Linguistic, Archaeological, and Literary Study. Haddonfield, NJ: Haddonfield House, 1974. Print.
In Chapter 69, the narrator vividly describes the image of a recently captured, decapitated sperm whale bleakly floating about near the Pequod while sharks and birds feast upon its dead remains. Despite the degrading imagery of, “the air above vexed with rapacious flights of screaming fowls, whose beaks are like so many insulting poniards in the whale,” the whale has still, “not perceptibly lost anything in bulk...it is still colossal,” (257). In the spite of its crude carcass, there is still human wonderment in regards to the indisputable massivity of the whale. However, the whale is not considered to be enormous just because of its literal size, but also because of the long-lasting effect its dead body will have on future ship encounters. It is the duty of a ship captain to avoid steering a ship into dangerous territory--the most common of which would be large rocks near the shore. In the lines, “...the whale’s unharming corpse, with trembling fingers is set down in the log-- shoals, rocks, and breakers hereabouts: beware!”, (257), the sperm whale’s carcass is often mistaken for rocks and, so, it necessarily follows that, “for years afterwards, perhaps, ships shun the place; leaping over it as silly sheep leap over a vacuum…” (257). The paragraph continues with the lines, “there’s your law of precedents; there’s your utility of traditions; there’s the story of your obstinate survival of old beliefs never bottomed on the earth…” (257), which reinforce the idea that since the sperm whale is already seen as being frightening and mysterious, its dead body ensues the same kinds of paranoid, uneasy thoughts. So, although
Beowulf outlines turmoil between three opponents: Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the Dragon. These separate discords each serve to fulfill different metaphoric purposes. Grendel’s character epitomizes the adverse persona of how an Anglo-Saxon warrior should not be. His mother represents everything that a woman during the time era should seldom be. Lastly, the Dragon embodies all the values that an Anglo-Saxon king should not dare retain. Without a doubt, the symbolic implications of the monsters in Beowulf bring the context to a new level of understanding.
The Leviathan was a work of literature that contributed to society in many ways. It had more negatives than positives. But it is still remembered as a very important work of literature in western civilization. Thomas Hobbes wrote this as a radical description on how he believes society should be run.
There are three prominent monsters in the Beowulf text, Grendel, his mother, and the dragon. While the dragon proves to be the most fatale of foes for Beowulf, Grendel and his mother do not simply pose physical threats to the Germanic society; their roles in Beowulf are manifold. They challenge the perceptions of heroism, a sense of unrivalled perfection and superiority. Moreover, they allow the reader to reconsider the gender constructs upheld within the text; one cannot help but feel that the threat that these monsters present is directed towards the prevalent flaws in Beowulf’s world. Moreover, what makes these monsters is not their physical appearance; it is what they embody. Both Grendel and his mother have humanlike qualities yet their monstrous appearance arises from what their features and mannerisms represent. The challenge they pose to societal paradigms makes them far more terrifying to our heroes than any scaled flesh or clawing hand. These monsters provide the ‘most authoritative general criticism […] of the structure and conduct of the poem’. Their presence provides contrast and criticism of the brave society (Heaney 103).
Mercatante, Anthony S., and James R. Dow. The Facts on File Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend. New York, NY: Facts on File, 2004. 816. Print.
One of the most interesting qualities of Greek mythology is probably the depiction of monsters in the myths. However, these monsters are not all unique. In fact, they all fall into very distinct categories, making them almost the same. Most monsters in Greek mythology look and act in the same ways. Several monsters from these myths look the same in that they have very similar qualities such as being large, snake or human like. However, they are also very alike in that they behave in very similar ways, from guarding something or roaming freely and causing chaos. Generally, the monsters in Greek mythology follow this outline and are depicted in a way to show these qualities.
Flood stories have been a common thread in many religions across the globe. One of the stories we are most familiar with in our culture, the story of Noah’s Ark, is a well-known segment of the old testament, and an interesting story of how God punished the world for how corrupt it had become. God accomplished this by flooding the world, and annihilating all the creatures upon it, save for Noah and his family and a pair of each type of creature on the earth . This story, however, has roots deep in the past, some of which have only come to light with the development of new archeological techniques and technology. As more and more is found out about the era from when this story originates, discoveries are made as to the origin of the story, what tale it was based upon, and as to the authenticity that such an event may have actually even occurred, if on a somewhat smaller scale. Based on the information available at the present time, one can make fairly confident inferences as to the root of this story. One could argue that the story of Noah’s Ark was based on the Epic of Gilgamesh, and that in turn was based on older stories that were based on a real flood of the Black Sea.
This essay will compare and contrast Greek mythology’s The Theogony by Hesiod and the Babylonian creation story found in the Enuma Elish. Both creation myths start off with an empty universe in a formless state. Two chief god entities materialize from this state of nothingness, one represented as a male and the other as a female.
Through studies such as comparative mythology, researchers and philosophers have discover hundreds of parallels between the myths that make up every culture, including their creation myths. As most are deeply rooted in religion, comparisons based on geographic area, themes, and similar story lines emerge as religions form and migrate. Campbell recognized these similarities an...
The Book of Job from the Old Testament is a story in which an attempt is made by the Hebrew author to justify the unjustifiable actions of a seemingly malevolent god. The questioning by Job as to why the "good" must suffer is induced by a childish challenge, put forth by Satan and accepted by God, to test the loyalty of Job toward God. The uncharacteristic actions of a supposedly omni benevolent God must be justified in the eyes of his followers, and in the process of doing so, God is made to look like nothing more than an omnipotent child.
Hesiod’s Theogony and the Babylonian Enuma Elish are both myths that begin as creation myths, explaining how the universe and, later on, humans came to be. These types of myths exist in every culture and, while the account of creation in Hesiod’s Theogony and the Enuma Elish share many similarities, the two myths differ in many ways as well. Both myths begin creation from where the universe is a formless state, from which the primordial gods emerge. The idea of the earth and sky beginning as one and then being separated is also expressed in both myths.
Satan first appears in the Hebrew Bible as not evil but a dissenter to God. On the contrary he also appears as one of God's servants in the book of Numbers and in Job. In the Hebrew Bible, the angels were also called "'sons of God'." Pagel states in her essay that Hebrew term the satan describes am adversarial role. In the early sixth century Hebrew story tellers introduced supernatural character, satan, as one...
Myths organize the way we perceive and understand our reality. Myths grant stability to a culture, and in this respect; serve to explain the unexplainable. From Barbra Sproul’s perspective, creation myths reveal basic religious concerns pertaining to how the universe was formed, and how people or societies are fashioned. Myths speak of the transcendent and unknowable aspects in a drama that attempt to reveal and give reason to human existence and where man stands in the cosmos. Through myth, the dimensions of space, nature and time are expressed in symbolisms that show how the holy can be experienced or conveyed if understood properly.