Job 41: To Tame The Dragon

“Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook
or press down his tongue with a cord?
2     Can you put a rope in his nose
or pierce his jaw with a hook?
3     Will he make many pleas to you?
Will he speak to you soft words?
4     Will he make a covenant with you
to take him for your servant forever?
5     Will you play with him as with a bird,
or will you put him on a leash for your girls?
6     Will traders bargain over him?
Will they divide him up among the merchants?
7     Can you fill his skin with harpoons
or his head with fishing spears?
8     Lay your hands on him;
remember the battle—you will not do it again!
9     Behold, the hope of a man is false;
he is laid low even at the sight of him.
10    No one is so fierce that he dares to stir him up.
Who then is he who can stand before me?
11    Who has first given to me, that I should repay him?
Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine.
12    “I will not keep silence concerning his limbs,
or his mighty strength, or his goodly frame.
13    Who can strip off his outer garment?
Who would come near him with a bridle?
14    Who can open the doors of his face?
Around his teeth is terror.
15    His back is made of rows of shields,
shut up closely as with a seal.
16    One is so near to another
that no air can come between them.
17    They are joined one to another;
they clasp each other and cannot be separated.
18    His sneezings flash forth light,
and his eyes are like the eyelids of the dawn.
19    Out of his mouth go flaming torches;
sparks of fire leap forth.
20    Out of his nostrils comes forth smoke,
as from a boiling pot and burning rushes.
21    His breath kindles coals,
and a flame comes forth from his mouth.
22    In his neck abides strength,
and terror dances before him.
23    The folds of his flesh stick together,
firmly cast on him and immovable.
24    His heart is hard as a stone,
hard as the lower millstone.
25    When he raises himself up, the mighty are afraid;
at the crashing they are beside themselves.
26    Though the sword reaches him, it does not avail,
nor the spear, the dart, or the javelin.
27    He counts iron as straw,
and bronze as rotten wood.
28    The arrow cannot make him flee;
for him, sling stones are turned to stubble.
29    Clubs are counted as stubble;
he laughs at the rattle of javelins.
30    His underparts are like sharp potsherds;
he spreads himself like a threshing sledge on the mire.
31    He makes the deep boil like a pot;
he makes the sea like a pot of ointment.
32    Behind him he leaves a shining wake;
one would think the deep to be white-haired.
33    On earth there is not his like,
a creature without fear.
34    He sees everything that is high;
he is king over all the sons of pride.”
 
Meditation
God is sovereign over the devil, darkness, death, and demons. Jesus proved these truths and today’s reading invites us to participate in them. Yes, we should tremble at the power of Satan, but the authority of King Jesus gives peace.
 
When reading this passage you know what Job did not know, Satan had sought permission to persecute Job (Job 1 and 2). God imaginatively reveals His authority over Satan by walking Job to the shoreline of where he stays.
 
The leviathan is terrifying, a fire-breathing sea dragon who laughs at humans who attempt attack. He is an untamable creature of the “mire… deep… sea,” (30-31) the king of pride (31) and chaos. No one considers stirring up the Leviathan. Yet God rules over the beast (10).
 
The mythical beast is detailed in scripture to illustrate Satan. He is a “fleeing, twisting” serpent of the sea (Isaiah 27:1) with multiple heads (Psalm 74:12-14). Yet God gave him the sea as a place to stay (Psalm 104:25-26). This imagery directly correlates with Satan, the great dragon who deceives the world (Revelation 12:9) and the serpent who has been bound by the authority of King Jesus (Revelation 20:2).
 
The king of pride is the prince of demons (Matthew 12:24), domesticated and defeated by the work of King Jesus. Yes, we must beware the dragon who is the devil in the same way we are aware and guard against raging flood waters after heavy rain. But this is greatly outsized by reverence for our victorious King who redeems the terror and torrent of the devil to fill a reservoir of grace, love, life, and hope.
 
Richly Dwelling
-What stands out to you from today’s reading, especially the detailed description of the Leviathan?
 
-Why is being aware of and guarding against the devil (who is the dragon) important in cultivating a healthy reverence for the Lord?
 
-How does Jesus’ authority over the devil and his work develop worship from our hearts? Where do you need to right size your fear of death and the devil by seeing the sovereignty of King Jesus freshly?
 
Key verse
10    No one is so fierce that he dares to stir him up. Who then is he who can stand before me?