Previous
Chapter 40
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Book of Job, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Suffering and Divine Justice
The Mystery of God
Human Wisdom vs. Divine Wisdom
Faith in Suffering
Summary
Analysis
Can Job draw Leviathan out with a fishhook? Can he put a rope in its nose? Can he play with it or put it on a leash for a children’s pet? Indeed, he couldn’t even hope to capture it; it’s so fierce that nobody dares confront it. God speaks of Leviathan’s “coat of mail” and terrifying teeth; “its sneezes flash forth light,” and it breathes fire. No weapon—sword, spear, or javelin—can pierce it. This fearless creature is king over all lesser creatures.
Here, God continues to question Job regarding the mysteries of creation, vividly describing a mysterious dragon-like being that terrifies all other creatures, but frolics like a harmless pet for God. Like Behemoth, Leviathan’s precise identity isn’t certain; it could be a crocodile, or it could be a mythical beast. The bigger point is that no, Job could never catch such a creature—God alone can.
Themes
