Job 41:4 Komentář

The description here given of the leviathan, a very large, strong, formidable fish, or water-animal, is designed yet further to convince Job of his own impotency, and of God's omnipotence, that he might be humbled for his folly in making so bold with him as he had done. I. To convince Job of his own weakness he is here challenged to subdue and tame this leviathan if he can, and make himself master of him (Job 41:1-9), and, since he cannot do this, he must own himself utterly unable to stand before the great God (Job 41:10). II. To convince Job of God's power and terrible majesty several particular instances are here given of the strength and terror of the leviathan, which is no more than what God has given him, nor more than he has under his check, (Job 41:11, Job 41:12). The face of the leviathan is here described to be terrible (Job 41:12, Job 41:14), his scales close (Job 41:15-17), his breath and neesings sparkling (Job 41:18-21), his flesh firm (Job 41:22-24), his strength and spirit, when he is attacked, insuperable (Job 41:25-30), his motions turbulent, and disturbing to the waters (Job 41:31, Job 41:32), so that, upon the whole, he is a very terrible creature, and man is no match for him (Job 41:33, Job 41:34).

INTRODUCTION TO JOB 41 A large description is here given of the leviathan, from the difficulty and danger of taking it, from whence it is inferred that none can stand before God, Job 41:1; from the several parts of him, his face, teeth, scales, eyes, mouth and neck, flesh and heart, Job 41:11; and from various wonderful terrible things said of him, and ascribed to him, Job 41:25.

Will he make a covenant with thee?.... To live in friendship or servitude, as follows; wilt thou take him for a servant for ever? oblige him to serve thee for life, or reduce him to perpetual bondage; signifying, that he is not to be tamed or brought into subjection; which is true of the whale, but not of the crocodile; for several authors (i) speak of them as making a sort of a truce with the priests of Egypt for a certain time, and of their being tamed so as to be handled, and fed, and brought up in the house. (i) Herodot, ut supra, (Euterpe, sive, l. 2.) c. 69. Aelian. l. 8. c. 2. & l. 10. c. 21. Solin. c. 45. Plin. l. 8. c. 46.

Will he make a covenant with thee? And wilt thou take him for a servant for ever? 28. Thou understandest, As I. But it must be carefully observed, that this Leviathan makes a covenant with the Lord, in order to be counted His servant for ever. For in a covenant the wishes of parties who are at variance are fulfilled, that each attains to what it desires, and terminates its quarrels by the desired result. The ancient enemy, therefore, when kindled by the torch of his malice, is at variance with the purity of the Divine innocence, but even in his variance, disagrees not with His judgment. For he is ever maliciously seeking to tempt righteous men. But yet the Lord permits this to take place, either mercifully, or righteously. This liberty to tempt is, therefore, called a 'covenant,' wherein the desire of the tempter is effected, and yet the will of the righteous Dispenser is thereby wonderfully fulfilled. For, as we have lately said, the Lord frequently subjects His Elect to the tempter, in order to be instructed; just as after the barriers of Paradise, after the secrets of the third heaven, an angel of Satan was given to Paul that he might not be exalted by the greatness of the revelations. [2 Cor. 12, 7] But, as we have said before, it is so ordered in this very temptation, that they who could perish from pride, are, by being humbled, preserved from destruction. In the secret course, therefore, of the dispensation, by the iniquity of the devil being permitted to rage, the kindness of God is brought about in mercy. And from this covenant which he is said to make with God, he is rightly described as being taken for a servant. Because he obeys the commands ['nutibus'] of the heavenly grace, just as he exercises the wrath of his most evil will. He is, therefore, a servant by agreement, who when permitted to fulfil his own will, is restrained by the will of the counsel of heaven, so as willingly to tempt the Elect of God, as was before said, and unwittingly to prove them by his temptation. 29. But because he promotes in this life the interests of the Elect, as long as he is able to exercise in temptations the evil of his malice; but is said in this place to be taken by the Lord not merely as a servant under an agreement, but a servant for ever; we are compelled to investigate how we can prove that even after the close of the present life, he is a servant of the Lord for ever. For he is no longer permitted to tempt the righteous who are powerful in heavenly happiness, when he is condemned before their eyes to the eternal fires of hell. Because in that heavenly country, in which they are now rewarded for the labours of their temptations, they need not to be disciplined by temptations. But at that time this Leviathan with his body, namely all the reprobate, is consigned to the avenging flames, to be tortured therein for ever. And while the just behold these torments, they praise God in truth more and more, because they both see in themselves the blessing with which they have been rewarded, and in the others witness the punishment which they have themselves escaped. For so will the universe be full of beauty, when both hell justly tortures the ungodly, and eternal felicity justly rewards the righteous. For as a black colour is put as the back ground of a picture, in order that the white or red which is put over it may seem more beautiful; so at that time, God by rightly disposing even of the wicked, increases the happiness of the blessed, by displaying before their eyes the sufferings of the reprobate. And although the joy they derive from the vision of the Lord is not of a kind to increase, yet they feel themselves to be more indebted to their Creator, when they both behold the good with which they perceive they have been justly rewarded, and the evil they have overcome from having been mercifully assisted. If then the temptation of this Leviathan here, and his damnation there, contributes to the benefit of the just, he is a servant for ever, when he unwittingly promotes the glory of God; yea both his just punishment there, and his unjust will here. It follows;

He said this because the demons asked the Lord not to cast them into the abyss, or because Satan said to Christ, “I will give you all these things.” Will he now, he says, implore you with a soft speech? Will he make a covenant with you, and will he stop fighting his war against you?

In another way, it happens by the addition of some obligation which comes about either from some particular contract, which he express when he says, "Will he make a covenant with you?" or by perpetual slavery, which he expresses saying, "and will you take him for your perpetual slave?" These four methods sometimes go in order. For sometimes because of fear someone first offers prayers to a victor, second he flatters, third he submits himself to a contract, and fourth by this contract he is subjected to perpetual slavery. Through all these images we are given to understand that the devil does not fear man so that he offers him as a superior or as one stronger either prayers from fear or flatter or contract or slavery. If he pretends these sorts of things, he deceives man, so that he may subject man to himself rather than be subjected to man.

God's great power in the leviathan, of which creature he gives a very circumstantial description, vv. 1-34.

Will he make a covenant - Canst thou hire him as thou wouldst a servant, who is to be so attached to thy family as to have his ear bored, that he may abide in thy house for ever? Is not this an allusion to the law, Exo 21:1-6?

(Job 41:1-34) leviathan--literally, "the twisted animal," gathering itself in folds: a synonym to the Thannin (Job 3:8, Margin; see Psa 74:14; type of the Egyptian tyrant; Psa 104:26; Isa 27:1; the Babylon tyrant). A poetical generalization for all cetacean, serpentine, and saurian monsters (see on Job 40:15, hence all the description applies to no one animal); especially the crocodile; which is naturally described after the river horse, as both are found in the Nile. tongue . . . lettest down?--The crocodile has no tongue, or a very small one cleaving to the lower jaw. But as in fishing the tongue of the fish draws the baited hook to it, God asks, Canst thou in like manner take leviathan?

Can he be tamed for domestic use (so Job 39:10-12)?