Job 40:15

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Job 40:15-24

God, for the further proving of his own power and disproving of Job's pretensions, concludes his discourse with the description of two vast and mighty animals, far exceeding man in bulk and strength, one he calls behemoth, the other leviathan. In these verses we have the former described. ?Behold now behemoth, and consider whether thou art able to contend with him who made that beast and gave him all the power he has, and whether it is not thy wisdom rather to submit to him and make thy peace... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Job 40:15

Behold, now behemoth ,.... The word is plural, and signifies beasts, and may be used to denote the chiefest and largest of beasts, and therefore is commonly understood of the elephant; and certain it is that a single beast is described in the following account, and so the word is rendered, Psalm 73:22 ; The word is here rendered by the Septuagint θηρια , "beasts"; which is the word used by the Greeks F3 Suidas in voce θηρια . Plutarch in Eumenc. for elephants as "belluae", a word... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Job 40:15

Behold now behemoth - The word בהמות behemoth is the plural of בהמה behemah , which signifies cattle in general, or graminivorous animals, as distinguished from חיתו chayetho , all wild or carnivorous animals. See Genesis 1:24 . The former seems to mean kine, horses, asses, sheep, etc., and all employed in domestic or agricultural matters; the latter, all wild and savage beasts, such as lions, bears, tigers, etc.: but the words are not always taken in these senses. In this... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 40:6-24

Job's confession not having been sufficiently ample, the Divine discourse is continued through the remainder of this chapter, and through the whole of the next, the object being to break down the last remnants of pride and self-trust in the soul of the patriarch, and to bring him to complete submission and dependence on the Divine will. The argument falls under three heads—Can Job cope with God in his general providence (verses 6-14)? can he even cope with two of God's creatures—with behemoth... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 40:15

Behold now behemoth . "Behemoth" is ordinarily the plural of behemah "a beast;" but it is scarcely possible to understand the word in this sense in the present passage, where it seems to be a noun singular, being followed by singular verbs, and represented by singular pronouns. Hence modern critics almost unanimously regard the word here as designating "some particular animal." The mammoth, the rhinoceros, the hippopotamus, and the elephant have been suggested. Of these the mammoth is... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 40:15-24

This passage, together with the whole of Job 41:1-34 ; has been regarded by some critics as an interpolation. Its omission would certainly not affect the argument; and it is thought, in some respects, to contain traces of a later age than that which most commentators assign to the remainder of the book, or, at any rate, to the greater portion of it. The recurrence to the animal creation, when the subject seemed to have been completed ( Job 39:30 ), is also a difficulty. But, on the other... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 40:15-24

Jehovah to Job: the second answer: 2. Concerning behemoth. I. THE RELATION OF BEHEMOTH TO OTHER ANIMALS . "He is the chief of the ways of God" (verse 19). This huge monster, this giant among beasts, as perhaps the above-cited phrase indicates, is commonly supposed to have been the hippopotamus, or Nile-horse. It is here described by a variety of particulars. 1 . Its terrific strength. Concerning this are noted: 2 . Its herbivorous appetite. "He eateth grass as an... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 40:15-24

Behemoth the great. Two monster animals, the hippopotamus and the crocodile, are set before us in typical characteristics, to idealize the great works of God in the animal kingdom. I. GOD IS THE CREATOR OF THE ANIMAL WORLD . "God made the beast of the earth after his kind" ( Genesis 1:25 ). We have not left the presence of God when we have come to study natural history. Here we may see indications of Divine thought. Even the coarsest wild animals are under the care of... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Job 40:15

Behold now behemoth - Margin, “or, the elephant, as some think.” In the close of the argument, God appeals to two animals as among the chief of his works, and as illustrating more than any others his power and majesty - the behemoth and the leviathan. A great variety of opinions has been entertained in regard to the animal referred to here, though the “main” inquiry has related to the question whether the “elephant” or the “hippopotamus” is denoted. Since the time of Bochart, who has gone into... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Job 40:15

Job 40:15. Behold now behemoth The word properly means beasts, and is so understood by the LXX., whose interpretation of the verse is, ιδου θηρια παρα σοι , χορτυν ισα βουσιν εσθιουσιν , Behold the beasts with thee, they eat grass, like oxen. According to Ab. Ezra, and the Targum, it is the name of any great beast. But R. Levi says, bestiam esse specialem, that it is an animal peculiarly called by that name. This, indeed, is probable from what follows, namely, His strength is in... read more

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