Psalms 74:13-14

74:13 You destroyed ¹  the sea by your strength;

you shattered the heads of the sea monster ²  in the water.

74:14 You crushed the heads of Leviathan; ³ 

you fed ⁴  him to the people who live along the coast. ⁵ 

Isaiah 27:1

27:1 At that time ⁶  the Lord will punish

with his destructive, ⁷  great, and powerful sword

Leviathan the fast-moving ⁸  serpent,

Leviathan the squirming serpent;

he will kill the sea monster. ⁹ 

Isaiah 34:13-14

34:13 Her fortresses will be overgrown with thorns;

thickets and weeds will grow ¹⁰  in her fortified cities.

Jackals will settle there;

ostriches will live there. ¹¹ 

34:14 Wild animals and wild dogs will congregate there; ¹² 

wild goats will bleat to one another. ¹³ 

Yes, nocturnal animals ¹⁴  will rest there

and make for themselves a nest. ¹⁵ 

Isaiah 35:7

35:7 The dry soil will become a pool of water,

the parched ground springs of water.

Where jackals once lived and sprawled out,

grass, reeds, and papyrus will grow.

Ezekiel 29:3

29:3 Tell them, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:

“‘Look, I am against ¹⁶  you, Pharaoh king of Egypt,

the great monster ¹⁷  lying in the midst of its waterways,

who has said, “My Nile is my own, I made it for myself.” ¹⁸ 

Revelation 12:9

12:9 So ¹⁹  that huge dragon – the ancient serpent, the one called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world – was thrown down to the earth, and his angels along with him.

Revelation 13:2

13:2 Now ²⁰  the beast that I saw was like a leopard, but its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. The ²¹  dragon gave the beast ²²  his power, his throne, and great authority to rule. ²³ 

Revelation 13:11-13

13:11 Then ²⁴  I saw another beast ²⁵  coming up from the earth. He ²⁶  had two horns like a lamb, ²⁷  but ²⁸  was speaking like a dragon. 13:12 He ²⁹  exercised all the ruling authority ³⁰  of the first beast on his behalf, ³¹  and made the earth and those who inhabit it worship the first beast, the one whose lethal wound had been healed. 13:13 He ³²  performed momentous signs, even making fire come down from heaven in front of people ³³ 

Revelation 16:10

16:10 Then ³⁴  the fifth angel ³⁵  poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast so that ³⁶  darkness covered his kingdom, ³⁷  and people ³⁸  began to bite ³⁹  their tongues because ⁴⁰  of their pain.

[74:13]  ¹ tn The derivation and meaning of the Polel verb form פּוֹרַרְתָּ (porarta) are uncertain. The form may be related to an Akkadian cognate meaning “break, shatter,” though the biblical Hebrew cognate of this verb always appears in the Hiphil or Hophal stem. BDB 830 s.v. II פָּרַר suggests a homonym here, meaning “to split; to divide.” A Hitpolel form of a root פָּרַר (parar) appears in Isa 24:19 with the meaning “to shake violently.”

[74:13]  ² tn The Hebrew text has the plural form, “sea monsters” (cf. NRSV “dragons”), but it is likely that an original enclitic mem has been misunderstood as a plural ending. The imagery of the mythological sea monster is utilized here. See the note on “Leviathan” in v. 14.

[74:14]  ³ sn You crushed the heads of Leviathan. The imagery of vv. 13-14 originates in West Semitic mythology. The description of Leviathan should be compared with the following excerpts from Ugaritic mythological texts: (1) “Was not the dragon [Ugaritic tnn, cognate with Hebrew תַּנִין (tanin), translated “sea monster” in v. 13] vanquished and captured? I did destroy the wriggling [Ugaritic ’qltn, cognate to Hebrew עֲקַלָּתוֹן (’aqallaton), translated “squirming” in Isa 27:1] serpent, the tyrant with seven heads” (note the use of the plural “heads” here and in v. 13). (See CTA 3.iii.38-39 in G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 50.) (2) “For all that you smote Leviathan the slippery [Ugaritic brh, cognate to Hebrew בָּרִחַ (bariakh), translated “fast moving” in Isa 27:1] serpent, [and] made an end of the wriggling serpent, the tyrant with seven heads” (See CTA 5.i.1-3 in G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 68.) In the myths Leviathan is a sea creature that symbolizes the destructive water of the sea and, in turn, the forces of chaos that threaten the established order. In the OT, the battle with the sea motif is applied to Yahweh’s victories over the forces of chaos at creation and in history (see Pss 74:13-14; 77:16-20; 89:9-10; Isa 51:9-10). Yahweh’s subjugation of the waters of chaos is related to his kingship (see Pss 29:3, 10; 93:3-4). Isa 27:1 applies imagery from Canaanite mythology to Yahweh’s eschatological victory over his enemies. Apocalyptic literature employs the imagery as well. The beasts of Dan 7 emerge from the sea, while Rev 13 speaks of a seven-headed beast coming from the sea. Here in Ps 74:13-14 the primary referent is unclear. The psalmist may be describing God’s creation of the world (note vv. 16-17 and see Ps 89:9-12), when he brought order out of a watery mass, or the exodus (see Isa 51:9-10), when he created Israel by destroying the Egyptians in the waters of the sea.

[74:14]  ⁴ tn The prefixed verbal form is understood as a preterite in this narrational context.

[74:14]  ⁵ sn You fed him to the people. This pictures the fragments of Leviathan’s dead corpse washing up on shore and being devoured by those who find them. If the exodus is in view, then it may allude to the bodies of the dead Egyptians which washed up on the shore of the Red Sea (see Exod 14:30).

[27:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV).

[27:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “hard, severe”; cf. NAB, NRSV “cruel”; KJV “sore”; NLT “terrible.”

[27:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “fleeing” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV). Some translate “slippery” or “slithering.”

[27:1]  ⁹ tn The description of Leviathan should be compared with the following excerpts from Ugaritic mythological texts: (1) “Was not the dragon (Ugaritic tnn, cognate with Hebrew תַנִּין [tannin, translated “sea monster” here]) vanquished and captured? I did destroy the wriggling (Ugaritic ’qltn, cognate to Hebrew עֲקַלָּתוֹן [’aqallaton, translated “squirming” here]) serpent, the tyrant with seven heads (cf. Ps 74:14).” (See CTA 3 iii 38-39.) (2) “for all that you smote Leviathan the slippery (Ugaritic brh, cognate to Hebrew בָּרִחַ [bariakh, translated “fast-moving” here]) serpent, [and] made an end of the wriggling serpent, the tyrant with seven heads” (See CTA 5 i 1-3.)

[34:13]  ¹⁰ tn The words “will grow” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[34:13]  ¹¹ tc Heb “and she will be a settlement for wild dogs, a dwelling place for ostriches.” The translation assumes an emendation of חָצִיר (khatsir, “grass”) to חָצֵר (khatser, “settlement”). One of the Qumran scrolls of Isaiah (1QIsa^a) supports this emendation (cf. HALOT 344 s.v. II חָצִיר)

[34:14]  ¹² tn Heb “will meet” (so NIV); NLT “will mingle there.”

[34:14]  ¹³ tn Heb “and a goat will call to its neighbor.”

[34:14]  ¹⁴ tn The precise meaning of לִּילִית (lilit) is unclear, though in this context the word certainly refers to some type of wild animal or bird. The word appears to be related to לַיְלָה (laylah, “night”). Some interpret it as the name of a female night demon, on the basis of an apparent Akkadian cognate used as the name of a demon. Later Jewish legends also identified Lilith as a demon. Cf. NRSV “Lilith.”

[34:14]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and will find for themselves a resting place.”

[29:3]  ¹⁶ tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8.

[29:3]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “jackals,” but many medieval Hebrew mss read correctly “the serpent.” The Hebrew term appears to refer to a serpent in Exod 7:9-10, 12; Deut 32:33; and Ps 91:13. It also refers to large creatures that inhabit the sea (Gen 1:21; Ps 148:7). In several passages it is associated with the sea or with the multiheaded sea monster Leviathan (Job 7:12; Ps 74:13; Isa 27:1; 51:9). Because of the Egyptian setting of this prophecy and the reference to the creature’s scales (v. 4), many understand a crocodile to be the referent here (e.g., NCV “a great crocodile”; TEV “you monster crocodile”; CEV “a giant crocodile”).

[29:3]  ¹⁸ sn In Egyptian theology Pharaoh owned and controlled the Nile. See J. D. Currid, Ancient Egypt and the Old Testament, 240-44.

[12:9]  ¹⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the result of the war in heaven.

[13:2]  ²⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the parenthetical nature of the following description of the beast.

[13:2]  ²¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[13:2]  ²² tn Grk “gave it”; the referent (the beast) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:2]  ²³ tn For the translation “authority to rule” for ἐξουσία (exousia) see L&N 37.35.

[13:11]  ²⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[13:11]  ²⁵ sn This second beast is identified in Rev 16:13 as “the false prophet.”

[13:11]  ²⁶ tn Grk “and it had,” a continuation of the preceding sentence. On the use of the pronoun “he” to refer to the second beast, see the note on the word “It” in 13:1.

[13:11]  ²⁷ tn Or perhaps, “like a ram.” Here L&N 4.25 states, “In the one context in the NT, namely, Re 13:11, in which ἀρνίον refers literally to a sheep, it is used in a phrase referring to the horns of an ἀρνίον. In such a context the reference is undoubtedly to a ‘ram,’ that is to say, the adult male of sheep.” In spite of this most translations render the word “lamb” here to maintain the connection between this false lamb and the true Lamb of the Book of Revelation, Jesus Christ.

[13:11]  ²⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[13:12]  ²⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[13:12]  ³⁰ tn For the translation “ruling authority” for ἐξουσία (exousia) see L&N 37.35.

[13:12]  ³¹ tn For this meaning see BDAG 342 s.v. ἐνώπιον 4.b, “by the authority of, on behalf of Rv 13:12, 14; 19:20.”

[13:13]  ³² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[13:13]  ³³ tn This is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo"), referring to both men and women.

[16:10]  ³⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[16:10]  ³⁵ tn Grk “the fifth”; the referent (the fifth angel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:10]  ³⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so that” to indicate the implied result of the fifth bowl being poured out.

[16:10]  ³⁷ tn Grk “his kingdom became dark.”

[16:10]  ³⁸ tn Grk “men,” but this is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") and refers to both men and women.

[16:10]  ³⁹ tn On this term BDAG 620 s.v. μασάομαι states, “bite w. acc. τὰς γλώσσας bite their tongues Rv 16:10.”

[16:10]  ⁴⁰ tn The preposition ἐκ (ek) has been translated here and twice in the following verse with a causal sense.