Job 40 Footnotes

40:15-24 Although skeptics ridicule the existence of such a beast as this “Behemoth,” critical scholars attempt to relate it to an ancient mythological beast. Some suggest an allusion to the “Bull of Heaven” found in the ancient Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh, others relate it to the monstrous, ferocious bullock that the goddess Anat defeated. Because Job is invited to consider a creature known to him (v. 15), most commentators identify Behemoth with some large, ferocious animal such as a buffalo, dinosaur, rhinoceros, or hippopotamus. Although all identifications are tenuous, the hippopotamus appears to be the most likely reference, despite the description of his short tail as being “like a cedar tree” (v. 17). Although Egyptian royalty regularly sponsored hunts for the hippopotamus, only God would metaphorically dare to face the Behemoth alone with a sword (v. 19).