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Leviathan

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Concordances
Nave Topical Bible
• Leviathan
Thompson Chain Reference
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The Topic Concordance
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Torrey Topical Textbook
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Dictionaries
American Tract Society
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Baker's Evangelical Dictionary
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Easton's Bible Dictionary
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Fausset Bible Dictionary
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Holman Bible Dictionary
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Hastings' BibleDictionary
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King James Dictionary
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Morrish Bible Dictionary
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1910 New Catholic Dictionary
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Hawker's Poor Man's Dictionary
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People's Bible Dictionary
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Smith Bible Dictionary
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Webster Dictionary
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Watson's Theological Dictionary
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Encyclopedias
1911 Encyclopedia Britannica
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International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
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Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia
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McClintock and Strong's Bible Encyclopedia
• Leviathan
The Jewish Encyclopedia
• Leviathan and Behemoth
Lexicons
• לִוְיָתָן

lḗ - vi´a - than ( לויתן , liwyāthān ( Job 41:1-34 ), from לוה , lāwāh , "to fold"; compare Arabic name of the wry neck, Iynx torq̱uilla , abū - luwā , from kindred , lawā , "to bend"):

(1) The word "leviathan" also occurs in Isaiah 27:1 , where it is characterized as "the swift serpent ... the crooked serpent"; in Psalm 104:26 , where a marine monster is indicated; also in Psalm 74:14 and Job 3:8 . The description in Job 41 has been thought by some to refer to the whale, but while the whale suits better the expressions denoting great strength, the words apply best on the whole to the crocodile. Moreover, the whale is very seldom found in the Mediterranean, while the crocodile is abundant in the Nile, and has been known to occur in at least one river of Palestine, the Zarḳa , North of Jaffa. For a discussion of the behemoth and leviathan as mythical creatures, see EB , under the word "Behemoth" and "Leviathan." The points in the description which may well apply to the crocodile are the great invulnerability, the strong and close scales, the limbs and the teeth. It must be admitted that there are many expressions which a modern scientist would not use with reference to the crocodile, but the Book of Job is neither modern nor scientific, but poetical and ancient.

(2) See ASTRONOMY , II, 2,5.