41 “Can you draw out Leviathan^[a] with a hook,Or snare his tongue with a line which you lower?² Can you put a reed through his nose,Or pierce his jaw with a hook?³ Will he make many supplications to you?Will he speak softly to you?⁴ Will he make a covenant with you?Will you take him as a servant forever?⁵ Will you play with him as with a bird,Or will you leash him for your maidens?⁶ Will your companions make a banquet^[b] of him?Will they apportion him among the merchants?⁷ Can you fill his skin with harpoons,Or his head with fishing spears?⁸ Lay your hand on him;Remember the battle—Never do it again!⁹ Indeed, any hope of overcoming him is false;Shall one not be overwhelmed at the sight of him?¹⁰ No one is so fierce that he would dare stir him up.Who then is able to stand against Me?¹¹ Who has preceded Me, that I should pay him?Everything under heaven is Mine.

¹² “I will not conceal^[c] his limbs,His mighty power, or his graceful proportions.¹³ Who can remove his outer coat?Who can approach him with a double bridle?¹⁴ Who can open the doors of his face,With his terrible teeth all around?¹⁵ His rows of scales are his pride,Shut up tightly as with a seal;¹⁶ One is so near anotherThat no air can come between them;¹⁷ They are joined one to another,They stick together and cannot be parted.¹⁸ His sneezings flash forth light,And his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.¹⁹ Out of his mouth go burning lights;Sparks of fire shoot out.²⁰ Smoke goes out of his nostrils,As from a boiling pot and burning rushes.²¹ His breath kindles coals,And a flame goes out of his mouth.²² Strength dwells in his neck,And sorrow dances before him.²³ The folds of his flesh are joined together;They are firm on him and cannot be moved.²⁴ His heart is as hard as stone,Even as hard as the lower millstone.²⁵ When he raises himself up, the mighty are afraid;Because of his crashings they are beside^[d] themselves.²⁶ Though the sword reaches him, it cannot avail;Nor does spear, dart, or javelin.²⁷ He regards iron as straw,And bronze as rotten wood.²⁸ The arrow cannot make him flee;Slingstones become like stubble to him.²⁹ Darts are regarded as straw;He laughs at the threat of javelins.³⁰ His undersides are like sharp potsherds;He spreads pointed marks in the mire.³¹ He makes the deep boil like a pot;He makes the sea like a pot of ointment.³² He leaves a shining wake behind him;One would think the deep had white hair.³³ On earth there is nothing like him,Which is made without fear.³⁴ He beholds every high thing;He is king over all the children of pride.”