Sea monsters and other mythical creatures associated with the primeval flood in the Old Testament. A history of denial?

Abstract

Leviathan and the other sea-monsters in the Hebrew Bible have been a source of dissension amongst biblical scholars. Evidently, no consensus exists amongst them on how to translate the Hebrew words referring to these mythical monsters. Therefore,atendency developed amongst exegetes to transfigure these mythical beasts into ordinary animals, to translate them in a vague and general way or to interpret them as mere symbols. This study, therefore, investigates ways in which the assumed existence of mythical creatures in the OT are denied, identified, or rejected. To gain a better understanding of the nature and function of these mythical creatures in the OT, similar creatures in the Ancient Near East (ANE) have been examined with a focus on sea-monsters and dragons associated with the primeval sea. These findings propose not only a more distinct epitome of Leviathan, but also of other monsters associated with the primeval waters asdepicted in the OT. These are Rahab, םנִּ ינִּ תַּ(tanninim), behemoth and the לוֹד֔ גגדָ(Jonah’s big fish). It was concluded that when these beasts are interpreted in the light of the magico-mythical cosmology of the ANE and the OT, they should be seen as mythical creatures, assumed to be real by the ancient audience of the biblical text. When striving for fidelity to and loyalty with regard to both the text and the current reader, any translation should, therefore, present the foreignness of these monsters or dragons to the contemporary reader.