Job 41

1 ‘You cannot catch a crocodile in the same way that you catch a fish.

Nor can you tie its mouth to stop it biting you.

2 You cannot fasten a line to its nose.

Nor can you put a hook in its mouth.

3 It will not ask you to stop being cruel to it.

And it will not speak to you politely.

4 It will not agree to work for you.

And you cannot make it your slave for always.

5 It is not a friendly animal, like a bird that you can keep in your home.

And it is not the kind of animal that your children can play with.

6 No one will buy it to sell it.

And no one will cut it up and try to sell it in shops.

7 You cannot put long knives into its skin to catch it.

Nor can you put a sharp stick into its head to kill it.

8 If you touch it, you will never forget it.

It will fight with you and you will never touch it again!

9 You cannot hope to catch it, because it will always be too strong.

As soon as you see it, you will be afraid of it.

10 No one is silly enough to wake it. Everyone knows that it is too strong.

And I made it! So no one will be able to fight against me.

11 There is nothing that I must pay to anyone.

Everything in the world is mine.

12 Let me tell you all about this animal.

It is strong and it has a large body and powerful legs.

13 Its skin is so thick that no one could remove it.

And people are afraid to go near it.

14 Nobody would try to open its mouth.

Anyone who sees its teeth would be very afraid.

15 Its back has very thick skin to keep it safe.

There are no spaces into which you could put a knife.

16 Each piece of skin is very near the next one.

Not even air can pass between them.

17 There is no space between the pieces of skin.

And no one can separate them.

18 It makes a loud noise and its eyes are very bright.

Its eyes are as red as the sky at dawn.

19 Fire comes from its mouth.

And sparks come out of its mouth.

20 Smoke comes from its nose.

It is like smoke that comes from a fire of weeds under a pot.

21 The air that comes from its mouth can light a fire.

And flames come quickly out of its mouth.

22 Its neck is very strong.

It frightens people when they see it.

23 There is no weak place anywhere on its skin.

Its whole body is as strong as iron.

24 Its front is hard like rock.

It is as hard as a stone.

25 Even strong and brave people are afraid when it moves towards them.

They run away because it might hit them with its tail.

26 No one can hurt it, even with a sword.

None of your sharp weapons can hurt it.

27 It can break iron as easily as a thin stick.

It can break bronze as easily as an old piece of wood.

28 Arrows do not frighten it.

Stones cannot hurt it.

29 A heavy stick seems to it like a piece of dry grass.

It laughs when it hears the sound of a lance.

30 Its stomach is sharp, like bits of a pot that someone has broken.

When it moves along, it leaves marks on the ground, like a plough.

31 The water seems to boil when it swims in it.

When it swims down deep, the water is like a pot of oil.

32 When it moves through the water, the water behind it shines.

The water seems to have become white.

33 Nowhere in the world is there anything that is as strong as this animal.

And it is not afraid of anything.

34 It is stronger than even the strongest of animals.

It is like the king of all the wild animals.’