Behemoth

Behemoth is an animal mentioned in the book of Job.

Biblical description

Job 40:15-24 records the following:

15 Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox.

16 Lo now, his strength is in his loins, and his force is in the navel of his belly.

17 He moveth his tail like a cedar: the sinews of his stones are wrapped together.

18 His bones are as strong pieces of brass; his bones are like bars of iron.

19 He is the chief of the ways of God: he that made him can make his sword to approach unto him.

20 Surely the mountains bring him forth food, where all the beasts of the field play.

21 He lieth under the shady trees, in the covert of the reed, and fens.

22 The shady trees cover him with their shadow; the willows of the brook compass him about.

23 Behold, he drinketh up a river, and hasteth not: he trusteth that he can draw up Jordan into his mouth.

24 He taketh it with his eyes: his nose pierceth through snares.

Interpretations on who could Behemoth represent

Elephant

The 1599 Geneva Bible footnote identifies Behemoth as an elephant.

Matthew Henry identifies Behemoth as the elephant on his commentary.

Hippopotamus

Smith's Bible Dictionary identifies Behemoth as a hippo.

Dinosaur

Young Earth creationists interpret Behemoth as a sauropod dinosaur. They cite the description of the tail moving "like a cedar" (Job 40:17) as evidence of a large, tree-like tail typical of sauropod dinosaur, This view aligns with their belief in the coexistence of humans and dinosaurs.

Some Old Earth creationists propose Behemoth as a dinosaur while rejecting human-dinosaur coexistence, arguing instead that God used the extinct dinosaur as example in conversation with Job.