Out of his mouth go burning lights; Sparks of fire shoot out.
Parallel translations
- WEB Out of his mouth go burning torches. Sparks of fire leap out.
- KJV Out of his mouth go burning lamps, and sparks of fire leap out.
- BSB Firebrands stream from his mouth; fiery sparks shoot forth!
- NASB “From his mouth go burning torches; Sparks of fire leap forth.
- NLT Lightning leaps from its mouth; flames of fire flash out.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
From Leviathan's mouth come flaming torches and leaping sparks. The fearsome imagery conveys the creature's terrifying power.
Overview
The description of burning torches and sparks issuing from Leviathan's mouth uses vivid, possibly hyperbolic poetic imagery to convey overwhelming dread. Faithful interpreters take this as heightened poetic language portraying a fearsome creature, not a literal fire-breather. The effect is to magnify the awesomeness of what God has made, deepening Job's reverence for the Creator of such terror and majesty.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- Ps 18:8Smoke went out of his nostrils. Consuming fire came out of his mouth. Coals were kindled by it.
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Christ at the center
Job's cry for a mediator who can lay his hand on both God and man, and his confidence that 'my Redeemer lives' and will stand on the earth, reaches forward to Jesus the living Redeemer.
How Job 41:19 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.