Job 41:31

Job 41:31 He maketh the deep to boil like a pot: he maketh the sea like a pot of ointment.

Ver. 31. He maketh the deep to boil like a pot] He troubleth the whole ocean, he maketh a mighty commotion in the sea, when he rolls himself therein upward and downward, and casts up water on high through a certain conveyance that he hath in his head (Plin. lib. ix. c. 3, 6).

He maketh the sea like a pot of ointment] Turning it into a team, like the scum of a boiling pot. Beza rendereth it thus, He maketh the sea like a mortar, wherein colours are beaten; that is, the whirling of the water is like unto a quern, that is turned round of the painter, to temper his colours.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Job 41:31-32. He maketh the deep — The deep waters; to boil like a pot — To swell, and foam, and froth, by his strong and vehement motion, as any liquor does when it is boiled in a pot, especially boiling ointment. The sea — Either the great sea, the proper place of the whale, Psa 104:25, or the great river Nile, which is called a sea, both in Scripture, as Isa 11:15, and in other authors, as Euphrates is called the sea of Babylon, Isa 21:1; Jer 51:36. Lakes also are most frequently called seas, both in the Old and New Testament; and in such lakes the crocodiles are, as well as in the Nile. He maketh a path to shine after him — Houbigant renders the text, He leaves behind him a shining path; that is, the way in which he moves appears shining and conspicuous, as when a ship sails, and leaves a visible path behind it, which in the night appears to shine. One would think the deep to be hoary — It is so covered with froth and foam that it looks as if it were grown old, and become hoary.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Whenever he moves.

sea--the Nile (Isa 19:5; Nah 3:8).

pot of ointment--the vessel in which it is mixed. Appropriate to the crocodile, which emits a musky smell.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 31. He maketh the deep to boil like a pot] This is occasioned by strongly agitating the waters at or near the bottom; and the froth which arises to the top from this agitation may have the appearance of ointment. But several travellers say that the crocodile has a very strong scent of musk, and that he even imparts this smell to the water through which he passes, and therefore the text may be taken literally. This property of the crocodile has been noticed by several writers.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(31) The sea—i.e., not necessarily the salt water, for the Nile is still called the sea by the Arabs, and so with many other large rivers. Example, the “sea-wall” of the Thames below Gravesend.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

31. The commotion he raises in the deep.

The second clause of the verse hardly refers to fermentation in the pot of ointment, but rather to the foaming mixture of ingredients.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

He maketh a path to shine after him,.... Upon the sea, by raising a white from upon it, through its vehement motion as it passes along, or by the spermaceti it casts out and leaves behind it. It is said (s) that whales will cut and plough the sea in such a manner, as to leave a shining glittering path behind them, the length of a German mile, which is three of ours;

one would think the deep to be hoary; to be old and grey headed, or white like the hair of the head of an old man, a figure often used of the sea by poets (t); and hence "Nereus" (u), which is the sea, is said to be an old man, because the froth in the waves of it looks like white hair.

(s) Vid. Scheuchzer. ibid. (vol. 4.) p. 853. (t) , Homer. Iliad. 1. v. 350. , Iliad. 4. v. 248. "incanuit unda", Catullus. (u) Phurnutus de Natura Deorum, p. 63.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

He maketh the deep to boil like a pot - In his rapid motion through it. The word “deep” (מצולה metsôlâh) may refer to any deep place - either of the sea, of a river, or of mire, Psa 69:2. It is applied to the depths of the sea, Jon 2:3; Mic 7:19; but there is nothing in the word that will prevent its application to a large river like the Nile - the usual abode of the crocodile.

He maketh the sea - The word “sea” (ים yâm) is often applied to a large river, like the Nile or the Euphrates; see the notes at Isa 19:5.

Like a pot of ointment - When it is mixed, or stirred together. Bochart supposes that there is an allusion here to the smell of musk, which it is said the crocodile has, and by which the waters through which he passes seem to be perfumed. But the allusion seems rather to be merely to the fact that the deep is agitated by him when he passes through it, as if it were stirred from the bottom like a pot of ointment.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The deep; the deep waters, or the sea, which is called the deep, Psa 107:24; Jon 2:3, as it is explained in the next clause.

To boil like a pot; to swell, and foam, and froth by his strong and vehement motion, as any liquor doth when it is boiled in a pot.

The sea; either the great sea, the proper place of the whale, Psa 104:25; or the great river Nilus, which is called a sea, both in Scripture, as Isa 11:15, and in other authors, (of which see my Latin Synopsis,) as Euphrates is called the sea of Babylon, Isa 21:1; Jer 51:36; or lakes or pools, which are most frequently called seas, both in the Old and New Testament, as every one knows. And in such lakes the crocodiles are no less than in Nilus, as it is attested by Herodotus, and Strabo, and others.

Like a pot of ointment: this clause seems to be added very emphatically, to intimate that this leviathan causeth not only a vehement commotion, but also a great fragrancy in the sea or waters where it is; which, though it was not observed by the ancients, yet is unanimously affirmed by later authors upon their own knowledge and experience, that it casts a perfume like musk; of which see the names and words of the authors in my Latin Synopsis.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

31. The sea — The Arabs still call the Nile bahr, a sea.

Pot of ointment — This figure rests, as some suppose, upon the strong, musk-like odour emitted by the crocodile. “There is a follicle, of the bigness of a hazel nut, under the shoulders of the old crocodiles; this contains a thick matter which smells like musk. The Egyptians are very anxious to get this when they kill a crocodile, it being a perfume much esteemed by the grandees.” — HASSELQUIST, Travels, page 215. The preparation of perfumes, in ancient times, evidently involved the process of boiling. Wilkinson’s statement, that ointment (found in an alabaster vase) two or three thousand years old still retained its odour, seems to indicate a lost art. (Ancient Egyptians, i, p. 34.) A scene which Dr. Livingstone describes gives a curious insight into the habits of the crocodile, and forcibly illustrates this and the following verse: “The corpse of a boy floated past the ship; a monstrous crocodile rushed at it with the speed of a greyhound, caught it, and shook it as a terrier dog does a rat. Others dashed at the prey, each with his powerful tail causing the water to churn and froth as he ferociously tore off a piece. In a few seconds it was all gone.” — Zambesi, p. 477.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

He maketh the deep to boil like a pot. The rush of the crocodile through the water of the stream or pool in which he dwells causes a stir and a commotion which is forcibly compared to the boiling of water in a caldron. He maketh the sea like a pot of ointment. It is generally allowed that by "the sea" here is meant the Nile, as in Isa_18:2 Isa_19:5; and Nah_3:8. The swirl of the Nile, as the crocodile makes his rush, is like the heaving of a pot of boiling oil or ointment

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Boil - To swell, and foam, and froth by his strong and vehement motion, as any liquor does when it is boiled in a pot, especially boiling ointment. The sea - The great river Nile, is called a sea, both in scripture, as Isaiah xi, 15, and in other authors, as Euphrates is called the sea of Babylon, Isaiah xxi, 1 Jer. li, 36. Lakes also are most frequently called seas both in the Old and New Testament: and in such lakes the crocodiles are as well as in the Nile.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

He makes the deep to foam up like a pot of boiling water

"As he passes through the water, he leaves a trail of bubbles behind him, like the bubbling of boiling water in a pot"

He

The word "he" refers to Leviathan.

he makes the sea like a pot of ointment

The ointment in a pot is cloudy if someone shakes it, and the sea is muddy when Leviathan swims in it. (See: Simile)

one would think the deep had gray hair

This is because the bubbles in his wake are white.

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.