264 MICHAEL V. FOX 2. Leviathan (Job 40,25-41,26) Leviathan is usually identified with the crocodile or, less often, with the dragon of Ugaritic and Hebrew mythology 13. In my view, the Leviathan in the Theophany of Job is based on the whale, perhaps conflated with the closely related dolphin. The identification of Leviathan with the whale, fa- mous from Moby Dick, was advocated by earlier commentators, such as Thomas Aquinas (Expositio in Job ad litteram, ad loc.), but in the twentieth century only by G. R. Driver 14. The ancient Mediterranean was home to whales, including the fin whale (up to 18,5 meters and 80 tons in males) and the sperm whale (up to 18,5 meters and 70 tons in males) 15. Even today, in spite of severe over-hunting, whales are occasionally spotted in this sea 16. In this passage in Job, the whale is described as it would have appeared to amazed seafarers. These are the men who are called “those who go down to the sea in ships” in Ps 107,23-24 and are said to report God’s wonders in the depths. These wonders, according to Ps 104,26, include Leviathan. Ben Sira, too, writes that “those who go down to the sea” tell of its wonders, namely God’s amazing creatures and “the power of Rahab” (Sir 43,24-25). Ancient zoological taxonomy was vastly different from our own, es- pecially when naming creatures known only from afar. Leviathan could be imagined variously in images drawn from vague sightings of actual an- imals and composed of parts of other animals, such as a serpent’s coiling or a crocodile’s scales (the latter perhaps the basis of Leviathan’s “armor” in 41,6-8) 17. Until modern times, whales were often conflated with other large sea creatures, including sharks. Even in recent times, and even after beached whales had been observed, whales were often depicted in fantastic and mon- strous guises 18. J. Roman observes that “[f]or much of recorded history, KEEL, Jahwes Entgegnung, 143-156, identifies Leviathan with the croco- 13 dile, but as a supernatural manifestation of Seth, alongside the hippopotamus. G.R. DRIVER, Mythical Monsters in the Old Testament (Rome 1956) 240-242, 14 speaking only of Job 40,25-30. The rest of 40,15-41,26 he assigns to a crocodile. Elsewhere the word can refer to any large sea serpent (ibid., 242). See P.G.H. EVANS, The Natural History of Whales & Dolphins (Christo- 15 pher Helm Mammal Series; London 1987) 60-69; 93-94. For technical data on cetaceans currently in the Mediterranean, see E. HOYT, Marine Protected Areas for Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises. A World Handbook for Cetacean Habitat Conservation (London 2005) 130-161. A number of web sites report on current whale distribution, e.g.: 16 http://www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/2478/0. The whale as imagined in one medieval depiction has scales ― see J. 17 ROMAN, Whale (Animal; London 2006) 16 ― as does the one shown at http://bestiary.ca/beasts/beast282.htm. See the pictures in ROMAN, Whale, 16-25. 18 © Gregorian Biblical Press 2012 - Tutti i diritti riservati