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Wednesday, July 23rd, 2025
the Week of Proper 11 / Ordinary 16
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Read the Bible

Christian Standard Bible ®

Job 41:15

His pride is in his rows of scales,closely sealed together.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - God;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Leviathan;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Leviathan;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Channel;   Flake;   Leviathan;   Scales;   Tribulation;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
Strong scales are his pride, Shut up together with a close seal.
King James Version
His scales are his pride, shut up together as with a close seal.
English Standard Version
His back is made of rows of shields, shut up closely as with a seal.
New Century Version
It has rows of shields on its back that are tightly sealed together.
New English Translation
Its back has rows of shields, shut up closely together as with a seal;
Amplified Bible
"His strong scales are his pride, Bound together as with a tight seal.
New American Standard Bible
"His strong scales are his pride, Locked as with a tight seal.
World English Bible
Strong scales are his pride, Shut up together with a close seal.
Geneva Bible (1587)
The maiestie of his scales is like strog shields, and are sure sealed.
Legacy Standard Bible
Its strong scales are its pride,Shut up as with a tight seal.
Berean Standard Bible
His rows of scales are his pride, tightly sealed together.
Contemporary English Version
Its back is covered with shield after shield,
Complete Jewish Bible
The layers of his flesh stick together; they are firm on him, immovable.
Darby Translation
The rows of his shields are a pride, shut up together [as with] a close seal.
Easy-to-Read Version
His back has rows of shields tightly sealed together.
George Lamsa Translation
Who can open the doors of his mouth? His teeth are terrible round about.
Good News Translation
His back is made of rows of shields, fastened together and hard as stone.
Lexham English Bible
Its back has scales of shields; it is shut up closely as with a seal.
Literal Translation
The rows of shields are his pride, shut up with a tight seal;
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
His body is couered with scales as it were with shyldes, lockte in, kepte, and well copacte together.
American Standard Version
His strong scales are his pride, Shut up together as with a close seal.
Bible in Basic English
His back is made of lines of plates, joined tight together, one against the other, like a stamp.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
The flakes of his flesh are joined together; they are firm upon him; they cannot be moved.
King James Version (1611)
His scales are his pride, shut vp together as with a close seale.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
His scales are as it were strong shieldes, so fastened together as if they were sealed:
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
His heart is firm as a stone, and it stands like an unyielding anvil.
English Revised Version
His strong scales are his pride, shut up together as with a close seal.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
His bodi is as yotun scheldys of bras, and ioyned togidere with scalis ouerleiynge hem silf.
Update Bible Version
[His] strong scales are [his] back, Shut up together [as with] a close seal.
Webster's Bible Translation
[His] scales [are his] pride, shut together [as with] a close seal.
New King James Version
His rows of scales are his pride, Shut up tightly as with a seal;
New Living Translation
The scales on its back are like rows of shields tightly sealed together.
New Life Bible
His hard covering is his pride. He is shut up as with a lock.
New Revised Standard
Its back is made of shields in rows, shut up closely as with a seal.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
A pride, are his arched sides, closed up, with a firm seal;
Douay-Rheims Bible
(41-6) His body is like molten shields, shut close up with scales pressing upon one another.
Revised Standard Version
His back is made of rows of shields, shut up closely as with a seal.
Young's Literal Translation
A pride -- strong ones of shields, Shut up -- a close seal.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"His strong scales are his pride, Shut up as with a tight seal.

Contextual Overview

11Who confronted me, that I should repay him?Everything under heaven belongs to me. 12I cannot be silent about his limbs,his power, and his graceful proportions. 13Who can strip off his outer covering?Who can penetrate his double layer of armor? 14Who can open his jaws,surrounded by those terrifying teeth? 15His pride is in his rows of scales,closely sealed together.16One scale is so close to anotherthat no air can pass between them. 17They are joined to one another,so closely connected they cannot be separated. 18His snorting flashes with light,while his eyes are like the rays of dawn. 19Flaming torches shoot from his mouth;fiery sparks fly out! 20Smoke billows from his nostrilsas from a boiling pot or burning reeds.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

scales: Heb. strong pieces of shields

pride: Jeremiah 9:23

a close: Revelation 5:2, Revelation 5:3, Revelation 5:5

Cross-References

Genesis 41:9
Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I remember my faults.
Genesis 41:13
It turned out just the way he interpreted them to us: I was restored to my position, and the other man was hanged.”
Psalms 25:14
The secret counsel of the Lordis for those who fear him,and he reveals his covenant to them.
Daniel 5:12
did this because Daniel, the one the king named Belteshazzar, was found to have an extraordinary spirit, knowledge and intelligence, and the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve problems. Therefore, summon Daniel, and he will give the interpretation.”
Daniel 5:16
However, I have heard about you that you can give interpretations and solve problems. Therefore, if you can read this inscription and give me its interpretation, you will be clothed in purple, have a gold chain around your neck, and have the third highest position in the kingdom.”

Gill's Notes on the Bible

[His] scales [are his] pride, shut up together [as with] a close seal. This is notoriously true of the crocodile, whose back and tail are covered with scales, which are in a measure impenetrable and invincible: which all writers concerning it, and travellers that have seen it, agree in; :-; but the skin of the whale is smooth; the outward skin is thin, like parchment, and is easily pulled off with the hand; and its under skin, though an inch thick, is never stiff nor tough, but soft d: though, if Nearchus e is to be credited, he reports, that one was seen fifty cubits long, with a scaly skin all over it a cubit thick; and such, it is said, were by a storm brought into our river Trent some years ago, and cast ashore, which had scales upon their backs very hard, as large and thick as one of our shillings f. But Aben Ezra interprets this of the teeth of the leviathan, and in which he is followed by Hasaeus; which are strong like a shield, as the words used signify; so Mr. Broughton,

"the strong shields have pride:''

but then this is as applicable, or more so, to the scales of the crocodile; which are so close as if they were sealed together, and are like a shield, its defence, and in which it prides itself.

d Voyage to Spitzbergen, p. 146, 147, 152. e Apud Arrian. in Indicis. f Vid. Wesley's Dissertations on Job, dissert. 38. p. 290.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

His scales are his pride - Margin, “strong pieces of shields.” The literal translation of this would be, “Pride, the strong of shields;” that is, the strong shields. There can be no doubt that there is reference to the scales of the animal, as having a resemblance to strong shields laid close to each other. But there is considerable variety of opinion as to its meaning. Umbreit and Prof. Lee take the word here rendered “pride” (גאוה gê'voh) to be the same as (גוה gêvâh), “back,” and then the meaning would be that his back was armed as with a shield - referring, as Prof. Lee supposes, to the dorsal fin of the whale. But there is no necessity for this supposition, and it cannot be denied that it is somewhat forced. The “connection” requires that we should understand it, not of the dorsal fin, but of the scales; for a description immediately follows in continuation of this, which will by no means apply to the fin. The obvious and proper meaning is, that the pride or glory of the animal - that on which his safety depended, and which was the most remarkable thing about him - was his “scales,” which were laid together like firm and compact shields, so that nothing could penetrate them. This description accords better with the crocodile than with any other animal. It is covered with scales, “which are so hard as to resist a musket-ball.” “Ed. Ency.” The description cannot be applied to a whale, which has no scales; and accordingly Prof. Lee supposes that the reference in this verse and the two following is not to the “scales,” but to the “teeth,” and to “the setting in of the dorsal fin!”

Shut up together - Made close or compact.

As with a close seal - As if they had been sealed with wax, so that no air could come between them.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Job 41:15. His scales are his pride — They are impenetrable, as we have already seen.


 
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