Reference: Dragon
American
Answers, in the English Bible, the Hebrew word signifying a sea-monster, huge serpent, etc. Thus in De 32:33; Jer 51:34; Re 12, it evidently implies a huge serpent; in Isa 27:1; 51:9; Eze 29:3, it may mean the crocodile, or any large sea-monster; while in Job 30:29; La 4:3; Mic 1:8, it seems to refer to some wild animal of the desert, most probably the jackal. The animal known to modern naturalists under the name of dragon, is a harmless species of lizard, found in Asia and Africa.
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The poison of large serpents, is their wine, - Yea the fierce venom of asps.
A brother, became I to the brutes that howl, and a companion to the birds that screech:
In that day, will Yahweh With his sword - the hard and the great and the strong, Bring punishment Upon Leviathan, the fleeing serpent, And upon Leviathan, the crooked serpent, - And will slay the monster which is in the sea.
Awake, awake put on strength, O arm of Yahweh, Awake, As in days of old, The generations of bygone ages: Art not thou that which - Hewed down Rahab, Piercing the Crocodile?
Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon - Hath devoured me Hath vexed me, Hath set me down as an empty vessel, He hath swallowed me like a sea-monster, He hath filled his belly with my dainties, - He hath driven me away!
Even wild dogs, draw out the breast, give suck to their whelps - The daughter of my people, hath become cruel, like the ostriches in the desert.
Speak, and thou shalt say - Thus, saith My Lord Yahweh Behold me! against thee O Pharaoh king of Egypt, The great Crocodile that lieth along in the midst of his rivers: Who saith - My river is, mine own, Since I myself made it me!
For this cause, will I lament and howl, I will go stript and bare, - I will make a lamentation, like the wild dogs, and a mourning, like ostriches.
Easton
(1.) Heb tannim, plural of tan. The name of some unknown creature inhabiting desert places and ruins (Job 30:29; Ps 44:19; Isa 13:22; 34:13; 43:20; Jer 10:22; Mic 1:8; Mal 1:3); probably, as translated in the Revised Version, the jackal (q.v.).
(2.) Heb tannin. Some great sea monster (Jer 51:34 it may denote the crocodile. In Ge 1:21 (Heb plural tanninim) the Authorized Version renders "whales," and the Revised Version "sea monsters." It is rendered "serpent" in Ex 7:9. It is used figuratively in Ps 74:13; Eze 29:3.
In the New Testament the word "dragon" is found only in Re 12:3-4,7,9,16-17, etc., and is there used metaphorically of "Satan." (See Whale.)
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And God created the great sea-monsters, - and every living soul that moveth - with which the waters swarmed after their kind and every winged bird - after its kind. And God saw that it was good.
When Pharaoh shall speak unto you saying, Shew for yourselves a wonder, then shalt thou say unto Aaron, Take thy staff, and cast it down before Pharaoh let it become a sea-serpent.
A brother, became I to the brutes that howl, and a companion to the birds that screech:
That thou shouldst have crushed us down in the place of wild dogs, And covered us over with a deadly shadow.
Thou, didst cleave asunder, in thy might, the sea, Thou didst break in pieces the heads of the Crocodiles, till they floated on the waters;
And jackals shall answer, in their citadels, And wild dogs, in their voluptuous palaces, - And near to come is her time, And, her days, shall not be delayed.
Then shall come up, in her palaces thorns Nettles and thistles in her fortresses, - And she shall become A home for wild dogs, An enclosure for ostriches;
The wild beast of the field shall honour me, Jackals, and ostriches, Because I have given - In the desert, waters, Rivers in, desolate land, To give drink unto my people, my chosen:
The noise of a rumour! lo it hath come! Even a great commotion out of the land of the North, - To make the cities of Judah, A desolation, A den of jackals.
Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon - Hath devoured me Hath vexed me, Hath set me down as an empty vessel, He hath swallowed me like a sea-monster, He hath filled his belly with my dainties, - He hath driven me away!
Speak, and thou shalt say - Thus, saith My Lord Yahweh Behold me! against thee O Pharaoh king of Egypt, The great Crocodile that lieth along in the midst of his rivers: Who saith - My river is, mine own, Since I myself made it me!
For this cause, will I lament and howl, I will go stript and bare, - I will make a lamentation, like the wild dogs, and a mourning, like ostriches.
And, Esau, have I hated, - and made his mountains a desolation, and his inheritance a dwelling for the jackals of the wilderness.
And there appeared another sign in heaven; and lo! a great red dragon, - having seven heads and ten horns, and, upon his heads, seven diadems; and, his tail, draweth the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth. And, the dragon, stood before the woman who was about to bring forth, that, as soon as she should bring forth, he might devour, her child.
And there came to be war in heaven: Michael and his messengers going forth to war with the dragon; and, the dragon, fought, and his messengers;
And the great dragon was cast out, - the ancient serpent, he that is called Adversary and the Satan, that deceiveth the whole habitable world, - he was cast to the earth, and his messengers, with him, were cast.
And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the river which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon was angered against the woman, and went away to make war with the rest of her seed - with them who were keeping the commandments of God, and holding the witness of Jesus; - and he stood upon the sand of the sea.
Fausets
Tannin, tan. Tan in Jer 14:6, "dragons" "snuffing up the wind" is translated by Henderson jackals; rather the great boas and python serpents are meant, which raise their body vertically ten or twelve feet high, surveying the neighborhood above the bushes, while with open jaws they drink in the air. They were made types of the deluge and all destructive agencies; hence the dragon temples are placed near water in Asia, Africa, and Britain, e.g. that of Abury in Wiltshire. The ark is often associated with it, as the preserver from the waters. The dragon temples are serpentine in form; dragon standards were used in Egypt and Babylon, and among the widely-scattered Celts.
Apollo's slaying Python is the Greek legend implying the triumph of light over darkness and evil. The tannin are any great monsters, whether of land or sea, trans. Ge 1:21 "great sea monsters." So (La 4:3) "even sea monsters (tannin) draw out the breast," alluding to the mammalia which sometimes visit the Mediterranean, or the halichore cow whale of the Red Sea. Large whales do not often frequent the Mediterranean, which was the sea that the Israelites knew; they apply "sea" to the Nile and Euphrates, and so apply "tannin" to the crocodile, their horror in Egypt, as also to the large serpents which they saw in the desert. "The dragon in the sea," which Jehovah shall punish in the day of Israel's deliverance, is Antichrist, the antitype to Babylon on the Euphrates' waters (Isa 27:1).
In Ps 74:13, "Thou brokest the heads of the dragons in the waters," Egypt's princes and Pharaoh are poetically represented hereby, just as crocodiles are the monarchs of the Nile waters. So (Isa 51:9-10) the crocodile is the emblem of Egypt and its king on coins of Augustus struck after the conquest of Egypt. "A habitation of dragons" expresses utter desolation, as venomous snakes abound in ruins of ancient cities (De 32:33; Jer 49:33; Isa 34:13). In the New Testament it symbolizes Satan the old serpent (Genesis 3), combining gigantic strength with craft, malignity, and venom (Re 12:3). The dragon's color, "red," fiery red, implies that he was a murderer from the beginning.
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And God created the great sea-monsters, - and every living soul that moveth - with which the waters swarmed after their kind and every winged bird - after its kind. And God saw that it was good.
The poison of large serpents, is their wine, - Yea the fierce venom of asps.
Thou, didst cleave asunder, in thy might, the sea, Thou didst break in pieces the heads of the Crocodiles, till they floated on the waters;
In that day, will Yahweh With his sword - the hard and the great and the strong, Bring punishment Upon Leviathan, the fleeing serpent, And upon Leviathan, the crooked serpent, - And will slay the monster which is in the sea.
Then shall come up, in her palaces thorns Nettles and thistles in her fortresses, - And she shall become A home for wild dogs, An enclosure for ostriches;
Awake, awake put on strength, O arm of Yahweh, Awake, As in days of old, The generations of bygone ages: Art not thou that which - Hewed down Rahab, Piercing the Crocodile? Art not thou that which dried up - The Sea, The waters of the mighty Deep, - That which made of the abysses of the sea a road for the passing over of the redeemed?
Yea, wild asses stand still on the bare heights, They pant for air like jackals, - Dimmed are their eyes Because there is no grass.
So shall Hazor become A habitation of jackals An astonishment unto times age-abiding: There shall not dwell there - a man, Nor sojourn therein - a son of the earth-born.
Even wild dogs, draw out the breast, give suck to their whelps - The daughter of my people, hath become cruel, like the ostriches in the desert.
And there appeared another sign in heaven; and lo! a great red dragon, - having seven heads and ten horns, and, upon his heads, seven diadems;
Hastings
(1) tann
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And God created the great sea-monsters, - and every living soul that moveth - with which the waters swarmed after their kind and every winged bird - after its kind. And God saw that it was good.
When Pharaoh shall speak unto you saying, Shew for yourselves a wonder, then shalt thou say unto Aaron, Take thy staff, and cast it down before Pharaoh let it become a sea-serpent. So Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and did so as Yahweh had commanded, - and Aaron cast down his staff before Pharaoh and before his servants and it became a sea-serpent, read more. Then called Pharaoh also for the wise men and for the magicians, - and they too, the sacred scribes of Egypt with their secret arts, did in like manner; yea they cast down each man his staff, and they became sea-serpents, - but Aaron's staff swallowed up their staves.
Am, I, a sea, or a sea-monster, - That thou shouldst set over me a watch?
A brother, became I to the brutes that howl, and a companion to the birds that screech:
That thou shouldst have crushed us down in the place of wild dogs, And covered us over with a deadly shadow.
Thou, didst cleave asunder, in thy might, the sea, Thou didst break in pieces the heads of the Crocodiles, till they floated on the waters;
And jackals shall answer, in their citadels, And wild dogs, in their voluptuous palaces, - And near to come is her time, And, her days, shall not be delayed.
Then shall come up, in her palaces thorns Nettles and thistles in her fortresses, - And she shall become A home for wild dogs, An enclosure for ostriches;
Then shall the glowing sand, become a lake, And thirsty ground - springs of water, - In the home of the wild dog - its lair, Shall he an enclosure for cane and paper - reed.
Awake, awake put on strength, O arm of Yahweh, Awake, As in days of old, The generations of bygone ages: Art not thou that which - Hewed down Rahab, Piercing the Crocodile?
The noise of a rumour! lo it hath come! Even a great commotion out of the land of the North, - To make the cities of Judah, A desolation, A den of jackals.
So shall Hazor become A habitation of jackals An astonishment unto times age-abiding: There shall not dwell there - a man, Nor sojourn therein - a son of the earth-born.
Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon - Hath devoured me Hath vexed me, Hath set me down as an empty vessel, He hath swallowed me like a sea-monster, He hath filled his belly with my dainties, - He hath driven me away!
Speak, and thou shalt say - Thus, saith My Lord Yahweh Behold me! against thee O Pharaoh king of Egypt, The great Crocodile that lieth along in the midst of his rivers: Who saith - My river is, mine own, Since I myself made it me!
Son of man Take up a dirge over Pharaoh king of Egypt, and thou shalt say unto him. The young lion of the nations, thou didst deem thyself,- Whereas thou, wast like the crocodile in the seas, And didst cause thy streams to burst forth And didst trouble the waters with thy feet, And foul their rivers.
And, Esau, have I hated, - and made his mountains a desolation, and his inheritance a dwelling for the jackals of the wilderness.
And there appeared another sign in heaven; and lo! a great red dragon, - having seven heads and ten horns, and, upon his heads, seven diadems;
Morish
tannin, ??????. It may signify any great serpent or sea monster, symbolical of a huge destructive creature. Nations doomed to destruction and desolation, including Jerusalem, are said to become habitations of dragons. Isa 34:13; 35:7; Jer 9:11; 10:22; 51:37. Pharaoh, king of Egypt, is called the great dragon. Eze 29:3. As one of God's creatures the dragon is called upon to praise Jehovah. Ps 148:7. In the N.T. the dragon is a type of Satan and those energised by him. In Re 12:3 the "great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns," is symbolical of Satan's power in the form of the Roman empire: it endeavoured, in the person of Herod, to destroy Christ when born. In Re 13:2,4 it is Satan who gives the resuscitated Roman empire in a future day its throne and great authority. In Re 13:11 the Antichrist, who has two horns like a lamb, speaks as a dragon. In Re 16:13 it is Satan, and in Re 20:2 he is described as "that old serpent, which is the Devil and Satan."
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Praise Yahweh, out of the earth, sea monsters, and all resounding deeps;
Then shall come up, in her palaces thorns Nettles and thistles in her fortresses, - And she shall become A home for wild dogs, An enclosure for ostriches;
Then shall the glowing sand, become a lake, And thirsty ground - springs of water, - In the home of the wild dog - its lair, Shall he an enclosure for cane and paper - reed.
Thus will I give up Jerusalem To heaps, A habitation for jackals, - And the cities of Judah, will I give up to desolation, without inhabitant.
The noise of a rumour! lo it hath come! Even a great commotion out of the land of the North, - To make the cities of Judah, A desolation, A den of jackals.
Thus shall Babylon become - Heaps A habitation of jackals An astonishment, and A hissing, Without inhabitant.
Speak, and thou shalt say - Thus, saith My Lord Yahweh Behold me! against thee O Pharaoh king of Egypt, The great Crocodile that lieth along in the midst of his rivers: Who saith - My river is, mine own, Since I myself made it me!
And there appeared another sign in heaven; and lo! a great red dragon, - having seven heads and ten horns, and, upon his heads, seven diadems;
And, the beast which I saw, was like unto a leopard; and, his feet, as of a bear, and, his mouth, as the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave unto him his power, and his throne, and great authority.
and did homage unto the dragon, because he gave his authority unto the wild-beast; and they did homage unto the wild-beast, saying - Who is like unto the wild-beast? and Who can make war with him?
And I saw another wild-beast, coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns, like unto a lamb, and began speaking as a dragon.
And I saw, out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false-prophet, three impure spirits, as frogs;
and he laid hold of the dragon, the ancient serpent, who is Adversary and the Accuser, and bound him for a thousand years, -
Smith
Dragon.
The translators of the Authorized Version, apparently following the Vulgate, have rendered by the same word "dragon" the two Hebrew words tan and tannin, which appear to be quite distinct in meaning.
1. The former is used, always in the plural, in
Job 30:29; Ps 44:19; Isa 34:13; 43:20; Jer 9:11
It is always applied to some creatures inhabiting the desert, and we should conclude from this that it refers rather to some wild beast than to a serpent. The syriac renders it by a word which, according to Pococke, means a "jackal."
2. The word tannin seems to refer to any great monster, whether of the land or the sea, being indeed more usually applied to some kind of serpent or reptile, but not exclusively restricted to that sense.
Ex 7:9-10,12; De 32:33; Ps 91:13
In the New Testament it is found only in the Apocalypse,
etc., as applied metaphorically to "the old serpent, called the devil, and Satan."
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When Pharaoh shall speak unto you saying, Shew for yourselves a wonder, then shalt thou say unto Aaron, Take thy staff, and cast it down before Pharaoh let it become a sea-serpent. So Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and did so as Yahweh had commanded, - and Aaron cast down his staff before Pharaoh and before his servants and it became a sea-serpent,
yea they cast down each man his staff, and they became sea-serpents, - but Aaron's staff swallowed up their staves.
The poison of large serpents, is their wine, - Yea the fierce venom of asps.
A brother, became I to the brutes that howl, and a companion to the birds that screech:
That thou shouldst have crushed us down in the place of wild dogs, And covered us over with a deadly shadow.
On the lion and adder, shalt thou tread, Shalt trample on young lion and crocodile.
Then shall come up, in her palaces thorns Nettles and thistles in her fortresses, - And she shall become A home for wild dogs, An enclosure for ostriches;
The wild beast of the field shall honour me, Jackals, and ostriches, Because I have given - In the desert, waters, Rivers in, desolate land, To give drink unto my people, my chosen:
Thus will I give up Jerusalem To heaps, A habitation for jackals, - And the cities of Judah, will I give up to desolation, without inhabitant.
And there appeared another sign in heaven; and lo! a great red dragon, - having seven heads and ten horns, and, upon his heads, seven diadems; and, his tail, draweth the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth. And, the dragon, stood before the woman who was about to bring forth, that, as soon as she should bring forth, he might devour, her child.
And there came to be war in heaven: Michael and his messengers going forth to war with the dragon; and, the dragon, fought, and his messengers;
And the great dragon was cast out, - the ancient serpent, he that is called Adversary and the Satan, that deceiveth the whole habitable world, - he was cast to the earth, and his messengers, with him, were cast.
And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the river which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon was angered against the woman, and went away to make war with the rest of her seed - with them who were keeping the commandments of God, and holding the witness of Jesus; - and he stood upon the sand of the sea.
Watsons
DRAGON. This word is frequently to be met with in our English translation of the Bible. It answers generally to the Hebrew ??, ????, ????; and these words are variously rendered dragons, serpents, sea- monsters, and whales. The Rev. James Hurdis, in a dissertation relative to this subject, observes, that the word translated "whales," in Ge 1:21, occurs twenty-seven times in Scripture; and he attempts, with much ingenuity, to prove that it every where signifies the crocodile. That it sometimes has this meaning, he thinks is clear from Eze 29:3: "Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lieth in the midst of his rivers." For, to what could a king of Egypt be more properly compared than the crocodile? The same argument he draws from Isa 51:9: "Art thou not he that hath cut Rahab, [Egypt,] and wounded the dragon?" Among the ancients the crocodile was the symbol of Egypt, and appears so on Roman coins. Some however have thought the hippopotamus intended; others, one of the larger species of serpents.
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And God created the great sea-monsters, - and every living soul that moveth - with which the waters swarmed after their kind and every winged bird - after its kind. And God saw that it was good.
Awake, awake put on strength, O arm of Yahweh, Awake, As in days of old, The generations of bygone ages: Art not thou that which - Hewed down Rahab, Piercing the Crocodile?
Speak, and thou shalt say - Thus, saith My Lord Yahweh Behold me! against thee O Pharaoh king of Egypt, The great Crocodile that lieth along in the midst of his rivers: Who saith - My river is, mine own, Since I myself made it me!