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

JOB 41:31KJV
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Job 41:31 (KJV)

What does Job 41:31 mean?

Job 41:31 describes a creature that stirs up the sea so powerfully that it looks like the deep water is boiling in a pot, and the sea appears as if it is mixed or churned like a pot of ointment. The verse uses vivid imagery to show the overwhelming strength and impact of this creature.

In the context of Job 41, God is speaking to Job, describing the might and untamable nature of Leviathan, a legendary sea creature. The language emphasizes how Leviathan’s movements disturb the sea, making it froth and churn, which highlights how powerless humans are before such a force of nature.

The Hebrew behind Job 41:31

  • "deep" (תְּהוֹם, tehom): This word often refers to the vast, deep waters or the primeval ocean. Here, it stresses the immense body of water that Leviathan agitates.
  • "boil" (רָתַח, rathach): This verb means to bubble or boil. The verse pictures the sea as if it is bubbling up like water in a heated pot, underlining the creature’s disruptive power.
  • "pot" (סִיר, sir): This is a common word for a cooking pot. The comparison helps the reader picture the sea as something familiar, made chaotic by Leviathan.
  • "ointment" (מָגוֹר, magor): This refers to a thick, perfumed substance. Comparing the sea to a pot of ointment suggests not just bubbling, but also swirling and mixing, adding to the sense of turmoil.

Why Job 41:31 matters

  • This verse helps clear up that the description is not literal but uses poetic language to communicate the creature’s power and the resulting chaos in the sea.
  • The imagery connects to the larger point in Job 41, where God is showing Job that some parts of creation are beyond human control or understanding.
  • The verse highlights the grandeur and mystery of creation, reminding the reader of the limits of human strength compared to the forces God has made.

Where else these words appear

“ointment” Hebrew H4841 · used in 2 verses

  • Ezekiel 24:10 Heap on wood, kindle the fire, consume the flesh, and spice it well, and let the bones be burned.

“boil” Hebrew H7570 · used in 3 verses

  • Job 30:27 My bowels boiled, and rested not: the days of affliction prevented me.
  • Ezekiel 24:5 Take the choice of the flock, and burn also the bones under it, and make it boil well, and let them seethe the bones of it therein.

“deep” Hebrew H4688 · used in 11 verses

  • Exodus 15:5 The depths have covered them: they sank into the bottom as a stone.
  • Psalms 69:2 I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me.
  • Psalms 107:24 These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep.

“pot” Hebrew H5518 · used in 32 verses

  • Exodus 16:3 And the children of Israel said unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.
  • 2 Chronicles 4:16 The pots also, and the shovels, and the fleshhooks, and all their instruments, did Huram his father make to king Solomon for the house of the LORD of bright brass.
  • Ezekiel 11:3 Which say, It is not near; let us build houses: this city is the caldron, and we be the flesh.