Job 40:26
Wilt thou fill nets with his skin, and the cabins of fishes with his head?
Open Job 40:26 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Numquid implebis sagenas pelle ejus, et gurgustium piscium capite illius ?
- Septuagint (Swete)
- πᾶν δὲ πλωτὸν συνελθὸν οὐ μὴ ἐνέγκωσιν βύρσαν μίαν οὐρᾶς αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐν πλοίοις ἁλιέων κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Job 40:31
- הַֽתְמַלֵּ֣א בְשֻׂכּ֣וֹת עוֹר֑וֹ וּבְצִלְצַ֖ל דָּגִ֣ים רֹאשֽׁוֹ
Haydock's commentary
Cabins, (gurgustium) the reservoir or basket. (Calmet)
Protestants, "Canst thou fill his skin with barbed prongs, (for which they have now irons) or his head with fish spears?"
But this is hardly the meaning of the original, chap. xli. 6. Hebrew, "wilt thou fill tents with its skin, or the fish net, with its head?" to catch other fish, or to cover thy tent? &c. The skin is very hard, except under the belly. (Calmet)
One defended itself against 36 men, who fired at it six times in vain. (Herera.)
Septuagint, "a whole fleet collected would not carry off the skin of its tail." (Haydock)
They seem to speak of the whale. (Calmet)
Theodotion adds, "and its head in fisher boats." (Haydock)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Gregory the Great The Book of Pastoral Rule, How sowers of strifes and peacemakers are to be admonished
But, on the other hand, the peacemakers are to be admonished that they detract not from the efficacy of so great an undertaking through not knowing between whom they ought to establish peace. For, as there is much harm if unity be wanting to the good, so there is exceeding harm if it be not wanting to the bad. If, then, the iniquity of the perverse is united in peace, assuredly there is an accession of strength to their evil doings, since the more they agree among themselves in wickedness, by so much the more stoutly do they dash themselves against the good to afflict them. For hence it is that against the preachers of that vessel of damnation, to wit, Antichrist, is it said by the divine voice to the blessed Job, The members of his flesh stick close to each other ( Job xli. 14 ). …