Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Dan Wagner <Dan.Wagner AT dstm.com>]

Ian Hutchesson writes "Could the idea [of elephant] have been included in
some more general animal term?" 

Perhaps, since some take the "behemoth" of Job 40 as an elephant. It's
certainly referring to a specific animal, not "beasts" or cattle because of
the description and because of the plural form with singular reference (e.g.
40:15). The key to this interpretation is 40:17, "He moves/bends [has
pleasure in?] his tail _zanab_ as a cedar." _zanab_ usually means "tail,"
but then what might we expect the Hebrew word for an elephant's "trunk" to
be? Probably not nose _)ap_, i would expect. Job 42:24 speaks of piercing
his "nose" with a snare or barb, but this could be poetic variation for the
same appendage (or phenomenological language--but for what else?).

One problem with this is that zanab, when it doesn't refer to a literal
animal's tail (Ex. 4:4; Jdg. 15:4), is usually contrasted with "head" or
front (Dt. 25:18; 28:13, 44; Jsh. 10:19; Isa. 9:13-14; 19:15). An exception,
however, is Isaiah 7:4, referring to "two 'stubs' of smoking firebrands"
(Rezin & Pekah). So it may be possible to think of this word as being used
for an appendage at either end of an animal. Another problem is the
remainder of the imagry and descrption in the passage, which seems like a
different beast or even a dinosaur perhaps. 

But since it's reasonable that someone like Job in his day would have known
about elephants, and since it fits well as a display of God's power in
creation in the context, it could be the correct identification of the
animal in Job 40.

Dan Wagner

-----Original Message-----
From: Ian Hutchesson [mailto:mc2499 AT mclink.it]
Sent: Sunday, July 02, 2000 09:29
To: Biblical Hebrew
Subject: "elephant" in Hebrew


Does anyone know if or when the Hebrew word for "elephant" was first
introduced in antiquity, and in what literature? Could the idea have been
included in some more general animal term?

(I note that the Aramaic description in Daniel 7 of the fourth beast is
almost certainly an elephant, but is not named, though the other three
were.)

Thanks for any indications.


Ian


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