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Selected Verse: Isaiah 27:1 - Strong Concordance

Verse	Translation	Text
Isa 27:1	Strong Concordance	In that day [03117] the LORD [03068] with his sore [07186] and great [01419] and strong [02389] sword [02719] shall punish [06485] leviathan [03882] the piercing [01281] serpent [05175], even leviathan [03882] that crooked [06129] serpent [05175]; and he shall slay [02026] the dragon [08577] that is in the sea [03220].
	King James	In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.

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A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882]
CONTINUATION OF THE TWENTY-FOURTH, TWENTY-FIFTH, AND TWENTY-SIXTH CHAPTERS. (Isa 27:1-13) sore--rather, "hard," "well-tempered." leviathan--literally, in Arabic, "the twisted animal," applicable to every great tenant of the waters, sea-serpents, crocodiles, &c. In Eze 29:3; Eze 32:2; Dan 7:1, &c. Rev 12:3, &c., potentates hostile to Israel are similarly described; antitypically and ultimately Satan is intended (Rev 20:10). piercing--rigid [LOWTH]. Flying [MAURER and Septuagint]. Long, extended, namely, as the crocodile which cannot readily bend back its body [HOUBIGANT]. crooked--winding. dragon--Hebrew, tenin; the crocodile. sea--the Euphrates, or the expansion of it near Babylon.

A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882]

CONTINUATION OF THE TWENTY-FOURTH, TWENTY-FIFTH, AND TWENTY-SIXTH CHAPTERS. (Isa 27:1-13)

sore--rather, "hard," "well-tempered."

leviathan--literally, in Arabic, "the twisted animal," applicable to every great tenant of the waters, sea-serpents, crocodiles, &c. In Eze 29:3; Eze 32:2; Dan 7:1, &c. Rev 12:3, &c., potentates hostile to Israel are similarly described; antitypically and ultimately Satan is intended (Rev 20:10).

piercing--rigid [LOWTH]. Flying [MAURER and Septuagint]. Long, extended, namely, as the crocodile which cannot readily bend back its body [HOUBIGANT].

crooked--winding.

dragon--Hebrew, tenin; the crocodile.

sea--the Euphrates, or the expansion of it near Babylon.

Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834]
In that day - In that future time when the Jews would be captive in Babylon, and when they would sigh for deliverance (see the note at Isa 26:1). This verse might have been connected with the previous chapter, as it refers to the same event, and then this chapter would have more appropriately commenced with the poem or song which begins in Isa 27:2. With his sore - Hebrew, הקשׁה haqāshâh - 'Hard.' Septuagint, Τὴς ἁγίαν Tēn hagian - 'Holy.' The Hebrew means a sword that is hard, or well-tempered and trusty. And great, and strong sword - The sword is an emblem of war, and is often used among the Hebrews to denote war (see Gen 27:40; Lev 26:25). It is also an emblem of justice or punishment, as punishment then, as it is now in the Turkish dominions, was often inflicted by the sword Deu 32:41-42; Psa 7:12; Heb 11:37. Here, if it refers to the overthrow of Babylon and its tyrannical king, it means that God would punish them by the armies of the Medes, employed as his sword or instrument. Thus in Psa 17:13, David prays, 'Deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword' (compare the notes at Isa 10:5-6). Leviathan - לויתן livyâthân. The Septuagint renders this, Τὴν δράκοντα Tēn drakonta - 'The dragon.' The word 'leviathan' is probably derived from לוה lâvâh in Arabic, to weave, to twist (Gesenius); and literally means, "the twisted animal." The word occurs in six places in the Old Testament, and is translated in Job 3:8, 'mourning,' Margin, 'leviathan;' in Job 41:1, 'leviathan' - in which chapter is an extended description of the animal; in Psa 74:14, it is rendered 'leviathan,' and seems to be applied to Pharaoh; and in Psa 104:26, and in the passage before us, where it is twice also rendered 'leviathan.' Bochart (Hierez. ii. 5. 16-18) has gone into an extended argument to show that by the leviathan the crocodile is intended; and his argument is in my view conclusive. On this subject, Bochart, Dr. Good (on Job 41), and Robinson's Calmet, may be consulted. The crocodile is a natural inhabitant of the Nile and of other Asiatic and African rivers; is of enormous voracity and strength, as well as of fleetness in swimming; attacks mankind and all animals with prodigious impetuosity; and is furnished with a coat of mail so scaly and callous that it will resist the force of a musket ball in every part except under the belly. It is, therefore, an appropriate image by which to represent a fierce and cruel tyrant. The sacred writers were accustomed to describe kings and tyrants by an allusion to strong and fierce animals. Thus, in Eze 29:3-5, the dragon, or the crocodile of the Nile, represents Pharaoh; in Eze 22:2, Pharaoh is compared to a young lion, and to a whale in the seas; in Psa 74:13-14, Pharaoh is compared to the dragon, and to the leviathan. In Dan. 7, the four monarchs that should arise are likened to four great beasts. In Rev. 12, Rome, the new Babylon, is compared to a great red dragon. In the place before us, I suppose that the reference is to Babylon; or to the king and tyrant that ruled there, and that had oppressed the people of God. But among commentators there has been the greatest variety of explanation. As a "specimen" of the various senses which commentators often assign to passages of Scripture, we may notice the following views which have been taken of this passage. The Chaldee Paraphrast regards the leviathans, which are twice mentioned, as referring, the first one to some king like Pharaoh, and the second to a king like Sennacherib. rabbi Moses Haccohen supposes that the word denotes the most select or valiant of the rulers, princes, and commanders that were in the army of the enemy of the people of God. Jarchi supposes that by the first-mentioned leviathan is meant Egypt, by the second Assyria, and by the dragon which is in the sea, he thinks "Tyre" is intended. Aben Ezra supposes that by the dragon in the sea, Egypt is denoted. Kimchi supposes that this will be fulfilled only in the times of the Messiah, and that the sea monsters mentioned here are Gog and Magog - and that these denote the armies of the Greeks, the Saracens, and the inhabitants of India. Abarbanel supposes that the Saracens, the Roman empire, and the other kingdoms of Gentiles, are intended by these sea monsters. Jerome, Sanctius, and some others suppose that "Satan" is denoted by the leviathan. Brentius supposes that this was fulfilled in the day of Pentecost when Satan was overcome by the preaching of the gospel. Other Christian interpreters have supposed, that by the leviathan first mentioned "Mahomet" is intended; by the second, "heretics;" and by the dragon in the sea, "Pagan India." Luther understood it of Assyria and Egypt; Calvin supposes that the description properly applies to the king of Egypt, but that under this image other enemies of the church are embraced, and does not doubt that "allegorically" Satan and his kingdom are intended. The more simple interpretation, however, is that which refers it to Babylon. This suits the connection: accords with the previous chapters; agrees with all that occurs in this chapter, and with the image which is used here. The crocodile, the dragon, the sea monster - extended, vast, unwieldy, voracious, and odious to the view - would be a most expressive image to denote the abhorrence with which the Jews would regard Babylon and its king. The piercing serpent - The term 'serpent' (נחשׁ nāchâsh) may be given to a dragon, or an extended sea monster. Compare Job 26:13. The term 'piercing,' is, in the Margin, 'Crossing like a bar.' The Septuagint renders it, Ὄφιν Φεύγοντα Ophin pheugonta - 'Flying serpent. The Hebrew, בריח bāriyach, rendered 'piercing,' is derived from ברץ bârach," to flee;" and then to stretch across, or pass through, as a bar through boards Exo 36:33. Hence, this word may mean fleeing; extended; cross bar for fastening gates; or the cross piece for binding together the boards for the tabernacle of the congregation Exo 26:26; Exo 36:31. Lowth renders it, 'The rigid serpent;' probably with reference to the hard scales of the crocodile. The word "extended, huge, vast," will probably best suit the connection. In Job 26:13, it is rendered, 'the crooked serpent;' referring to the constellation in the heavens by the name of the Serpent (see the note at that place). The idea of piercing is not in the Hebrew word, nor is it ever used in that sense. That crooked serpent - This is correctly rendered; and refers to the fact that the monster here referred to throws itself into immense volumes or folds, a description that applies to all serpents of vast size. Virgil has given a similar description of sea monsters throwing themselves into vast convolutions: 'Ecce autem gemini a Tenedo tranquilla per alta - immensis orbibus angues.' - AEn. ii. 203. And again: 'Sinuantque immensa volumine terga.' Idem. 208. The reference in Isaiah, I suppose, is not to "different" kings or enemies of the people of God, but to the same. It is customary in Hebrew poetry to refer to the same subject in different members of the same sentence, or in different parts of the same parallelism. The dragon - Referring to the same thing under a different image - to the king of Babylon. On the meaning of the word 'dragon,' see the note at Isa 13:22. In the sea - In the Euphrates; or in the marshes and pools that encompass Babylon (see Isa 11:15, note; Isa 18:2, note). The sense of the whole verse is, that God would destroy the Babylonian power that was to the Jews such an object of loathsomeness and of terror.

Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834]

In that day - In that future time when the Jews would be captive in Babylon, and when they would sigh for deliverance (see the note at Isa 26:1). This verse might have been connected with the previous chapter, as it refers to the same event, and then this chapter would have more appropriately commenced with the poem or song which begins in Isa 27:2.

With his sore - Hebrew, הקשׁה haqāshâh - 'Hard.' Septuagint, Τὴς ἁγίαν Tēn hagian - 'Holy.' The Hebrew means a sword that is hard, or well-tempered and trusty.

And great, and strong sword - The sword is an emblem of war, and is often used among the Hebrews to denote war (see Gen 27:40; Lev 26:25). It is also an emblem of justice or punishment, as punishment then, as it is now in the Turkish dominions, was often inflicted by the sword Deu 32:41-42; Psa 7:12; Heb 11:37. Here, if it refers to the overthrow of Babylon and its tyrannical king, it means that God would punish them by the armies of the Medes, employed as his sword or instrument. Thus in Psa 17:13, David prays, 'Deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword' (compare the notes at Isa 10:5-6).

Leviathan - לויתן livyâthân. The Septuagint renders this, Τὴν δράκοντα Tēn drakonta - 'The dragon.' The word 'leviathan' is probably derived from לוה lâvâh in Arabic, to weave, to twist (Gesenius); and literally means, "the twisted animal." The word occurs in six places in the Old Testament, and is translated in Job 3:8, 'mourning,' Margin, 'leviathan;' in Job 41:1, 'leviathan' - in which chapter is an extended description of the animal; in Psa 74:14, it is rendered 'leviathan,' and seems to be applied to Pharaoh; and in Psa 104:26, and in the passage before us, where it is twice also rendered 'leviathan.' Bochart (Hierez. ii. 5. 16-18) has gone into an extended argument to show that by the leviathan the crocodile is intended; and his argument is in my view conclusive. On this subject, Bochart, Dr. Good (on Job 41), and Robinson's Calmet, may be consulted.

The crocodile is a natural inhabitant of the Nile and of other Asiatic and African rivers; is of enormous voracity and strength, as well as of fleetness in swimming; attacks mankind and all animals with prodigious impetuosity; and is furnished with a coat of mail so scaly and callous that it will resist the force of a musket ball in every part except under the belly. It is, therefore, an appropriate image by which to represent a fierce and cruel tyrant. The sacred writers were accustomed to describe kings and tyrants by an allusion to strong and fierce animals. Thus, in Eze 29:3-5, the dragon, or the crocodile of the Nile, represents Pharaoh; in Eze 22:2, Pharaoh is compared to a young lion, and to a whale in the seas; in Psa 74:13-14, Pharaoh is compared to the dragon, and to the leviathan. In Dan. 7, the four monarchs that should arise are likened to four great beasts. In Rev. 12, Rome, the new Babylon, is compared to a great red dragon.

In the place before us, I suppose that the reference is to Babylon; or to the king and tyrant that ruled there, and that had oppressed the people of God. But among commentators there has been the greatest variety of explanation. As a "specimen" of the various senses which commentators often assign to passages of Scripture, we may notice the following views which have been taken of this passage. The Chaldee Paraphrast regards the leviathans, which are twice mentioned, as referring, the first one to some king like Pharaoh, and the second to a king like Sennacherib. rabbi Moses Haccohen supposes that the word denotes the most select or valiant of the rulers, princes, and commanders that were in the army of the enemy of the people of God. Jarchi supposes that by the first-mentioned leviathan is meant Egypt, by the second Assyria, and by the dragon which is in the sea, he thinks "Tyre" is intended.

Aben Ezra supposes that by the dragon in the sea, Egypt is denoted. Kimchi supposes that this will be fulfilled only in the times of the Messiah, and that the sea monsters mentioned here are Gog and Magog - and that these denote the armies of the Greeks, the Saracens, and the inhabitants of India. Abarbanel supposes that the Saracens, the Roman empire, and the other kingdoms of Gentiles, are intended by these sea monsters. Jerome, Sanctius, and some others suppose that "Satan" is denoted by the leviathan. Brentius supposes that this was fulfilled in the day of Pentecost when Satan was overcome by the preaching of the gospel. Other Christian interpreters have supposed, that by the leviathan first mentioned "Mahomet" is intended; by the second, "heretics;" and by the dragon in the sea, "Pagan India." Luther understood it of Assyria and Egypt; Calvin supposes that the description properly applies to the king of Egypt, but that under this image other enemies of the church are embraced, and does not doubt that "allegorically" Satan and his kingdom are intended. The more simple interpretation, however, is that which refers it to Babylon. This suits the connection: accords with the previous chapters; agrees with all that occurs in this chapter, and with the image which is used here. The crocodile, the dragon, the sea monster - extended, vast, unwieldy, voracious, and odious to the view - would be a most expressive image to denote the abhorrence with which the Jews would regard Babylon and its king.

The piercing serpent - The term 'serpent' (נחשׁ nāchâsh) may be given to a dragon, or an extended sea monster. Compare Job 26:13. The term 'piercing,' is, in the Margin, 'Crossing like a bar.' The Septuagint renders it, Ὄφιν Φεύγοντα Ophin pheugonta - 'Flying serpent. The Hebrew, בריח bāriyach, rendered 'piercing,' is derived from ברץ bârach," to flee;" and then to stretch across, or pass through, as a bar through boards Exo 36:33. Hence, this word may mean fleeing; extended; cross bar for fastening gates; or the cross piece for binding together the boards for the tabernacle of the congregation Exo 26:26; Exo 36:31. Lowth renders it, 'The rigid serpent;' probably with reference to the hard scales of the crocodile. The word "extended, huge, vast," will probably best suit the connection. In Job 26:13, it is rendered, 'the crooked serpent;' referring to the constellation in the heavens by the name of the Serpent (see the note at that place). The idea of piercing is not in the Hebrew word, nor is it ever used in that sense.

That crooked serpent - This is correctly rendered; and refers to the fact that the monster here referred to throws itself into immense volumes or folds, a description that applies to all serpents of vast size. Virgil has given a similar description of sea monsters throwing themselves into vast convolutions:

'Ecce autem gemini a Tenedo tranquilla per alta

- immensis orbibus angues.'

- AEn. ii. 203.

And again:

'Sinuantque immensa volumine terga.'

Idem. 208.

The reference in Isaiah, I suppose, is not to "different" kings or enemies of the people of God, but to the same. It is customary in Hebrew poetry to refer to the same subject in different members of the same sentence, or in different parts of the same parallelism.

The dragon - Referring to the same thing under a different image - to the king of Babylon. On the meaning of the word 'dragon,' see the note at Isa 13:22.

In the sea - In the Euphrates; or in the marshes and pools that encompass Babylon (see Isa 11:15, note; Isa 18:2, note). The sense of the whole verse is, that God would destroy the Babylonian power that was to the Jews such an object of loathsomeness and of terror.

Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78]
Upon whom the judgment of Jehovah particularly falls, is described in figurative and enigmatical words in Isa 27:1 : "In that day will Jehovah visit with His sword, with the hard, and the great, and the strong, leviathan the fleet serpent, and leviathan the twisted serpent, and slay the dragon in the sea." No doubt the three animals are emblems of three imperial powers. The assertion that there are no more three animals than there are three swords, is a mistake. If the preposition were repeated in the case of the swords, as it is in the case of the animals, we should have to understand the passage as referring to three swords as well as three animals. But this is not the case. We have therefore to inquire what the three world-powers are; and this question is quite a justifiable one: for we have no reason to rest satisfied with the opinion held by Drechsler, that the three emblems are symbols of ungodly powers in general, of every kind and every sphere, unless the question itself is absolutely unanswerable. Now the tannin (the stretched-out aquatic animal) is the standing emblem of Egypt (Isa 51:9; Psa 74:13; Eze 29:3; Eze 32:2). And as the Euphrates-land and Asshur are mentioned in Isa 27:12, Isa 27:13 in connection with Egypt, it is immediately probable that the other two animals signify the kingdom of the Tigris, i.e., Assyria, with its capital Nineveh which stood on the Tigris, and the kingdom of the Euphrates, i.e., Chaldea, with its capital Babylon which stood upon the Euphrates. Moreover, the application of the same epithet Leviathan to both the kingdoms, with simply a difference in the attributes, is suggestive of two kingdoms that were related to each other. We must not be misled by the fact that nâchâsh bâriach is a constellation in Job 26:13; we have no bammarōm (on high) here, as in Isa 24:21, and therefore are evidently still upon the surface of the globe. The epithet employed was primarily suggested by the situation of the two cities. Nineveh was on the Tigris, which was called Chiddekel, (Note: In point of fact, not only does Arab. tyr signify both an arrow and the Tigris, according to the Neo-Persian lexicons, but the old explanation "Tigris, swift as a dart, since the Medes call the Tigris toxeuma" (the shot or shot arrow; Eustath, on Dion Perieg. v. 984), is confirmed by the Zendic tighri, which has been proved to be used in the sense of arrow or shot (Yesht 8, 6, yatha tighris mainyavacâo), i.e., like a heavenly arrow.) on account of the swiftness of its course and its terrible rapids; hence Asshur is compared to a serpent moving along in a rapid, impetuous, long, extended course (bâriach, as in Isa 43:14, is equivalent to barriach, a noun of the same form as עלּיז, and a different word from berriach, a bolt, Isa 15:5). Babylon, on the other hand, is compared to a twisted serpent, i.e., to one twisting about in serpentine curves, because it was situated on the very winding Euphrates, the windings of which are especially labyrinthine in the immediate vicinity of Babylon. The river did indeed flow straight away at one time, but by artificial cuttings it was made so serpentine that it passed the same place, viz., Arderikka, no less than three times; and according to the declaration of Herodotus in his own time, when any one sailed down the river, he had to pass it three times in three days (Ritter, x. p. 8). The real meaning of the emblem, however, is no more exhausted by this allusion to the geographical situation, than it was in the case of "the desert of the sea" (Isa 21:1). The attribute of winding is also a symbol of the longer duration of one empire than of the other, and of the more numerous complications into which Israel would be drawn by it. The world-power on the Tigris fires with rapidity upon Israel, so that the fate of Israel is very quickly decided. But the world-power on the Euphrates advances by many windings, and encircles its prey in many folds. And these windings are all the more numerous, because in the prophet's view Babylon is the final form assumed by the empire of the world, and therefore Israel remains encircled by this serpent until the last days. The judgment upon Asshur, Babylon, and Egypt, is the judgment upon the world-powers universally.

Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78]

Upon whom the judgment of Jehovah particularly falls, is described in figurative and enigmatical words in Isa 27:1 : "In that day will Jehovah visit with His sword, with the hard, and the great, and the strong, leviathan the fleet serpent, and leviathan the twisted serpent, and slay the dragon in the sea." No doubt the three animals are emblems of three imperial powers. The assertion that there are no more three animals than there are three swords, is a mistake. If the preposition were repeated in the case of the swords, as it is in the case of the animals, we should have to understand the passage as referring to three swords as well as three animals. But this is not the case. We have therefore to inquire what the three world-powers are; and this question is quite a justifiable one: for we have no reason to rest satisfied with the opinion held by Drechsler, that the three emblems are symbols of ungodly powers in general, of every kind and every sphere, unless the question itself is absolutely unanswerable. Now the tannin (the stretched-out aquatic animal) is the standing emblem of Egypt (Isa 51:9; Psa 74:13; Eze 29:3; Eze 32:2). And as the Euphrates-land and Asshur are mentioned in Isa 27:12, Isa 27:13 in connection with Egypt, it is immediately probable that the other two animals signify the kingdom of the Tigris, i.e., Assyria, with its capital Nineveh which stood on the Tigris, and the kingdom of the Euphrates, i.e., Chaldea, with its capital Babylon which stood upon the Euphrates. Moreover, the application of the same epithet Leviathan to both the kingdoms, with simply a difference in the attributes, is suggestive of two kingdoms that were related to each other. We must not be misled by the fact that nâchâsh bâriach is a constellation in Job 26:13; we have no bammarōm (on high) here, as in Isa 24:21, and therefore are evidently still upon the surface of the globe. The epithet employed was primarily suggested by the situation of the two cities. Nineveh was on the Tigris, which was called Chiddekel,

(Note: In point of fact, not only does Arab. tyr signify both an arrow and the Tigris, according to the Neo-Persian lexicons, but the old explanation "Tigris, swift as a dart, since the Medes call the Tigris toxeuma" (the shot or shot arrow; Eustath, on Dion Perieg. v. 984), is confirmed by the Zendic tighri, which has been proved to be used in the sense of arrow or shot (Yesht 8, 6, yatha tighris mainyavacâo), i.e., like a heavenly arrow.)

on account of the swiftness of its course and its terrible rapids; hence Asshur is compared to a serpent moving along in a rapid, impetuous, long, extended course (bâriach, as in Isa 43:14, is equivalent to barriach, a noun of the same form as עלּיז, and a different word from berriach, a bolt, Isa 15:5). Babylon, on the other hand, is compared to a twisted serpent, i.e., to one twisting about in serpentine curves, because it was situated on the very winding Euphrates, the windings of which are especially labyrinthine in the immediate vicinity of Babylon. The river did indeed flow straight away at one time, but by artificial cuttings it was made so serpentine that it passed the same place, viz., Arderikka, no less than three times; and according to the declaration of Herodotus in his own time, when any one sailed down the river, he had to pass it three times in three days (Ritter, x. p. 8). The real meaning of the emblem, however, is no more exhausted by this allusion to the geographical situation, than it was in the case of "the desert of the sea" (Isa 21:1). The attribute of winding is also a symbol of the longer duration of one empire than of the other, and of the more numerous complications into which Israel would be drawn by it. The world-power on the Tigris fires with rapidity upon Israel, so that the fate of Israel is very quickly decided. But the world-power on the Euphrates advances by many windings, and encircles its prey in many folds. And these windings are all the more numerous, because in the prophet's view Babylon is the final form assumed by the empire of the world, and therefore Israel remains encircled by this serpent until the last days. The judgment upon Asshur, Babylon, and Egypt, is the judgment upon the world-powers universally.

Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible, by John Wesley [1754-65]
Leviathan - By this leviathan, serpent and dragon (for all signify the same thing) be understands some powerful enemy or enemies of God, and of his church or people, which may well be called by these names, partly for their great might, and partly for the great terror and destruction which they cause upon the earth. The piercing - Which by its sting pierces deeply into mens bodies. Crooked serpent - Winding and turning itself with great variety and dexterity. Whereby he seems to signify the craftiness and activity of this enemy, whose strength makes it more formidable.

Adam Clarke Commentary on the Whole Bible - Published 1810-1826
Leviathan - The animals here mentioned seem to be the crocodile, rigid by the stiffness of the backbone, so that he cannot readily turn himself when he pursues his prey; hence the easiest way of escaping from him is by making frequent and short turnings: the serpent or dragon, flexible and winding, which coils himself up in a circular form: and the sea monster, or whale. These are used allegorically, without doubt for great potentates, enemies and persecutors of the people of God: but to specify the particular persons or states designed by the prophet under these images, is a matter of great difficulty, and comes not necessarily with in the design of these notes. R. D. Kimchi says, leviathan is a parable concerning the kings of the Gentiles: it is the largest fish in the sea, called also תנין tannin, the dragon, or rather the whale. By these names the Grecian, Turkish, and Roman empires are intended. The dragon of the sea seems to mean some nation having a strong naval force and extensive commerce. See Kimchi on the place.

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¹⁰ And [2532] the devil [1228] that deceived [4105] them [846] was cast [906] into [1519] the lake [3041] of fire [4442] and [2532] brimstone [2303], where [3699] the beast [2342] and [2532] the false prophet [5578] are, and [2532] shall be tormented [928] day [2250] and [2532] night [3571] for [1519] ever [165] and ever [165].

³ And [2532] there appeared [3700] another [243] wonder [4592] in [1722] heaven [3772]; and [2532] behold [2400] a great [3173] red [4450] dragon [1404], having [2192] seven [2033] heads [2776] and [2532] ten [1176] horns [2768], and [2532] seven [2033] crowns [1238] upon [1909] his [846] heads [2776].

¹ In the first [02298] year [08140] of Belshazzar [01113] king [04430] of Babylon [0895] Daniel [01841] had [02370] a dream [02493] and visions [02376] of his head [07217] upon [05922] his bed [04903]: then [0116] he wrote [03790] the dream [02493], and told [0560] the sum [07217] of the matters [04406].

² Son [01121] of man [0120], take up [05375] a lamentation [07015] for Pharaoh [06547] king [04428] of Egypt [04714], and say [0559] unto him, Thou art like [01819] a young lion [03715] of the nations [01471], and thou art as a whale [08577] [08565] in the seas [03220]: and thou camest forth [01518] with thy rivers [05104], and troubledst [01804] the waters [04325] with thy feet [07272], and fouledst [07515] their rivers [05104].

¹ In that day [03117] the LORD [03068] with his sore [07186] and great [01419] and strong [02389] sword [02719] shall punish [06485] leviathan [03882] the piercing [01281] serpent [05175], even leviathan [03882] that crooked [06129] serpent [05175]; and he shall slay [02026] the dragon [08577] that is in the sea [03220].
² In that day [03117] sing [06031] ye unto her, A vineyard [03754] of red wine [02561] [02531].
³ I the LORD [03068] do keep [05341] it; I will water [08248] it every moment [07281]: lest any hurt [06485] it, I will keep [05341] it night [03915] and day [03117].
⁴ Fury [02534] is not in me: who would set [05414] the briers [08068] and thorns [07898] against me in battle [04421]? I would go [06585] through them, I would burn [06702] them together [03162].
⁵ Or let him take hold [02388] of my strength [04581], that he may make [06213] peace [07965] with me; and he shall make [06213] peace [07965] with me.
⁶ He shall cause them that come [0935] of Jacob [03290] to take root [08327]: Israel [03478] shall blossom [06692] and bud [06524], and fill [04390] the face [06440] of the world [08398] with fruit [08570].
⁷ Hath he smitten [05221] him, as he smote [04347] those that smote [05221] him? or is he slain [02026] according to the slaughter [02027] of them that are slain [02026] by him?
⁸ In measure [05432], when it shooteth forth [07971], thou wilt debate [07378] with it: he stayeth [01898] his rough [07186] wind [07307] in the day [03117] of the east wind [06921].
⁹ By this [02063] therefore shall the iniquity [05771] of Jacob [03290] be purged [03722]; and this is all the fruit [06529] to take away [05493] his sin [02403]; when he maketh [07760] all the stones [068] of the altar [04196] as chalkstones [01615] that are beaten in sunder [05310], the groves [0842] and images [02553] shall not stand up [06965].
¹⁰ Yet the defenced [01219] city [05892] shall be desolate [0910], and the habitation [05116] forsaken [07971], and left [05800] like a wilderness [04057]: there shall the calf [05695] feed [07462], and there shall he lie down [07257], and consume [03615] the branches [05585] thereof.
¹¹ When the boughs [07105] thereof are withered [03001], they shall be broken off [07665]: the women [0802] come [0935], and set them on fire [0215]: for it is a people [05971] of no understanding [0998]: therefore he that made [06213] them will not have mercy [07355] on them, and he that formed [03335] them will shew them no favour [02603].
¹² And it shall come to pass in that day [03117], that the LORD [03068] shall beat off [02251] from the channel [07641] of the river [05104] unto the stream [05158] of Egypt [04714], and ye shall be gathered [03950] one [0259] by one [0259], O ye children [01121] of Israel [03478].
¹³ And it shall come to pass in that day [03117], that the great [01419] trumpet [07782] shall be blown [08628], and they shall come [0935] which were ready to perish [06] in the land [0776] of Assyria [0804], and the outcasts [05080] in the land [0776] of Egypt [04714], and shall worship [07812] the LORD [03068] in the holy [06944] mount [02022] at Jerusalem [03389].

² That sendeth [07971] ambassadors [06735] by the sea [03220], even in vessels [03627] of bulrushes [01573] upon [06440] the waters [04325], saying, Go [03212], ye swift [07031] messengers [04397], to a nation [01471] scattered [04900] and peeled [04178], to a people [05971] terrible [03372] from their beginning hitherto [01973]; a nation [01471] meted out [06978] and trodden down [04001], whose land [0776] the rivers [05104] have spoiled [0958] !

¹⁵ And the LORD [03068] shall utterly destroy [02763] the tongue [03956] of the Egyptian [04714] sea [03220]; and with his mighty [05868] wind [07307] shall he shake [05130] his hand [03027] over the river [05104], and shall smite [05221] it in the seven [07651] streams [05158], and make men go over [01869] dryshod [05275].

²² And the wild beasts of the islands [0338] shall cry [06030] in their desolate houses [0490], and dragons [08577] in their pleasant [06027] palaces [01964]: and her time [06256] is near [07138] to come [0935], and her days [03117] shall not be prolonged [04900].

¹³ By his spirit [07307] he hath garnished [08235] the heavens [08064]; his hand [03027] hath formed [02342] the crooked [01281] serpent [05175].

³¹ And he made [06213] bars [01280] of shittim [07848] wood [06086]; five [02568] for the boards [07175] of the one [0259] side [06763] of the tabernacle [04908],

²⁶ And thou shalt make [06213] bars [01280] of shittim [07848] wood [06086]; five [02568] for the boards [07175] of the one [0259] side [06763] of the tabernacle [04908],

³³ And he made [06213] the middle [08484] bar [01280] to shoot [01272] through [08432] the boards [07175] from the one end [07097] to the other [07097].

¹³ By his spirit [07307] he hath garnished [08235] the heavens [08064]; his hand [03027] hath formed [02342] the crooked [01281] serpent [05175].

¹³ Thou didst divide [06565] the sea [03220] by thy strength [05797]: thou brakest [07665] the heads [07218] of the dragons [08577] in the waters [04325].
¹⁴ Thou brakest [07533] the heads [07218] of leviathan [03882] in pieces, and gavest [05414] him to be meat [03978] to the people [05971] inhabiting the wilderness [06728].

² Now, thou son [01121] of man [0120], wilt thou judge [08199], wilt thou judge [08199] the bloody [01818] city [05892]? yea, thou shalt shew [03045] her all her abominations [08441].

³ Speak [01696], and say [0559], Thus saith [0559] the Lord [0136] GOD [03069]; Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh [06547] king [04428] of Egypt [04714], the great [01419] dragon [08577] that lieth [07257] in the midst [08432] of his rivers [02975], which hath said [0559], My river [02975] is mine own, and I have made [06213] it for myself.
⁴ But I will put [05414] hooks [02397] [02397] in thy jaws [03895], and I will cause the fish [01710] of thy rivers [02975] to stick [01692] unto thy scales [07193], and I will bring thee up [05927] out of the midst [08432] of thy rivers [02975], and all the fish [01710] of thy rivers [02975] shall stick [01692] unto thy scales [07193].
⁵ And I will leave [05203] thee thrown into the wilderness [04057], thee and all the fish [01710] of thy rivers [02975]: thou shalt fall [05307] upon the open [06440] fields [07704]; thou shalt not be brought together [0622], nor gathered [06908]: I have given [05414] thee for meat [0402] to the beasts [02416] of the field [0776] and to the fowls [05775] of the heaven [08064].

²⁶ There go [01980] the ships [0591]: there is that leviathan [03882], whom thou hast made [03335] to play [07832] therein.

¹⁴ Thou brakest [07533] the heads [07218] of leviathan [03882] in pieces, and gavest [05414] him to be meat [03978] to the people [05971] inhabiting the wilderness [06728].

¹ Canst thou draw out [04900] leviathan [03882] with an hook [02443]? or his tongue [03956] with a cord [02256] which thou lettest down [08257]?

⁸ Let them curse [05344] it that curse [0779] the day [03117], who are ready [06264] to raise up [05782] their mourning [03882].

⁵ O [01945] Assyrian [0804], the rod [07626] of mine anger [0639], and the staff [04294] in their hand [03027] is mine indignation [02195].
⁶ I will send [07971] him against an hypocritical [02611] nation [01471], and against the people [05971] of my wrath [05678] will I give him a charge [06680], to take [07997] the spoil [07998], and to take [0962] the prey [0957], and to tread them down [07760] [04823] like the mire [02563] of the streets [02351].

¹³ Arise [06965], O LORD [03068], disappoint [06923] him [06440], cast him down [03766]: deliver [06403] my soul [05315] from the wicked [07563], which is thy sword [02719]:

³⁷ They were stoned [3034], they were sawn asunder [4249], were tempted [3985], were slain [599] with [1722] the sword [5408] [3162]: they wandered about [4022] in [1722] sheepskins [3374] and [1722] goatskins [122] [1192]; being destitute [5302], afflicted [2346], tormented [2558];

¹² If he turn [07725] not, he will whet [03913] his sword [02719]; he hath bent [01869] his bow [07198], and made it ready [03559].

⁴¹ If I whet [08150] my glittering [01300] sword [02719], and mine hand [03027] take hold [0270] on judgment [04941]; I will render [07725] vengeance [05359] to mine enemies [06862], and will reward [07999] them that hate [08130] me.
⁴² I will make mine arrows [02671] drunk [07937] with blood [01818], and my sword [02719] shall devour [0398] flesh [01320]; and that with the blood [01818] of the slain [02491] and of the captives [07633], from the beginning [07218] of revenges [06546] upon the enemy [0341].

²⁵ And I will bring [0935] a sword [02719] upon you, that shall avenge [05358] the quarrel [05359] of my covenant [01285]: and when ye are gathered together [0622] within [0413] your cities [05892], I will send [07971] the pestilence [01698] among [08432] you; and ye shall be delivered [05414] into the hand [03027] of the enemy [0341].

⁴⁰ And by thy sword [02719] shalt thou live [02421], and shalt serve [05647] thy brother [0251]; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion [07300], that thou shalt break [06561] his yoke [05923] from off thy neck [06677].

² In that day [03117] sing [06031] ye unto her, A vineyard [03754] of red wine [02561] [02531].

¹ In that day [03117] shall this song [07892] be sung [07891] in the land [0776] of Judah [03063]; We have a strong [05797] city [05892]; salvation [03444] will God appoint [07896] for walls [02346] and bulwarks [02426].

¹ The burden [04853] of the desert [04057] of the sea [03220]. As whirlwinds [05492] in the south [05045] pass [02498] through; so it cometh [0935] from the desert [04057], from a terrible [03372] land [0776].

⁵ My heart [03820] shall cry out [02199] for Moab [04124]; his fugitives [01280] shall flee unto Zoar [06820], an heifer [05697] of three years old [07992]: for by the mounting up [04608] of Luhith [03872] with weeping [01065] shall they go it up [05927]; for in the way [01870] of Horonaim [02773] they shall raise up [05782] a cry [02201] of destruction [07667].

¹⁴ Thus saith [0559] the LORD [03068], your redeemer [01350], the Holy One [06918] of Israel [03478]; For your sake I have sent [07971] to Babylon [0894], and have brought down [03381] all their nobles [01281], and the Chaldeans [03778], whose cry [07440] is in the ships [0591].

²¹ And it shall come to pass in that day [03117], that the LORD [03068] shall punish [06485] the host [06635] of the high ones [04791] that are on high [04791], and the kings [04428] of the earth [0127] upon the earth [0127].

¹³ By his spirit [07307] he hath garnished [08235] the heavens [08064]; his hand [03027] hath formed [02342] the crooked [01281] serpent [05175].

¹³ And it shall come to pass in that day [03117], that the great [01419] trumpet [07782] shall be blown [08628], and they shall come [0935] which were ready to perish [06] in the land [0776] of Assyria [0804], and the outcasts [05080] in the land [0776] of Egypt [04714], and shall worship [07812] the LORD [03068] in the holy [06944] mount [02022] at Jerusalem [03389].

¹² And it shall come to pass in that day [03117], that the LORD [03068] shall beat off [02251] from the channel [07641] of the river [05104] unto the stream [05158] of Egypt [04714], and ye shall be gathered [03950] one [0259] by one [0259], O ye children [01121] of Israel [03478].

¹³ Thou didst divide [06565] the sea [03220] by thy strength [05797]: thou brakest [07665] the heads [07218] of the dragons [08577] in the waters [04325].

⁹ Awake [05782], awake [05782], put on [03847] strength [05797], O arm [02220] of the LORD [03068]; awake [05782], as in the ancient [06924] days [03117], in the generations [01755] of old [05769]. Art thou not it that hath cut [02672] Rahab [07294], and wounded [02490] the dragon [08577]?