God's creation is full of things that strike fear in the hearts of human beings: wolves, jellyfish, sharks, alligators, mice, hornets, fire ants, lions, tigers and bears (yes, I'll say it--Oh, my!). Humans are, at least without our brains and technologies, quite vulnerable. We were not created with tough hides or large teeth, or fast running speeds. If we have no natural predators today, it is because we climbed our way up the food chain.
But Scripture tells us that God also created monsters that will always keep us vulnerable. These monsters were made for their own sake, because God willed it, but they also serve the purpose of keeping us humble. These biblical monsters, whether real or mythical, have the purpose of making sure that we remember that sometimes God is our only help and defense. Let's take a look at some of the most-well known monsters of the Bible:
LEVIATHAN
Yonder is the sea, great and wide,
creeping things innumerable are there,
living things both small and great.
There go the ships,
and Leviathan that you formed to sport in it. (Psalm 104:25-26)
Leviathan is a huge sea monster. Its skin is described as chain mail, its back as being made of shields set in overlapping rows. Iron is like straw to this creature, and harpoons, hooks and swords have no effect on it. (A good modern depiction of a Leviathan-like creature, are those living, flying, snake-like troop carriers in the recent Avengers movie.) It breathes smoke from its nostrils and spews fire from its mouth. "On earth it has no equal, a creature without fear. It surveys everything that is lofty; it is king over all that are proud" (Job 41). Only God can subdue this aquatic nightmare. In the mind of ancient humans, the sea was a place where chaos still held sway. At creation, God separated the waters and brought forth order. But God did not eradicate chaos entirely, instead he put limits to the sea--land and sky. The sea was a dangerous, unpredictable place--a place where humans were simply not created to live. Leviathan is the ruler of that place, the king of chaos. It lives in the deep, and easily claims ships and all the souls aboard. As terrifying as Leviathan is to us, God's creation in the monster is good. It proves that God is able to create life in the most hostile of environments. Leviathan was made to sport--or play--in the chaotic seas. However, it is best not to play with Leviathan.
BEHEMOTH
Look at Behemoth,
which I made just as I made you;
it eats grass like an ox.
Its strength is in its loins,
and its power in the muscles of its belly.
It makes its tail stiff like a cedar;
the sinews of its thighs are knit together.
Its bones are tubes of bronze,
its limbs like bars of iron.
It is the first of the great acts of God--
only its Maker can approach it with the sword. (Job 40:15-19)
Some liken Behemoth to the (fictional) Brontosaurus--a plodding creature with a huge tail and thick, sturdy legs. The word "behemoth" means "beast." But the image is of a huge animal. Since the Behemoth was an herbivore, the danger was not in being eaten or hunted. Rather, the dread that came from this creature was its size. You feared Behemoth because it could crush you so easily, and because there was no way to stop it. God made some things for humans to just stay away from.
LOCUSTS of the ABYSS
"In appearance the locusts were like horses equipped for battle. ON their heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were like human faces, their hair like women's hair, and the teeth like lions' teeth; they had scales like iron breastplates, and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle. They have tails like scorpions, with stingers, and in their tails is their power to harm people for five months. They have as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit; his name is [the Destroyer]" (Revelation 9:7-11).
I would not want to ever meet these things...never. These things were not created by God per se. Instead, they are more like frankensteinian science experiment gone wrong. God created their constituent parts (locusts, humans, horses, scorpions, lions, etc), but the abyss--Hell--has changed and twisted them together into a fearful hybrid species of monster. In the Book of Revelation, they are unleashed upon the earth because our sinfulness has finally reached a head at the end of the age. They are not a punishment sent from God, but rather they are called forth from Hell by our own wrongdoing and bloodthirsty fallen nature. So, if you don't want to encounter these things then either be good, or trust in God. (I would recommend the latter, since we can only sustain the former for so long before we slip--part of our human nature.)
THE DRAGON (Revelation 12)
The Dragon is, in a word, Satan. Throughout the course of history, the Dragon chases the Son of God to kill him and devours human beings. At one point, the Dragon thought he won, but death could not keep the Son of God...because God's life is too strong. The Dragon shows up in Revelation as the steroid-enhanced version of the Serpent in the Adam and Eve story in Genesis. Long before time began, the Dragon was cast down from heaven to earth. Since then, he has prowled like a roaring lion, coming to devour. For a limited time, he is able to roam freely on the earth, trying to turn humans to his side. He is the source of all evil in the world, and king of monsters (in a bad way, not in a good way, like Godzilla). The Good News: God always wins out against the Dragon. And at the End of Days, God will win the ultimate victory and the Dragon will vanish from existence. Thanks be to God.
As we can see, most of the monsters of the Bible--just like almost all of the monsters we know and love today--are inspired by natural things. Either they are creatures that have been on the earth the whole time, just hidden away somewhere. Or they are creatures that have been changed or mutated because of our irresponsible actions, especially in science. For example, Godzilla was created by the nuclear blasts on the island of Japan. The movie The Fly was a bout a man who was changed into a giant fly through some science experiment. In any case, monsters help us deal with our fear of those natural processes--or creatures--that we cannot control or cannot defend ourselves against. Ultimately, all of these monsters symbolize death: the natural process from which we can run, but we cannot hide.
When faced with monsters of any kind, human, medical, natural or supernatural, we must always remember that God has power over all of it. And that since God's life is stronger than death, no monsters will get us in the end. No one slips out of God's hands. Thanks be to God. Amen.
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