Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook…? asks Job if he can catch this animal the way someone catches a fish. Draw out translates a verb meaning “to extract,” in this case extract from the water, and the action is expressed in English as “catch.” In some languages this is commonly expressed as “Can you fish the crocodile with a fishhook?”

The question Can you … press down his tongue with a cord? sounds strange. Press down translates the causative form of a verb meaning “to sink,” but the word is used in Leviticus 8.13 in the sense of “bind,” and Dhorme takes that meaning to apply here. In order to prevent a crocodile from using its jaws, it is necessary to tie its jaws shut. If line b is to be taken as an action following line a, the captured animal would need to have its mouth tied shut. In this case tongue may be taken as representing the mouth, and the meaning can be “Can you tie his mouth shut with a rope?” The answer to both questions is then “No!” The questions in verses 1-7 as well as later in the chapter may require shifting to negative statements in some languages. In other languages it may be necessary to answer the question with a strong negative.

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, Wiliam. A Handbook on Job. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1992. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .