Matthew Poole and continuators on Job 41:26

26. The Sword of him that layeth at him cannot hold : the spear, the dart, nor the habergeon .

That approacheth to him, and dare strike at him.

Heb. cannot stand, i. e. either 1. Cannot endure the stroke, but will be broken by it. Or rather 2. Cannot abide or take hold of him, or be fixed in him; but is instantly beaten back by the excessive hardness of the skin, which cannot be pierced by it, as may be gathered from this and other passages before and after it. This also seems better to agree to the Crocodile, whose skin no Sword, nor Dart, nor Musquet Bullet, (as others add) can pierce, than to the Whale, whose skin is easily pierced, as Experience sheweth in our Whales; except the Whale here spoken of were of another kind; which is not impossible.

Or, Breast-plate. As offensive Weapons cannot hurt him, so defensive Weapons cannot secure a Man from him. But men that go upon the design of taking either Whales or Crocodiles do not use to fortifie themselves in that manner. Some therefore take this to be another offensive Weapon, a kind of dart, as this word signifies in the Arabick Language; which is but a Dialect of the Hebrew, and from which the true signification of many Hebrew words must be gathered.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word]