they make a nest that is web
LEVIATHAN לויתן
I. Liwyātān is the Heb name of a mythical monster associated with the →Sea (or Yam). First attested in a Ugaritic text (KTU 1.5 i:1 || 27) where it occurs as ltn (to be vocalized lıtānu, as convincingly argued by EMERTON 1982), the name is related to a root LWY. Etymologically it might be interpreted either as ‘the twisting one’ (cf. Arab lawiyā) or ‘the wreath-like’, ‘the circular’ (cf. Heb liwyâ), both possibilities pointing to an original concept of Leviathan as a snake-like being. The second alternative should not, however, lead to the opinion that Leviathan were always imagined as the primeval sea-serpent thought to surround the earth (J. C. DE MOOR, ARTU 69, n. 323; cf. BiOr 31 [1974] 5a; for a late Kassite kudurru-relief showing such a being, see U. SEIDL, Die babylonischen Kudurru-Reliefs [OBO 87; Fribourg & Göttingen 1989] no. 40). Both Ugaritic and Biblical texts use lıtānu/liwyātān as a proper name; consequently, the imagined physical appearance of Leviathan cannot be deduced from etymology alone, and as a matter of fact, the texts do not give a single, homogeneous portrait (see below).
The Person and Number of the Beast. The language describing the beast in Rev 13 leads the reader to understand that a specific person is behind the imagery. The author refuses to name this person, but explains that he can be understood by a number: 666 (or 616 in some early manuscripts). The author intends for readers to decipher this number; the countless interpretations offered throughout Christian history suggest that such a task is not as simple today as it might have been for someone in the first century AD.
OWL Bird of prey belonging to the order s which are generally nocturnal. Hebrew terms for various bird species cannot be identified precisely with English terms. NRSV mentions two species of owl, the little and great owls (Deut. 14:16). KJV mentions these as well as the owl of the desert (Deut. 14:16; Ps. 102:6) and screech owl (Isa. 34:14). NIV mentions six species: the horned owl; screech owl (Lev. 11:16; Deut. 14:15); little owl (Lev. 11:17; Deut. 14:16); great owl; white owl; and desert owl (Lev. 11:18; Deut. 14:16). Owls, like other predatory birds, were classed as unclean. Owls nesting in ruins are a common image of desolation (Ps. 102:6; Isa. 34:11, 15; Zeph. 2:14).