Sea Monster (תַּנִּין, tannin). A monster of the deep sea or a serpent, often subdued by Yahweh. The Hebrew word tannin is a common noun that can be used for any sort of snakelike creature, but two thirds of the occurrences reflect some sort of great sea creature or sea monster. Those usages frequently make the sea monster identification clear by using the term in parallel with one of the other words associated with the Chaoskampf motif, especially לִויָתָן (liwyathan) (“Leviathan, sea dragon”), רַהַב (rahav) (“sea monster”), יָם (yam) (“sea”), and תְּהוֹם (tehom, “the deep”). For example, tannin appears in context with yam (“sea”) in Job 7:12 and tehom (“the deep”) in Psa 148:7. Several times tannin is used in parallel with explicit names for sea monsters, such as Leviathan (Psa 74:13–14; Isa 27:1) and Rahab (Isa 51:9). Other times tannin is used in parallel with other words for common animals like snakes and lions (Psa 91:13; Deut 32:33). The term is significant when used with Leviathan (Psa 74:13; Isa 27:1) or “deep sea” because it points to both Canaanite beliefs about the terrors of the sea (compare Gen 1:21; Psa 148:7) and the theological concepts of creation and chaos. For more information, see the following articles: Dragon and Sea; Leviathan; Rahab the Sea Monster; Chaos.