dragon

A reptilian monster well known in the mythology and iconography of the ancient Near East. In the Bible the dragon appears as the primeval enemy of God, killed or subjected in conjunction with creation (Ps 74:13-14; Ps 89:10; Isa 51:9; Job 26:12-13), but appearing again at the end of the world, when God will finally dispose of it (Isa 27:1). In the book of Revelation, the dragon (identified now with the devil) and its agents campaign against the forces of God, but are finally defeated (Rev 12-13; Rev 16:13-14; Rev 20:2-3; Rev 7-10:2).