Job 33:25
His flesh shall be fresher than a child's: he shall return to the days of his youth:
Original Language Analysis
בְּשָׂר֣וֹ
His flesh
H1320
בְּשָׂר֣וֹ
His flesh
Strong's:
H1320
Word #:
2 of 6
flesh (from its freshness); by extension, body, person; also (by euphemistically) the pudenda of a man
יָ֝שׁ֗וּב
he shall return
H7725
יָ֝שׁ֗וּב
he shall return
Strong's:
H7725
Word #:
4 of 6
to turn back (hence, away) transitively or intransitively, literally or figuratively (not necessarily with the idea of return to the starting point);
Cross References
Psalms 103:5Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.2 Kings 5:14Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.Deuteronomy 34:7And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated.Job 42:16After this lived Job an hundred and forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, even four generations.Hosea 2:15And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.
Historical Context
Ancient medicine could not reverse advanced wasting disease. Restoration from death's door required miraculous intervention—as with Hezekiah (2 Kings 20:1-7) or resurrection miracles. Elihu's theology of redemptive suffering includes restoration as the goal: God wounds and heals (Deuteronomy 32:39). The ransom concept (kōper) came from Israel's legal system where payment substituted for punishment—foundational to atonement theology.
Questions for Reflection
- How does the promise of restoration 'fresher than a child's' encourage perseverance through current suffering?
- In what ways does physical healing point to the greater resurrection hope where bodies will be glorified beyond their original condition?
- How does understanding Christ as the ransom (v.24 context) who delivers from 'the pit' transform your view of salvation?
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Analysis & Commentary
His flesh shall be fresher than a child's (ruṭpaš běśārô minneō'ar, רֻטְפַּשׁ בְּשָׂרוֹ מִנֹּעַר)—After describing suffering's descent toward death (vv.19-22), Elihu pivots to restoration. The verb rāṭap (rare form, to be fresh, soft, supple) describes flesh (bāśār) renewed beyond its former state—fresher than a youth's (nō'ar). This isn't mere recovery but transformation surpassing original condition. The comparison to childhood evokes Psalm 103:5: 'thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.' Divine healing restores what sickness consumed.
Verses 23-24 (not assigned but providing context) describe a mediator-angel who declares God's ransom and commands: 'Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom' (kōper, כֹּפֶר). This redemption produces the restoration in verse 25—flesh renewed because ransom was paid. This foreshadows Christ as mediator (1 Timothy 2:5) whose ransom-death (Mark 10:45) purchases not just spiritual salvation but bodily resurrection. The flesh's renewal anticipates glorified bodies believers will receive.