CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>Job 19:20 My skin and flesh cling to my bones; I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.</title><link rel="canonical" href="https://biblehub.com/job/19-20.htm" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/new9.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><meta property="og:image" content="https://biblehub.com/visuals/18/18_Job_19_20.jpg" /><meta property="og:title" content="Job 19:20 - Job: My Redeemer Lives" /><meta property="og:site_name" content="Bible Hub" /><meta property="og:description" content="My skin and flesh cling to my bones; I have escaped by the skin of my teeth." /><script type="application/javascript" src="https://scripts.webcontentassessor.com/scripts/8a2459b64f9cac8122fc7f2eac4409c8555fac9383016db59c4c26e3d5b8b157"></script><script src='https://qd.admetricspro.com/js/biblehub/biblehub-layout-loader.js'></script><script id='HyDgbd_1s' src='https://prebidads.revcatch.com/ads.js' type='text/javascript' async></script> <script src='https://app.protectsubrev.com/biblehub.js' type='text/javascript'></script></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="/vmenus/job/19-20.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmc/job/19-20.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="/">Bible</a> > <a href="/job/">Job</a> > <a href="/job/19.htm">Chapter 19</a> > Verse 20</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div><div id="ad1"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/ad1.htm" width="100%" height="48" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="/job/19-19.htm" title="Job 19:19">◄</a> Job 19:20 <a href="/job/19-21.htm" title="Job 19:21">►</a></div></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="topverse"> <a href="#study" class="clickchap2" title="Context and Study Bible"> Audio </a> <a href="#crossref" class="clickchap2" title="Cross References"> Crossref </a> <a href="#commentary" class="clickchap2" title="Commentary"> Comm </a> <a href="#lexicon" class="clickchap2" title="Lexicon"> Hebrew </a> </div><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheadingv"><b>Verse</b><a href="/bsb/job/19.htm" class="clickchap" style="color:#001320" title="Click any translation name for full chapter">  (Click for Chapter)</a></div><div id="par"><span class="versiontext"><a href="/niv/job/19.htm">New International Version</a></span><br />I am nothing but skin and bones; I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nlt/job/19.htm">New Living Translation</a></span><br />I have been reduced to skin and bones and have escaped death by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/esv/job/19.htm">English Standard Version</a></span><br />My bones stick to my skin and to my flesh, and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/bsb/job/19.htm">Berean Standard Bible</a></span><br />My skin and flesh cling to my bones; I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/kjv/job/19.htm">King James Bible</a></span><br />My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nkjv/job/19.htm">New King James Version</a></span><br />My bone clings to my skin and to my flesh, And I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb_/job/19.htm">New American Standard Bible</a></span><br />“My bone clings to my skin and my flesh, And I have escaped <i>only</i> by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb/job/19.htm">NASB 1995</a></span><br />&#8220My bone clings to my skin and my flesh, And I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb77/job/19.htm">NASB 1977 </a></span><br />“My bone clings to my skin and my flesh, And I have escaped <i>only</i> by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsb/job/19.htm">Legacy Standard Bible </a></span><br />My bone clings to my skin and my flesh, And I have escaped <i>only</i> by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/amp/job/19.htm">Amplified Bible</a></span><br />“My bone clings to my skin and to my flesh, And I have escaped [death] by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/csb/job/19.htm">Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />My skin and my flesh cling to my bones; I have escaped with only the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hcsb/job/19.htm">Holman Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />My skin and my flesh cling to my bones; I have escaped by the skin of my teeth. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/asv/job/19.htm">American Standard Version</a></span><br />My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, And I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/cev/job/19.htm">Contemporary English Version</a></span><br />I am skin and bones--just barely alive. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/erv/job/19.htm">English Revised Version</a></span><br />My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gwt/job/19.htm">GOD'S WORD® Translation</a></span><br />I am skin and bones, and I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gnt/job/19.htm">Good News Translation</a></span><br />My skin hangs loose on my bones; I have barely escaped with my life. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/isv/job/19.htm">International Standard Version</a></span><br />I'm a pile of skin and bones; I have barely escaped by the skin of my teeth."<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/msb/job/19.htm">Majority Standard Bible</a></span><br />My skin and flesh cling to my bones; I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/net/job/19.htm">NET Bible</a></span><br />My bones stick to my skin and my flesh; I have escaped alive with only the skin of my teeth. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nheb/job/19.htm">New Heart English Bible</a></span><br />My bones stick to my skin and to my flesh. I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/wbt/job/19.htm">Webster's Bible Translation</a></span><br />My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I have escaped with the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/web/job/19.htm">World English Bible</a></span><br />My bones stick to my skin and to my flesh. I have escaped by the skin of my teeth. <div class="vheading2"><b>Literal Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsv/job/19.htm">Literal Standard Version</a></span><br />To my skin and to my flesh "" My bone has cleaved, "" And I deliver myself with the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/ylt/job/19.htm">Young's Literal Translation</a></span><br /> To my skin and to my flesh Cleaved hath my bone, And I deliver myself with the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/slt/job/19.htm">Smith's Literal Translation</a></span><br />My bone cleaved to my skin and to my flesh, and I shall escape with the skin of my teeth.<div class="vheading2"><b>Catholic Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/drb/job/19.htm">Douay-Rheims Bible</a></span><br />The flesh being consumed. My bone hath cleaved to my skin, and nothing but lips are left about my teeth. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/cpdv/job/19.htm">Catholic Public Domain Version</a></span><br />Since my flesh has been consumed, my bone adheres to my skin, and only my lips have been left around my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nabre/job/19.htm">New American Bible</a></span><br />My bones cling to my skin, and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nrsvce/job/19.htm">New Revised Standard Version</a></span><br />My bones cling to my skin and to my flesh, and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.<div class="vheading2"><b>Translations from Aramaic</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lamsa/job/19.htm">Lamsa Bible</a></span><br />My skin and my flesh cleave to my bones, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hpbt/job/19.htm">Peshitta Holy Bible Translated</a></span><br />My skin and my flesh is stuck on my bones and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth<div class="vheading2"><b>OT Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/jps/job/19.htm">JPS Tanakh 1917</a></span><br />My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, And I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/sep/job/19.htm">Brenton Septuagint Translation</a></span><br />My flesh is corrupt under my skin, and my bones are held in <i>my</i> teeth.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/parallel/job/19-20.htm">Additional Translations ...</a></span></div></div></div><div id="centbox"><div class="padcent"><a name="study" id="study"></a><div class="vheadingv"><b>Audio Bible</b></div><iframe width="100%" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XAwuD5NuZq0?start=2928" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><div class="vheadingv"><b>Context</b></div><span class="hdg"><a href="/bsb/job/19.htm">Job: My Redeemer Lives</a></span><br>…<span class="reftext">19</span>All my best friends despise me, and those I love have turned against me. <span class="reftext">20</span><span class="highl"><a href="/hebrew/5785.htm" title="5785: bə·‘ō·w·rî (Prep-b:: N-msc:: 1cs) -- A skin. From uwr; skin; by implication, hide, leather.">My skin</a> <a href="/hebrew/1320.htm" title="1320: ū·ḇiḇ·śā·rî (Conj-w, Prep-b:: N-msc:: 1cs) -- Flesh. From basar; flesh; by extension, body, person; also The pudenda of a man.">and flesh</a> <a href="/hebrew/1692.htm" title="1692: dā·ḇə·qāh (V-Qal-Perf-3fs) -- To cling, cleave, keep close. A primitive root; properly, to impinge, i.e. Cling or adhere; figuratively, to catch by pursuit.">cling</a> <a href="/hebrew/6106.htm" title="6106: ‘aṣ·mî (N-fsc:: 1cs) -- Bone, substance, self. From atsam; a bone; by extension, the body; figuratively, the substance, i.e. Selfsame.">to my bones;</a> <a href="/hebrew/4422.htm" title="4422: wā·’eṯ·mal·lə·ṭāh (Conj-w:: V-Hitpael-ConsecImperf-1cs:: 3fs) -- A primitive root; properly, to be smooth, i.e. to escape; causatively, to release or rescue; specifically, to bring forth young, emit sparks.">I have escaped</a> <a href="/hebrew/5785.htm" title="5785: bə·‘ō·wr (Prep-b:: N-msc) -- A skin. From uwr; skin; by implication, hide, leather.">by the skin</a> <a href="/hebrew/8127.htm" title="8127: šin·nāy (N-cdc:: 1cs) -- Tooth, ivory. From shanan; a tooth; specifically ivory; figuratively, a cliff.">of my teeth.</a> </span><span class="reftext">21</span>Have pity on me, my friends, have pity, for the hand of God has struck me.…<div class="cred"><a href="//berean.bible">Berean Standard Bible</a> · <a href="//berean.bible/downloads.htm">Download</a></div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="crossref" id="crossref"></a><div class="vheading">Cross References</div><div id="crf"><span class="crossverse"><a href="/psalms/102-5.htm">Psalm 102:5</a></span><br />Through my loud groaning my skin hangs on my bones.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/lamentations/4-8.htm">Lamentations 4:8</a></span><br />But now their appearance is blacker than soot; they are not recognized in the streets. Their skin has shriveled on their bones; it has become as dry as a stick.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/lamentations/4-9.htm">Lamentations 4:9</a></span><br />Those slain by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger, who waste away, pierced with pain because the fields lack produce.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/psalms/22-17.htm">Psalm 22:17</a></span><br />I can count all my bones; they stare and gloat over me.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/psalms/22-14.htm">Psalm 22:14-15</a></span><br />I am poured out like water, and all my bones are disjointed. My heart is like wax; it melts away within me. / My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You lay me in the dust of death.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/isaiah/38-12.htm">Isaiah 38:12-13</a></span><br />My dwelling has been picked up and removed from me like a shepherd’s tent. I have rolled up my life like a weaver; He cuts me off from the loom; from day until night You make an end of me. / I composed myself until the morning. Like a lion He breaks all my bones; from day until night You make an end of me.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/jeremiah/20-18.htm">Jeremiah 20:18</a></span><br />Why did I come out of the womb to see only trouble and sorrow, and to end my days in shame?<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/psalms/6-2.htm">Psalm 6:2</a></span><br />Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am frail; heal me, O LORD, for my bones are in agony.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/psalms/31-9.htm">Psalm 31:9-10</a></span><br />Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; my eyes fail from sorrow, my soul and body as well. / For my life is consumed with grief and my years with groaning; my iniquity has drained my strength, and my bones are wasting away.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/isaiah/53-3.htm">Isaiah 53:3-4</a></span><br />He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. / Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/matthew/8-17.htm">Matthew 8:17</a></span><br />This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/1_peter/2-24.htm">1 Peter 2:24</a></span><br />He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. “By His stripes you are healed.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/2_corinthians/4-16.htm">2 Corinthians 4:16</a></span><br />Therefore we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/2_corinthians/5-1.htm">2 Corinthians 5:1-4</a></span><br />For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is dismantled, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. / For in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, / because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/romans/8-23.htm">Romans 8:23</a></span><br />Not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.</div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="tsk" id="tsk"><div class="vheading">Treasury of Scripture</div><p class="tsk2">My bone sticks to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.</p><p class="hdg">bone</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/job/30-30.htm">Job 30:30</a></b></br> My skin is black upon me, and my bones are burned with heat.</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/job/33-19.htm">Job 33:19-22</a></b></br> He is chastened also with pain upon his bed, and the multitude of his bones with strong <i>pain</i>: … </p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/psalms/22-14.htm">Psalm 22:14-17</a></b></br> I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels… </p><p class="hdg">and to.</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/amos/2-4.htm">Amos 2:4-6</a></b></br> Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not turn away <i>the punishment</i> thereof; because they have despised the law of the LORD, and have not kept his commandments, and their lies caused them to err, after the which their fathers have walked: … </p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/amos/7-5.htm">Amos 7:5</a></b></br> Then said I, O Lord GOD, cease, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he <i>is</i> small.</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/lamentations/3-4.htm">Lamentations 3:4</a></b></br> My flesh and my skin hath he made old; he hath broken my bones.</p><div class="vheading">Jump to Previous</div><a href="/job/2-5.htm">Bone</a> <a href="/job/10-11.htm">Bones</a> <a href="/2_kings/5-27.htm">Cleave</a> <a href="/nehemiah/10-29.htm">Cleaved</a> <a href="/job/16-13.htm">Cleaveth</a> <a href="/job/8-15.htm">Clings</a> <a href="/job/10-7.htm">Deliver</a> <a href="/job/1-19.htm">Escaped</a> <a href="/job/16-8.htm">Flesh</a> <a href="/job/10-11.htm">Joined</a> <a href="/job/18-13.htm">Skin</a> <a href="/2_kings/6-6.htm">Stick</a> <a href="/job/16-9.htm">Teeth</a><div class="vheading2">Jump to Next</div><a href="/job/30-17.htm">Bone</a> <a href="/job/20-11.htm">Bones</a> <a href="/job/38-38.htm">Cleave</a> <a href="/job/28-10.htm">Cleaved</a> <a href="/job/31-7.htm">Cleaveth</a> <a href="/psalms/63-8.htm">Clings</a> <a href="/job/22-30.htm">Deliver</a> <a href="/job/20-21.htm">Escaped</a> <a href="/job/19-22.htm">Flesh</a> <a href="/job/29-10.htm">Joined</a> <a href="/job/19-26.htm">Skin</a> <a href="/job/33-21.htm">Stick</a> <a href="/job/29-17.htm">Teeth</a><div class="vheading2">Job 19</div><span class="reftext">1. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/job/19-1.htm">Job, complaining of his friends' cruelty, </a></span><br><span class="reftext">6. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/job/19-6.htm">shows there is misery enough in him to feed their cruelty</a></span><br><span class="reftext">21. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/job/19-21.htm">He craves pity</a></span><br><span class="reftext">23. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/job/19-23.htm">He believes the resurrection</a></span><br></div></div><div id="mdd"><div align="center"><div class="bot2"><table align="center" width="100%"><tr><td><div align="center"> <script id="3d27ed63fc4348d5b062c4527ae09445"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=51ce25d5-1a8c-424a-8695-4bd48c750f35&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script> <script id="b817b7107f1d4a7997da1b3c33457e03"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=cb0edd8b-b416-47eb-8c6d-3cc96561f7e8&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-2'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-0' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-3'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-1' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div align="center" id='div-gpt-ad-1531425649696-0'> </div><br /><br /> <script type="text/javascript"> </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script><br /><br /> </div> </td></tr></table></div></div></div><div id="combox"><div class="padcom"><a name="commentary" id="commentary"></a><div class="vheading"><a href="/study/job/19.htm">Berean Study Bible</a></div><b>I am nothing but skin and bones</b><br />This phrase captures the physical and emotional desolation of Job. The Hebrew word for "skin" is "עור" (or), and "bones" is "עצם" (etsem). In the ancient Near Eastern context, these terms emphasize the frailty and vulnerability of human life. Job's description of himself as "nothing but skin and bones" underscores his extreme suffering and the stripping away of all his earthly comforts and health. It is a vivid portrayal of his physical deterioration, which mirrors his spiritual and emotional anguish. This imagery serves as a powerful reminder of the transient nature of human life and the profound trials that can strip away all but the essence of our being.<p><b>I have escaped by the skin of my teeth</b><br />The phrase "skin of my teeth" is unique and enigmatic, with the Hebrew "עור שׁני" (or sheni) suggesting a narrow escape from death. This expression is not found elsewhere in the Bible, highlighting its distinctiveness in conveying Job's precarious situation. Historically, this phrase has been interpreted to mean a very narrow escape, as teeth do not have skin, indicating something that is barely possible. Job's use of this metaphor reflects his perception of having barely survived his trials, clinging to life by the thinnest of margins. It speaks to the intensity of his suffering and the miraculous nature of his endurance, serving as an inspiration for believers to hold onto faith even when deliverance seems impossible.<div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/ellicott/job/19.htm">Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers</a></div>(</span>20<span class= "ital">)</span> <span class= "bld">My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh </span>in one indistinguishable mass, and I have escaped with the skin of my teeth, because the teeth have no skin, or, as others explain, because the teeth have fallen out. This expression, which is by no means clear in the context, has passed into a proverb expressive of a very narrow escape--a meaning which can only by inference be obtained from this place in Job.<p><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/pulpit/job/19.htm">Pulpit Commentary</a></div><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 20.</span> - <span class="cmt_word">My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh</span>. Here the third source of Job's misery is brought forward - his painful and incurable disease. This has brought him to such a pitch of emaciation that his bones seem to adhere to the tightened skin, and the scanty and shrunken muscles, that cover them (comp. <a href="/job/33-21.htm">Job 33:21</a> and <a href="/lamentations/4-8.htm">Lamentations 4:8</a>). Such emaciation of the general frame is quite compatible with the unsightly swelling of certain parts of the body which characterizes elephantiasis<span class="cmt_word">. And I am escaped with the skin of my teeth</span>. The expression is, no doubt, proverbial, and signifies "barely escaped;" but its origin is obscure. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/commentaries/job/19-20.htm">Parallel Commentaries ...</a></span><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><a name="lexicon" id="lexicon"></a><div class="vheading">Hebrew</div><span class="word">My skin</span><br /><span class="heb">בְּעוֹרִ֣י</span> <span class="translit">(bə·‘ō·w·rî)</span><br /><span class="parse">Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_5785.htm">Strong's 5785: </a> </span><span class="str2">Skin, hide, leather</span><br /><br /><span class="word">and flesh</span><br /><span class="heb">וּ֭בִבְשָׂרִי</span> <span class="translit">(ū·ḇiḇ·śā·rî)</span><br /><span class="parse">Conjunctive waw, Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1320.htm">Strong's 1320: </a> </span><span class="str2">Flesh, body, person, the pudenda of a, man</span><br /><br /><span class="word">cling</span><br /><span class="heb">דָּבְקָ֣ה</span> <span class="translit">(dā·ḇə·qāh)</span><br /><span class="parse">Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person feminine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1692.htm">Strong's 1692: </a> </span><span class="str2">To impinge, cling, adhere, to catch by pursuit</span><br /><br /><span class="word">to my bones;</span><br /><span class="heb">עַצְמִ֑י</span> <span class="translit">(‘aṣ·mî)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_6106.htm">Strong's 6106: </a> </span><span class="str2">A bone, the body, the substance, selfsame</span><br /><br /><span class="word">I have escaped</span><br /><span class="heb">וָ֝אֶתְמַלְּטָ֗ה</span> <span class="translit">(wā·’eṯ·mal·lə·ṭāh)</span><br /><span class="parse">Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hitpael - Consecutive imperfect - first person common singular | third person feminine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_4422.htm">Strong's 4422: </a> </span><span class="str2">To be smooth, to escape, to release, rescue, to bring forth young, emit sparks</span><br /><br /><span class="word">by the skin</span><br /><span class="heb">בְּע֣וֹר</span> <span class="translit">(bə·‘ō·wr)</span><br /><span class="parse">Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_5785.htm">Strong's 5785: </a> </span><span class="str2">Skin, hide, leather</span><br /><br /><span class="word">of my teeth.</span><br /><span class="heb">שִׁנָּֽי׃</span> <span class="translit">(šin·nāy)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - cdc | first person common singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_8127.htm">Strong's 8127: </a> </span><span class="str2">A tooth, ivory, a cliff</span><br /><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><div class="vheading">Links</div><a href="/niv/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 NIV</a><br /><a href="/nlt/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 NLT</a><br /><a href="/esv/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 ESV</a><br /><a href="/nasb/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 NASB</a><br /><a href="/kjv/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 KJV</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="//bibleapps.com/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 BibleApps.com</a><br /><a href="//bibliaparalela.com/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 Biblia Paralela</a><br /><a href="//holybible.com.cn/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 Chinese Bible</a><br /><a href="//saintebible.com/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 French Bible</a><br /><a href="/catholic/job/19-20.htm">Job 19:20 Catholic Bible</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/job/19-20.htm">OT Poetry: Job 19:20 My bones stick to my skin (Jb) </a></div></div></td></tr></table></div><div id="left"><a href="/job/19-19.htm" onmouseover='lft.src="/leftgif.png"' onmouseout='lft.src="/left.png"' title="Job 19:19"><img src="/left.png" name="lft" border="0" alt="Job 19:19" /></a></div><div id="right"><a href="/job/19-21.htm" onmouseover='rght.src="/rightgif.png"' onmouseout='rght.src="/right.png"' title="Job 19:21"><img src="/right.png" name="rght" border="0" alt="Job 19:21" /></a></div><div id="botleft"><a href="#" onmouseover='botleft.src="/botleftgif.png"' onmouseout='botleft.src="/botleft.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botleft.png" name="botleft" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="botright"><a href="#" onmouseover='botright.src="/botrightgif.png"' onmouseout='botright.src="/botright.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botright.png" name="botright" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="bot"><iframe width="100%" height="1500" scrolling="no" src="/botmenubhnew2.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>