20:11 His bones 1 were full of his youthful vigor, 2
but that vigor will lie down with him in the dust.
33:19 Or a person is chastened 3 by pain on his bed,
and with the continual strife of his bones, 4
1 tn “Bones” is often used metonymically for the whole person, the bones being the framework, meaning everything inside, as well as the body itself.
2 sn This line means that he dies prematurely – at the height of his youthful vigor.
3 tc The MT has the passive form, and so a subject has to be added: “[a man] is chastened.” The LXX has the active form, indicating “[God] chastens,” but the object “a man” has to be added. It is understandable why the LXX thought this was active, within this sequence of verbs; and that is why it is the inferior reading.
4 tc The Kethib “the strife of his bones is continual,” whereas the Qere has “the multitude of his bones are firm.” The former is the better reading in this passage. It indicates that the pain is caused by the ongoing strife.