איוב, פרק ל״ג, פסוק כ״א

Severe illness and agonizing pain can plunge a person into a state of extreme physical decline, stripping away their familiar appearance. The body undergoes a process of severe wasting, where the flesh completely disappears from sight [רמב״ן, אבן עזרא, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The deterioration can be so rapid that the flesh seems to shrink and vanish from one moment to the next [מצודת דוד, מלבי״ם]. Others suggest that the flesh simply darkens and loses its normal, healthy color [רש״י]. Alternatively, this physical decay reflects a deep internal process of spiritual cleansing; the flesh only appears outwardly as though it has been entirely destroyed [אלשיך].

As the flesh wastes away, the underlying structure of the body is profoundly affected. The primary approach among commentators is that the bones, once hidden beneath the flesh, are now exposed and jut out sharply like mountain peaks [רלב״ג, מלבי״ם, רמב״ן]. Another perspective suggests a feeling of being crushed and ground down, where the bones themselves feel pulverized [מצודת ציון, אבן עזרא, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Further interpretations describe the bones becoming dislocated from their natural joints [רש״י] or turning dark and black [רמב״ן].

This tragic physical state reaches a point where the bones themselves undergo a profound transformation. They may become so deformed, crushed, or darkened that they no longer even look like human bones [רש״י, ביאור שטיינזלץ, רמב״ן]. Alternatively, this crushing agony is understood as taking place deep within the body, remaining completely hidden from the eyes of anyone looking on from the outside [מצודת דוד, אלשיך]. Providing a contrasting view, some explain that the bones, which were previously completely hidden from view, are now fully revealed and exposed because of the extreme weight loss [מלבי״ם].