Ayub 12:10

12:10 in whose hand ¹  is the life ²  of every creature

and the breath of all the human race. ³ 

Ayub 32:8

32:8 But it is a spirit in people,

the breath ⁴  of the Almighty,

that makes them understand.

Ayub 33:4

33:4 The Spirit of God has made me,

and the breath of the Almighty gives me life. ⁵ 

Ayub 34:14

34:14 If God ⁶  were to set his heart on it, ⁷ 

and gather in his spirit and his breath,

Mazmur 104:29

104:29 When you ignore them, they panic. ⁸ 

When you take away their life’s breath, they die

and return to dust.

Yesaya 57:16

57:16 For I will not be hostile ⁹  forever

or perpetually angry,

for then man’s spirit would grow faint before me, ¹⁰ 

the life-giving breath I created.

Yehezkiel 37:5

37:5 This is what the sovereign Lord says to these bones: Look, I am about to infuse breath ¹¹  into you and you will live.

Yehezkiel 37:1

The Valley of Dry Bones

37:1 The hand ¹²  of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and placed ¹³  me in the midst of the valley, and it was full of bones.

1 Korintus 15:45

15:45 So also it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living person”; ¹⁴  the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.

[12:10]  ¹ tn The construction with the relative clause includes a resumptive pronoun referring to God: “who in his hand” = “in whose hand.”

[12:10]  ² tn The two words נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) and רוּחַ (ruakh) are synonymous in general. They could be translated “soul” and “spirit,” but “soul” is not precise for נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh), and so “life” is to be preferred. Since that is the case for the first half of the verse, “breath” will be preferable in the second part.

[12:10]  ³ tn Human life is made of “flesh” and “spirit.” So here the line reads “and the spirit of all flesh of man.” If the text had simply said “all flesh,” that would have applied to all flesh in which there is the breath of life (see Gen 6:17; 7:15). But to limit this to human beings requires the qualification with “man.”

[32:8]  ⁴ tn This is the word נְשָׁמָה (nÿshamah, “breath”); according to Gen 2:7 it was breathed into Adam to make him a living person (“soul”). With that divine impartation came this spiritual understanding. Some commentators identify the רוּחַ (ruakh) in the first line as the Spirit of God; this “breath” would then be the human spirit. Whether Elihu knew that much, however, is hard to prove.

[33:4]  ⁵ tc Some commentators want to put this verse after v. 6, while others omit the verse entirely. Elihu is claiming here that he is inspired by God.

[33:4]  tn The verb תְּחַיֵּנִי (tÿkhayyeni) is the Piel imperfect of the verb “to live.” It can mean “gives me life,” but it can also me “quickens me, enlivens me.”

[34:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[34:14]  ⁷ tc This is the reading following the Qere. The Kethib and the Syriac and the LXX suggest a reading יָשִׂים (yasim, “if he [God] recalls”). But this would require leaving out “his heart,” and would also require redividing the verse to make “his spirit” the object. It makes better parallelism, but may require too many changes.

[104:29]  ⁸ tn Heb “you hide your face, they are terrified.”

[57:16]  ⁹ tn Or perhaps, “argue,” or “accuse” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV).

[57:16]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “for a spirit from before me would be faint.”

[37:5]  ¹¹ tn Heb “I am about to bring a spirit.”

[37:1]  ¹² tn Or “power.”

[37:1]  sn Hand in the OT can refer metaphorically to power, authority, or influence. In Ezekiel God’s hand being on the prophet is regularly associated with communication or a vision from God (3:14, 22; 8:1; 37:1; 40:1).

[37:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “caused me to rest.”

[15:45]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “living soul”; a quotation from Gen 2:7.