Good morning Father Angelo,
I always follow with pleasure your answers, which give a great testimony and pursue the preaching goals of your Order.
To remain in the theme of Easter I wanted to ask you for some clarification on the passage of Job I saw quoted by Saint Thomas in the ST, Supplement Question 75 article 1: “On the contrary: 1. It is written (Job 19:25-26): “I know that my Redeemer liveth, and in the last day I shall rise out of the earth, and I shall be clothed again with my skin,” etc. Therefore there will be a resurrection of the body”.
Here Saint Thomas defends the Resurrection against those who maintain that the Scripture refutes it – however in that passage from Job (19, 25-26) today’s Scriptures (New Revised) say: “And when, after my skin, this body has been destroyed, without my flesh I shall see God”.
Poor Job seems to yearn more for the destruction of his suffering flesh rather than wish to go back to inhabit it. It is true that the New Diodati edition reads: “in my flesh I shall see God” – here it does match the quote from Saint Thomas.
However it seems to me that these two translations carry two very different messages! One supports the resurrection of the flesh and one doesn’t.
I was hoping you could enlighten me on this (apparent) divergence of meaning.
I wish you a Happy Easter and pray that you may continue your apostolate with your usual zeal.
Mario

Priest’s answer

Dear Mario,
First of all, I apologize for the big delay in getting back to you.

1. Saint Thomas is correct because he referenced the Vulgate text, which is the official text of the Catholic Church.
The text Saint Thomas had in front of him was the following: et rursum circumdabor pelle mea, et in carne mea video Deum meum. Translated: and again I shall be clothed in my skin and in my flesh I shall see my God. 

2. In this regard the Bible edited by the Italian Bishops Conference adds the following footnote: “This verse is famous in exegesis for all kinds of difficulties. The suggested translation follows the masoretic text, although dubious”.
The note also states that the Vulgate translation has influenced the translation that references the resurrection. However this would be unlikely in light of Israel’s theological ideas. And in all honesty it reports the Vulgate text: “I shall be clothed in my skin and in my flesh I shall see God”. 

3. The first edition of the Jerusalem Bible in French translated “After my awaking, he will set me close to him, and with my flesh I shall look on God”.
The second edition changes, and in line with the masoretic text, instead of “with my flesh” translates without my flesh.  

4. The translation of the Italian Bishops Conference, both in the 1974 version (in a departure from the first translation of the Jerusalem Bible) and in the 2008 version, opted for the masoretic text: without my flesh.

5. However the Targum, which is the translation of the Bible from Hebrew to Aramaic translates thus: “And after my skin has been restored in my flesh I shall see God again, I myself shall see him and not anyone else’s eyes”.

6. Of the same mind is the TOB, which is the ecumenical translation of the Bible (therefore protestants also are in agreement on this translation).
After quoting the text of the Italian Bishops Conference it adds in a footnote: “The ecumenical translation of the Bible TOB translates: in my flesh, and affirms that translations like: out of my flesh or without my flesh are not justified by the usage of the hebrew preposition min with a verb of perception.
Although in Job 14,12 the possibility of a physical resurrection appeared to Job as a hope that contradicted experience, now he proclaims the certainty of the intervention of his redeemer. This certainty transforms the prospect of his resurrection into an article of faith”.

7. To be fair the note of the Italian Bishop Conference, after opting for a different version, does say that the translation proposed by the masoretic text to which it conforms itself, is dubious. At any rate the version “without my flesh” is a confirmation on the part of Job of the soul’s survival and immortality. Even before the final resurrection it can see God.

I thank you for your words of appreciation of the work of our Dominican order.
I assure you of my prayer and bless you.
Father Angelo

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