1465. gevah
Lexical Summary
gevah: back

Original Word: גֵּוָה
Part of Speech: noun feminine
Transliteration: gevah
Pronunciation: gheh-vah'
Phonetic Spelling: (gay-vaw')
KJV: body
NASB: back
Word Origin: [feminine of H1460 (גֵּו - Back)]

1. the back
2. (by extensive) the person

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
body

Feminine of gev; the back, i.e. (by extensive) the person -- body.

see HEBREW gev

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
fem. of gev
Definition
the back
NASB Translation
back (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
II. גֵּוָה noun feminine back — (so also Di Hoffm SS; ᵐ5 Thes De AV RV body = גְּוִיָּה, compare BaZMG 1887, 605) Job 20:25 וַיֵּצֵיא מִגֵּוָה it comes out from the back (of arrow which has struck a fugitive, and is then extracted; Hoffm reads מִגֵּוֺה). — I. גֵּוָה below גאה.

Topical Lexicon
Biblical Usage

The noun appears a single time in the Hebrew canon—Job 20:25—in the description of divine retribution against the wicked: “He pulls it out of his back, the gleaming point out of his liver. Terrors come over him” (Job 20:25). In the poetic parallelism of the verse, the term denotes the physical core of a man, the place where an arrow lodges when judgment strikes. The picture is visceral, stressing that God’s justice penetrates past outer defenses and reaches the very center of human life.

Imagery and Symbolism

1. Vulnerability: By focusing on the body’s vital area, the verse emphasizes how exposed human beings are before the Almighty (Psalm 139:7–12).
2. Penetrating judgment: Arrows often symbolize sudden, unavoidable consequences (Psalm 64:7; Lamentations 3:13). Here the arrow is already embedded, and the agonizing act of pulling it out intensifies the scene of terror.
3. Life force: Ancient Near-Eastern thought located the soul’s vigor in the torso (compare Proverbs 7:23). The term therefore highlights that judgment touches life itself, not merely outward circumstances.

Historical Perspective

The image arises naturally from Iron-Age warfare. Barbed or heavy bronze arrowheads, once lodged in flesh, were difficult to extract without causing greater trauma. Job’s imagery assumes firsthand awareness of such wounds, lending realism to Zophar’s speech. The choice of so rare a word intensifies the uniqueness of the blow—no routine injury, but a divinely appointed strike.

Theological Insights

• Divine retribution is personal and exact: the blow lands precisely in the sinner’s “midst.”
• Suffering in Job is not always punitive, yet Zophar’s speech shows how contemporaries thought about reward and punishment. Scripture later balances this view in God’s own speeches (Job 38–41) and in the conclusion that Job’s friends “have not spoken of Me what is right” (Job 42:7).
• The rarity of the word underscores that God’s judgments surpass human comprehension (Romans 11:33).

Ministry Application

1. Pastoral care: Bodily pain often accompanies spiritual struggle. Job 20:25 reminds counselors to address both dimensions, acknowledging physical suffering while guiding hearts to trust God’s purposes (2 Corinthians 4:16).
2. Preaching on repentance: The verse serves as a warning passage illustrating Proverbs 5:22—“The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him.”
3. Spiritual warfare: Believers must guard the “inner man” (Ephesians 3:16) with the armor of God, lest the adversary’s arrows find a vulnerable spot (Ephesians 6:16).

Christological Trajectory

The only flawless One willingly allowed His body to be pierced (John 19:34) so that repentant sinners might be spared Job’s fate. Isaiah 53:5 foretells, “He was pierced for our transgressions,” providing the ultimate reversal: judgment lodged in Him instead of us.

Related Scriptures

• Arrows of judgment: Deuteronomy 32:23; Psalm 38:2.
• God’s knowledge of the body: Psalm 139:13–14.
• Bodily affliction and spiritual lessons: 2 Corinthians 12:7–10; Hebrews 12:6.

Homiletical Notes

A sermon can juxtapose Job 20:25 with Ephesians 6:10–17: apart from Christ, humanity stands like the wicked man, arrow embedded, terror looming; in Christ, believers stand armored, arrows extinguished.

Summary

Though it appears only once, גֵּוָה powerfully portrays how divine justice can pierce the deepest recesses of human existence. The word invites sober reflection on sin’s consequences, compassionate ministry to the suffering, and grateful worship of the Savior whose own wounded body secures deliverance for all who trust Him.

Forms and Transliterations
מִגֵּ֫וָ֥ה מגוה mig·gê·wāh migGeVah miggêwāh
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Englishman's Concordance
Job 20:25
HEB: שָׁלַף֮ וַיֵּצֵ֪א מִגֵּ֫וָ֥ה וּ֭בָרָק מִֽמְּרֹרָת֥וֹ
NAS: and comes out of his back, Even the glittering point
KJV: and cometh out of the body; yea, the glittering sword
INT: is drawn and comes of his back the glittering of his gall

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 1465
1 Occurrence


mig·gê·wāh — 1 Occ.

1464
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