»Meine Haut ist schwarz geworden an mir« (Hi 30,30)

The Old Testament describes at length experiences of suffering and pain. The question is how these experiences are expressed. A particular stylistic device is the comparison to animals, plants and objects, which are encountered above all in prophetic texts, in the Psalter and in the wisdom literature of the sapiential books. Taking examples from Job 30:24 – 31; Ps 22:13 – 19; 42:1 – 6 and Ps 102:4 – 12, it is shown that and how metaphorical language illustrates areas of human experiences on the threshold of suffering and pain that are barred to conceptual thought.