Scriptural Meaning of the Word Soul.
INQUIRIES are frequently coming to us for information on the subject of the soul. It will and must remain an open question until there can be some agreement as to the nature of the authority by which it may be settled. Unfortunately the world is getting farther and farther from the only true standard, the Bible, and placing more reliance on science—often "falsely so-called"—and philosophy. The Bible doctrine of the origin of man is largely disputed even by men who pretend to be teachers of the Bible. Where this is the case there is little use to offer Bible proof on the subject of the nature of man. But this is the only kind of proof we accept on such subjects; therefore we offer no other. That part of the religious world which believes in the immortality of the human soul, to this day accepts the sophistries of Plato as sound reasoning, and his conclusions as the highest form of truth. Yet all are aware that Plato was ignorant of the revelation which the Creator had given concerning the origin of man. His philosophy was drawn from that of the Egyptians. And it is well known that Egypt has been the favorite home for speculative philosophy both inside and outside the Christian Church. What do the Scriptures teach concerning the soul? We might here raise the query whether the Bible treats man as a being possessed of inherent immortality, of independent powers of existence, or as a frail, feeble, dependent creature, who will surely and utterly perish without divine help. But this is not our purpose at present. We wish to examine, as briefly as possible, the usage of the Bible in regard to the term "soul." It must be borne in mind that we have no lexicon in the Scriptures. Our ideas of Scripture definitions are derived entirely from Scripture usage. The English word "soul" is, in the Old Testament, translated from three words in the Hebrew. One, n'dee-vah, occurs but once; Job 30:15. Job is recounting the treatment which he received of his enemies. "Terrors are turned upon me; they pursue my soul as the wind: and my welfare passeth away as a cloud." Gesenius gives the definition of this word as follows: "Nobility; trop. elevated and happy state, excellency. Job 30:15." It has reference in the text to the great change which has taken place in Job's condition; those who had honored him before, then held him in contempt. He had fallen from his elevated and happy state, and his enemies rejoiced over him. It certainly has no reference to anything which we now call the soul, and it seems strange that the translators so rendered it. As it occurs in no other place we can learn nothing further concerning it. Another is n'shah-mah. This occurs twenty-four times. It is from the root nah-sham, to breathe. It is translated breath seventeen times, referring to both man and beasts. See Gen. 7:21-23. Translated blast three times; spirit, twice; inspiration, once; and soul, once. Gesenius thinks it is equivalent to one definition of neh-phesh in one text, Prov. 20:27. "The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord." It is rendered soul in Isa. 57:16. "For I will not contend forever, neither will I be always wroth; for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made." In this text Gesenius gives it the definition of "breath, anima, vital spirit." These two words have but very little to do with the question of the soul. The other Hebrew word is neh-phesh. From this the term "soul" is always translated in the Old Testament, except in the two instances just noticed. It is translated forty-three different ways, but this fact has no bearing whatever on its signification. It occurs 754 times, and is translated "soul" 472 times. It is translated person twenty-six times, in the following texts:— Gen. 14:21. And the king of Sodom said, Give me the persons. 36:6. And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house, etc. Ex. 16:16. Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons, etc. Lev. 27:2. When a man shall make a singular vow, the persons shall be for the Lord by thy estimation. Num. 5:6. When a man or woman shall commit any sin . . . and that person be guilty, etc. Num. 19:18. And a clean person shall take hyssop, and dip it in the water, and sprinkle it upon the tent, and upon all the vessels, and upon all the persons that were there, etc. 31:19. Whosoever hath killed any person [neh-phesh, soul], and whosoever hath touched any slain, etc. Verse 35. And thirty and two thousand persons in all of women, etc. In this text the word women is from the same original, soul. Verse 40. And the persons were sixteen thousand; of which the Lord's tribute was thirty and two persons. Verse 46. And sixteen thousand persons. 35:11. That the slayer may flee thither which killeth any person unawares. Verse 15. That every one that killeth any person unawares may flee thither. Verse 30. Whosoever killeth any person, the murderer shall be put to death by the mouth of witnesses; but one witness shall not testify against any person to cause him to die. Deut. 10:22. Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons. 27:25. Cursed be he that taketh reward to slay an innocent person. Josh. 20:3. That the slayer that killeth any person unawares and unwittingly may flee thither. Verse 9. The same. Whosoever killeth any person. 1 Sam. 22:22. I have occasioned the death of all the persons of thy father's house. 2 Sam. 14:14. We must needs die, . . . neither doth God respect any person. Prov. 28:17. A man that doeth violence to the blood of any person shall flee to the pit. Jer. 43:6. And the king's daughters, and every person that Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard had left, etc. Jer. 52:29. In the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem eight hundred and thirty and two persons. Verse 30. —carried away captive of the Jews seven hundred and forty and five persons: all the persons were four thousand and six hundred. Ezek. 16:5. Thou wast cast out into the open field, to the loathing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born. Ezek. 17:17. Casting up mounts, and building forts, to cut off many persons. Ezek. 33:6. If the sword come and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity, etc. If the reader will substitute soul for person in the above texts he will find that they will correspond to scores of texts which have similar meaning where the word soul is used. To this list properly belong such texts as the following:— Ex. 12:16. No manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat. 1 Chron. 5:21. And they took away their cattle; . . . and of men an hundred thousand. Isa. 49:7. Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, etc. In these three texts the word man (neh-phesh) is the equivalent of person in the others. Under the same head come all the personal pronouns, as in the following texts:— Gen. 37:21. And Reuben heard it, . . . and said, Let us not kill him. Num. 23:10. Let me [neh-phesh, literally, my soul] die the death of the righteous. Deut. 4:15. Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves, for ye saw no manner of similitude, etc. Deut. 19:6. Lest the avenger of the blood pursue the slayer, . . . and slay him. Deut. 22:26. As when a man riseth against his neighbor, and slayeth him, even so is this matter. Josh. 23:11. Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the Lord your God. 1 Kings 19:4. And he requested for himself that he might die. 1 Kings 20:32. Thy servant Ben-hadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. Esther 4:13. Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king's house, more than all the Jews. Esther 9:31. As they had decreed for themselves and for their seed, the matters of the fastings and their cry. Job 18:4. He teareth himself in his anger. Job 32:2. Against Job was his wrath kindled, because he justified himself rather than God. Job 36:14. They die in youth, and their life is among the unclean. Ps. 35:25. Let them not say in their hearts, Ah, so would we have it. Ps. 105:18. Whose feet they hurt with fetters; he [his soul] was laid in iron. Ps. 131:2. Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child, etc. Prov. 16:26. He that laboreth, laboreth for himself; for his mouth craveth it of him. Isa. 5:14. Therefore hell hath enlarged herself [her soul], and opened her mouth without measure. Isa. 46:2. They stoop, they bow down together; they could not deliver the burden, but themselves are gone into captivity. Isa. 47:14. Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame. Jer. 3:11. The backsliding Israel hath justified herself. Jer. 17:21. Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the Sabbath-day. Jer. 37:9. Deceive not yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans shall surely depart from us. Amos 2:14. The strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver himself. Verse 15. Neither shall he that rideth the horse deliver himself. Jonah 4:8. And the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die. In all these twenty-eight instances the idea of personality is as clearly given as in those texts in which the word person is used. How could it be more clearly expressed in this text: "His soul was laid in iron," i. e., he was laid in iron. Ps. 105:18. And in this: "The Lord hath sworn by his soul," i. e., by himself. And so in all cases where the translators have rendered neh-phesh by the pronouns.