BRIEF THOUGHTS CONCERNING LIFE AND DEATH.
THE WORD SOUL AS FIRST APPLIED TO MAN INDICATES NOTHING PECULIAR TO HIM.
The Hebrew word nephesh, is the proper term for soul in that language. God formed man of the dust of the ground, and when he had breathed into his nostrils the breath of life "man became a living soul," or nephesh. Gen. ii, 7. The word nephesh, however, represents nothing peculiar to man. The previous chapter uses the word several times with reference to the entire animal creation. Thus the first use of the word nephesh is with reference to the fishes. Gen. i, 20. "Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life," Hebrew, nephesh, margin, soul. Such is the very first use of the word soul in the Bible. And they are not said merely to be "living souls," but to have souls. Surely, this is worthy of notice. If it were spoken of men, it would be cited as proof that they have a double nature, and that their inner nature is immortal. But it is spoken first of the fishes that they have souls. Certainly this cannot be misunderstood, as, in the case of men, it generally is. The translators have, no doubt, with strict propriety rendered the word nephesh, in this text, "life." Gen. i, 20. But if they were to render it thus in the account of Rachel's death, and say, "as her life was in departing," how forcible would it make the next declaration, "AND HER SOUL WAS IN DEPARTING, FOR SHE DIED." Gen. xxxv, 18. Again, were they to render it thus in 1 Kings xvii, 21, in the record of Elijah's prayer, "Let this child's life come into him again," it would show how exact and proper was Elijah's language when he delivered the child to his mother, "See, thy son liveth." But it would not give the idea that the soul is a distinct personality living in the man, and also living equally well, or even better, outside the man. It is worthy of notice that the word soul is used in the book of Revelation respecting the fishes. Rev. xvi, 3. The word nephesh, or soul, in Gen. ii, 7, does not, therefore, represent something peculiar to man. In fact, it is there used, not for his life, as in the case of the fishes, but for himself, the whole man. The expression used is equivalent to saying the man became a living person. But this fact of life, as we shall presently see, does not make man immortal. God gave him life, but placed him on probation to see whether he should live forever, or be deprived of life and turn again to dust. Moses uses the Hebrew word nephesh, or soul, four times in Gen. i. Thus in the following verses this word is used in the original, for the words in italics: Gen. i, 20: "The moving creature that hath life." Margin, soul, Heb., nephesh. 21: "And God created great whales, and every living creature." Heb., nephesh. 24: "And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature." Heb., nephesh. 30: "And to every beast of the earth, and, every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life." Heb., nephesh. The first two instances relate to the creatures in the water. The third instance relates to the beasts and the creeping things of the earth. The fourth relates to all the creatures that move upon the earth, and also includes in its number every fowl. Surely, the word soul is not something peculiar to man, or something that necessarily indicates an immortal nature. The word soul, or nephesh, does, therefore, pertain to everything that breathes, whether it fly in the air, or swim in the water, or move upon the earth. And man, the ruler of all these living souls, or moving creatures that have souls, is said to be himself a "living soul." Observe, it was not the breath of life that became a living soul, but the man made of dust that became a living soul when he received that breath in his nostrils.