Reference: Soul
American
The ancients supposed the soul, or rather the animating principle of life, to reside in the breath, that it departed from the body with the breath. Hence the Hebrew and Greek words which, when they refer to man, in our Bibles are translated "soul," are usually rendered "life" or breath" when they refer to animals, Ge 2:7; 7:15; Nu 16:22; Job 12:10; 34:14-15; Ps 104:29; Ec 12:7; Ac 17:25.
But together with this principle of life, which is common to men and brutes, and which in brutes perishes with the body, there is in man a spiritual, reasonable, and immortal soul, the seat of our thoughts, affections, and reasonings, which distinguishes us from the brute creation, and in which chiefly consists our resemblance to God, Ge 1:26. This must be spiritual, because it thinks; it must be immortal, because it is spiritual. Scripture ascribes to man alone understanding, conscience, the knowledge of God, wisdom, immortality, and the hope of future everlasting happiness. It threatens men only with punishment in another life, and with the pains of hell. In some places the Bible seems to distinguish soul from spirit, 1Th 5:23; Heb 4:12: the organ of our sensations, appetites, and passions, allied to the body, form the nobler portion of our nature which most allies man to God. Yet we are to conceive of them as one indivisible and spiritual being, called also the mind and the heart, spoken of variously as living, feeling, understanding, reasoning, willing, etc. Its usual designation is the soul.
The immortality of the soul is a fundamental doctrine of revealed religion. The ancient patriarchs lived and died persuaded of this truth; and it was in the hope of another life that they received the promises. Compare Ge 50:22; Nu 23:10; 1Sa 28:13-15; 2Sa 12:23; Job 19:25-26; Ec 12:7; Heb 11:13-16. In the gospel "life and immortality," and the worth of immortal souls, are fully brought to light, Mt 16:26; 1Co 15:45-57; 2Ti 1:10. To save the souls of men, Christ freely devoted himself to death; and how does it become us to labor and toil and strive, in our respective spheres, to promote the great work for which He bled and died!
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over the whole earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth on the earth.
And Jehovah Elohim formed Man, dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and Man became a living soul.
And they went to Noah, into the ark, two and two of all flesh, in which was the breath of life.
And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father's house; and Joseph lived a hundred and ten years.
And they fell on their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh! shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with the whole assembly?
Who can count the dust of Jacob, and the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let my soul die the death of the righteous, and let my end be like his!
In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the spirit of all flesh of man.
And as for me, I know that my Redeemer liveth, and the Last, he shall stand upon the earth; And if after my skin this shall be destroyed, yet from out of my flesh shall I see +God;
If he only thought of himself, and gathered unto him his spirit and his breath, All flesh would expire together, and man would return to the dust.
Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled; thou takest away their breath, they expire and return to their dust.
and the dust return to the earth as it was, and the spirit return unto God who gave it.
and the dust return to the earth as it was, and the spirit return unto God who gave it.
For what does a man profit, if he should gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
nor is served by men's hands as needing something, himself giving to all life and breath and all things;
Now the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly: and your whole spirit, and soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
For there are many and disorderly vain speakers and deceivers of people's minds, specially those of the circumcision,
All these died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them from afar off and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and sojourners on the earth. For they who say such things shew clearly that they seek their country. read more. And if they had called to mind that from whence they went out, they had had opportunity to have returned; but now they seek a better, that is, a heavenly; wherefore God is not ashamed of them, to be called their God; for he has prepared for them a city.
Hastings
The use of the term in the OT (Heb. nephesh) for any animated being, whether human or animal (Ge 1:20 'life,' Ge 2:7), must be distinguished from the Greek philosophical use for the immaterial substance which gives life to the body, and from the use in the NT (Gr. psyche) where more stress is laid on individuality (Mt 16:26 Revised Version margin). As the Bible does not contain a scientific psychology, it is vain to dispute whether it teaches that man's nature is bipartite (body and soul or spirit) or tripartite (body and soul and spirit): yet a contrast between soul and spirit (Heb. r
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And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living souls, and let fowl fly above the earth in the expanse of the heavens.
And Jehovah Elohim formed Man, dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and Man became a living soul.
And Jehovah Elohim formed Man, dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and Man became a living soul.
With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
For what does a man profit, if he should gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
And Mary said, My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour.
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep:
When therefore Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished; and having bowed his head, he delivered up his spirit.
But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him; and he cannot know them because they are spiritually discerned;
It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body: if there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual one. Thus also it is written, The first man Adam became a living soul; the last Adam a quickening spirit. read more. But that which is spiritual was not first, but that which is natural, then that which is spiritual:
Only conduct yourselves worthily of the glad tidings of the Christ, in order that whether coming and seeing you, or absent, I may hear of what concerns you, that ye stand firm in one spirit, with one soul, labouring together in the same conflict with the faith of the glad tidings;
For the word of God is living and operative, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and penetrating to the division of soul and spirit, both of joints and marrow, and a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
This is not the wisdom which comes down from above, but earthly, natural, devilish.
These are they who set themselves apart, natural men, not having the Spirit.
Watsons
SOUL, that immortal, immaterial, active substance or principle in man, whereby he perceives, remembers, reasons, and wills. See MATERIALISM.