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the harvest
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The Intermediate State - by Henry Grew
CONTENTS
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CHAPTER THREETHE ORIGINAL TERMS NESME, RUAH, PSYCHE, AND PNEUMA, TRANSLATED 'SOUL' AND 'SPIRIT' MEAN BREATH OF LIFE
UAH. This word and nephish are the only terms in the Old Testament rendered soul. Taylor, in his Hebrew Concordance, says, that nesme signifies the chameleon, a kind of lizard, which has its mouth always open gaping for the air, upon which it is said to live. -It is rendered breath and breatheth in the following texts and expresses natural life whether in men or beasts. De 20:16 Jos 11:11,14 1Ki 15:29 17:17 comp. verse 21, where the breath of the child is called, “his soul.”
Nephish. Parkhurst says-“as a noun nephish hath been supposed to signify the spiritual part of man, or what we commonly call his soul: I must for myself confess that I can find no passage, where it hath undoubtedly this meaning. Ge 35:18 1Ki 17:21,22 Ps 16:10, seem fairest for this signification. But may not nephish in the three former passages be most properly rendered breath, and in the last a breathing or animal frame?”Taylor says-nephish, signifies “the animal life, or that principle by which every animal, according to its kind, lives, Ge 1:20, every moving creature that hath the soul of life. And verse 24, let the earth bring forth &c. wherein there is life, the soul of life, Le 11:46. Which animal life, so far as we know anything of the manner of its existence, or so far as the scripture leads our thoughts, consists in the breath. Job 41:21; and Job 31:39. And in the blood, Le 17:11,14.” “As lebeb, the heart, so nephish the life, soul, is applied to the faculties, the actions and affections of the mind; as to the understanding, memory, will, counsel, desire, love, hatred, &c., see Ex 23:9 1Sa 1:10; 30:6. -“Such is Taylor’s account of the word nephish. He does not even insinuate that it ever signifies an immortal soul which survives the death of the body.” Ruah. Taylor says it “hath four significations. 1st., properly, the wind, air, breath, Job 32:10; 41:16 Ec 3:19 - 2nd, from the subtlety and invisibility of the air; as in Greek and Latin, so in the Hebrew, the air, or spirit is used to signify that invisible substance in men, which is the seat of understanding, and of the passions and affections, Job 32:8. Any temper, disposition, quality of the mind, good or bad; Nu 14:24 Jud 9:23 1Sa 16:14,15, &c. In particular, the spirit is put for vigor, liveliness or courage of mind, Ge 45:27 Jos 5:1 1Ki 10:5 Job 6:4; 32:18 3d. The spirit or principle of affections and passions in brutes, Ec 3:21 4th. The spirit of God which must signify some secret influences or impressions on the mind or body, &c. Ps 139:7 2Ki 2:16; 40:7,13 5th, any spirit or ghost Job 4:15.” Psyche. Parkhurst says, “it means breath; animal life; a living animal that lives by breathing; the human body though dead; the human soul or spirit as distinguished from the body; the human animal soul; the mind, disposition, particularly as denoting the affections; a human person; and the souls of those who were slain for the word of God.” |
When applied to man it is rendered, 1st, Life, and expresses what we call natural life, Lu 9:56 Ac 15:26 1Jo 3:16 Mt 6:25 Lu 12:22,23 Ac 20:10 Php 2:30 Mt 2:20, &c.
Psyche is rendered soul in the following texts, Ac 2:41 27:37 1Pe 3:20 Ac 2:43 3:23 Ro 13:1 Lu 2:35 Ro 2:9 Mt 12:18 Lu 1:46 2Co 1:23 1Th 2:8 Mt 11:29 Lu 21:19 Ac 14:22 15:24 1Pe 1:22 2Pe 2:14 Joh 12:27 2Pe 2:8 Heb 6:19 1Pe 2:11,
3d. Joh 2 Re 18:14 1Co 15:45. To substitute the word person instead of soul in some of these texts renders the sense more definite. In the following texts psyche is rendered mind. Heb 12:3 Ac 14:2 Php 1:27. And in Eph 6:6 Col 3:23; it is rendered heart and heartily. Though psyche is rendered soul in Ac 4:32 Mt 22:37 Mr 12:30,33 Lu 10:27: yet the context and scope of the passage show that some part of the mind is meant. Psychikos occurs- Jas 3:15 Jude 19; 1Co 15:44,46 1Co 2:14, and is rendered sensual and natural.
The following texts demand a more particular consideration. -For what is man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul! Mt 16:26; see the parallel texts, Mr 8:36,37 Lu 9:24,25; and compare Lu 12:19,20, to all of which texts our remarks shall apply. It is assumed from these texts that soul in them, means an immortal soul which survives death, and its being lost means its being punished in a future state. But this assumed sense is contrary to the universal usage of nephish, soul, in the Old Testament. It is unsupported by the usage of psyche, soul, in the New. -Besides, psyche is rendered life in the contexts of these very passages, and in many other places, as we have seen above. It is so rendered in these texts in most modern versions, and the scope of the writers requires it. For example, did our Lord mean, that a man must lose his soul or go to hell for his sake, if he would save it from hell? And did he mean that an immortal soul could eat, drink, and be merry? Had the word psyche been only rendered life uniformly in these passages, as in their contexts, no man would ever have thought of founding such opinions upon them. To illustrate the words-“What shall a man give in exchange for his soul”or life? consult Ge 47:13,17 and Job 2:4. But what ought to settle the question about these texts is, the phrase rendered to lose the soul, is in other places rendered to lose the life, where all will allow natural life is only intended; yea, is rendered to lose the life, in the contexts of these very passages. See Ac 27:22 Joh 12:25 Lu 17:33 Mr 8:35 Mt 10:39. To lose life is a common and natural expression, but to lose an immortal soul, is a unprecedented expression not found in the Bible. I may add that Luke chap. 9:24, 25, explains these texts thus, the persons cast themselves away or kill themselves. Of what use is all the world to a man who loses his life?
Pneuma is rendered both spirit and life, and applied to men in the following texts. It is rendered life; in the margin, breath; Jas 2:26 Re 13:15. Spirit, and refers to the mind of man, its powers, tempers and dispositions, Mt 5:3 26:41 Mr 14:38 Lu 1:17 9:55 10:21 Joh 4:23 13:21 Ac 6:10 16:18; &c. &c. In the following places we have the phrases, my spirit, thy spirit, his spirit, Mr 2:8 8:12 Lu 1:47,80 2:40 Joh 11:33 Ro 1:9 1Co 5:4 16:18 2Co 7:13 Ga 6:18. These expressions are used for the sake of the greater emphasis, to express the person’s self. In the following places we have these, among other peculiar phrases; “the spirit of life, spirit of adoption, &c. See Ro 8:2,15 11:8 1Co 2:12;”&c.
Psyche is rendered soul in the following texts, Ac 2:41 27:37 1Pe 3:20 Ac 2:43 3:23 Ro 13:1 Lu 2:35 Ro 2:9 Mt 12:18 Lu 1:46 2Co 1:23 1Th 2:8 Mt 11:29 Lu 21:19 Ac 14:22 15:24 1Pe 1:22 2Pe 2:14 Joh 12:27 2Pe 2:8 Heb 6:19 1Pe 2:11,
3d. Joh 2 Re 18:14 1Co 15:45. To substitute the word person instead of soul in some of these texts renders the sense more definite. In the following texts psyche is rendered mind. Heb 12:3 Ac 14:2 Php 1:27. And in Eph 6:6 Col 3:23; it is rendered heart and heartily. Though psyche is rendered soul in Ac 4:32 Mt 22:37 Mr 12:30,33 Lu 10:27: yet the context and scope of the passage show that some part of the mind is meant. Psychikos occurs- Jas 3:15 Jude 19; 1Co 15:44,46 1Co 2:14, and is rendered sensual and natural.
The following texts demand a more particular consideration. -For what is man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul! Mt 16:26; see the parallel texts, Mr 8:36,37 Lu 9:24,25; and compare Lu 12:19,20, to all of which texts our remarks shall apply. It is assumed from these texts that soul in them, means an immortal soul which survives death, and its being lost means its being punished in a future state. But this assumed sense is contrary to the universal usage of nephish, soul, in the Old Testament. It is unsupported by the usage of psyche, soul, in the New. -Besides, psyche is rendered life in the contexts of these very passages, and in many other places, as we have seen above. It is so rendered in these texts in most modern versions, and the scope of the writers requires it. For example, did our Lord mean, that a man must lose his soul or go to hell for his sake, if he would save it from hell? And did he mean that an immortal soul could eat, drink, and be merry? Had the word psyche been only rendered life uniformly in these passages, as in their contexts, no man would ever have thought of founding such opinions upon them. To illustrate the words-“What shall a man give in exchange for his soul”or life? consult Ge 47:13,17 and Job 2:4. But what ought to settle the question about these texts is, the phrase rendered to lose the soul, is in other places rendered to lose the life, where all will allow natural life is only intended; yea, is rendered to lose the life, in the contexts of these very passages. See Ac 27:22 Joh 12:25 Lu 17:33 Mr 8:35 Mt 10:39. To lose life is a common and natural expression, but to lose an immortal soul, is a unprecedented expression not found in the Bible. I may add that Luke chap. 9:24, 25, explains these texts thus, the persons cast themselves away or kill themselves. Of what use is all the world to a man who loses his life?
Pneuma is rendered both spirit and life, and applied to men in the following texts. It is rendered life; in the margin, breath; Jas 2:26 Re 13:15. Spirit, and refers to the mind of man, its powers, tempers and dispositions, Mt 5:3 26:41 Mr 14:38 Lu 1:17 9:55 10:21 Joh 4:23 13:21 Ac 6:10 16:18; &c. &c. In the following places we have the phrases, my spirit, thy spirit, his spirit, Mr 2:8 8:12 Lu 1:47,80 2:40 Joh 11:33 Ro 1:9 1Co 5:4 16:18 2Co 7:13 Ga 6:18. These expressions are used for the sake of the greater emphasis, to express the person’s self. In the following places we have these, among other peculiar phrases; “the spirit of life, spirit of adoption, &c. See Ro 8:2,15 11:8 1Co 2:12;”&c.
