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The Living Soul

 AND THE LORD GOD FORMED MAN FROM THE DUST OF THE EARTH AND
BREATHED INTO HIS NOSTRILS THE BREATH OF LIFE,
AND MAN BECAME A LIVING SOUL.
Gen 2:7



Driven from Eden.


AVING briefly touched upon the description of what makes up a man, as well as the 'formula' for a soul as given in the book of Genesis, we are now better prepared for a much deeper study of the way in which 'soul' is used throughout the Bible.

It is my sincere conviction that the best way to lay bare the truth regarding the scriptural use of the word 'soul' is to present ALL the evidence and let the reader draw their own conclusions. I am fully convinced that any sincere Bible student will not fail to see that once ALL the evidence is laid out and classified, that it will become painfully apparent that the 'immortal soul' is nothing more than a sham which has been used to continually promote Satan's very first lie; 'Ye shall not surely die'.

Our English word 'soul' is translated from the Hebrew word nephesh, and the Greek word Psuche. The word 'soul' carries with it centuries of superstitious and philosophical baggage. The person who is sincerely seeking to find out what God's word says about the nature of man will need to be willing to drop all their pre-conceived ideas of what the soul is, and let the scriptures alone testify to the truth. For some, this seems nearly impossible having been taught for so long what the soul must be.

In addition to this, we have the problem of Bible translation. It would be naive to think that translators are always neutral in their approach to translation. People become very passionate about what they believe and such passions will ultimately cause the translator to bias the text towards their particular doctrinal position. This is VERY IMPORTANT for the reader to keep in mind during this study.

We will approach this study in the most comprehensive way we know how. We will not only list every text in which the English word 'soul' appears, but every passage in which nephesh or psyche is used REGARDLESS OF HOW THE WORD WAS TRANSLATED. This takes time, and it takes patience, but it will ultimately reveal the truth to those who sincerely want it, and reveal it with such force that no doubt will be left as to whether man possesses an immortal soul, or does not.

If the 'soul' of man is truly immortal as most have been taught since childhood, and if this doctrine is actually to be found in the pages of scripture, then in the OVER 800 places where the words nephesh or psuche appear, we should have absolutely no problem locating this doctrine. If man has an 'immortal soul', then surely out of the scores of passages in which the soul is mentioned we should expect to find an explicit statement to this effect.

This listing of every verse in which 'soul' appears may seem overwhelming to some, but it is needful for a very important reason. Most in modern Christianity have very clear mental perceptions about what the soul is.  We hear about 'soul - winning', about souls go to heaven, about souls being saved.  To the average Christian, the soul is that immortal, immaterial part of man that survives the death of the body and will exist consciously forever in either heaven or hell.  This list serves to show that the Bible simply never uses the term in this way.  The evidence is not only clear, but overwhelming that the average Christian's common conception about what a 'soul' is is simply not scriptural.

There is also the common misconception that somehow the Old Testament verses containing the word 'soul' 'don't count'. This type of reasoning should be completely unacceptable to anyone who truly claims to be a Bible believer.  Some feel that while the Old Testament defines soul in a certain way, the New Testament gives an expanded and clearer revelation.  But we must ask, can a clearer revelation ever be a contradiction?  As we hope to attempt to prove, both the old and New Testaments agree in their definition of what a soul is, and both stand in contraction to the understanding of the average Christian today.

If the current popular perceptions of what the soul is are correct, then we should expect to find clear statements of scripture stating it. In fact, we must DEMAND clear scriptures on this subject. To me it seems unreasonable to suppose that the truth and true meaning of any Biblical term could be obscure when so frequently mentioned. If the immortality of the soul is not to be found within the pages of scripture, then we must be prepared to ask ourselves where the teaching DID come from, and what bearing this has upon our religion, and relationship with God.
 

USAGE OF NEPHESH IN THE
OLD TESTAMENT

The Hebrew word nephesh is used of animals in the following texts. The English word which has been translated from the Hebrew nephesh appears in bold text:

1:21 And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
Gen 1:24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
Gen 2:19 And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.
Gen 9:10 And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth.
Gen 9:12 And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations:
Lev 11:46 This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of every living creature that moveth in the waters, and of every creature that creepeth upon the earth:
Lev 11:10 And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you:
Ezek 47:9 And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live: and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and every thing shall live whither the river cometh.
Gen 1:20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
Gen 1:30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
Gen 9:4 But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.
Deut 12:23 Only be sure that thou eat not the blood: for the blood is the life; and thou mayest not eat the life with the flesh.
Prov 12:10 A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.
Lev 24:18 And he that killeth a beast shall make it good; beast for beast.
Job 12:10 In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.
Job 41:21 His breath kindleth coals, and a flame goeth out of his mouth.
Isa 19:10 And they shall be broken in the purposes thereof, all that make sluices and ponds for fish.
Jer 2:24 A wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion who can turn her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her.

Please note first that our King James translators have rendered the single Hebrew word nephesh nine different ways into English; creature, life, beast, soul, breath, life, fish, thing, and her.

It is important for the reader to grasp that each of these verses uses the exact same Hebrew word which is elsewhere rendered 'soul' when applied to mankind. In other words, our English text makes a distinction which the Hebrew text does not.

The first verse in which nephesh is translated 'soul', as well as the first appearance of the word 'soul' in our English Bible is Genesis 2:7; 'Man became a living soul'. It is very interesting to note however that as far as the Hebrew text is concerned, the word 'soul' or nephesh occurs four times prior to this, and always speaking of animals.

From the above verses, we can determine the following facts about the Hebrew nephesh, or soul:

- Fish, cattle, fowls, and creeping things are souls

- Souls swim in the water and fly in the air

- Souls can be killed

- A soul refers not only to the creature itself but to the principle of life it possesses

- This soul can also refer to the lifeblood flowing within the living creature

I would ask anyone who disagrees with this to please go back and read the above verses again noting that our English text makes a distinction where none appears in the Hebrew. This is not my theology, it is simply what the scriptures say.

Does it seem likely that a word which is so frequently applied to animal life could EVER also refer to some immortal immaterial part of man?

In the following passages, nephesh is used of man AND animals together:

9:15 And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.
Gen 9:16 And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.
Lev 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.
Lev 17:14 For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off.
Num 31:28 And levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep:

Here we see clearly that according to the Hebrew text, animals are souls or nephesh, as well as men. No one needs to interpret anything.
 

In the following passages, nephesh is used of man as an individual person in the sense of man as a living sentient being:

2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul
Gen 12:5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.
Gen 46:15 These be the sons of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob in Padan-aram, with his daughter Dinah: all the souls of his sons and his daughters were thirty and three.
Gen 46:18 These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter, and these she bare unto Jacob, even sixteen souls.
Gen 46:22 These are the sons of Rachel, which were born to Jacob: all the fourteen.souls were
Gen 46:25 These are the sons of Bilhah, which Laban gave unto Rachel his daughter, and she bare these unto Jacob: all the souls were seven.
Gen 46:26 All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls were threescore and six;
Gen 46:27 And the sons of Joseph, which were born him in Egypt, were two souls: all the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were threescore and ten.
Ex 1:5 And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.
Ex 12:4 And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb.
Lev 22:11 But if the priest buy any soul with his money, he shall eat of it, and he that is born in his house: they shall eat of his meat.
Ps 25:20 O keep my soul, and deliver me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee.
Prov 10:3 The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked.
Prov 11:25 The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.
Prov 11:30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.
Prov 14:25 A true witness delivereth souls: but a deceitful witness speaketh lies.
Prov 19:15 Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger.
Prov 22:23 For the LORD will plead their cause, and spoil the soul of those that spoiled them.
Prov 25:25 As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.
Prov 27:7 The full soul loatheth an honeycomb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.
Jer 38:16 So Zedekiah the king sware secretly unto Jeremiah, saying, As the LORD liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.
Lam 3:25 The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.
Ezek 13:18 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you?
Ezek 13:20 Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against your pillows, wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly, and I will tear them from your arms, and will let the souls go, even the souls that ye hunt to make them fly.
Ezek 18:4 Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
Gen 14:21 And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself.
Gen 36:6 And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his substance, which he had got in the land of Canaan; and went into the country from the face of his brother Jacob.
Ex 16:16 This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which are in his tents.
Lev 27:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When a man shall make a singular vow, the persons shall be for the LORD by thy estimation.
Num 31:40 And the persons were sixteen thousand; of which the LORD's tribute was thirty and two persons.
Num 31:46 And sixteen thousand persons;)
Deut 10:22 Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons; and now the LORD thy God hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude.
Jer 43:6 Even men, and women, and children, and the king's daughters, and every person that Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Jeremiah the prophet, and Baruch the son of Neriah.
Jer 52:29 In the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem eight hundred thirty and two persons:
Jer 52:30 In the three and twentieth year of Nebuchadrezzar Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Jews seven hundred forty and five persons: all the persons were four thousand and six hundred.
Ezek 16:5 None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born.
Ezek 27:13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were thy merchants: they traded the persons of men and vessels of brass in thy market.
Num 31:35 And thirty and two thousand persons in all, of women that had not known man by lying with him.
Deut 24:7 f a man be found stealing any of his brethren of the children of Israel, and maketh merchandise of him, or selleth him; then that thief shall die; and thou shalt put evil away from among you.
2 Kings 12:4 And Jehoash said to the priests, All the money of the dedicated things that is brought into the house of the LORD, even the money of every one that passeth the account, the money that every man is set at, and all the money that cometh into any man's heart to bring into the house of the LORD,
1 Chr 5:21 And they took away their cattle; of their camels fifty thousand, and of sheep two hundred and fifty thousand, and of asses two thousand, and of men an hundred thousand.
Num 31:35 And thirty and two thousand persons in all, of women that had not known man by lying with him. (nephesh not rendered into English in this verse)

Ask yourself; are any of these verses talking about an invisible, immortal entity within man which departs at death? According to the above passages, does man have a soul, or IS HE A SOUL?

Once again, in many cases the truth is clouded by our translators which have rendered nephesh six different ways into English; soul, person, persons, any, man, and and.

We learned in the prior chapter how at least one fundamentalist scholar attempted to get around the conclusion that man WAS a soul rather than HAVING a soul as most of Christendom asserts. Again we quote Peter S. Ruckman:

The Soul is joined to the Body in the Old Testament. Adam is created with his Soul 'loose' within his body, and if he were created with the soul stuck to the body it would matter nothing, for his Flesh (Body) is not yet become the 'Flesh' of Romans 7:18... The soul has a bodily shape and it can burn in hell forever as a body without burning up.'

'The soul is the 'Ego', the 'I am' of the individual. The studies in the Hebrew usage of the word yield no new truth at all. To this day scholars assume the word is interchangeable with 'life' because it is occasionally applied to animals (Num. 31:28; Rev. 16:3)...

After the Fall of Man, the Soul is stuck to a 'body of death' and consequently, the Old Testament writers use 'Soul' as synonymous with the body. (emphasis mine)

Based on the evidence thus far, I would ask the reader to consider how valid such conclusions are. Does the Bible really teach this 'soul stuck to the body' theory, or is this just an ingenious attempt to escape the obvious conclusion that man doesn't HAVE a nephesh, he IS a nephesh?

Many evangelicals in our day talk about 'soul winning', in the sense of saving that immortal part within man from going to hell. The term 'soul winning is taken from Proverbs 11:30; 'He that winneth souls is wise'. Given the context of how nephesh is used elsewhere in Proverbs, does this verse really fit the idea of saving some invisible entity from burning in hell, or rather winning over a person by doing good to them?
 

In the following passages the soul or nephesh performs certain acts, or exercises certain powers:

Gen 27:4 And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.
Gen 27:19 And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy firstborn; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.
Gen 27:25 And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine, and he drank.
Gen 27:31 And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may bless me.
Lev 4:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a soul shall sin through ignorance against any of the commandments of the LORD concerning things which ought not to be done, and shall do against any of them:
Lev 5:1 And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it; if he do not utter it, then he shall bear his iniquity.
Lev 5:2 Or if a soul touch any unclean thing, whether it be a carcase of an unclean beast, or a carcase of unclean cattle, or the carcase of unclean creeping things, and if it be hidden from him; he also shall be unclean, and guilty.
Lev 5:4 Or if a soul swear, pronouncing with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatsoever it be that a man shall pronounce with an oath, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty in one of these.
Lev 5:15 If a soul commit a trespass, and sin through ignorance, in the holy things of the LORD; then he shall bring for his trespass unto the LORD a ram without blemish out of the flocks, with thy estimation by shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for a trespass offering:
Lev 5:17 And if a soul sin, and commit any of these things which are forbidden to be done by the commandments of the LORD; though he wist it not, yet is he guilty, and shall bear his iniquity.
Lev 6:2 If a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the LORD, and lie unto his neighbour in that which was delivered him to keep, or in fellowship, or in a thing taken away by violence, or hath deceived his neighbour;
Lev 7:18 And if any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings be eaten at all on the third day, it shall not be accepted, neither shall it be imputed unto him that offereth it: it shall be an abomination, and the soul that eateth of it shall bear his iniquity.
Lev 7:20 But the soul that eateth of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, that pertain unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 7:21 Moreover the soul that shall touch any unclean thing, as the uncleanness of man, or any unclean beast, or any abominable unclean thing, and eat of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which pertain unto the LORD, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 7:27 Whatsoever soul it be that eateth any manner of blood, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 16:29 And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you:
Lev 16:31 It shall be a sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls, by a statute for ever.
Lev 17:12 Therefore I said unto the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood.
Lev 17:15 And every soul that eateth that which died of itself, or that which was torn with beasts, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger, he shall both wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even: then shall he be clean.
Lev 20:6 And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.
Lev 20:25 Ye shall therefore put difference between clean beasts and unclean, and between unclean fowls and clean: and ye shall not make your souls abominable by beast, or by fowl, or by any manner of living thing that creepeth on the ground, which I have separated from you as unclean.
Lev 22:6 The soul which hath touched any such shall be unclean until even, and shall not eat of the holy things, unless he wash his flesh with water.
Lev 23:27 Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
Lev 23:30 And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people.
Lev 23:32 It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.
Num 15:27 And if any soul sin through ignorance, then he shall bring a she goat of the first year for a sin offering.
Num 15:28 And the priest shall make an atonement for the soul that sinneth ignorantly, when he sinneth by ignorance before the LORD, to make an atonement for him; and it shall be forgiven him.
Num 15:30 But the soul that doeth ought presumptuously, whether he be born in the land, or a stranger, the same reproacheth the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
Num 19:22 And whatsoever the unclean person toucheth shall be unclean; and the soul that toucheth it shall be unclean until even.
Num 29:7 And ye shall have on the tenth day of this seventh month an holy convocation; and ye shall afflict your souls: ye shall not do any work therein:
Num 30:2 If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.
Num 30:4 And her father hear her vow, and her bond wherewith she hath bound her soul, and her father shall hold his peace at her: then all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she hath bound her soul shall stand.
Num 30:5 But if her father disallow her in the day that he heareth; not any of her vows, or of her bonds wherewith she hath bound her soul, shall stand: and the LORD shall forgive her, because her father disallowed her.
Num 30:6 And if she had at all an husband, when she vowed, or uttered ought out of her lips, wherewith she bound her soul;
Num 30:7 And her husband heard it, and held his peace at her in the day that he heard it: then her vows shall stand, and her bonds wherewith she bound her soul shall stand.
Num 30:8 But if her husband disallowed her on the day that he heard it; then he shall make her vow which she vowed, and that which she uttered with her lips, wherewith she bound her soul, of none effect: and the LORD shall forgive her.
Num 30:9 But every vow of a widow, and of her that is divorced, wherewith they have bound their souls, shall stand against her.
Num 30:10 And if she vowed in her husband's house, or bound her soul by a bond with an oath;
Num 30:11 And her husband heard it, and held his peace at her, and disallowed her not: then all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she bound her soul shall stand.
Num 30:12 But if her husband hath utterly made them void on the day he heard them; then whatsoever proceeded out of her lips concerning her vows, or concerning the bond of her soul, shall not stand: her husband hath made them void; and the LORD shall forgive her.
Num 30:13 Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may establish it, or her husband may make it void.
Deut 13:6 If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers;
Judg 5:21 The river of Kishon swept them away, that ancient river, the river Kishon. O my soul, thou hast trodden down strength.
1 Sam 1:26 And she said, Oh my lord, as thy soul liveth, my lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here, praying unto the LORD.
1 Sam 17:55 And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.
1 Sam 18:3 Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul.
1 Sam 20:3 And David sware moreover, and said, Thy father certainly knoweth that I have found grace in thine eyes; and he saith, Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved: but truly as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death.
1 Sam 20:17 And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him: for he loved him as he loved his own soul.
1 Sam 25:26 Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing the LORD hath withholden thee from coming to shed blood, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now let thine enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal.
2 Sam 11:11 And Uriah said unto David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing.
2 Sam 14:19 And the king said, Is not the hand of Joab with thee in all this? And the woman answered and said, As thy soul liveth, my lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to the left from ought that my lord the king hath spoken: for thy servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of thine handmaid:
2 King 2:2 And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel.
2 King 2:4 Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho.
2 King 2:6 And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on.
2 King 4:30 And the mother of the child said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her.
Job 16:4 I also could speak as ye do: if your soul were in my soul's stead, I could heap up words against you, and shake mine head at you.
Job 31:30 Neither have I suffered my mouth to sin by wishing a curse to his soul.
Ps 35:13 But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into mine own bosom.
Ps 120:6 My soul hath long dwelt with him that hateth peace.
Prov 6:32 But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.
Prov 8:36 But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate me love death.
Prov 11:17 The merciful man doeth good to his own soul: but he that is cruel troubleth his own flesh.
Prov 13:2 A man shall eat good by the fruit of his mouth: but the soul of the transgressors shall eat violence.
Prov 15:32 He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul: but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding.
Prov 16:17 The highway of the upright is to depart from evil: he that keepeth his way preserveth his soul.
Prov 19:8 He that getteth wisdom loveth his own soul: he that keepeth understanding shall find good.
Prov 19:16 He that keepeth the commandment keepeth his own soul; but he that despiseth his ways shall die.
Prov 20:2 The fear of a king is as the roaring of a lion: whoso provoketh him to anger sinneth against his own soul.
Prov 21:23 Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.
Prov 22:5 Thorns and snares are in the way of the froward: he that doth keep his soul shall be far from them.
Prov 29:24 Whoso is partner with a thief hateth his own soul: he heareth cursing, and bewrayeth it not.
Eccl 4:8 There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.
Eccl 6:2 A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease.
Isa 51:23 But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee; which have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go over: and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to them that went over.
Isa 58:3 Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.
Isa 58:5 Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD?
Jer 4:19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
Ezek 4:14 Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! behold, my soul hath not been polluted: for from my youth up even till now have I not eaten of that which dieth of itself, or is torn in pieces; neither came there abominable flesh into my mouth.
Mic 6:7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
Ex 12:16 And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you.
Lev 2:1 And when any will offer a meat offering unto the LORD, his offering shall be of
Lev 4:27 And if any one of the common people sin through ignorance, while he doeth somewhat against any of the commandments of the LORD concerning things which ought not to be done, and be guilty;
Lev 11:43 Ye shall not make yourselves abominable with any creeping thing that creepeth, neither shall ye make yourselves unclean with them, that ye should be defiled thereby.
Lev 11:44 For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
Jer 17:21 Thus saith the LORD; Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem;
Num 5:6 Speak unto the children of Israel, When a man or woman shall commit any sin that men commit, to do a trespass against the LORD, and that person be guilty;
Est 9:31 To confirm these days of Purim in their times appointed, according as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had enjoined them, and as they had decreed for themselves and for their seed, the matters of the fastings and their cry.
Isa 46:2 They stoop, they bow down together; they could not deliver the burden, but themselves are gone into captivity.
Job 18:4 He teareth himself in his anger: shall the earth be forsaken for thee? and shall the rock be removed out of his place?
Job 32:2 Then was kindled the wrath of Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram: against Job was his wrath kindled, because he justified himself rather than God.
Ps 105:18 Whose feet they hurt with fetters: he was laid in iron:
Jer 3:11 And the LORD said unto me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.
Jer 51:14 The LORD of hosts hath sworn by himself, saying, Surely I will fill thee with men, as with caterpillers; and they shall lift up a shout against thee.
Amos 6:8 The Lord GOD hath sworn by himself, saith the LORD the God of hosts, I abhor the excellency of Jacob, and hate his palaces: therefore will I deliver up the city with all that is therein.

In the above passage we see that the Hebrew word nephesh has been rendered ten different ways; soul, man, any, one. yourselves, person, themselves, himself, he, herself.

The first four texts give the account of Isaac blessing Jacob and Esau. When he uses the phrase 'That my soul may bless thee', is he speaking of that immortal immaterial part of himself, or is he simply using an emphatic expression for 'That I may bless thee'? Given the other ways in which nephesh is used (herself, himself, themselves, etc) which seems most reasonable?

Numbers 19:22 states: And whatsoever the unclean person toucheth shall be unclean; and the soul that toucheth it shall be unclean until even.

Is this speaking of some immaterial immortal part of man physically touching an unclean person, or simply speaking of the person himself?

Simply stated, taken together and in context, do the above passages teach that man HAS a soul, or that he IS a soul?

Do the phrases 'his soul', 'my soul' etc mean 'That immortal part within me', or 'Me myself'?

Does the empathic 'O my soul' speak of that immortal, immaterial part of man, or the man himself?

The truth is, these verses need no explanation.

 

The following passage show nephesh as possessing desire, passion, and appetite:

Num 11:6 But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.
Deut 12:15 Notwithstanding thou mayest kill and eat flesh in all thy gates, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee: the unclean and the clean may eat thereof, as of the roebuck, and as of the hart.
Deut 12:20 When the LORD thy God shall enlarge thy border, as he hath promised thee, and thou shalt say, I will eat flesh, because thy soul longeth to eat flesh; thou mayest eat flesh, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after.
Deut 12:21 f the place which the LORD thy God hath chosen to put his name there be too far from thee, then thou shalt kill of thy herd and of thy flock, which the LORD hath given thee, as I have commanded thee, and thou shalt eat in thy gates whatsoever thy soul lusteth after.
Deut 14:26 And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household,
Num 21:5 And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.
1 Sam 2:16 And if any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he would answer him, Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force.
Job 6:7 The things that my soul refused to touch are as my sorrowful meat.
Job 33:20 The things that my soul refused to touch are as my sorrowful meat.
Job 107:18 Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat; and they draw near unto the gates of death.
Prov 6:30 Men do not despise a thief, if he steal to satisfy his soul when he is hungry;
Prov 13:25 The righteous eateth to the satisfying of his soul: but the belly of the wicked shall want.
Isa 29:8 It shall even be as when an hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite: so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against mount Zion.
Mic 7:1 Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grapegleanings of the vintage: there is no cluster to eat: my soul desired the firstripe fruit.
Deut 23:24 When thou comest into thy neighbour's vineyard, then thou mayest eat grapes thy fill at thine own pleasure; but thou shalt not put any in thy vessel.
Ps 78:18 And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.
Prov 23:2 And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.
Ecc 6:7 All the labour of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled.
Isa 56:11 Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and they are shepherds that cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter.

Here we see that the soul is so closely related to physical animal passions, that in some cases it has been rendered as 'pleasure', 'lust', 'appetite', and 'greedy'

A man eats to satisfy a soul. It is the soul which hungers, and the soul which has appetite. The soul lusts, longs, loathes, and desires. Are these things said of an immortal immaterial part of man, or of man himself?
 

The following passages show nephesh as manifesting certain feelings, passions, and affections, and exercising mental faculties:

Gen 34:3 And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel.
Gen 34:8 And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife.
Gen 42:21 And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.
Gen 49:6 O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall.
Lev 26:11 And I will set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you.
Lev 26:15 And if ye shall despise my statutes, or if your soul abhor my judgments, so that ye will not do all my commandments, but that ye break my covenant:
Lev 26:30 And I will destroy your high places, and cut down your images, and cast your carcases upon the carcases of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you.
Lev 26:43 The land also shall be left of them, and shall enjoy her sabbaths, while she lieth desolate without them: and they shall accept of the punishment of their iniquity: because, even because they despised my judgments, and because their soul abhorred my statutes.
Num 21:4 And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.
Deut 4:9 Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons;
Deut 4:29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
Deut 6:5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
Deut 10:12 And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,
Deut 11:13 And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul,
Deut 11:18 Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.
Deut 13:3 Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
Deut 26:16 This day the LORD thy God hath commanded thee to do these statutes and judgments: thou shalt therefore keep and do them with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.
Deut 30:2 And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;
Deut 30:6 And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;
Deut 30:10 If thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, and if thou turn unto the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.
Josh 22:5 But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of the LORD charged you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Josh 23:14 And, behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth: and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof.
Judg 10:16 And they put away the strange gods from among them, and served the LORD: and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel.
Judg 16:16 And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death;
1 Sam 1:10 And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore.
1 Sam 1:15 And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD.
1 Sam 18:1 And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.
1 Sam 20:4 hen said Jonathan unto David, Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee.
1 Sam 23:20 Now therefore, O king, come down according to all the desire of thy soul to come down; and our part shall be to deliver him into the king's hand.
1 Sam 30:6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.
2 Sam 5:8 And David said on that day, Whosoever getteth up to the gutter, and smiteth the Jebusites, and the lame and the blind, that are hated of David's soul, he shall be chief and captain. Wherefore they said, The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.
1 King 2:4 That the LORD may continue his word which he spake concerning me, saying, If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee (said he) a man on the throne of Israel.
1 King 8:48 And so return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name:
1 King 11:37 And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel.
2 Kings 4:27 And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the LORD hath hid it from me, and hath not told me.
2 Kings 23:3 And the king stood by a pillar, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people stood to the covenant.
2 Kings 23:25 And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.
1 Chron 22:19 Now set your heart and your soul to seek the LORD your God; arise therefore, and build ye the sanctuary of the LORD God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and the holy vessels of God, into the house that is to be built to the name of the LORD.
2 Chron 6:38 If they return to thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their captivity, whither they have carried them captives, and pray toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, and toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I have built for thy name:
2 Chron 15:12 And they entered into a covenant to seek the LORD God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul;
2 Chron 34:31 And the king stood in his place, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to keep his commandments, and his testimonies, and his statutes, with all his heart, and with all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant which are written in this book.
Job 3:20 Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery, and life unto the bitter in soul;
Job 7:11 Therefore I will not refrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Job 9:21 Though I were perfect, yet would I not know my soul: I would despise my life.
Job 10:1 My soul is weary of my life; I will leave my complaint upon myself; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.
Job 14:22 But his flesh upon him shall have pain, and his soul within him shall mourn.
Job 19:2 How long will ye vex my soul, and break me in pieces with words?
Job 21:25 And another dieth in the bitterness of his soul, and never eateth with pleasure.
Job 23:13 But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth.
Job 24:12 Men groan from out of the city, and the soul of the wounded crieth out: yet God layeth not folly to them.
Job 27:2 As God liveth, who hath taken away my judgment; and the Almighty, who hath vexed my soul;
Job 30:16 And now my soul is poured out upon me; the days of affliction have taken hold upon me.
Job 30:25 Did not I weep for him that was in trouble? was not my soul grieved for the poor?
Ps 6:3 My soul is also sore vexed: but thou, O LORD, how long?
Ps 11:5 The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth.
Ps 13:2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?
Ps 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
Ps 24:4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.
Ps 25:1 Unto thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul.
Ps 25:13 His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth.
Ps 31:7 I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities;
Ps 31:9 Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea, my soul and my belly.
Ps 33:20 Our soul waiteth for the LORD: he is our help and our shield.
Ps 35:9 And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation.
Ps 42:1 As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.
Ps 42:2 My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?
Ps 42:4 When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me: for I had gone with the multitude, I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holyday.
Ps 42:5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.
Ps 42:6 O my God, my soul is cast down within me: therefore will I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the hill Mizar.
Ps 42:11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.
Ps 43:5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.
Ps 44:25 For our soul is bowed down to the dust: our belly cleaveth unto the earth.
Ps 49:18 Though while he lived he blessed his soul: and men will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself.
Ps 57:1 Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast.
Ps 57:6 They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah.
Ps 62:1 Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation.
Ps 62:5 My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him.
Ps 63:1 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
Ps 63:5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
Ps 63:8 My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.
Ps 69:10 When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach.
Ps 77:2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord: my sore ran in the night, and ceased not: my soul refused to be comforted.
Ps 84:2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.
Ps 86:4 Rejoice the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
Ps 88:3 For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.
Ps 94:19 In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul.
Ps 103:1 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
Ps 103:2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
Ps 103:22 Bless the LORD, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the LORD, O my soul.
Ps 104:1 Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty.
Ps 104:35 Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless thou the LORD, O my soul. Praise ye the LORD.
Ps 107:5 Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them.
Ps 107:9 For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.
Ps 107:26 They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
Ps 116:7 Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee.
Ps 119:20 My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy judgments at all times.
Ps 119:25 My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word.
Ps 119:28 My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen thou me according unto thy word.
Ps 119:81 My soul fainteth for thy salvation: but I hope in thy word.
Ps 119:129 Thy testimonies are wonderful: therefore doth my soul keep them.
Ps 119:167 My soul hath kept thy testimonies; and I love them exceedingly.
Ps 123:4 Our soul is exceedingly filled with the scorning of those that are at ease, and with the contempt of the proud.
Ps 130:5 I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.
Ps 130:6 My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning.
Ps 131:2 Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child that is weaned of his mother: my soul is even as a weaned child.
Ps 138:3 In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul.
Ps 139:14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.
Ps 143:6 I stretch forth my hands unto thee: my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah.
Ps 143:8 Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.
Ps 143:11 Quicken me, O LORD, for thy name's sake: for thy righteousness' sake bring my soul out of trouble.
Ps 143:12 And of thy mercy cut off mine enemies, and destroy all them that afflict my soul: for I am thy servant.
Ps 146:1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise the LORD, O my soul.
Prov 2:10 When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul;
Prov 3:22 So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck.
Prov 13:4 The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing: but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat.
Prov 13:19 The desire accomplished is sweet to the soul: but it is abomination to fools to depart from evil.
Prov 16:24 Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.
Prov 19:2 Also, that the soul be without knowledge, it is not good; and he that hasteth with his feet sinneth.
Prov 19:18 Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.
Prov 21:10 The soul of the wicked desireth evil: his neighbour findeth no favour in his eyes.
Prov 22:25 Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.
Prov 24:14 So shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thy soul: when thou hast found it, then there shall be a reward, and thy expectation shall not be cut off.
Prov 25:13 As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to them that send him: for he refresheth the soul of his masters.
Prov 29:17 Correct thy son, and he shall give thee rest; yea, he shall give delight unto thy soul.
Eccl 2:24 There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God.
Eccl 6:3 If a man beget an hundred children, and live many years, so that the days of his years be many, and his soul be not filled with good, and also that he have no burial; I say, that an untimely birth is better than he.
Eccl 7:28 Which yet my soul seeketh, but I find not: one man among a thousand have I found; but a woman among all those have I not found.
Song 1:7 Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions?
Song 3:1 By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not.
Song 3:2 I will rise now, and go about the city in the streets, and in the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not.
Song 3:3 The watchmen that go about the city found me: to whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth?
Song 3:4 It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother's house, and into the chamber of her that conceived me.
Song 5:6 I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.
Song 6:12 Or ever I was aware, my soul made me like the chariots of Amminadib.
Isa 1:14 Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.
Isa 26:8 Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9 With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.
Isa 32:6 For the vile person will speak villany, and his heart will work iniquity, to practise hypocrisy, and to utter error against the LORD, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
Isa 38:15 What shall I say? he hath both spoken unto me, and himself hath done it: I shall go softly all my years in the bitterness of my soul.
Isa 42:1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
Isa 55:2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.
Isa 58:10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday:
Isa 58:11 And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.
Isa 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.
Isa 66:3 He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol. Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations.
Jer 4:31 For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that bewaileth herself, that spreadeth her hands, saying, Woe is me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers.
Jer 5:9 Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Jer 5:29 Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Jer 6:8 Be thou instructed, O Jerusalem, lest my soul depart from thee; lest I make thee desolate, a land not inhabited.
Jer 6:16 Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.
Jer 9:9 Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Jer 12:7 I have forsaken mine house, I have left mine heritage; I have given the dearly beloved of my soul into the hand of her enemies.
Jer 13:17 But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the LORD's flock is carried away captive.
Jer 14:19 Hast thou utterly rejected Judah? hath thy soul lothed Zion? why hast thou smitten us, and there is no healing for us? we looked for peace, and there is no good; and for the time of healing, and behold trouble!
Jer 31:12 Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the LORD, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd: and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all.
Jer 31:14 And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the LORD.
Jer 31:25 For I have satiated the weary soul, and I have replenished every sorrowful soul.
Jer 32:41 Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.
Jer 50:19 And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead.
Lam 3:17 And thou hast removed my soul far off from peace: I forgat prosperity.
Lam 3:20 My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me.
Lam 3:24 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.
Ezek 7:19 hey shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.
Ezek 24:21 Speak unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the excellency of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pitieth; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left shall fall by the sword.
Jon 2:7 When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.
Hab 2:4 Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
Zech 11:8 Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me.
Gen 23:8 And he communed with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight; hear me, and intreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar,
Deut 18:6 And if a Levite come from any of thy gates out of all Israel, where he sojourned, and come with all the desire of his mind unto the place which the LORD shall choose;
Deut 28:65 And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind:
1 Sam 2:35 And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.
2 Sam 17:8 For, said Hushai, thou knowest thy father and his men, that they be mighty men, and they be chafed in their minds, as a bear robbed of her whelps in the field: and thy father is a man of war, and will not lodge with the people.
2 King 9:15 But king Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) And Jehu said, If it be your minds, then let none go forth nor escape out of the city to go to tell it in Jezreel.
1 Chron 28:9 And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.
Jer 15:1 Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people: cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth.
Ezek 23:17 And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was alienated from them.
Ezek 23:18 So she discovered her whoredoms, and discovered her nakedness: then my mind was alienated from her, like as my mind was alienated from her sister.
Ezek 23:22 Therefore, O Aholibah, thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side;
Ezek 23:28 For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will deliver thee into the hand of them whom thou hatest, into the hand of them from whom thy mind is alienated:
Ezek 24:25 Also, thou son of man, shall it not be in the day when I take from them their strength, the joy of their glory, the desire of their eyes, and that whereupon they set their minds, their sons and their daughters,
Ezek 36:5 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken against the residue of the heathen, and against all Idumea, which have appointed my land into their possession with the joy of all their heart, with despiteful minds, to cast it out for a prey.
Ex 23:9 Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
Lev 26:16 I also will do this unto you; I will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart: and ye shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.
Deut 24:15 At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the LORD, and it be sin unto thee.
1 Sam 2:33 And the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off from mine altar, shall be to consume thine eyes, and to grieve thine heart: and all the increase of thine house shall die in the flower of their age.
2 Sam 3:21 And Abner said unto David, I will arise and go, and will gather all Israel unto my lord the king, that they may make a league with thee, and that thou mayest reign over all that thine heart desireth. And David sent Abner away; and he went in peace.
Ps 10:3 For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the LORD abhorreth.
Prov 23:7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.
Prov 28:25 He that is of a proud heart stirreth up strife: but he that putteth his trust in the LORD shall be made fat.
Prov 31:6 Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts.
Jer 42:20 For ye dissembled in your hearts, when ye sent me unto the LORD your God, saying, Pray for us unto the LORD our God; and according unto all that the LORD our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it.
Lam 3:51 Mine eye affecteth mine heart because of all the daughters of my city.
Ezek 25:6 For thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou hast clapped thine hands, and stamped with the feet, and rejoiced in heart with all thy despite against the land of Israel;
Ezek 25:15 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because the Philistines have dealt by revenge, and have taken vengeance with a despiteful heart, to destroy it for the old hatred;
Ezek 27:31 And they shall make themselves utterly bald for thee, and gird them with sackcloth, and they shall weep for thee with bitterness of heart and bitter wailing.
Hos 4:8 They eat up the sin of my people, and they set their heart on their iniquity.
Prov 27:9 Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel.
Deut 21:14 And it shall be, if thou have no delight in her, then thou shalt let her go whither she will; but thou shalt not sell her at all for money, thou shalt not make merchandise of her, because thou hast humbled her.
Ps 27:12 Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty.
Ps 41:2 The LORD will preserve him, and keep him alive; and he shall be blessed upon the earth: and thou wilt not deliver him unto the will of his enemies.
Ezek 16:27 Behold, therefore I have stretched out my hand over thee, and have diminished thine ordinary food, and delivered thee unto the will of them that hate thee, the daughters of the Philistines, which are ashamed of thy lewd way.
Ecc 6:9 Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the desire: this is also vanity and vexation of spirit.
Jer 22:27 But to the land whereunto they desire to return, thither shall they not return.
Jer 44:14 So that none of the remnant of Judah, which are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall escape or remain, that they should return into the land of Judah, to the which they have a desire to return to dwell there: for none shall return but such as shall escape.
Mic 7:3 That they may do evil with both hands earnestly, the prince asketh, and the judge asketh for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up.
Hab 2:5 Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine, he is a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all people:
Ps 105:22 To bind his princes at his pleasure; and teach his senators wisdom.
Jer 34:16 But ye turned and polluted my name, and caused every man his servant, and every man his handmaid, whom ye had set at liberty at their pleasure, to return, and brought them into subjection, to be unto you for servants and for handmaids.
Ex 15:9 The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.
Judg 18:25 And the children of Dan said unto him, Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows run upon thee, and thou lose thy life, with the lives of thy household.
1 Sam 22:2 And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.
Est 4:13 Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king's house, more than all the Jews.
Ps 131:2 Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child that is weaned of his mother: my soul is even as a weaned child.
Prov 16:26 He that laboureth laboureth for himself; for his mouth craveth it of him.
Prov 14:10 The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy.
Prov 6:16 These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
Jon 4:8 And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.
Isa 5:14 Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.
Jer 37:9 Thus saith the LORD; Deceive not yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans shall surely depart from us: for they shall not depart.
Isa 49:7 Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.
Ps 35:25 Let them not say in their hearts, Ah, so would we have it: let them not say, We have swallowed him up.

Again, ask yourself if any of these verses speak of some immortal, invisible entity within man, or of the man himself exercising mental faculties and displaying feelings. Do any of these verses mention an immortal soul?

So far we have given 398 verses in which the nephesh, or soul is mentioned. This accounts for roughly half of the Old Testament verses containing this word. If it isn't already strikingly apparent that the Old Testament evidence for an immortal soul is non-existent, then this second half of verses containing the word nephesh should impress upon the reader that such a doctrine is impossible within the Old Testament framework.

Out of all the occurrences of nephesh in the Old Testament, over half speak of the soul as something which is subject to mortality, or as actually being dead. Surprised? I invite you to study closely the following verses.

 

The following verses show the nephesh as slain or killed by man.

Josh 10:28 And that day Joshua took Makkedah, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof he utterly destroyed, them, and all the souls that were therein; he let none remain: and he did to the king of Makkedah as he did unto the king of Jericho.
Josh 10:30 And the LORD delivered it also, and the king thereof, into the hand of Israel; and he smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein; he let none remain in it; but did unto the king thereof as he did unto the king of Jericho.
Josh 10:32 And the LORD delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel, which took it on the second day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein, according to all that he had done to Libnah.
Josh 10:35 And they took it on that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein he utterly destroyed that day, according to all that he had done to Lachish.
Josh 10:37 And they took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof, and all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining, according to all that he had done to Eglon; but destroyed it utterly, and all the souls that were therein.
Josh 10:39 And he took it, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof; and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining: as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir, and to the king thereof; as he had done also to Libnah, and to her king.
Josh 11:11 And they smote all the souls that were therein with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them: there was not any left to breathe: and he burnt Hazor with fire.
Jer 2:34 Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls of the poor innocents: I have not found it by secret search, but upon all these.
Ezek 13:19 And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies?
Ezek 22:25 There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof.
Ezek 22:27 Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain.
Deut 27:25 Cursed be he that taketh reward to slay an innocent person (lit. slay an innocent soul). And all the people shall say, Amen.
Josh 20:3 That the slayer that killeth any person (lit. killeth any soul) unawares and unwittingly may flee thither: and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood.
Josh 20:9 These were the cities appointed for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them, that whosoever killeth any person (lit. killeth any soul) at unawares might flee thither, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he stood before the congregation.
1 Sam 22:22 And David said unto Abiathar, I knew it that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul: I have occasioned the death of all the persons (lit. death of all the souls) of thy father's house.
Prov 28:17 A man that doeth violence to the blood of any person (lit. blood of any soul) shall flee to the pit; let no man stay him.
Ezek 17:17 Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company make for him in the war, by casting up mounts, and building forts, to cut off many persons:
Ezek 33:6 But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.
Lev 24:17 And he that killeth any man (Heb. nephesh adam.. killeth the soul of any man) shall surely be put to death.
Num 31:19 And do ye abide without the camp seven days: whosoever hath killed any person (lit. hath killed any soul), and whosoever hath touched any slain, purify both yourselves and your captives on the third day, and on the seventh day.
Num 35:11 Then ye shall appoint you cities to be cities of refuge for you; that the slayer may flee thither, which killeth any person (lit. which killeth any soul) at unawares.
Num 35:15 These six cities shall be a refuge, both for the children of Israel, and for the stranger, and for the sojourner among them: that every one that killeth any person (lit. which killeth any soul) unawares may flee thither.
Num 35:30 Whoso killeth any person (lit. which killeth any soul), 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.
Gen 37:21 And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him (lit. let us not kill his soul).
Deut 19:6 Lest the avenger of the blood pursue the slayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay him (lit. slay his soul); whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past.
Deut 22:26 But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death: for as when a man riseth against his neighbour, and slayeth him (lit. slayeth his soul), even so is this matter:
Deut 19:11 But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally (lit. smite his soul) that he die, and fleeth into one of these cities:
2 Sam 14:7 And, behold, the whole family is risen against thine handmaid, and they said, Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him, for the life of his brother whom he slew (lit. soul of his brother whom he slew); and we will destroy the heir also: and so they shall quench my coal which is left, and shall not leave to my husband neither name nor remainder upon the earth.
Jer 40:14 And said unto him, Dost thou certainly know that Baalis the king of the Ammonites hath sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to slay thee (lit. slay thy soul)? But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam believed them not.
Jer 40:15 Then Johanan the son of Kareah spake to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly, saying, Let me go, I pray thee, and I will slay Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and no man shall know it: wherefore should he slay thee (lit. slay thy soul), that all the Jews which are gathered unto thee should be scattered, and the remnant in Judah perish?

To those for whom language means anything at all, the above verses need no explanation. What we have here are souls being hit with swords, souls bleeding, souls dying, etc. To attempt to maintain that a soul is an invisible entity within man which is not subject to death is impossible in the above verses.

Those who seek to maintain this position must argue that soul has multiple meanings, which it obviously does. The real question is, can a word which is so often used to express mortality, animal life, and animal appetite also mean 'invisible, immortal self which is not subject to death'? If so, where are the verses which emphatically and explicitly state that nephesh can carry such a definition? Is God the author of confusion?

The following verses show the nephesh as being cut off by God.

Gen 17:14 And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.
Ex 12:15 Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.
Ex 12:19 Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land.
Ex 31:14 Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
Lev 7:20 But the soul that eateth of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, that pertain unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 7:21 Moreover the soul that shall touch any unclean thing, as the uncleanness of man, or any unclean beast, or any abominable unclean thing, and eat of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which pertain unto the LORD, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 7:25 For whosoever eateth the fat of the beast, of which men offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, even the soul that eateth it shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 7:27 Whatsoever soul it be that eateth any manner of blood, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 17:10 And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people.
Lev 18:29 For whosoever shall commit any of these abominations, even the souls that commit them shall be cut off from among their people.
Lev 19:8 Therefore every one that eateth it shall bear his iniquity, because he hath profaned the hallowed thing of the LORD: and that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
Lev 20:6 And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.
Lev 22:3 Say unto them, Whosoever he be of all your seed among your generations, that goeth unto the holy things, which the children of Israel hallow unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, that soul shall be cut off from my presence: I am the LORD.
Lev 23:29 For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people.
Lev 23:30 And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people.
Num 9:13 But the man that is clean, and is not in a journey, and forbeareth to keep the passover, even the same soul shall be cut off from among his people: because he brought not the offering of the LORD in his appointed season, that man shall bear his sin.
Num 15:30 But the soul that doeth ought presumptuously, whether he be born in the land, or a stranger, the same reproacheth the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
Num 15:31 Because he hath despised the word of the LORD, and hath broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off; his iniquity shall be upon him.
Num 19:13 Whosoever toucheth the dead body of any man that is dead, and purifieth not himself, defileth the tabernacle of the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from Israel: because the water of separation was not sprinkled upon him, he shall be unclean; his uncleanness is yet upon him.
Num 19:20 But the man that shall be unclean, and shall not purify himself, that soul shall be cut off from among the congregation, because he hath defiled the sanctuary of the LORD: the water of separation hath not been sprinkled upon him; he is unclean.
Ezek 18:4 Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
Ezek 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

To 'cut off' means to perish or destroy. Clearly there is no intimation of an immortal soul in the above passages.

The following verses use nephesh in regard to man as actually dead.

Lev 19:28 Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead (lit. dead soul), nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.
Lev 21:1 And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them, There shall none be defiled for the dead (lit. dead soul) among his people:
Lev 22:4 What man soever of the seed of Aaron is a leper, or hath a running issue; he shall not eat of the holy things, until he be clean. And whoso toucheth any thing that is unclean by the dead (lit. dead soul), or a man whose seed goeth from him;
Num 5:2 Command the children of Israel, that they put out of the camp every leper, and every one that hath an issue, and whosoever is defiled by the dead:
Num 6:11 And the priest shall offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, and make an atonement for him, for that he sinned by the dead (lit. dead soul), and shall hallow his head that same day.
Num 9:6 And there were certain men, who were defiled by the dead body (lit. dead soul) of a man, that they could not keep the passover on that day: and they came before Moses and before Aaron on that day:
Num 9:7 And those men said unto him, We are defiled by the dead body (lit. dead soul) of a man: wherefore are we kept back, that we may not offer an offering of the LORD in his appointed season among the children of Israel?
Num 9:10 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body (lit. dead soul), or be in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the passover unto the LORD.
Lev 21:11 Neither shall he go in to any dead body (lit. dead soul), nor defile himself for his father, or for his mother;
Num 6:6 All the days that he separateth himself unto the LORD he shall come at no dead body (lit. dead soul).
Num 19:11 He that toucheth the dead body (lit. dead soul) of any man shall be unclean seven days.
Num 19:13 Whosoever toucheth the dead body (lit. dead soul) of any man that is dead, and purifieth not himself, defileth the tabernacle of the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from Israel: because the water of separation was not sprinkled upon him, he shall be unclean; his uncleanness is yet upon him.
Hag 2:13 Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by a dead body (lit. dead soul) touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean.

The first thing we notice about the above passages, is that in NONE of them have our translators rendered nephesh as 'soul'. Why have they done this? The answer should be obvious: The King James translators all believed in the immortality of the soul. Clearly these verses are completely inconsistent with that view. A soul cannot be immortal in ANY sense if it's said to be DEAD. Immortality means, at the very least, not subject to corruption, and in its fullest sense, deathlessness... neither can be said of a corpse!

Please notice in these passages that nephesh isn't merely speaking of the person who had died, but refers directly to the corpse of the dead person. What we have literally is a dead soul.

We learned in the previous chapter the formula for what makes up a soul:

Body + Breath of Life = Living Soul

So obviously

Body - Breath of Life = DEAD SOUL and that is precisely what we have in these passages regardless of our translators refusal to make the truth of the matter known. When people die, they are dead souls not immortal souls... that is what your Bible says. How far removed is this from the teaching of our mainline denominations with the 'immortal soul which departs at death'.

Whatever conclusions you come to regarding the soul, you must take into account these verses. They simply cannot be ignored as though they didn't exist and have no bearing upon the truth of what we are to believe.

The following verses show nephesh as something which is subject to death and mortality, from which it can obtain salvation. This section contains a few Old Testament occurances of nephesh which are often cited to teach that man has an immortal soul. I have highlighted these verses with a red border.

Gen 12:13 Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee.
Gen19:20 Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.
Gen 35:18 And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin.
Ex 30:12 When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them.
Ex 30:15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.
Ex 30:16 And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.
Lev 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.
Num 16:38 The censers of these sinners against their own souls, let them make them broad plates for a covering of the altar: for they offered them before the LORD, therefore they are hallowed: and they shall be a sign unto the children of Israel.
Num 31:50 We have therefore brought an oblation for the LORD, what every man hath gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before the LORD.
1 Sam 24:11 Moreover, my father, see, yea, see the skirt of thy robe in my hand: for in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe, and killed thee not, know thou and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in mine hand, and I have not sinned against thee; yet thou huntest my soul to take it.
1 Sam 25:29 Yet a man is risen to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul: but the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as out of the middle of a sling.
1 Sam 26:21 Then said Saul, I have sinned: return, my son David: for I will no more do thee harm, because my soul was precious in thine eyes this day: behold, I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly.
2 Sam 4:9 And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
1 King 1:29 And the king sware, and said, As the LORD liveth, that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress,
1 King 17:21 And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come into him again.
1 King 17:22 And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
Job 7:15 So that my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather than my life.
Job 27:8 For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul?
Ps 3:2 Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah.
Ps 6:4 Return, O LORD, deliver my soul: oh save me for thy mercies' sake.
Ps 7:2 Lest he tear my soul like a lion, rending it in pieces, while there is none to deliver.
Ps 7:5 Let the enemy persecute my soul, and take it; yea, let him tread down my life upon the earth, and lay mine honour in the dust. Selah.
Ps 11:1 In the LORD put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee as a bird to your mountain?
Ps 17:13 Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword:
Ps 22:20 Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog.
Ps 22:29 All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul.
Ps 23:3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Ps 25:20 O keep my soul, and deliver me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee.
Ps 26:9 Gather not my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloody men:
Ps 33:19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.
Ps 34:22 The LORD redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate.
Ps 35:3 Draw out also the spear, and stop the way against them that persecute me: say unto my soul, I am thy salvation.
Ps 35:4 Let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after my soul: let them be turned back and brought to confusion that devise my hurt.
Ps 35:12 They rewarded me evil for good to the spoiling of my soul.
Ps 35:17 Lord, how long wilt thou look on? rescue my soul from their destructions, my darling from the lions.
Ps 40:14 Let them be ashamed and confounded together that seek after my soul to destroy it; let them be driven backward and put to shame that wish me evil.
Ps 41:4 I said, LORD, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee.
Ps 49:8 (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:)
Ps 49:15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.
Ps 54:3 For strangers are risen up against me, and oppressors seek after my soul: they have not set God before them. Selah.
Ps 54:4 Behold, God is mine helper: the Lord is with them that uphold my soul.
Ps 55:18 He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me: for there were many with me.
Ps 56:6 They gather themselves together, they hide themselves, they mark my steps, when they wait for my soul.
Ps 56:13 For thou hast delivered my soul from death: wilt not thou deliver my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?
Ps 57:4 My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.
Ps 59:3 For, lo, they lie in wait for my soul: the mighty are gathered against me; not for my transgression, nor for my sin, O LORD.
Ps 63:9 But those that seek my soul, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth.
Ps 66:9 Which holdeth our soul in life, and suffereth not our feet to be moved.
Ps 66:16 Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul.
Ps 69:1 Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul.
Ps 69:18 Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it: deliver me because of mine enemies.
Ps 70:2 Let them be ashamed and confounded that seek after my soul: let them be turned backward, and put to confusion, that desire my hurt.
Ps 71:10 For mine enemies speak against me; and they that lay wait for my soul take counsel together,
Ps 71:13 Let them be confounded and consumed that are adversaries to my soul; let them be covered with reproach and dishonour that seek my hurt.
Ps 71:23 My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee; and my soul, which thou hast redeemed.
Ps 72:13 He shall spare the poor and needy, and shall save the souls of the needy.
Ps 72:14 He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his sight.
Ps 74:19 O deliver not the soul of thy turtledove unto the multitude of the wicked: forget not the congregation of thy poor for ever.
Ps 78:50 He made a way to his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;
Ps 86:2 Preserve my soul; for I am holy: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee.
Ps 86:14 O God, the proud are risen against me, and the assemblies of violent men have sought after my soul; and have not set thee before them.
Ps 88:14 LORD, why castest thou off my soul? why hidest thou thy face from me?
Ps 94:21 They gather themselves together against the soul of the righteous, and condemn the innocent blood.
Ps 97:10 Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.
Ps 106:15 And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.
Ps 109:20 Let this be the reward of mine adversaries from the LORD, and of them that speak evil against my soul.
Ps 109:31 For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul.
Ps 116:4 Then called I upon the name of the LORD; O LORD, I beseech thee, deliver my soul.
Ps 116:8 For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling.
Ps 119:109 My soul is continually in my hand: yet do I not forget thy law.
Ps 119:175 Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me.
Ps 120:2 Deliver my soul, O LORD, from lying lips, and from a deceitful tongue.
Ps 121:7 The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
Ps 124:4 Then the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul:
Ps 124:5 Then the proud waters had gone over our soul.
Ps 124:7 Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: the snare is broken, and we are escaped.
Ps 141:8 But mine eyes are unto thee, O GOD the Lord: in thee is my trust; leave not my soul destitute.
Ps 142:4 I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.
Ps 142:7 Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name: the righteous shall compass me about; for thou shalt deal bountifully with me.
Ps 143:3 For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he hath smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead.
Prov 18:7 A fool's mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul.
Prov 24:12 If thou sayest, Behold, we knew it not; doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it? and he that keepeth thy soul, doth not he know it? and shall not he render to every man according to his works?
Prov 29:10 The bloodthirsty hate the upright: but the just seek his soul.
Isa 3:9 The shew of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves.
Isa 10:18 And shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and they shall be as when a standardbearer fainteth.
Isa 44:20 He feedeth on ashes: a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?
Isa 53:10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
Isa 53:11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Isa 53:12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Isa 55:3 Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.
Jer 4:10 Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the soul.
Jer 20:13 Sing unto the LORD, praise ye the LORD: for he hath delivered the soul of the poor from the hand of evildoers.
Jer 26:19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him at all to death? did he not fear the LORD, and besought the LORD, and the LORD repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them? Thus might we procure great evil against our souls.
Jer 38:17 Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon's princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house:
Jer 38:20 But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.
Jer 44:7 Therefore now thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; Wherefore commit ye this great evil against your souls, to cut off from you man and woman, child and suckling, out of Judah, to leave you none to remain;
Jer 51:6 Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul: be not cut off in her iniquity; for this is the time of the LORD's vengeance; he will render unto her a recompence.
Jer 51:45 My people, go ye out of the midst of her, and deliver ye every man his soul from the fierce anger of the LORD.
Lam 1:11 All her people sigh, they seek bread; they have given their pleasant things for meat to relieve the soul: see, O LORD, and consider; for I am become vile.
Lam 1:16 For these things I weep; mine eye, mine eye runneth down with water, because the comforter that should relieve my soul is far from me: my children are desolate, because the enemy prevailed.
Lam 1:19 I called for my lovers, but they deceived me: my priests and mine elders gave up the ghost in the city, while they sought their meat to relieve their souls.
Lam 2:12 They say to their mothers, Where is corn and wine? when they swooned as the wounded in the streets of the city, when their soul was poured out into their mothers' bosom.
Lam 3:58 O Lord, thou hast pleaded the causes of my soul; thou hast redeemed my life.
Ezek 3:19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
Ezek 3:21 Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul.
Ezek 13:18 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you?
Ezek 13:19 And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies?
Ezek 14:14 Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD.
Ezek 14:20 Though Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness.
Ezek 18:27 Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive.
Ezek 33:5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him. But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul.
Ezek 33:9 Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
Hos 9:4 They shall not offer wine offerings to the LORD, neither shall they be pleasing unto him: their sacrifices shall be unto them as the bread of mourners; all that eat thereof shall be polluted: for their bread for their soul shall not come into the house of the LORD.
Jon 2:5 The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head.
Hab 2:10 Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by cutting off many people, and hast sinned against thy soul.
Gen 9:5 And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man.
Gen 19:17 And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
Gen 19:19 Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:
Gen 32:30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.
Gen 44:30 Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father, and the lad be not with us; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad's life;
Ex 4:19 And the LORD said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life.
Ex 21:23 And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life,
Ex 21:30 If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give for the ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him.
Num 35:31 Moreover ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer, which is guilty of death: but he shall be surely put to death.
Deut 19:21 And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
Deut 24:6 No man shall take the nether or the upper millstone to pledge: for he taketh a man's life to pledge.
Josh 2:13 And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death.
Josh 2:14 And the men answered her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the LORD hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee.
Josh 9:24 And they answered Joshua, and said, Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that the LORD thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you, therefore we were sore afraid of our lives because of you, and have done this thing.
Judg 5:18 Zebulun and Naphtali were a people that jeoparded their lives unto the death in the high places of the field.
Judg 9:17 (For my father fought for you, and adventured his life far, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian:
Judg 12:3 And when I saw that ye delivered me not, I put my life in my hands, and passed over against the children of Ammon, and the LORD delivered them into my hand: wherefore then are ye come up unto me this day, to fight against me?
Judg 18:25 And the children of Dan said unto him, Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows run upon thee, and thou lose thy life, with the lives of thy household.
Ruth 4:15 And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him.
1 Sam 19:5 For he did put his life in his hand, and slew the Philistine, and the LORD wrought a great salvation for all Israel: thou sawest it, and didst rejoice: wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause?
1 Sam 19:11 Saul also sent messengers unto David's house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning: and Michal David's wife told him, saying, If thou save not thy life to night, to morrow thou shalt be slain.
1 Sam 20:1 And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan, What have I done? what is mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeketh my life?
1 Sam 22:23 Abide thou with me, fear not: for he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life: but with me thou shalt be in safeguard.
1 Sam 23:15 And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life: and David was in the wilderness of Ziph in a wood.
1 Sam 26:24 And, behold, as thy life was much set by this day in mine eyes, so let my life be much set by in the eyes of the LORD, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation.
1 Sam 28:9 And the woman said unto him, Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land: wherefore then layest thou a snare for my life, to cause me to die?
1 Sam 28:21 And the woman came unto Saul, and saw that he was sore troubled, and said unto him, Behold, thine handmaid hath obeyed thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have hearkened unto thy words which thou spakest unto me.
2 Sam 1:9 He said unto me again, Stand, I pray thee, upon me, and slay me: for anguish is come upon me, because my life is yet whole in me.
2 Sam 4:8 And they brought the head of Ishbosheth unto David to Hebron, and said to the king, Behold the head of Ishbosheth the son of Saul thine enemy, which sought thy life; and the LORD hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of his seed.
2 Sam 16:11 And David said to Abishai, and to all his servants, Behold, my son, which came forth of my bowels, seeketh my life: how much more now may this Benjamite do it? let him alone, and let him curse; for the LORD hath bidden him.
2 Sam 18:13 Otherwise I should have wrought falsehood against mine own life: for there is no matter hid from the king, and thou thyself wouldest have set thyself against me.
2 Sam 19:5 And Joab came into the house to the king, and said, Thou hast shamed this day the faces of all thy servants, which this day have saved thy life, and the lives of thy sons and of thy daughters, and the lives of thy wives, and the lives of thy concubines;
2 Sam 23:17 And he said, Be it far from me, O LORD, that I should do this: is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives? therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men.
1 Kings 1:12 Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon.
1 Kings 2:23 Then king Solomon sware by the LORD, saying, God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life.
1 Kings 3:11 And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment;
1 Kings 19:2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.
1 Kings 19:3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.
1 Kings 19:4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.
1 Kings 19:10 And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.
1 Kings 19:14 And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.
1 Kings 20:31 And his servants said unto him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings: let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel: peradventure he will save thy life.
1 Kings 20:39 And as the king passed by, he cried unto the king: and he said, Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle; and, behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man unto me, and said, Keep this man: if by any means he be missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or else thou shalt pay a talent of silver.
1 Kings 20:42 And he said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people.
2 Kings 1:13 And he sent again a captain of the third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight.
2 Kings 1:14 Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties: therefore let my life now be precious in thy sight.
2 Kings 7:7 Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life.
2 Kings 10:24 And when they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings, Jehu appointed fourscore men without, and said, If any of the men whom I have brought into your hands escape, he that letteth him go, his life shall be for the life of him.
1 Chron 11:19 And said, My God forbid it me, that I should do this thing: shall I drink the blood of these men that have put their lives in jeopardy? for with the jeopardy of their lives they brought it. Therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mightiest.
2 Chron 1:11 And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thine heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honour, nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king:
Est 7:3 Then Esther the queen answered and said, If I have found favour in thy sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be given me at my petition, and my people at my request:
Est 7:7 And the king arising from the banquet of wine in his wrath went into the palace garden: and Haman stood up to make request for his life to Esther the queen; for he saw that there was evil determined against him by the king.
Est 8:11 Wherein the king granted the Jews which were in every city to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life, to destroy, to slay, and to cause to perish, all the power of the people and province that would assault them, both little ones and women, and to take the spoil of them for a prey,
Est 9:16 But the other Jews that were in the king's provinces gathered themselves together, and stood for their lives, and had rest from their enemies, and slew of their foes seventy and five thousand, but they laid not their hands on the prey,
Job 2:4 And Satan answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.
Job 2:6 And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life.
Job 6:11 What is my strength, that I should hope? and what is mine end, that I should prolong my life?
Job 13:14 Wherefore do I take my flesh in my teeth, and put my life in mine hand?
Job 31:39 If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money, or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:
Ps 31:13 For I have heard the slander of many: fear was on every side: while they took counsel together against me, they devised to take away my life.
Ps 38:12 They also that seek after my life lay snares for me: and they that seek my hurt speak mischievous things, and imagine deceits all the day long.
Prov 1:18 And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives.
Prov 1:19 So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.
Prov 6:26 For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life.
Prov 7:23 Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life.
Prov 13:3 He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction.
Prov 13:8 The ransom of a man's life are his riches: but the poor heareth not rebuke.
Isa 15:4 And Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh: their voice shall be heard even unto Jahaz: therefore the armed soldiers of Moab shall cry out; his life shall be grievous unto him.
Isa 43:4 Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.
Jer 4:30 And when thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; thy lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life.
Jer 11:21 Therefore thus saith the LORD of the men of Anathoth, that seek thy life, saying, Prophesy not in the name of the LORD, that thou die not by our hand:
Jer 19:7 And I will make void the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem in this place; and I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies, and by the hands of them that seek their lives: and their carcases will I give to be meat for the fowls of the heaven, and for the beasts of the earth.
Jer 19:9 And I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and they shall eat every one the flesh of his friend in the siege and straitness, wherewith their enemies, and they that seek their lives, shall straiten them.
Jer 21:7 And afterward, saith the LORD, I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, and his servants, and the people, and such as are left in this city from the pestilence, from the sword, and from the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their life: and he shall smite them with the edge of the sword; he shall not spare them, neither have pity, nor have mercy.
Jer 21:9 He that abideth in this city shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth out, and falleth to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be unto him for a prey.
Jer 22:25 And I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the hand of them whose face thou fearest, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans.
Jer 34:20 I will even give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life: and their dead bodies shall be for meat unto the fowls of the heaven, and to the beasts of the earth.
Jer 34:21 And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which are gone up from you.
Jer 38:2 Thus saith the LORD, He that remaineth in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live; for he shall have his life for a prey, and shall live.
Jer 38:16 So Zedekiah the king sware secretly unto Jeremiah, saying, As the LORD liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.
Jer 39:18 For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee: because thou hast put thy trust in me, saith the LORD.
Jer 44:30 Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will give Pharaoh-hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies, and into the hand of them that seek his life; as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, his enemy, and that sought his life.
Jer 45:5 And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek them not: for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the LORD: but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest.
Jer 46:26 And I will deliver them into the hand of those that seek their lives, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of his servants: and afterward it shall be inhabited, as in the days of old, saith the LORD.
Jer 48:6 Flee, save your lives, and be like the heath in the wilderness.
Jer 49:37 For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger, saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:
Lam 2:19 Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children, that faint for hunger in the top of every street.
Lam 5:9 We gat our bread with the peril of our lives because of the sword of the wilderness.
Ezek 32:10 Yea, I will make many people amazed at thee, and their kings shall be horribly afraid for thee, when I shall brandish my sword before them; and they shall tremble at every moment, every man for his own life, in the day of thy fall.
Jon 1:14 Wherefore they cried unto the LORD, and said, We beseech thee, O LORD, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O LORD, hast done as it pleased thee.
Jon 4:3 Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.
Job 11:20 But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall not escape, and their hope shall be as the giving up of the ghost.
Jer 15:9 She that hath borne seven languisheth: she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone down while it was yet day: she hath been ashamed and confounded: and the residue of them will I deliver to the sword before their enemies, saith the LORD.
2 Sam 14:14 For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him.
Ps 17:9 From the wicked that oppress me, from my deadly enemies, who compass me about.
1 Kings 19:4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.
Amos 2:14 Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver himself:
Amos 2:15 Neither shall he stand that handleth the bow; and he that is swift of foot shall not deliver himself: neither shall he that rideth the horse deliver himself.
Num 23:10 Who can count the dust of Jacob, and the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!
Judg 16:30 And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death were more than they which he slew in his life.
1 Kings 20:32 So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Ben-ha'dad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, Is he yet alive? he is my brother.
Job 36:14 They die in youth, and their life is among the unclean.
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: there shall not be a coal to warm at, nor fire to sit before it.
Deut 4:15 Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the LORD spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:
Josh 23:11 Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the LORD your God.

It should be quite obvious from the above that the soul is mortal and is subject to death and destruction. How far removed is this from the teaching of an immortal never-dying soul?

However, in almost any debate over this issue, Genesis 35:18 (as her soul was in departing) will almost always be quoted to 'prove', against overwhelming evidence to the contrary, that the concept of an un-dying soul was not foreign to the Old Testament writers. A good example of this can be seen in Peter Ruckman's Bible Believers Commentary on Genesis:

The reader will notice that Rachel's soul departs from her body in verse 18, then she dies (vs. 19), and then she is buried. If 'hell' is the grave, Rachel got out of her body before she went to 'hell'. pg. 655

Matthew Henry writes:

Her dying is here called the departing of her soul. Note, The death of the body is but the departure of the soul to the world of spirits.

I would ask any sincere reader: given the context of how nephesh is used throughout the entire Old Testament, is such a conclusion valid, logical, or even possible? We have listed over 700 verses, half of which teach that the soul is mortal, subject to death, or actually dead. Are we to believe that a doctrine so central to the teachings of our modern churches would only be mentioned in SO FEW VERSES; NONE OF WHICH SAY THAT THE SOUL IS IMMORTAL, OR GIVE ANY INFORMATION ABOUT WHERE THIS SOUL SUPPOSEDLY GOES AFTER DEATH?

We hear much about how to study the Bible. We are told to always consider context, and that doctrines are not to be drawn from isolated passages but interpreted in light of clear passages. What makes those who believe in the immortal soul read Genesis 35:18 in such a way that is absolutely foreign to the way nephesh is used throughout the entire Old Testament?

Is this really teaching that Rachel's undying soul departed into the spirit world? Furthermore, does 1 Kings 17:21 (And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come into him again. And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.) teach this?

If you answer yes then you must also admit that we are supposed to believe that this doctrine is taught in the Old Testament based on TWO passages out of over 700! That is, less than three tenths of one percent of all Old Testament passage which contain nephesh could even begin to be brought forth in an attempt to maintain this doctrine, while neither passage is explicit in stating the matter!

On a teaching as important as this, are we to suppose that God inspired such carelessness in using a word in so many ways that the result would surely be confusion? In our modern day churches, when we hear of the 'soul' do we think of the entire being including the body or some immortal entity within a person? Based on the overwhelming evidence from the Old testament, how do you believe the writers understood what a nephesh was?

For me it is impossible to believe that Moses, after writing that animals were also souls, that souls could be killed, and that dead bodies were DEAD SOULS, could have possibly meant that Rachel had some immortal spiritual entity inside her which departed into another realm at death.

So, what are we to make of the passage?

The Hebrew word which has been translated 'departing' is yatsa, and can be used in a great many different ways. Strong gives the following definition:


3318 yatsa' (yaw-tsaw');

a primitive root; to go (causatively, bring) out, in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively, direct and proxim.:

KJV-- X after, appear, X assuredly, bear out, X begotten, break out, bring forth (out, up), carry out, come (abroad, out, thereat, without), + be condemned, depart (-ing, -ure), draw forth, in the end, escape, exact, fail, fall (out), fetch forth (out), get away (forth, hence, out), (able to, cause to, let) go abroad (forth, on, out), going out, grow, have forth (out), issue out, lay (lie) out, lead out, pluck out, proceed, pull out, put away, be risen, X scarce, send with commandment, shoot forth, spread, spring out, stand out, X still, X surely, take forth (out), at any time, X to [and fro], utter.

We see this same word used in Genesis 42:28:

And he said unto his brethren, My money is restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and their heart failed (Heb. yatsa) them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, What is this that God hath done unto us?

Are we to take this passage in its most literal sense and say that their heart departed from them? The meaning is that their courage failed, ended or ebbed away.

Song of Solomon 5:6 states:

I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed (Heb. yatsa) when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.

Are we to assume here that this soul departed as well? No, the context will not allow for such an interpretation. My point is this:

Given the way soul is used throughout the entire Old Testament, such an interpretation of Genesis 35:18 is also impossible. The sense of the passage is that Rachel's life and being failed, or ebbed away. The passage has nothing to do with a teaching which is nowhere else to be located within the pages of the Old Testament. The passage is in perfect harmony with everything else said regarding the nephesh.

The exact same thought can be seen in 1 Kings 17:21. Elijah prayed for the child's life to return to him, not an undying, immortal soul which is completely foreign to Old Testament teaching.

As for the verses where nephesh has been translated 'ghost', it must be admitted that there is no authority for rendering the word in such a way. In fact the King James translation is the only one to translate these verses in such a way. Other verses translate the 'giving up the ghost', as 'breathed their last', or 'expired'.

In the following passages the soul is said to go to a place described by four different Hebrew words which have been rendered in various ways.

Ps 30:3 O LORD, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave (Heb. sheol): thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
Ps 89:48 What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death? shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave (Heb. sheol)? Selah.
Ps 16:10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell (Heb. sheol); neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
Ps 86:13 For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell (Heb. sheol).
Prov 23:14 Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell (Heb. sheol).
Job 33:18 He keepeth back his soul from the pit (Heb shachath), and his life from perishing by the sword.
Job 33:28 He will deliver his soul from going into the pit (Heb. shachath), and his life shall see the light.
Job 33:30 To bring back his soul from the pit (Heb. shachath), to be enlightened with the light of the living.
Ps 35:7 For without cause have they hid for me their net in a pit (Heb. shachath), which without cause they have digged for my soul.
Isa 38:17 Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit (Heb. shachath) of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.
Job 33:22 Yea, his soul draweth near unto the grave (Heb. shachath), and his life to the destroyers.
Ps 94:17 Unless the LORD had been my help, my soul had almost dwelt in silence (Heb dumah).
Jer 18:20 Shall evil be recompensed for good? for they have digged a pit (Heb. shuchah) for my soul. Remember that I stood before thee to speak good for them, and to turn away thy wrath from them.

In the passages above the soul is said to go to 'hell', 'the grave', 'the pit', and 'silence'. The first thing we must take into consideration about the above verses is that when the nephesh is said to go to 'hell', the actual Hebrew word for this place is Sheol.

It is very easy for some, based on preconceived ideas to immediately seize upon passages such as these as 'proof' that after a man dies his 'soul' can go to 'hell'. But first, consider this: out of hundreds of passages which speak of a nephesh being subject to death or mortality, we only have five which speak of it as going to Sheol; the only Hebrew word which is translated 'hell'. Furthermore in two of these cases Sheol has been translated 'grave' because the translators knew that a rendering of the word 'hell' in the context was impossible.

But even beyond this; look at the five verses above where the 'soul' is said to go to 'Sheol'. In every instance the 'soul' is 'delivered' from Sheol, 'brought up' from Sheol, or 'not left' in Sheol! Now, try to square that with what we have been taught about hell!.

Now this should seem very strange to those who teach that 'salvation' is the act of 'rescuing a soul from hell'. If the Bible was written in order that our immortal souls be saved from 'hell', then we can also be sure that this teaching is completely absent from the Old Testament! Doesn't anyone feel this is a bit strange?

In all fairness, most Bible scholars who seek to uphold the immortality of the soul admit that Sheol is not used as the final place of punishment for the wicked. They do however seek to maintain that Sheol is a temporary holding place for immortal souls between death and the resurrection. I believe that by examining the remaining verses above about where the soul goes at death that this simply cannot be maintained.

The soul is also said to go to a shachath, or a pit. Strong gives the following definition of shachath:

7845 shachath (shakh'-ath);

from 7743; a pit (especially as a trap); figuratively, destruction:

KJV-- corruption, destruction, ditch, grave, pit.


The word is used in a literal sense as hole dug in the ground for trapping animals, hence, a grave, and used figuratively for destruction. By using the word interchangeably with Sheol we can see that 'grave' is the proper meaning of the above verses, not some subterranean holding place for immortal souls.

Those who maintain the soul's immortality make much of the fact that a dead body is never said to go to Sheol, whereas a soul is never said to go to a 'grave' as translated from the Hebrew word qubewrah, literally a tomb. Some take this as emphatic proof that the soul and the body separate at death and go to different destinations.

This however is a straw argument as a slight amount of reasoning should be able to show.

Remember again how man was created:

Body + Breath of Life = Living Soul

A living soul is living sentient being, or that person's principle of life. In chapter one we talked about the death of Abel, and how Adam and Eve would have reasoned about what had happened to him when they saw his lifeless corpse. That corpse was not their son, the living soul Abel because it no longer contained God's breath of life. The living soul had been destroyed. They buried his corpse in a tomb, but not the living sentient being which was his 'soul'. You don't put a living soul in a tomb, only a dead body. It should not come as a surprise to us that a 'soul' is never said to be put in a tomb or a sepulcher when the majority of passages in the Old Testament speak of the soul as being the whole man. The living soul is a combination of two components, the body and the breath of life, which are separated at death.

However, you can dig a pit, or a shachath for a living animal in order to destroy them, and this is why this word is used figuratively for the destruction of the soul, or nephesh. No one sets a trap for dead animals only for living ones. Therefore it makes perfect sense that a nephesh is never said to go to Sheol, but that a shachath can be dug to trap and destroy one.

We have seen literally scores of passages which teach that souls can be hit with swords, souls can be slain, souls bleed, souls can be killed and that dead bodies are dead souls! Why are these passages always ignored? How is it that an argument from silence (that souls are never said to go to Sheol) carries more weight than these plain, clear and abundant passages of scripture?

Again, I do not believe, or teach that nephesh can only carry one definition. What I do believe from the evidence presented here is that a definition which would make nephesh into an invisible, immortal entity inside man which departs at death simply cannot be maintained from the Old Testament. You must ASSUME this definition to be true, and then read it back into whatever passages you can find which may be construed as to support your theory. while at the same time ignoring all those which make this position untenable..

The Hebrews in describing what had happened to a dead person used the term Sheol, which was simply a metaphorical way of describing the common death state, condition or place of all who died whether good or bad. This definition is not based on speculation or the theories of philosophers, but upon careful study of all scripture passages in which Sheol is used. If we believe that the Bible is God's only inspired written revelation to mankind, this is the only safe course for determining the proper meaning of Biblical terms.

For a detailed discussion of the use of Sheol in the Old Testament please see Chapter Seven.

Some authors such as Robert Morey attempt to maintain a man becomes a departed spirit in Sheol upon death based on the Hebrew word Rapha, which is defined in some lexicons, as 'shade', 'ghost', or 'departed spirit'. For a discussion about the true identity of the Rapha, and why they cannot be the departed spirits of men, please click here.

Such authors, like Morey, also make much of the fact that the Jewish literature which originated in the time between the writings of the Old and New Testaments clearly shows a belief in man's conscious continued existence after death. Morey uses this in order to attempt to prove that the Jews ALWAYS held this belief, and consequently was a belief held by Jesus and the New Testament writers.

Whether or not such conclusions are valid will be the subject of sections two and three of this chapter.

SECTIONS TWO AND THREE FORTHCOMING


 

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