Most Christians think of the soul as the spiritual nature of human beings susceptible to future misery or happiness. We consider it the immortal part of us that leaves our bodies when we die. But when we view the term from the ancient Hebrew perspective, we’ll find a completely different meaning from the modern Western standpoint.
So, what’s the Hebrew word for soul?
Ancient Hebrews call the soul nephesh. The word directly translates to something that breathes. The Hebrew Bible uses it to mean the entirety of the person. Essentially, it unites your organs, body, and breath. So, your soul isn’t some immaterial spiritual being; it’s your whole self.
Meaning of Soul in Hebrew
Nephesh means breath. God created human beings and animals and gifted them His life breath.
“Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being” (Genesis 2:7).
Nephesh also connects with the lifeblood, as captured in these two verses.
“But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it” (Genesis 9:4).
“For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar. It is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life” (Leviticus 17:11).
When breath leaves the body or lifeblood circulation stops, the soul dies. Most people follow Plato’s dualistic view of “an immortal, immaterial soul distinct from, but enclosed inside the material body.” But the Hebrew translation considers it a psycho-physical unity. Based on this, we can conclude that the Hebrew soul is mortal, and life is the most important.
Nephesh also teaches us that the afterlife is the non-life version of Sheol, where people exist as shadows isolated from the Lord.
“Before I go to the place of no return, to the land of gloom and utter darkness” (Job 10:21).
Our Soul Is Made of the Breath of Life
Let’s get back to the beginning to fully understand the power of the Hebrew word for soul. The world and other creatures came into existence with the power of God’s word. But The Creator specifically breathed into man to give him life. We are unique beings, created in The Lord’s image and likeness.
The term nephesh tells us more about the value and weight of our covenant with God. His promises are important because He made our lives significant.
“Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people. He has broken my covenant” (Genesis 17:14).
Does God Have A Soul?
The Lord created all forms of living souls, including animals and humans. But does He have a soul? Or is He a soul? The Tanakh says:
“Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight. I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations.” (Isaiah 42:1)
The fact that The Lord proclaimed the Messiah as His Servant on whom He delights in answers the question of humans adopting God’s image. This image doesn’t refer to the physical body but our soul. Human beings have a soul just like The Lord. Our bodies are mere vessels for our true essence. Right inside us is a soul that harbors emotions and feelings that define us.
We express a spectrum of emotions like God. Animals also have souls, but they may not express feelings like The Lord or us. This essence we share with our Creator is our soul and not our physical attributes.
We overlook the true beauty of our soul if we emphasize physical appearance. This is because the Lord doesn’t care about how we look externally. He values the contents of one’s heart instead.
“And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever” (1 Chronicles 28:9).
The Soul Departs When We Die
“Then they moved on from Bethel. While they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth and had great difficulty. And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her, “Don’t despair, for you have another son. As she breathed her last—for she was dying—she named her son Ben-Oni. But his father named him Benjamin” (Genesis 35:16-18)
Nephesh covers all aspects of your essence. So, as the matriarch’s soul departed, the essence of her identity left and her body became an empty shell. The greatest lesson here is that our true essence goes with us when we die. Quite comforting, right?
Every Christian strives to save their soul. But not all understand what it takes to preserve this crucial part of our existence. Hezekiah answers this in his prayer where he refers to The Lord as the only one who can rescue us from the nothingness pit.
“Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back. For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth. The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the father to the children shall make known thy truth” (Isaiah 38:17-19).
Conclusion
The English word soul doesn’t clearly give its contextual meaning. But we get a different sense from the common notion of an immaterial spirit outside the body when we view the term in its Hebrew translation, nephesh. This ancient Hebrew rendition considers the soul as something that breathes or a person’s whole self. Only God understands all aspects of our existence. He’s ready to deliver us and prepare our souls for eternal fulfillment.
