What is the Soul by Robert F. Gardiner FDTL 48

Republished from the Bible Standard 1880.

What is the soul? This is a question which has been asked in all ages; but the answers which they often gave or got have in many cases failed to convey the correct idea, if not an altogether erroneous one. Before proceeding to answer the question for ourselves, we will glance at one or two answers which have been already made to this question.

Hodge defines the soul as being “unextended and indivisible.” ¹ Now it follows that a thing which is without extension, must necessarily be without substance, and hence must be immaterial. The same argument has been adopted by Drew, who defines the soul as being “a single unextended indivisible atom.” ² The question before us thus resolves itself, do humans have souls? To this we answer humans are souls. Since humans are souls, the soul must be a real existence capable of extension and division, and also composed of, not one atom, but of all the atoms which go to make up the body.

But let us turn to the Bible, and see what it says. In the first place Hodge and Drew, along with the majority of writers on this subject, says the soul is a part of the human. The Bible says the soul is the human. Gen.2: 7 states. “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became (not got) a living soul.” This is clear evidence; but let us proceed.

We are taught that the Soul is immaterial, and as an immaterial existence can have none of the appetites which belong to the body. The Bible, on the contrary, teaches that the soul partakes of the same nature as the body, inasmuch as it is liable to the same passions and appetites. We read of “hungry souls,” ³ ; “thirsty souls,” ⁴ ; “full souls,”⁵ ; “afflicted souls,” ⁶; “unstable souls,”⁷ ; “idle souls”⁸ ; “weary souls,”⁹ where we also read of ” sorrowful souls.”

But, further, an immaterial soul could not perform any actions, or have any actions performed upon it. Upon this point the Bible is most clear. It plainly teaches that the soul is capable of performing all the actions pertaining to the body, and also of having these actions performed upon it. We read that the soul can be cut off.¹⁰ It is capable of offering sacrifice¹¹ ; of swearing¹²; of committing trespasses¹³; of being destroyed¹⁴ ; of sinning¹⁵ ; of touching¹⁶; of dying¹⁷; of being killed¹⁸; of being grieved¹⁹ ; of being torn²⁰ ; of being stolen²¹ ; of mourning²². It can fast²³ . It can eat flesh²⁴. It is said to creep upon the earth²⁵ . One soul to be given in exchange for another²⁶ . It can be possessed by animals²⁷ . It is said to be born²⁸ . It can be bought with money, and used as an article of food²⁹ . It can be buried³⁰ .

The grave, or hell, has a soul³¹ . The soul may be beheaded³² . It may also be hunted³³; snared³⁴ ; strangled ³⁵ ; or taken in a pit³⁶ ; or taken by ambush³⁷. It can be put in prison³⁸; and taken into captivity ³⁹ . It can be healed, and as a necessary consequence must suffer from disease⁴⁰ . The Soul is said to be the blood, or in the blood⁴¹ .

A careful perusal of these texts will be quite sufficient to show any honest reader that the doctrines of Immateriality and Immortality are nowhere to be found in Holy Writings.⁴²

References

Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 2. {New York: Scribner, Armstrong & Co., 1873}, 46. [↩]
Samuel Drew, An original essay on the Immateriality &Immortality of the Human Soul, Founded Solely on Physical and Rational Principles {7th Edition} {Baltimore: A Neal, 1810}, 129. [↩]
Psalms. 105: 9; Proverbs 27: 7. [↩]
Proverbs 25: 5. [↩]
Proverbs 27: 7. [↩]
Isaiah 58: 10, Lev. 16: 29, 31, Num. 29: 7. [↩]
2 Pet 2:4. [↩]
Proverbs 29: 15 [↩]
Jeremiah 31: 25. [↩]
Gen. 17: 17; Ex. 12: 15; Num 9: 13, 15: 30, 31; Ezek, 17: 17. The word translated “cut off,” is a most emphatic one, namely, kah-rath which means to cut off (as applied to trees), to kill, to destroy. In the Septuagint it is translated by the Greek word; ezolothreuo, which according to Liddell and Scott, means” to utterly destroy.” [↩]
Lev. 2:1. [↩]
Lev. 5: 4. [↩]
Lev. 5:15. [↩]
Lev. 23: 80; Matt. 10:28. The word here translated “destroy,” is even more emphatic. In the Hebrew it is abad, which primarily means to go; hence, to destroy, and passively, to be destroyed. [↩]
Num. 15: 27; Rom 2:9. [↩]
Lev. 12: 6; Num. 19: 20. [↩]
Num. 23: 10; Josh2: 13; James. 5: 20. These texts are quite sufficient to show that the popular idea of an immaterial soul is false, for it is plainly taught that the soul, in virtue of its immateriality, can never die. The Bible teaches something very much different. Which are we to believe, the Bible or Plato? [↩]
Num. 35:11, 15; 31: 19; Joshua 20: 3; Rev. 16: 3. [↩]
Judges 10: 16; Mark 14: 34. [↩]
Job 18:4. [↩]
Deut. 24: 7. [↩]
Job 14: 22. [↩]
Psalm 35: 13. [↩]
Deut, 12: 20. [↩]
Lev. 11: 46. [↩]
Ex. 21: 23; Deut. 19 :21; 1 Kings 20: 42. [↩]
Gen. 1: 20, 21, 24, 30; 2: 19; 9: 10, 12, 15 [↩]
Gen. 46: 15. [↩]
Lev 22:2. [↩]
Gen. 23: 8. [↩]
Isaiah 5: 14. [↩]
Rev. 20: 4. [↩]
1 Sam, 24: 11. [↩]
1 Sam 28: 9 ; Prov. 22: 5. [↩]
Job 7: 15. [↩]
Psalm 35: 7. [↩]
Psalm. 56: 6. [↩]
Psalm 117: 7. [↩]
Isaiah 46: 2. [↩]
Psalm 41: 4; 71: 10. [↩]
Gen. 9:4; Lev. 17: 14, 15. This idea of the soul being in the blood was held by most of the ancients. Josephus, speaking of the law concerning animals, says: ” He (God) entirely forbade us the use of blood for food, and esteemed it to contain the soul and spirit.”-Antiq., Bk, Ill. ch. xi, 2. Josephus, as will be seen, believed in the tripartite nature of man. In another place he says, ” God took dust from the ground, and formed man, and inserted in him a spirit and a soul.”-Antiq” Bk. 1., ed, i. 2. [↩]
Let it be observed that in all the passages I have quoted, I have only taken those in which the radical terms for soul occur, namely, nephesh. in the Old Testament, and pseuche in the New Testament. In some cases the words are left untranslated in our version, but a careful examination of the original will show the connection in which the words occur. [↩]