soul

A refuge for the soul

The Bible tells us that “God created man in his own image” (Genesis 1:27). The exact similarities and differences between God and man are not known, except for what has been revealed to us through the life of Jesus Christ who possessed the divine nature of God (2 Peter 1:4) and yet, was like man in every respect (Hebrews 2:17). One of the characteristics of God that is shown to us in the Bible is that he is a trinity. God exists in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Jesus indicated that he and his Father are one (John 17:11) and also referred to the Holy Spirit as “the Helper…who proceeds from the Father” (John 15:26). Unity or oneness is discussed in the book of Ephesians in the context of the body of Christ. Paul said that the body of Christ is being built up “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13). In this verse, the fullness of Christ is referring to “God, in the completeness of His Being” (G4138). Genesis 2:7 tells us that “God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and the man became a living creature.” The material part of man that God formed from the dust of the ground is referred to in Hebrew as chay (khahˊ-ee). The immaterial part of man is known as nephesh (nehˊ-fesh). “Nephesh means soul; self, life, person, heart. The basic meaning comes from its verbal form, naphash (5314), which refers to the essence of life, the act of breathing, taking breath (Genesis 2:7)…The Hebrew system of thought does not include the opposition of the terms ‘body’ and ‘soul,’ which are really Greek and Latin in origin. The Hebrew compares/contrasts ‘the inner self’ and ‘the outer appearance’ or, as viewed in a different context, ‘what one is to oneself’ as opposed to ‘what one appears to be to one’s observers.’ The goal of the Scriptures is to make the inner and the outer consistent…The soul of man, that immaterial part, which moves into the after life [the body is buried and decomposes] needs atonement to enter into God’s presence upon death” (H5315).

Man is referred to as a living (chay) creature (nephesh) in Genesis 2:7. After the fall, when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, death entered into the world. The Hebrew word that is translated die in Genesis 2:17, muwth (mooth) means “to lose one’s life” (H4191). “When Adam and Eve ate of the fruit, both spiritual and physical death came upon Adam and Eve and their descendants (cf. Romans 5:12). They experienced spiritual death immediately, resulting in their shame and their attempt to cover their nakedness (Genesis 3:7).” The spiritual death that Adam and Eve experienced had to do with the breath of life or divine inspiration (H5397), what is referred to in the New Testament as zoe (dzo-ayˊ). “Zoe means life in the absolute sense, life as God has it, which the Father has in Himself, and which He gave to the Incarnate Son to have in Himself (John 5:26), and which the Son manifested in the world (1 John 1:2). From this life man has become alienated in consequence of the Fall (Ephesians 4:18), and of this life men become partakers through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (John 3:15), who becomes its Author to all such as trust in Him (Acts 3:15), and who is therefore said to be ‘the life’ of the believer (Colossians 3:4), because the life that He gives He maintains (John 6:35, 63). Eternal life is the present actual possession of the believer because of his relationship with Christ (John 5:24; 1 John 3:14), and that it will one day extend its domain to the sphere of the body is assured by the resurrection of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:4; 2 Timothy 1:10)” (G2222).

Romans 5:18-19 says of Christ’s death on the cross, “Therefore, as one trespass led to the condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life (zoe) for all men. For as by one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” Justification means “to declare to be just as one should be” (G1344) and is associated with the restoration of man’s divine image. In his letter to Titus, the Apostle Paul described justification as a two-part process. Paul said, “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life (zoe)” (Titus 3:4-7). Regeneration and renewal result in eternal life or zoe, life in the absolute sense (G2222). Paul indicated that renewal is dependent upon the work of the Holy Spirit. In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul referred to this renewal as being “renewed in the spirit of your minds” and said that we must “put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:23-24). The spirit is distinct from the body and soul (G4151) and is the part of man that gives him the ability to communicate with God (G5590). The unity that exists between God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit is extended to mankind through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of believers. Jesus prayed, “That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me, I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one” (John 17:21-23).

Psalm 22 is an example of the oneness that Jesus prayed he would have with believers. “This is one of the psalms referred to as Messianic (other examples of Messianic portions would include Psalm 34:20; 40:6-8; 41:9; 45:6, 7; 69:21; 72:8; and 118:22). Psalms are classified as Messianic based on one or more of the three following criteria. First, consider the testimony of the writers of the Old Testament. When other books, in the context of discussing the Messiah, contain quotes or wording very similar to the lines from the psalms (e.g., Psalm 72:8, cf. Zechariah 9:10), it is a clear indication that a psalm is Messianic. Secondly, there are the citations from psalms that Christ applied to himself (e.g., Psalm 41:9, cf. John 13:18) or that New Testament writers identified as depicting Christ (e.g., Psalm 118:22, cf. Acts 4:11; 1 Peter 2:7). Finally, there are statements in the psalms that, while never specifically identified as such in the Scriptures, clearly pertain to Jesus Christ (e.g., Psalm 22:1, cf. Matthew 27:46). It should be noted that within the ‘Messianic’ portions of individual psalms, some passages refer exclusively to Christ while others seem to also address a situation faced by the human writer” (note on Psalm 22:1-31). Psalm 22 begins with the question, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Psalm 22:1). Jesus spoke these words while he was dying on the cross (Matthew 27:46). Following this statement, David went on to say, “Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. To you they cried and were rescued; in you they trusted and were not put to shame” (Psalm 22:3-5). The comparison between David’s personal experience and that of Jesus Christ on the cross highlights the identification that David had with his Savior. The mind of Christ was operating within David, enabling him to see his situation from Jesus’ perspective. Likewise, Jesus understood David’s suffering and associated himself with it in his atonement for the sins of the world.

David continued his side by side comparison of his and his Savior’s suffering in the following verses of Psalm 22. David wrote:

For dogs encompass me;
    a company of evildoers encircles me;
they have pierced my hands and feet—
I can count all my bones—
they stare and gloat over me;
they divide my garments among them,
    and for my clothing they cast lots.

But you, O Lord, do not be far off!
    O you my help, come quickly to my aid!
Deliver my soul from the sword,
    my precious life from the power of the dog!
    Save me from the mouth of the lion!
You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen! (Psalm 22:16-21)

The detail of David’s account of Christ’s crucifixion makes it seem as if he was there when it happened. David wrote Psalm 22 hundreds of years before Jesus was born, but the accuracy of his description is verified by the writers of all four gospels (Matthew 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:33; 24:40; John 19:23, 37; 20:25).

Psalm 7 provides some insight into the anguish that David was experiencing during the time when he was being hunted by Saul’s army. The title of this psalm is “A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the LORD concerning the words of Cush, a Benjamite.” The source of David’s pain was the words that were being used to undermine his confidence; the insults and threats that were intended to break him down spiritually. David began his song with these verses:

O Lord my God, in you do I take refuge;
    save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,
lest like a lion they tear my soul apart,
    rending it in pieces, with none to deliver.

O Lord my God, if I have done this,
    if there is wrong in my hands,
if I have repaid my friend with evil
    or plundered my enemy without cause,
let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it,
    and let him trample my life to the ground
    and lay my glory in the dust. Selah (Psalm 7:1-5)

The visual image that David created with his statement, “save me from all my pursuers and deliver me, lest like a lion they tear my soul apart, rending it in pieces, with none to deliver” (Psalm 7:1-2), was that of a violent attack, a life threatening situation that he was helpless to escape. We know that David wasn’t concerned about a physical attack because his enemy’s target was his soul, the immaterial part of David, the inner man or from a Hebrew perspective, what David was to himself (H5315), his identity.

After he spared Saul’s life in the wilderness of Engedi, David called out to his pursuer and asked, “After whom has the king of Israel come out? After whom do your pursue? After a dead dog! After a flea! May the LORD therefore be judge and give sentence between me and you, and see to it and plead my cause and deliver me from your hand” (1 Samuel 24:14-15). The Hebrew phrase that is translated plead my cause has to do with conducting a lawsuit, a legal contest between two adversaries (H7378/7379). David wanted the LORD to be the judge between him and Saul and to give the appropriate sentence, but he also said that the LORD would “see to it and plead my cause” (1 Samuel 24:15). In other words, David expected the LORD to come to his defense and to argue his case for him. John wrote in his first letter, “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1-2). The Greek word that is translated advocate, parakletos (par-akˊ-lay-tos) means “an intercessor…one who pleads the cause of anyone before a judge (1 John 2:1)” (G3875). John identified our advocate as Jesus Christ the righteous, but in his gospel, John used the word parakletos four times to refer to the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7). Jesus told his disciples, “These things I have spoken to you while I am with you. But the Helper (parakletos), the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (John 14:26). Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would teach his disciples and bring to their remembrance the things that he had said to them. Teaching and remembrance have to do with putting thoughts in our minds (G5279). The Holy Spirit’s purpose is to develop the mind of Christ in us so that we are clear about our right standing with God. John said that Jesus “is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the world” (1 John 2:2). “Provision is made for the whole world, so that no one is, by divine predetermination, excluded from the scope of God’s mercy, the efficacy of the ‘propitiation,’ however, is made actual for those who believe” (G2434). The thing that David wanted the LORD to judge between him and Saul was which one of them had believed and received Jesus’ propitiation for his sins.

David had another encounter with Saul in the wilderness of Ziph and refused to harm him even though God had delivered him into his hand a second time. While David was heckling Abner for not protecting the king, 1 Samuel 26:17-24 tells us:

Saul recognized David’s voice and said, “Is this your voice, my son David?” And David said, “It is my voice, my lord, O king.” And he said, “Why does my lord pursue after his servant? For what have I done? What evil is on my hands? Now therefore let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If it is the Lord who has stirred you up against me, may he accept an offering, but if it is men, may they be cursed before the Lord, for they have driven me out this day that I should have no share in the heritage of the Lord, saying, ‘Go, serve other gods.’ Now therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth away from the presence of the Lord, for the king of Israel has come out to seek a single flea like one who hunts a partridge in the mountains.”

Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Return, my son David, for I will no more do you harm, because my life was precious in your eyes this day. Behold, I have acted foolishly, and have made a great mistake.” And David answered and said, “Here is the spear, O king! Let one of the young men come over and take it. The Lord rewards every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness, for the Lord gave you into my hand today, and I would not put out my hand against the Lord’s anointed. Behold, as your life was precious this day in my sight, so may my life be precious in the sight of the Lord, and may he deliver me out of all tribulation.”

David said that “the LORD rewards every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness” (1 Samuel 26:23). The righteousness that David was referring to was the righteousness that was counted to Abraham when he believed in the LORD (Genesis 15:6). The Hebrew word ʾemunah (em-oo-nawˊ), which is translated faithfulness, refers to “a fixed position” (H530) and therefore, could be thought of as enduring faith or a permanent trust in the Lord, implying that David had made a commitment to his relationship with the LORD. David said at the beginning of Psalm 7, “O LORD God, in you do I take refuge” (Psalm 7:1). The King James Version of the Bible states it this way, “Oh LORD my God, in thee do I put my trust.” David thought of the LORD as his God, a person that he could flee to for protection (H2620).

The thing that David was concerned about in his conflict with Saul was the safety and security of his soul. David asked the LORD to save him from all his pursuers and to deliver him, “lest like a lion they tear my soul apart, rending it in pieces with none to deliver” (Psalm 7:1-2). David used similar language in Psalm 22:13 when he said, “they open wide their mouths at me, like a ravening and roaring lion.” It seems that the point that David was trying to make was that his soul was vulnerable to verbal attacks in the same way that a lion might be able to overpower him physically. On multiple occasions, a harmful spirit came upon Saul and in 1 Samuel 18:10 it states that Saul “raved within his house while David was playing the lyre.” While under the influence of a demonic spirit, it appears that Saul verbally abused David and others. 1 Samuel 20:30 states, “Then Saul’s anger was kindled against Jonathon, and he said to him, ‘You son of a perverse, rebellious woman, do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame, and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness.’” David ran away from Saul to avoid these verbal attacks and may have felt like he was a coward because he didn’t stand up to Saul as he had the giant Goliath (1 Samuel 17:45-47), but it is clear from the psalms that David wrote during this time that he was relying on God to save his life (Psalm 7:10; 54:4; 63:9-11).

Psalm 34, which is titled, “Of David, when he changed his behavior before Abimelech, so that he drove him out, and he went away,” concludes with the statement, “The LORD redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned” (Psalm 34:22). In this instance, nephesh is translated as life instead of soul. The Hebrew word that is translated condemned, ʾashem (aw-shameˊ) “is most often used to describe the product of sin—that is, guilt before God” (H816). Redemption is a refuge for the soul in that it provides a way for the soul to be released from the debt it owes God as a result of its guilt before him (H6299). After Peter asked Jesus the question, “how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” (Matthew 18:21), Jesus used the parable of the unforgiving servant to show Peter that our souls need redemption because the debt of sin is too much for us to be able to pay it ourselves. Matthew 18:22-35 states:

Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.

“Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

The point that Jesus made at the end of the parable of the unforgiving servant was that God releasing our debt of sin is expected to produce godlike behavior in those of us who have received it because justification is supposed to make us act right (Romans 5:19). The ability to forgive others is evidence that our souls have been redeemed by God and that we have become one with Christ as was demonstrated by David letting Saul go free when he had the opportunity to kill him (1 Samuel 24:16-20; 26:21-23)

Reviving the soul

The Bible teaches us that God exists in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, who are considered to be one (Deuteronomy 6:4). Likewise, the Bible tells us that there are three components to human beings, a body, a soul, and a spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23). “The Scriptures view a person as a composite whole, fully relating to God and not divided in any way” (H5315). When God created man, it says in Genesis 2:7, “the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” The Hebrew word that is translated creature, nephesh (nehˊ-fesh) means “soul” (H5315) and corresponds with the Greek word psuche (psoo-khayˊ) which refers to “the soul as the vital principle, the animating element in men and animals” (G5590). Man’s soul and spirit are immaterial and yet, considered to be real parts of his being. The material part of man, the body is what most people think of as the person, but the Bible indicates that the soul, the inner being is “the life element through which the body lives and feels, the principle of life manifested in the breath” and more “specifically the soul as the sentient principle, the seat of the senses, desires, affections, appetites, passions, the lower aspect of one’s nature.” The Hebrew word psuche is usually translated as soul, but it is also translated as life, mind, and heart. Jesus connected the word psuche with anxiety. Jesus said, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” (Matthew 6:25, emphasis mine). Matthew 20:28 tells us that Jesus’ psuche or life was the price that was paid to redeem our souls from death. Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11, emphasis mine).

The immaterial part of man which is known as the soul is held in common with animals, “However, animals are not said to possess a spirit; this is only in man, giving him the ability to communicate with God…In 1 Thessalonians 5:23 the whole man is indicated as consisting of spirit, soul, and body; soul and spirit, the immaterial part of man upon which the word of God is operative” (G5590). Hebrews 4:12-13 states, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give an account.” The author of Hebrews indicated that the word of God penetrates or is able to move through our being and separates the soul from the spirit so that it can expose the intentions of our hearts. Jesus said, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life” (John 6:63). In this verse, Jesus used the same Greek word in reference to the Holy Spirit and to the spirit part of man and indicated that it is the Holy Spirit who gives life. In this instance, the Greek word that is translated life is zoopoieo (dzo-op-oy-ehˊ-o). Zoopoieo, as a verb, means ‘to make alive’” and speaks “of the impartation of spiritual life, and the communication of spiritual sustenance generally, John 6:63, 2 Corinthians 3:6, Galatians 3:2” (G2227). The soul and the spirit of man can be distinguished from one another in that the soul is associated with sin and death (Ezekiel 18:4) and the spirit is associated with salvation and eternal life. Jesus told a ruler of the Jews named Nicodemus, “’Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God’ Nicodemus said to him, ‘How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?’ Jesus answered, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit’” (John 3:3-6). Jesus went on to say, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:14-15).

The bronze serpent that Jesus referred to Moses lifting up in the wilderness was a cure for the consequences of the people’s sin. Numbers 21:4-9 states:

From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.

Numbers 21:4 indicates that the problem that caused the Israelites to speak against God and Moses was that “the people became impatient on the way.” The King James Version of the Bible states the problem this way: “the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.” Basically, what that meant was that the people began to experience the results of their rebellion against God (Deuteronomy 1:26-32) and it made them want to stop following the LORD’s directions.

Hebrews chapters three and four focuses on the situation in the wilderness with regard to the Israelites’ attitude about God’s promises. It states:

Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. As it is said,

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

For who were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not all those who left Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief…Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”

For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Hebrews 3:12-19; 4:6-13)

The author of Hebrews indicated that it was an evil, unbelieving heart that caused the Israelites to fall away from the living God and that it resulted in disobedience. The Greek word that is translated disobedience in Hebrews 4:6 and 4:11, apeitheia (ap-iˊ-thi-ah) refers to the “obstinate rejection of the will of God” (G543). The author’s statement that “the word of God is living and active” and is able to discern “the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12) implies that God created man in such a way that his words have an effect on our hearts and souls, but we are free to reject his message.

Psalm 19 begins with a declaration that the heavens speak to us on God’s behalf. King David stated:

The heavens declare the glory of God,
    and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech,
    and night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words,
    whose voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out through all the earth,
    and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
    which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
    and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
    and its circuit to the end of them,
    and there is nothing hidden from its heat. (Psalm 19:1-6)

The fact that the heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork and yet, their message seems to have no effect on people’s hearts shows that Israel’s disobedience is typical of all mankind.

David went on to explain in Psalm 19 that people need to know more about God than just that he exists and has created us in order to submit themselves to his will. David said:

The law of the Lord is perfect,
    reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is sure,
    making wise the simple;
the precepts of the Lord are right,
    rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is pure,
    enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the Lord is clean,
    enduring forever;
the rules of the Lord are true,
    and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold,
    even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey
    and drippings of the honeycomb.
Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
    in keeping them there is great reward. (Psalm 19:7-11)

David indicated that the law of the LORD is perfect and that it is able to revive the soul. The law that David was referring to was probably the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible that were written by Moses. These books revealed God’s plan of salvation under the Old Covenant. “The law of God is that which points out or indicates his will to man. It is not arbitrary rule, still less is it a subjective impulse; it is rather to be regarded as a course of guidance from above. Seen against the background of the verb yarah, it became clear that torah is much more than law or a set of rules. Torah is not restrictive or hindrance, but instead the means whereby one can reach a goal or ideal. In the truest sense, torah was given to Israel to enable her to truly become and remain God’s special people. One might say in keeping torah, Israel was kept. Unfortunately, Israel fell into the trap of keeping torah as a means of becoming what God intended for her. The means become the end. Instead of seeing torah as a guideline, it became an external body of rules, and thus a weight rather than a freeing and guiding power” (H8451).

The perfection that David saw in the law of the LORD had to do with the effect of God’s word or more specifically the effect that knowing God’s will has on a person’s soul. David said that the law of the LORD revives the soul. The Hebrew word that is translated reviving in Psalm 19:7, shuwb (shoob) means to turn back. “The basic meaning of the verb is movement back to the point of departure…The process called conversion or turning to God is in reality a re-turning or a turning back again to Him from whom sin has separated us, but whose we are by virtue of creation, preservation and redemption” (H7725). The process of conversion is depicted in the Pentateuch or torah through the lives of the Israelites who returned to the land that God promised to give to Abraham and his descendants after 400 years of slavery in Egypt. Also, after wandering in the wilderness for 40 years, the Israelites were brought back to the place of their rebellion and given a second chance to enter the Promised Land. Moses told the people, “This day the LORD your God commands you to do these statutes and rules. You shall therefore be careful to do them with all your heart and with all your soul. You have declared today that the LORD is your God, and that you will walk in his ways, and keep his statutes and his commandments and rules and will obey his voice. And the LORD has declared today that you are a people for his treasured possession, as he has promised you, and that you are to keep all his commandments, and the he will set you in praise and in fame and in honor high above all nations that he has made, and that you shall be a people holy to the LORD your God, as he promised” (Deuteronomy 26:16-19).

The certainty of God’s promise is discussed in the sixth chapter of the Book of Hebrews. It says, “For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise. For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 6:13-20). The author of Hebrews talked about God’s promise being guaranteed with an oath and said that we have hope “as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul” (Hebrews 6:19). The Greek word echo (ekhˊ-o) “stresses that one has the means to accomplish a task” (G2192). Jesus demonstrated that our souls can be saved by going before us into God’s presence and interceding with him on our behalf.

James’ letter, which was written to the twelve tribes of Israel in the Dispersion, addressed the issue of hearing the word God versus doing it with regards to saving the soul. James said, “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing” (James 1:19-25). James described the law as the law of liberty. The Greek word that is translated liberty, eleutheria (el-yoo-ther-eeˊ-ah) stresses the completeness of Jesus’ act of redemption. “Not to bring us into another form of bondage did Christ liberate us from that in which we were born, but in order to make us free from bondage” (G1657). Eleutheria is derived from the word eleutheros (el-yooˊ-ther-os) which means “unrestrained (to go at pleasure), i.e. (as a citizen) not a slave” (G1658). Jesus told the Jews who had believed in him, “If you abide in my word you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free…Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:31, 34-35).

James concluded his letter with a discussion about the prayer of faith in the context of reviving the souls of others. James indicated that a person could be converted or saved as a result of the prayer of a righteous person on his behalf, a righteous person being someone whose life is consistent with God’s word. James said:

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit. My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins. (James 5:13-20)

Individual responsibility

God’s covenant with Abraham was based on collective treatment of all who descended from him. In his promise, God said, “I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee” (Genesis 12:2). The Hebrew word for nation, goy (go´ – ee) represents a group of individuals who are considered as a unit (1471). In God’s eyes, the blessing of Abraham was given to all who would believe in him, not just the individual man he was speaking to at the time,

In the same way that Abraham’s blessing was transferred from generation to generation, so was the curse of sin that began with Adam in the garden of Eden (Genesis 3:17-19). In his ten commandments, God clearly stated that the punishment for sin could be transferred from father to son for as many as four generations (Exodus 20:5). A proverb that originated in Jerusalem expressed self-pity, fatalism and despair because people believed they could not escape from the curse they inherited from their fathers. The proverb stated that corporate solidarity was responsible for the captivity that was about to consume God’s people (Ezekiel 18:2).

God argued that everyone had a chance to be saved under the law. He said, “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” (Ezekiel 18:4). Perhaps, the greatest misunderstanding that resulted from God’s second commandment was the idea that a person could be punished even though he had committed no sin. In actuality, what God was saying was that he would do everything he could to break the cycle of hereditary sin, but ultimately, it was up to each person to take individual responsibility for their soul’s well-being and eternal destination.

The human soul is referred to in Hebrew as nephesh (neh´ – fesh). In simple terms, the soul is what makes us alive. It is the inner person, separate from the flesh or human body. When God said, “the soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4), he was basically saying that sin was the cause of death in every person. If there was a person that did not sin, then that person would not die. God said, “But if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right…he is just, he shall surely live” (Ezekiel 18:5,9). The Hebrew word translated live, chayah (khaw – yaw´) means not only to live, but also to revive. In other words, a righteous soul cannot be killed, if it were, it would come back to life, just as Jesus did after he was crucified.

Exercise for the soul

Physical exercise is a relatively new concept in America. If you remember Jack LaLanne, then you know that in the 1960’s there were not many people that believed they needed regular physical exercise and fitness centers were exclusive clubs for the rich and famous. The information age has turned the majority of people into couch potatoes that rarely break a sweat without an intentional effort. It takes work to keep your body strong, especially if you want to be active in your later years.

Speaking to the LORD in Psalm 138, David said, “In the day when I cried thou answeredest me, and strengthened me with strength in my soul” (Psalm 138:3). The word soul or nephesh in Hebrew is also translated as life and person (5315). The word nephesh is derived from the word naphash which means to breathe (5314), so you could say in one sense that naphash refers to having breath in you or being alive.

When David said that the LORD strengthened him with strength in his soul, he meant that the LORD gave him a sense of vitality and exuberance toward life. The Hebrew word translated strength is also translated as power, might, and boldness (5797). In order for David to be strong in his soul, he had to exercise, he had to do what the LORD instructed him to do in his word.

David not only listened to the LORD, he did what the LORD told him to do, even when it seemed impossible. David said, “Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it” (Psalm 139:5-6). The word translated wonderful, paliy is derived from the word pala which means to be beyond one’s ability to do (6381). David did not let the thought of impossibility stop him from doing what the LORD asked him to do. David realized that “although something may appear impossible to man, it still is within God’s power” (6381).

The thing that motivated David to exercise his soul was an awareness that God knew and understood him completely. David said, “O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and my uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways” (Psalm 139:1-3).

Thinking of the LORD as the trainer of his soul, David was willing to yield his life to the expert. David knew that the LORD wanted him to be a mighty warrior on the inside as well as on the outside. “The Hebrew system of thought does not include the opposition of the terms ‘body’ and ‘soul,’ which are really Greek and Latin in origin. The Hebrew compares/contrasts ‘the inner self’ and ‘the outer appearance’ or, as viewed in a different context, ‘what one is to oneself’ as opposed to ‘what one appears to be to one’s observers.’ The goal of Scriptures is to make the inner and outer consistent (5315).

Healing for the soul

As we get older, there is a tendency to reflect on our accomplishments and our mistakes. I think it is easier to see mistakes and regret them when you have several decades of accomplishments to weigh them against. One of the things that older people seem to have more of than younger people is insight, the ability to look at outcomes and determine why they happened.

In David’s later years, he saw that his sin with Bath-sheba had caused many things to happen that he hadn’t expected. Looking at sin as a disease, David knew that he needed healing or eventually it would kill him. David prayed, “LORD, be merciful to me: heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee” (Psalm 41:4).

One of the meanings of the word translated soul is vitality (5315). David said, “The LORD will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing. Thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness” (Psalm 41:3). David was confined to his bed as a woman when she is menstruating. David was experiencing weakness that he felt was associated with sexual impurity.

The Hebrew word raphah means to heal. It represents a restoring to normal, “an act which God typically performs” (7495). David’s request for God to heal his soul was motivated by David’s understanding that he needed to be transformed or turned back to the way he was before he sinned against God. David’s life was no longer filled with happiness and joy. He could not get things back on track as he once had.

Thinking about his many accomplishments, David said, “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” (Psalm 42:4). David knew from many years of experience that the way to fix his problem was to get right with God, to restore the relationship that brought him joy.

David’s statement in Psalm 42:1, as the deer panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God, is based on David’s awareness that fellowship with God brought refreshment to his soul. Over the years, David had been revived when he connected with the LORD and trusted him for deliverance. David concluded Psalm 42 with the questions, “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me?” (Psalm 42:11). At that point, David realized that the LORD had not left him, but was waiting for David to turn to him for help. David’s belief in God was the real issue. David said, “Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God” (Psalm 42:11).

The word translated health is yeshuw’ah. It means deliverance or salvation and is a synonym for the word yasha’, which means to be saved (3467). The name Jesus is a Greek form of the word yeshu’ah indicating that David was looking to his Messiah for restoration of health to his soul. The word countenance refers to the face or the look on one’s face (6440). David may have been thinking about the time when he would see his Savior face to face and would praise him for his gift of salvation and the completed work that would provide deliverance from his sin.

Your heart’s desire

“For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness” (Psalm 107:9). “The Hebrew system of thought does not include the opposition of the terms ‘body’ and ‘soul’ which are really Greek and Latin in origin. The Hebrew compares/contrasts ‘the inner self’ and ‘the outer appearance’ or as viewed in a different context, ‘what one is to oneself’ as opposed to ‘what one appears to be to one’s observers'” (5315).

A common question asked of children in the United States is what do you want to be when you grow up. It is assumed that while growing up, children can engage in a process that changes or molds them into what they want to be. I don’t know of any studies that have shown how often children grow up and become what they want, but my  personal experience tells me that it rarely happens. When I was asked that question, I didn’t know what to say, but I know what I became was not what I wanted.

I think children have a tendency to dream or maybe even fantasize about what their life will be like when they are grown up. Then, when they are, they compare their dream to reality to measure their satisfaction with life. In my case, my satisfaction level was zero and that is why I decided to kill myself. The problem in my situation was that I didn’t have anything to compare reality with; I didn’t know what I wanted to be, at least I didn’t think I did.

Because God is our creator, he knows the desires of our hearts. He created us to be something and until we do become what we are meant to be, we will never be satisfied. The Psalmist said in Psalm 107:14, “He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and break their bands in sunder.” The bands referred to here are restraints or discipline that is meant to keep you going in a certain direction, on a specific course that is not of your own choosing, such as when an animal is harnessed and forced to plow a field.

God’s goal in developing a relationship with us is to satisfy our souls, that which we are to ourselves, the inner self, with goodness. He wants to give us the desires of our hearts. “Therefore he brought down their heart with labour, they fell down, there was none to help. Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distress” (Psalm 107:12-13).