The Soul - Body or Spirit?

[e.r.m.]

First off many scholars believe 1 & 2 timothy to be forgeries, not actually written by paul, and if you think the church was originally one please read Lost Christianities by Bart Ehrman.

Even if (not saying yes or no) Acts 2:42-47 still indicates the oneness.
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer....

 

[arcanum]

Even if (not saying yes or no) Acts 2:42-47 still indicates the oneness.
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer....

Acts doesn't necessarily paint the whole picture of early Christianity, it looks through a Pauline lens. There were other believers with a more jewish orientation, like the Ebionites and the Jerusalem church which the book of Acts does speak of albeit briefly.

 

[Gharib]

i hope the following article is helpful:

What is soul? - Ask a Question to Us

 

[e.r.m.]

Acts doesn't necessarily paint the whole picture of early Christianity, it looks through a Pauline lens. There were other believers with a more jewish orientation, like the Ebionites and the Jerusalem church which the book of Acts does speak of albeit briefly.

Thank you. Do the Ebionites and the Jerusalem church supplement or contradict Acts' account of the Jerusalem church? If I recall correctly, the church started in Jerusalem, so the early accounts in Acts are exlcusively about Jerusalem. Paul comes into the picture in Acts 7. His ministry doesn't start until Acts 9, so it was free of Paul until then. Not contradicting you, just some thoughts.

 

[sincerly]

The greek word for
Soul is:
ψυχή,n \{psoo-khay'}
1) breath 1a) the breath of life 1a1) the vital force which animates the body and shows itself in breathing 1a1a) of animals 1a12) of men 1b) life 1c) that in which there is life 1c1) a living being, a living soul
2) the soul 2a) the seat of the feelings, desires, affections, aversions (our heart, soul etc.) 2b) the (human) soul in so far as it is constituted that by the right use of the aids offered it by God it can attain its highest end and secure eternal blessedness, the soul regarded as a moral being designed for everlasting life 2c) the soul as an essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death (distinguished from other parts of the body)
Greek Bible

Is the soul in scriptures: one's Spirit, or one's Body, or the Life force?

I contend that in scripture it is one's spirit, and not the other two.

Luke 2:33-35 33 The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

I seriously think history would have remembered if Mary, the mother of Jesus, physical body had ever been stabbed by a sword.

28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Such things would not be said if the soul were the physical body. Even if someone finds a grammatical loophole in the verse (doubtful), people who believe the soul and body are one physical entity, do not talk this way. They find other ways to express themselves.

Feel free to express your point of view. Thank you.

Hi er.m., Thanks for starting this topic discussion with a look at the actual meaning of the word "soul". Since the English word for "soul" is found in the O.T. as well as the N.T.(i.e.---translated from the Hebrew and the Greek) one needs to look at what is being portrayed as the message/meaning by both languages in their context and that being the meaning given by GOD and NOT the bias of men.

In Hebrew it is from Gen.2:7 that "soul" is written first, "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." English--"soul" is translated from the Hebrew=נפש nephesh with these meanings/usages:
soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion

a) that which breathes, the breathing substance or being, soul, the inner being of man (my comment: Biasly added by Gesenius's Lexicon---it is contradictory to the scriptures--and the other stated meanings. Same with your 2c of the Greek--above)
b) living being
c) living being (with life in the blood)
d) the man himself, self, person or individual
e) seat of the appetites
f) seat of emotions and passions
Authorized Version (KJV) Translation Count — Total: 753
AV — soul 475, life 117, person 29, mind 15, heart 15, creature 9, body 8, himself 8, yourselves 6, dead 5, will 4, desire 4, man 3, themselves 3, any 3, appetite 2, misc 47


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