ThirtyThree
Well-Known Member
Another Realm called Hell and The Lake of Fire
Gen 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.
First, the action which caused man to "become a living soul" needs to be understood. The word "breathed" comes from the Hebrew נָפַח, which transliterates to "naphach". It is a word with a dual meaning. 1) It means to blow, to breathe. 2) It means to disperse or to cast away by blowing. It also means to cause to breathe out the soul.
Okay, now we look at the term "into his nostrils". From the Hebrew word אַף, transliterated to 'aph. It also is a dual meaning word. 1) Nostril, nose, face. 2) Anger.
Now we more on to the phrase "the breath". In Hebrew this word is נְשָׁמָה, transliterated as "nĕshamah". It translates as 1) breathe, spirit, though is specific to the Spirit of God imparting life and wisdom. 2) The breath of man.
The next word is "life". This word comes from the Hebrew חַי, transliterated as "chay". It should be taken literally, as it is in relation to living things.
Lastly we have the phrase "soul". According to the Hebrew, the word "soul" is נֶפֶשׁ, transliterated "nephesh". It translates as "anima" and "breath".
Okay, now to put this all together:
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and (breathed) into his (nostrils) (His/God's breath) which is life and man became alive.
Yes, that is it and it is constant through Genesis.
Gen 1:11: And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
Gen 1:12: And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
If you notice, Gen. 1:11 is where God "SAID" (caused) and Gen. 1:12 is where the creation (reacted).
In the case of Gen. 2:7, the God created the body of man, then went on to breathe into man the breath of life (cause). Then the creation became alive (reaction).
That still does not explain what a "soul" is though. Perhaps further study will be of use?
Mat 10:28: And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Now, this passage is in Greek rather than Hebrew. The word for "soul" is transliterated as "psyche". It translates as 1) breath. 2) The seat of feelings, desires, affections, aversions. 3) The essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death. 4) Sentience. 5) Vitality.
Okay, that did not help at all now did it? Actually, it might have if we apply the term in the context of Mat. 10:28. Here we have a verse warning people not to fear someone who can murder the body. This speaks solely of physical death. Which means we can remove definition 1 and definition 5, leaving us with 2, 3 and 4.
The verse goes on to warn of someone who can "destroy" both body and soul in Hell.
Okay, now we need to look at this word "destroy". It also seems important to distinguish the term "kill", which is used in relation to the body and the term "destroy" in relation to the soul.
The word "destroy" transliterates as apollymi. It translates to mean 1) to put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to, to ruin. 2) To render useless. 3) To kill. 4) To lose. 5) To perish.
First, the term "apollymi", where ever I find it in scripture, never seems to mean "to kill". It does often mean "to lose" and it also often means "to render useless". Since the body has already been killed, what then is this "apollymi" in reference to 1) The seat of feelings, desires, affections, aversions. 3) The essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death. 4) Sentience. How does this relate?
This brings us to that irritating word "Hell" again, which has four usages through the entire Bible. These are "Gehenna", "Hades", "Sheol" and "Tartatus". In this case, the verse uses "Gehenna", which is transliterated from Greek to "Geenna". Gehenna was a valley outside of Jerusalem where filth and dead animals of the city were cast out and burned. It is now a park. It is often referred to as a symbol to represent eternal punishment for the wicked. It is where the "worm does not die". It translates also as 1) The valley of lamentation. 2) Often a reference relating to screams of children who were thrown into the fiery arms of Moloch, which was an idol of a god in the shape of a bull. The Jews abhorred this valley. Eventually the sacrifices to Moloch were abolished by King Josiah and all which could be cast into that fire was refuse, the dead bodies of animals and even criminals who had been executed. In another reference, these fires of Gehenna are not the symbol of purification but of penalty, as they are yet the fires of Moloch.
Now, let us look up "Moloch" for a moment, so we can get some context of what these fires actually represent.
Amo 5:26: But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves. In this case, we end up back at Hebrew. The word is מֶלֶךְ, transliterated as "melek" and it has only one definition. 1) King.
Okay, let me try again. This time, back to the Greek.
Act 7:43: Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.
The word "Moloch" in Greek is transliterated as it is spelled. It means 1) the name of the idol god of the Ammonites, to which human victims, particularly young children were offered in sacrifice. Its image was a hollow brazen figure, with the head of an ox, and outstretched human arms. It was heated red hot by a fire from within, and the little ones placed in its arms to be slowly burned, while to prevent the parents from hearing the dying cries, the sacrificing priests beat drums. 2) A king.
There it is again. "King". Just who was this "Moloch" other than a god to which parents would sacrifice their children? According to my research, there are reference to Chronus and Saturn. The Hebrews also profaned the name of this deity, pronouncing his name as "Mol-ek" rather than "Mel-ek". They intended the name to mean "shame", as the sacrifices were a great shame to them.
It is also stated that the burning alive of children in the arms of Moloch rendered unto those children immortality. It was the "passing through the flame". This comes from Greek accounts such as Thetis and Demeter. In another account, the parents received gain from these sacrifices. There is little in the way of evidence either way.
Now, back to the original question. What is the "soul" and what does "destroy the soul in Gehenna" mean? Well, let us take "soul" to mean, 2) The seat of feelings, desires, affections, aversions. 3) The essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death. 4) Sentience.
In simple terms, an essence which is separate from the body and also retains a person's consciousness, in the form of their feelings, desires, affections and aversions. Their sentience.
Okay, this is then "destroyed" 1) to put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to, to ruin. 2) To render useless. 3) To kill. 4) To lose. 5) To perish.
This soul is "destroyed in Gehenna". Now, understand something before I proceed. The Valley of Himmom was used in its full context when it was used to as a visual and metaphorical comparison to the punishment of the souls of the wicked. It is therefore important to use the whole meaning of the place in the time period relevant.
The soul is lost, rendered useless, ruined, perishes, is killed, in 1) a place of lamenting. 2) A place which is not a purifying fire but the constantly burning fires of Moloch. 3) A place of terrible screams. 4) A place where detestable thigs are burned.
Now, this can either mean the consciousness of the person is annihilated instantly, which does not fit well with the "place of lamentation" understanding. Okay, scratch that then. The consciousness of the person experiences a set amount of time in the place of lamentation and terrible screams. Wait, a set time? That is not scriptural either. Okay, scratch that also. The consciousness of the person is LOST in a place of eternal lamentation and terrible screams. There they are ruined, as the fires of Moloch are not purifying.
This is starting to sound familiar. Let me look up something else, outside of the Bible now. The Greek underworld, specifically.
Gen 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.
First, the action which caused man to "become a living soul" needs to be understood. The word "breathed" comes from the Hebrew נָפַח, which transliterates to "naphach". It is a word with a dual meaning. 1) It means to blow, to breathe. 2) It means to disperse or to cast away by blowing. It also means to cause to breathe out the soul.
Okay, now we look at the term "into his nostrils". From the Hebrew word אַף, transliterated to 'aph. It also is a dual meaning word. 1) Nostril, nose, face. 2) Anger.
Now we more on to the phrase "the breath". In Hebrew this word is נְשָׁמָה, transliterated as "nĕshamah". It translates as 1) breathe, spirit, though is specific to the Spirit of God imparting life and wisdom. 2) The breath of man.
The next word is "life". This word comes from the Hebrew חַי, transliterated as "chay". It should be taken literally, as it is in relation to living things.
Lastly we have the phrase "soul". According to the Hebrew, the word "soul" is נֶפֶשׁ, transliterated "nephesh". It translates as "anima" and "breath".
Okay, now to put this all together:
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and (breathed) into his (nostrils) (His/God's breath) which is life and man became alive.
Yes, that is it and it is constant through Genesis.
Gen 1:11: And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
Gen 1:12: And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
If you notice, Gen. 1:11 is where God "SAID" (caused) and Gen. 1:12 is where the creation (reacted).
In the case of Gen. 2:7, the God created the body of man, then went on to breathe into man the breath of life (cause). Then the creation became alive (reaction).
That still does not explain what a "soul" is though. Perhaps further study will be of use?
Mat 10:28: And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Now, this passage is in Greek rather than Hebrew. The word for "soul" is transliterated as "psyche". It translates as 1) breath. 2) The seat of feelings, desires, affections, aversions. 3) The essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death. 4) Sentience. 5) Vitality.
Okay, that did not help at all now did it? Actually, it might have if we apply the term in the context of Mat. 10:28. Here we have a verse warning people not to fear someone who can murder the body. This speaks solely of physical death. Which means we can remove definition 1 and definition 5, leaving us with 2, 3 and 4.
The verse goes on to warn of someone who can "destroy" both body and soul in Hell.
Okay, now we need to look at this word "destroy". It also seems important to distinguish the term "kill", which is used in relation to the body and the term "destroy" in relation to the soul.
The word "destroy" transliterates as apollymi. It translates to mean 1) to put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to, to ruin. 2) To render useless. 3) To kill. 4) To lose. 5) To perish.
First, the term "apollymi", where ever I find it in scripture, never seems to mean "to kill". It does often mean "to lose" and it also often means "to render useless". Since the body has already been killed, what then is this "apollymi" in reference to 1) The seat of feelings, desires, affections, aversions. 3) The essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death. 4) Sentience. How does this relate?
This brings us to that irritating word "Hell" again, which has four usages through the entire Bible. These are "Gehenna", "Hades", "Sheol" and "Tartatus". In this case, the verse uses "Gehenna", which is transliterated from Greek to "Geenna". Gehenna was a valley outside of Jerusalem where filth and dead animals of the city were cast out and burned. It is now a park. It is often referred to as a symbol to represent eternal punishment for the wicked. It is where the "worm does not die". It translates also as 1) The valley of lamentation. 2) Often a reference relating to screams of children who were thrown into the fiery arms of Moloch, which was an idol of a god in the shape of a bull. The Jews abhorred this valley. Eventually the sacrifices to Moloch were abolished by King Josiah and all which could be cast into that fire was refuse, the dead bodies of animals and even criminals who had been executed. In another reference, these fires of Gehenna are not the symbol of purification but of penalty, as they are yet the fires of Moloch.
Now, let us look up "Moloch" for a moment, so we can get some context of what these fires actually represent.
Amo 5:26: But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves. In this case, we end up back at Hebrew. The word is מֶלֶךְ, transliterated as "melek" and it has only one definition. 1) King.
Okay, let me try again. This time, back to the Greek.
Act 7:43: Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.
The word "Moloch" in Greek is transliterated as it is spelled. It means 1) the name of the idol god of the Ammonites, to which human victims, particularly young children were offered in sacrifice. Its image was a hollow brazen figure, with the head of an ox, and outstretched human arms. It was heated red hot by a fire from within, and the little ones placed in its arms to be slowly burned, while to prevent the parents from hearing the dying cries, the sacrificing priests beat drums. 2) A king.
There it is again. "King". Just who was this "Moloch" other than a god to which parents would sacrifice their children? According to my research, there are reference to Chronus and Saturn. The Hebrews also profaned the name of this deity, pronouncing his name as "Mol-ek" rather than "Mel-ek". They intended the name to mean "shame", as the sacrifices were a great shame to them.
It is also stated that the burning alive of children in the arms of Moloch rendered unto those children immortality. It was the "passing through the flame". This comes from Greek accounts such as Thetis and Demeter. In another account, the parents received gain from these sacrifices. There is little in the way of evidence either way.
Now, back to the original question. What is the "soul" and what does "destroy the soul in Gehenna" mean? Well, let us take "soul" to mean, 2) The seat of feelings, desires, affections, aversions. 3) The essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death. 4) Sentience.
In simple terms, an essence which is separate from the body and also retains a person's consciousness, in the form of their feelings, desires, affections and aversions. Their sentience.
Okay, this is then "destroyed" 1) to put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to, to ruin. 2) To render useless. 3) To kill. 4) To lose. 5) To perish.
This soul is "destroyed in Gehenna". Now, understand something before I proceed. The Valley of Himmom was used in its full context when it was used to as a visual and metaphorical comparison to the punishment of the souls of the wicked. It is therefore important to use the whole meaning of the place in the time period relevant.
The soul is lost, rendered useless, ruined, perishes, is killed, in 1) a place of lamenting. 2) A place which is not a purifying fire but the constantly burning fires of Moloch. 3) A place of terrible screams. 4) A place where detestable thigs are burned.
Now, this can either mean the consciousness of the person is annihilated instantly, which does not fit well with the "place of lamentation" understanding. Okay, scratch that then. The consciousness of the person experiences a set amount of time in the place of lamentation and terrible screams. Wait, a set time? That is not scriptural either. Okay, scratch that also. The consciousness of the person is LOST in a place of eternal lamentation and terrible screams. There they are ruined, as the fires of Moloch are not purifying.
This is starting to sound familiar. Let me look up something else, outside of the Bible now. The Greek underworld, specifically.
