copyright 2005 by Roy A.

Reinhold
The Nature of Man
The purpose of this article is to show the nature of manthat is, the constituent parts of man
comprised of a fleshly body and the ethereal or unseen components of soul and spirit. A subsequent
article will show in similar fashion the nature of God (at least as He has reealed Himself to us!. "ne
cannot mentally grasp the nature of God without first understanding the nature of manin whose
image we are created. # hae found that many seemingly well$informed belieers in %eshua our
&essiah ('esus the (hrist! ought to )now this basic teaching* yet they are often left ill$informed by
teachers who themseles are confused or baffled by these precepts. The nature of man is a core theme
weaed into the scriptures from beginning to end. #t is )nowable.
Man is a tripartite being of spirit, soul and body
The Roman (atholic church and many +rotestant churches teach that man is a dualitythe seen
and the unseen, or the material and immaterial. This duality teaching is absolutely incorrect according
to the scriptures* and as we will discuss, it comes from philosophy and gnostic teachings through the
ages. ,irst, what does the -ible itself say on the matter.
New Testament:
/ Thessalonians 0123 4ow may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely* and may
your spirit and soul and body be presered complete, without blame at the coming of our
5ord 'esus (hrist.
Tanach or Old Testament:
6euteronomy 718$0 Hear " #srael9 %H:H is our God, %H:H is "ne. And you shall loe
%H:H your God with all your heart (spirit) and with all your soul and with all your
might (body). (%H:H is the memorial name of God, often rendered as ;The 5ord; in
<nglish!
5ater in the article # will proide e=tensie scriptural eidence* but any reader of the aboe two
erses can recogni>e with clarity that man is a tripartite being of spirit, soul and body. The -ible didn;t
state redundantly in the aboe two passages that spirit and soul are the same thing. #t decisiely
delineates the 3 parts of man. #f soul and spirit were the same thing, then it is redundant to repeat
both words in a sentence (and God is not ambiguous, but ery precise!. %es, we will later see that the
term heart can mean either the fleshly organ that pumps blood, or it can mean the spirit of man. #t is
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usually ery clear from the conte=t which usage of heart is meant in each scripture passage.
?hen # use the term, tripartite beingwhat do # mean. &an is one being and a unity, and not 3
beings. The constituent parts of spirit, soul and body ma)e up the single oneness@unity of man. The
spirit is eternal* it e=ists before a baby is eer conceied* and it does not die* while the soul and body
die. The spirit has solid substance li)e our fleshly body when in the higher dimension of heaen* and
the spirit body is li)e our physical body but without imperfections (for those who ma)e it to heaen
after this life is oer!. The soul is the interface or decision$ma)ing energy lin) or feedbac) loop
between the eternal spirit and the temporal body of flesh. The soul is further made up of mind, will and
emotions, as will be further e=plained throughout the article.
Man's Ancient isdom Through !hilosophy:
,ran)ly, when one loo)s at the concept of duality, it is easy to see where the ancients conceied the
notion. They saw dualities all around them1 male and female, light and dar), wet and dry, yin and yang,
high and low, inside and outside, material and immaterial, left brain and right brain.
+lato and Aristotle both deeloped and taught about the duality of man* and it may hae come from
a much more ancient philosophy preceding them. !lato said that man was born with natural depravity
and was basically an untrained animal who needed society's help to structure, educate and fulfill his
needs. +lato;s student Aristotle too) the opposite tac) and said that man is initially born with goodness
and virtue (rather than depraity!. -oth saw man as obserer (immaterial part of man, collapsing soul
and spirit into the same immaterial substance! and obsered (material or body!.
The fact is that most well$educated people of the ?estat least through the mid$2A
th
century
hae read +lato and Aristotle and other ancient philosophers as part of their formal education. # myself
thoroughly enBoyed classes in ancient philosophy at the Cniersity and gained insight from them. #n
spite of that instruction, the -ible clearly teaches that these great philosophers erred in only being
partially correct. They saw a duality of material and immaterial and conceied that the soul and spirit
were synonymous@identical aspects of man.
&ost philosophers through the ages e=panded on the same theme of the duality of man. "escartes
((artesian system! said, ;man is two substances of body and soul* and it is impossible to ma)e a
satisfactory connection between them; (concept of mind$body separation!. #chopenhauer e=plained
the duality concept as the obserer (immaterial! whose will controls the obBectie life (material!. $ant
saw empirical realism (obsered things! ersus transcendental idealism (immaterial or morality!. Dant
said that sensation testifies to an obBectie noumena (an obBect reached by intellectual intuition without
the aid of the senses!* but this higher world cannot be fully )nown. ,rom Dant began the wide gulf
between science (empirical realism! and theological concepts (morality issues!. %egel postulated a
post$Dant theory that the noumena can be )nown and articulated by concepts (not sensation!. As an
historian, Hegel postulated a deterministic history with a Eeitgeist (spirit of the age!. "n the other
hand, Hegel saw freedom as the contingency nature of man (freedom of choice! ersus determinism.
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?hile all these dualist notions hae alue, they are too shallow to note that man is an eternal spirit
inhabiting a temporal body of flesh with a soul interface made up of mind, will and emotions as shown
in the scriptures. &y initial appraisal of ;shallow; may too unsympathetic in regard to the conditions we
humans face here on earth. After all, we cannot empirically obsere and measure the spirit or eternal
nature of man* and we can only gain that )nowledge when we are told about it through reelation
)nowledge, or are shown the spiritual realms. The difference arises because of the source materialthe
philosopher;s dualism gained through intuitie )nowledge (gnosis! in spiritual matters &ersus
re&elation 'nowledge in scriptures gien to us by God. A )ey scriptural erse is1
Hebrews 81/2 ,or the word of God is liing and actie and sharper than any two$edged
sword, and piercing as far as the di&ision of soul and spirit, of both Boints and marrow,
and able to Budge the thoughts and intentions of the heart (spirit!.
As you can see, the scriptures say there is a difference or diision between soul and spirit, meaning
that they are not the same thing. ?e learn about the eternal spirit through the -ible, where reelation
)nowledge from God has been gien to us.

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"f course these same philosophers directly influenced educated early ?estern church fathers* since
their formal education would hae consisted of reading and )nowing +lato and Aristotle et al.
Augustine introduced the Gree) duality concept into the church or at least cemented its inclusion in
early Roman (atholic church doctrine. 5ater, Thomas Aquinas further strengthened the Roman
(atholic church into the concept of duality and ignored the literal scriptures. Then, in due time the
+rotestant Reformation was brought about by people who were trained and steeped in the incomplete
duality teaching of the Roman (atholic church* and they carried it forth into +rotestant churches.
"ne can go into many churches and hear a seemingly well$thought out sermon and not fully )now
whether the pastor is fusing the words soul and spirit as meaning the same thing* or whether he
correctly teaches that while both spirit and soul are unseen (immaterial!, they are different parts of
man. Csually one has to as) questions or dig around to find out what they actually beliee in that
particular church concerning the nature of man. Dnowing the truth about the nature of man is important
because something happens when a person is ;born again; (a change in spirit! and something happens
throughout life as one ma)es choices on how to lie (sanctification, or process of transforming the
body and soul by obeying the uniersal moral laws of God!. These are unique and different processes
acting on the different parts of the man.
(&idence of )oman *atholic +eliefs on #oul and #pirit in Man:
+ope 'ohn +aul ## gae a general audience where he discoursed upon the nature of man)ind. He
said1
&an, created in the image of God, is a being both corporeal and spiritual. "n the one hand,
he is bound to the e=ternal world, and on the other, he transcends it. As a spirit, besides
being body, he is a person. This truth about man is an obBect of our faith, as is also the
biblical truth about his being constituted in the Fimage and li)enessF of God. #t is a truth
constantly presented by the (hurch;s &agisterium during the course of the centuries.
"ne might read the aboe and thin) that +ope 'ohn +aul ## eered away from the centuries old
dualistic iew held by the Roman (atholic church* howeer, he did not, but used the word spirit
aboe to mean both spirit and soul as the immaterial part of man. The following quote further
e=plains clearly the Roman (atholic church iew of the nature of man, which is dualistic1
-iblical sources authori>e us to iew man as a personal unity and at the same time as a
duality of soul and body1 a concept that found e=pression in the (hurch;s entire Tradition
and teaching. This teaching has assimilated not only the biblical sources, but also the
theological interpretations of them which hae been gien by deeloping the analyses
conducted by certain schools (Aristotle! of Gree) philosophy. #t has been a slow, constant
wor) of reflection, culminating principallyunder the influence of Gt Thomas Aquinas
in the pronouncements of the (ouncil of :ienne (/3/2!, where the soul is called the
"form" of the body: forma corporis humani per se et essentialiter (6G, HA2!. The FformF,
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as a factor determining the substance of the being FmanF, is of a spiritual nature. And this
spiritual "form", the soul, is immortal. This was authoritatiely stated later by the ,ifth
5ateran (ouncil (/0/3!1 the soul is immortal, in contrast with the body which is subBect to
death (cf. 6G, /88A!. The Thomistic school emphasi>es at the same time that, by irtue of
the substantial union of body and soul, this latter, een after death, does not cease to
"aspire" to be reunited with the body. This is confirmed by the reealed truth about the
resurrection of the body.
Although the +ope;s words in the first paragraph aboe were carefully chosen and were actually
literally correct, in reality they were deceptie in that while he spo)e of the spirit of man, he actually
meant soul and spirit as the same thing. This is the ancient dualistic teaching of +lato, Aristotle,
Augustine and Thomas Aquinas along with many famous philosophers. ?hen # say deceptie, # don;t
mean that in a negatie sense* since their sincerely held beliefs are taught by them as if it were truth,
without )nowing any better. #t is only deceptie because we )now and can show a higher truththat
the -ible clearly teaches that man is 4"T a duality, but rather a tripartite being made up of spirit, soul
and body. The spirit of man is eternal and the soul and body are not eternal. This paper will decisiely
show that higher truth.
The !sychoanalytic ,iew:
Gigmund ,reud deeloped psychoanalysis and defined the psyche (soul! as made up of id, ego and
superego. # want to briefly mention this because of the 3 parts of man presented in psychoanalysis
which some may equate to the central thesis of man being spirit, soul and body. They are different.
,irst a definition of the terms psyche, id, ego and superego.
psycheof the human soul...the mind considered as a subBectiely perceied, functional
entity, based ultimately on physical processes but with comple= processes of its own. #t
goerns the total organism and its interactions with the enironment.
idthat part of the psyche which is regarded as the reseroir of the instinctual dries and
the source of psychic energy. #t is dominated by the pleasure principle and irrational
wishing* and its impulses are controlled through the deelopment of the ego and superego.
egothe self as aware of himself...that part of the psyche which e=periences the e=ternal
world through the senses, organi>es the thought processes rationally, and goerns actions.
#t mediates between the impulses of the id, the demands of the enironment, and the
standards of the superego.
superegothe part of the psyche which is critical of the self or ego, and enforces moral
standards* at an unconscious leel it bloc)s unacceptable impulses of the id. (conscience,
concerned with ethics and morality and proides feelings of guilt when the moral code is
bro)en!.
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The +sychoanalytic iew diides the soul into parts (the -ible tells us that soul is made up of mind,
will and emotions!. This +sychoanalytic iew doesn;t clearly posit an eternal part of man comparatie
to the spirit in the scriptures, although the elements of the superego define part of the eternal spirit of
man as shown in the -ible. &ost +sychoanalysts don;t beliee that man has an eternal part of them
called the spirit. Therefore, it is important to understand that the +sychoanalytic paradigm is not the
same as the scriptural iew of man as a tripartite being of spirit, soul and body.
-udaism's ,iews on the Nature of Man:
The following is from a published paper on the topic by an "rthodo= Rabbi who cites the Talmudic
teachings on spirit and soul (# choose not to name the author so that the person does not receie
negatie correspondence!.
The author begins by citing the 0 Hebrew words which he feels that touches on the subBect of the
immaterial part of man1 ruach, nefesh, neshama, yechida, and chaya (he left off le&a&, the heart!.
#n essence the Rabbis teach that these 0 words pretty much mean the same thing (meaning they thin'
soul and spirit are the same thing!. <en though literally ruach is spirit, nefesh is soul, neshama is
breath, yechida is oneness or unity, and chaya is to lie or be alie. He writes1
The use of these 'soul' words in the Talmud is just as ambiguous. The word
nefesh is used to describe a normal human being. 'Whoever keeps alive (or
destroys) a person (nefesh) it is as though he has saved (or destroyed) the
whole world'. 'Saving a life (soul) (nefesh) overrides the laws of Shabbat'. Human
food is described as 'Ochel Nefesh', in talking about preparing food for Shabbat.
Nefesh is also used to describe a human characteristic such as 'a bitter
spirit' or a spirit of self denial (and of course, echoing the terminolog of the !orah
it is used, in the conte"t of #om $ippur as it is with regard to the %ealous husband).
!he word is used for a '!ough character', a '&odest character' and a ''eliable
character'. ( similar analsis of the wa the word 'ruach' is used seems to indicate a
more specificall human element, but not necessaril a spiritual one. 'abbi )evitas of
#avneh said* '+e of ver low spirit (humble) because the end of man is worms'. #et, at
the same time the !almud also uses the word in relation to animals '!he righteous
understand the souls (nefesh) of their animals'. (nd it is used to describe an living
being.
#n essence, the "rthodo= 'ewish iew is little different than the duality iew enunciated by +lato
and Aristotle, e=cept as &aimonides added1
&aimonides believes in two tpes of soul, there is 'the soul that is part of the bod and
the soul that has no part of the bod, called 'mind'. '!he reward of the righteous is the
ne"t world which is a life without death and a good that contains no bad, the will
benefit from this delight and be included in this good. !he punishment for the wicked
is that the will not get this life and the will be cut off and die. (none who does not
achieve this life dies with no eternal life and is cut off for his wickedness and dies like
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an animal.' +ut it is onl the soul that has no relationship to the phsical that
continues into the world beond the grave.
&aimonides thinks that this soul is the eternal mind. !he kabbalists called it '!he part
of -od from above' that is given to us to use, to develop or to s.uash. /hether this is
figurative or literal, it is a challenge to us to increase the spiritualit within our lives
and within our personalit. !he more we are simpl material, the more of us
disappears with our death. !he more we appreciate, value and contribute to the
0ivine, the more there is to continue in spirit and as part of -od. 1f the metaphorical
bubble of spirit is trapped within our bodies and is release at death, it must then
return to its source. 1f our souls are 0ivine the must return to the 0ivine. 1n death we
return our souls to -od.
?here the "rthodo= 'ewish iew differs from +lato and Aristotle is that &aimonides posited that a
newborn comes as a blan) slate (neither haing a fallen nature nor being pure and good!, where their
initial nature is halfway between +lato;s iew ;that man was born with natural depravity and was
basically an untrained animal who needed society's help to structure, educate and fulfill his needs*; and
Aristotle;s opposite iew ;that man is initially born with goodness and virtue (rather than depravity).;
"ther than the nature of the newborn, the 'ewish iew is the samea duality.
4ow haing said that, the author of the paper also stated that he was troubled with merely equating
these 0 Hebrew words with the same oerall meaning (that soul and spirit are the same thing!. #n his
paper he points out e=amples where it indicates that soul and spirit are different. Howeer, as an
"rthodo= Rabbi # suppose he is forced to toe the party line and not challenge this whole duality iew.
?e will see later that the Rabbi author had good reason to subtly question the soul$spirit issue.
Tradition can be a good thing in ensuring continuity* but li)e the similar Roman (atholic iew of the
nature of man, tradition can also be an albatross around the nec) preenting the righting of wrongs
written as if in stoneby their predecessors.
<arlier, # suggested that perhaps +lato and Aristotle adopted their duality iew of the nature of man
(material and immaterial! from more ancient teachings. #ince the -udaic &iew is much older than the
.ree', / ha&e good reason to belie&e that !lato pic'ed up the )abbi's -udaic &iew on the nature
of man when he was in (gypt0being taught ancient <gyptian )nowledge and history (as on Atlantis!.
"r, since there was actie trade and shipping in the &editerranean Gea, he may hae pic)ed up this
duality iew from 'ewish merchants in Greece.
&y own iew of &aimonides; teaching on the soul (as two types of soul! is that he was actually
enunciating the difference between the soul (mind, will and emotions! and the eternal part of man
which is not soul but is spirit. Cnfortunately, &aimonides used the same word, soul, to mean these two
different parts of the immaterial nature of man. #f you parse his words, you can see that &aimonides
was on trac) to fully show the tripartite nature of man* but he bac)ed off and called these two different
parts Ithe soul.J # thin) if it were possible that &aimonides and # could sit down and tal) about the
K
nature of man oer a coffee at Gtarbuc)s, that we would actually agree. Howeer, # would insist that he
not call these two uniquely different parts of man by the same word1 soul. (ome to thin) of it, since
&aimonides spent much of his adult life in <gypt, he would probably insist at haing an espresso as is
customary in the &iddle <ast* while # would insist on American style coffee. "n that point we would
differ.
hat "oes the +ible Actually #how )egarding #pirit and #oul in Man1
The -ible tells us that we as humans are made in the image of God.
Tanach or Old Testament:
Genesis /127$2K Then God said, I5et us ma)e man in our image (bet>almenu, in the
image of us!, according to our li'eness ()idmutenu, according to the form of us!* and let
them rule oer the fish of the sea and oer the birds of the s)y and oer the cattle and oer
all the earth, and oer eery creeping thing that creeps on the earth.J And God created man
in His own image, in the image of God He created him* male and female He created them.
Genesis H17 (God spo)e to 4oah after the flood and said! ?hoeer sheds man;s blood, by
man his blood shall be shed, for in the image of .od (bet>alem elohim, in the image of
God! he made man.
New Testament:
/ (orinthians /018L$8H As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy* and as is the
heaenly, so also are those who are heaenly. And Bust as we ha&e borne the image of the
earthy (our body inherited from our parents!, we shall also bear the image of the
hea&enly (our spirit created by God, which is eternal!.
Although animals hae life, they are not the same as humans. Animals ha&e a soul as do humans,
but they do not hae the same eternal spirit in humans, who are made in the image of God. The souls of
animals do hae a mind, will and emotions (their soul! the same as in humans* and that;s what ma)es
animals such delightful pets for many people. #n fact, as recent scientific research has shown, liing
plants too hae a soul energy (see The Secret Life of lants by +eter Tomp)ins* and the bio$
communication wor) of (lee -ac)ster at http1@@www.primaryperception.com@ !.
5eiticus //187$8K This is the Torah (instruction or law! of the animal, and of the bird, and
eery soul (nefesh) of the li&ing things that mo&e in the waters, and all souls (nefesh)
that creep upon the earth1 to ma)e a distinction between the unclean and clean, and
between the liing things that may be eaten and the liing things which may not be eaten.
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Genesis H1H$/A (to 4oah and his sons after the flood! And behold, # establish &y coenant
with you and with your seed (descendants! after you* and with all the souls (nefesh) of the
li&ing things which are with you* the birds, the animals and of eery liing thing of the
earth with you, from all that came out of the ar), to eery liing thing of the earth.
All li&ing things ha&e a soul energy for their type2
#f all liing beings hae a soul, then isn;t it important to )now what ma)es man)ind different than
animals or plants. Although some professors may quibble with this distinctionnoting among
themseles of some students at the uniersity whose leel of intelligence seemingly mirrors that of a
plant (said Bo)ingly!. "f course, since we )now scientifically now that plants too hae a soul (based on
the polygraph wor) of (lee -ac)ster!, # suppose this )nowledge presents a dilemma to e=treme
egetarians who would deprie of us all of a burger. +lants hae life and feel pain and respond
faorably to nurturing and loe and gentle music. They also communicate between themseles.
Therefore, ripping off those sprouts or lettuce or carrots to eat is ta)ing a life9
The -ible says that all liing things were created after their !ind.
Genesis /1// Then God said, I5et the earth sprout egetation, plants yielding seed, and
fruit trees bearing fruit, after their 'ind with seed in them, on the earthJ* and it was so.
Genesis /1/2 And the earth brought forth egetation, plants yielding seed after their 'ind,
and trees bearing fruit, with seed in them, after their 'ind* and God saw that it was good.
Genesis /12/ And God created the great sea monsters, and eery liing creature (literally:
all the souls of the li&ing things, nefesh hachayah! that moes, with which the waters
swarmed after their 'ind, and eery winged bird after its 'ind* and God saw that it was
good.
Genesis /128 Then God said, I5et the earth bring forth liing creatures (literally: souls of
li&ing things, nefesh chayah! after their 'ind, cattle and creeping things and beasts of the
earth after their 'indJ* and it was so.
All liing things hae a soul according to their )ind or type. "nly man)ind was created in the
image of God, which ma)es man different than all other liing things. That difference is the ruach or
eternal spirit in man)ind. The spirit is different than the soul. ,or pet loers out there, please don;t e$
mail me and as) whether your faorite dog or cat or goldfish or hamster is going to be in eternity with
you when your life is oer. &y answer is maybe or maybe not, we don;t )now.
#n order to fully proe the -iblical teaching of the spirit, soul and body being different parts of the
H
unity@oneness of man, we need to inestigate the scriptures by actually loo)ing at the original Hebrew
in the Tanach ("ld Testament!. Almost all <nglish translations were done by people whose iews on
the nature of man were dualistic, where they interchangeably used the term spirit and soul. Therefore,
their translations are biased to reflect their dualistic iews of man. #n one place they may hae
translated ruach (spirit) as soul, and in another place translated nefesh (soul) as spirit or body. The
applicable Hebrew words are1
MNO ruach, spirit
PQR nefesh, soul
STPR neshamah, breath
UUV lea or le, heart
?e really don;t need to inestigate the other two words of the "rthodo= Rabbi shown on page 7*
since we )now by definition that all liing things hae life (chayah!* and we )now that people, animals
and plants hae a unity or oneness (yechida!. ?hat is important to determine are the words neshamah
and le&a&. ?e need to determine if there is precise use of language such that we can say the spirit
rather than the soul has neshamah, and that the heart is spirit and not soul.
,rom 6euteronomy 718$0 we )now that there is a distinction between soul and heart. And that is
followed by other erses ma)ing a distinction between heart and soul.
6euteronomy 718$0 Hear " #srael9 %H:H is our God, %H:H is "ne. And you shall loe
%H:H your God with all your heart (spirit) and with all your soul and with all your
might (body).
6euteronomy 812H -ut from there you will see) %H:H (the 5ord! your God, and you will
find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.
(WPQR VXUN WUUV VXU, be)al lea)ha u)al nafshe)ha, with all your heart and with
all your soul!. Game e=act phraseology in all K erses.
6euteronomy /A1/2$/3 And now, #srael, what does %H:H (the 5ord! your God require
from you, but to fear %H:H your God, to wal) in all His ways and to loe Him, and to
sere %H:H your God with all your heart and with all your soul, to )eep the
commandments of %H:H and His statutes, which # am commanding you today for your
own good.
6euteronomy 271/7 This day %H:H (the 5ord! your God commands you to do these
statutes and ordinances. %ou shall therefore be careful to do them with all your heart and
with all your soul.
/A
6euteronomy 3A1/$2 Go it shall become when all these things hae come upon you, the
blessing and the curse which # hae set before you, and you shall cause them to return to
your heart (often mistranslated by dualists as, call them to mind! in all the nations where
%H:H your God has banished you, and you return to %H:H your God and obey Him with
all your heart and with all your soul according to all that # commanded you today, you
and your sons, then %H:H your God will restore you from your captiity, and hae
compassion on you, and will gather you again from all the peoples where %H:H your God
has scattered you.
6euteronomy 3A17 &oreoer, %H:H your God will circumcise your heart and the heart
of your descendants, to loe %H:H your God with all your heart and with all your soul,
in order that you may lie.
6euteronomy 3A1/A if you listen to the oice of %H:H your God to )eep His
commandments and His statutes which are written in this boo) of the Torah (instruction,
often translated as law!, if you turn to %H:H your God with all your heart and with all
your soul.
#s it a flu)e or coincidence that K times the same e=act phraseology is repeated in 6euteronomy
ma)ing a clear distinction between heart and soul. 4o, the dualists are wrong. The heart is a part of
man that is distinct and different than the soul. (an the physical organ, called the heart, loe. (an that
physical organ, called the heart, change its direction. (an the physical organ in the body, obey the
commandments and statutes of %H:H. (an the physical organ, called the heart, be circumcised to
ma)e it loe, as in 3A17. 4o, all K of these erses are tal)ing about the immaterial part of man that is
distinct and different than the soul* because the phraseology demands ac)nowledgment that we are
tal)ing about 2 distinct parts of man called the heart and soul.
The %eart and #oul are 3 distinct parts of man's unseen nature2
#n 6euteronomy 3A1/, # translated the erse literally* because the way that translators who hae a
dualistic bias translated it, obscures the e=actness of meaning. Repentance can be by the soul (a mere
decision of the mind or will or emotions or a combination of all 3 parts of the soul!, but %H:H here is
calling for a remembrance by and repentance of the heart. That action by the heart is the eternal part of
you, called the spirit.
'oshua 01/ And it came to pass, when all the )ings of the <mori, who were on the side of
the 'ordan westward, and all the )ings of the Dena;ani, who were by the sea, heard that
%H:H had dried up the waters of the 'ordan from before the children of #srael, until they
were passed oer, that their hearts melted, and there was no spirit in them any more,
because of the children of #srael.
//
4otice how heart and spirit are shown here as the same thing. ?hen the heart melts, there is no
spirit in the person. #t is more than a figure of speech. &ore eidence...
+salms KL1L And that they might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious
generation, a generation that did not set their heart aright, and whose spirit was not
faithful with God.
<>e)iel /L13/ (ast away from you all your transgressions which you hae committed, and
ma)e for yourseles a new heart and a new spirit9 ,or why will you die " house of
#srael. Therefore turn and lie.
+salms K1H ...for the righteous .od tries the hearts and reins. (reins is a metaphor for
conscience, the internal sense of right and wrong in your spirit@heart that a person chooses
to follow or not follow when confronted with a situation. Gome translators use mind
instead of reins* but that is rewriting the scriptures!.
/ +eter 318 but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible ornament of
a gentle and 4uiet spirit, which is ery precious in the sight of God.
The aboe erses indicate that heart and spirit are the same thing. They also show that the spirit in
man can be made new. #n contrast, the soul (mind! is renewed in a process throughout life called
sanctification. This sanctification is brought about by hearing the ?ord of God, by the choices we
ma)e in how we act, and by what we beliee.
+salms 0/17 (L! -ehold, you desire truth in the inward parts* therefore teach me wisdom in
the hidden part (innermost heart).
+salms 0/1/A (/2! *reate in me a pure heart, " God...
<>e)iel //1/H And # will gie them one heart, and # will put a new spirit within you*...
'ohn 317 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the #pirit is
spirit2
*ontrast the heart5spirit being made new, with the soul which is renewed or restored2
+salms 2313 %e restores my soul (nefesh!1 He leads me in the paths of righteousness for
His name;s sa)e.
Romans /212 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind (soul), that you may proe what is that good and acceptable and
perfect will of God.
/2
(olossians 31H$/A 6o not lie to one another, since you hae put off the old man with his
deeds, and hae put on the new man who is renewed in 'nowledge according to the
image of Him who created him.
?hile many people bandy about words li)e Ieternal soul,J the eidence is that the soul is NOT
eternal2 The eidence for the non$eternal soul is clearly shown in the -ible. The soul dies when the
body dies* howeer, the )nowledge and e=perience in the soul is not lost. ,irst, let;s loo) at a few
erses reealing the eidence that the soul dies.
4umbers 231/A (prophesied by -alaam! ?ho can count the dust of 'acob, or number the
fourth part of #srael. 6et my soul (nefesh, nafshi) die the death of the righteous, and let
my last end be li)e his9 (often mistranslated by dualists to deliberately hide eidence that
the soul dies!.
4umbers 3/1/H And you, abide outside of the camp seen days* e&eryone who has 'illed
a soul (nefesh), and all who hae touched any slain (bodies!, purify both yourseles and
your capties on the third day and on the seenth day.
<>e)iel /L18 ...the soul (nefesh) that sins, it shall die.
As &aimonides taught, there is a resurrection of the dead at some future time* and this resurrection
of the dead is also a central teaching in the 4ew Testament of the -ible. #n the resurrection, God has
promised that the body and soul will be reconsituted and put bac) together with the spirit body.
<eryone will stand before the Great ?hite Throne for Budgment of their actions* and the result for
some (those whose names are not written in the -oo) of 5ife! will be a second permanent death of the
soul. The following erses spea) of preseration of the soul in that future resurrection.
'ames 012A let him )now that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will sa&e a
soul from death and coer a multitude of sins.
+salms 331/H ...to deli&er their soul (nefesh) from death.
Hebrews /A13H -ut we are not of those who draw bac) to perdition, but of those who
beliee to the preser&ing of the soul.
Reelation 2A1// And # saw a great white throne...
Reelation 2A1/2 And # saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne...
Reelation 2A1/3 And the sea gae up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gae
up the dead which were in them* and they were 7udged, e&ery one of them according to
their deeds.
Reelation 2A1/8 ...This is the second death, the la'e of fire.
/3
Reelation 2A1/0 And if anyone's name was not found written in the boo' of life, he
was thrown into the la'e of fire.
?hen the -ible states that ;the soul that sins shall die,; it is stating something we all )now* that
children are born, we lie our lies, and then people age and die. #t has been called the circle of life.
5i)ewise, animals hae a soul and they die. &eanwhile, the aboe te=ts also tell us about the
resurrection to come when there is a Budgment. The outcome of that Budgment after the resurrection is
whether there is a second (and final! death of the soul. As Hebrew /A13H states, een though when we
die our body and soul die, yet God has set in place a mechanism for the presering of the soul for the
future resurrection. At the same time, we also )now that at death the spirit of man does not die, but
goes on to spirit dimension.
Gome might be surprised to learn that man is comprised of a natural body and an eternal spirit
body.
/ (orinthians /0188 #t is sown an natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. /f there is a
natural body, there is also a spiritual body.
Man has a fleshly body inhabited by a spirit body2
This spirit body is not some mere energy without the real IusJ being there. %es, most people on
earth are not spiritual at all* but they are either drien by their physical senses and desires, or lie in the
realm of the soul (mind, will and emotions! without e=periencing the spirit world. Religiosity is soul
awareness without spiritual awarenesswhere people substitute doing things in place of a relationship
with God our (reator. #;e mentioned that the soul is mind, will and emotions* but the heart is part of
the spirit body and has eyes, and thoughts and emotions too.
<phesians /1/L ...the eyes of your hearts being enlightened*... (eyes of heart are in your
spiritual body!.
Hebrews 81/2 ,or the word of God is liing and actie and sharper than any two$edged
sword, and piercing as far as the diision of soul and spirit, of both Boints and marrow, and
able to Budge the thoughts and intentions of the heart (spirit).
+salms 3312/ ,or our heart shall re7oice in %im, because we hae trusted in His holy
name. (e=ample of spirit emotion!
+salms 3K18$0 6elight yourself in %H:H* and %e will gi&e you the desires of your heart.
(ommit your way to %H:H, trust also in Him, and He will do it. (spirit body has desires!
+salms 031/ The fool has said in his heart, there is no God.
/8
The heart is the eternal part of us, and has thoughts, and emotions, and intentions (will!, and eyes to
see spiritually. &ost people are not spiritually aware* but rather their consciousness is centered in the
soul mind, soul emotions, and soul will. This soulish e=istence is the IfallJ of man from a relationship
with God our (reator, due to rebellion and sin (brea)ing the rules established by the (reator!. ?hat is
the eidence for the spirit body in man being eternal.
<cclesiastes 31// He made eerything beautiful in its time, also %e set in their heart the
eternal... (eternal is in the heart@spirit!
<cclesiastes /210 ...because the man goes to his eternal home,... (spirit body to spirit
dimensions!
<cclesiastes /017 ...and the spirit returns to .od who gae it. (spirit body leaes at death!
Hebrews /2122$23 -ut you hae come to &ount Eion and to the city of the liing God, the
heaenly 'erusalem, and to the myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of
the first$born who are enrolled in heaen, and to God the 'udge of all, and to the spirits of
righteous men made perfect.
Reelations /1/A ('ohn! / was in the spirit on the 5ord;s day....
Reelations /1/H ?rite therefore the things you ha&e seen...
Reelations 81/ After these things / loo'ed, (with spirit body eyes!...
Reelations 71/ And / saw... (with spirit body eyes!
Reelations K1/ After this / saw... (with spirit body eyes, and so on!
All the seers and prophets throughout time used their spirit eyes to see, and their spirit ears to hear
the isions they were gien. That;s because man has a fleshly body that is temporal and a spirit body
that is eternal. ?hen the spirit body is in heaenthin) of it as a higher dimension, which it most
li)ely isthe spirit body has solid substance li)e our fleshly body does here on earth.
?hat about our other Hebrew word neshamah, which means breath (nishmat is the construct
form meaning1 breath of!. Hebrew dictionaries written by dualists gie the meaning of neshamah as1
breath, soul, spirit, life, liing creature (-en %ehuda;s +oc)et <nglish$Hebrew Hebrew$<nglish
6ictionary, page 2/8!. +recisely it means breath, and the Torah and Tanach shows neshamah only
with spirit and not with soul.
Neshamah 89:; is the breath of the fleshly body or breath of life
of the spirit (and not of the soul)2
Genesis K12/$22 and all man)ind, all who were on the dry land, all in whose nostrils was
the breath of the spirit of life (nishmat ruach chayyim!, they died.
/0
2 Gamuel 221/7 And the channels of the sea appeared, the foundations of the world were
laid bare, at the rebu)ing of %H:H (the 5ord!, at the breath of spirit (nishmat ruach! of
his nostrils.
+salms /L1/7 (/0! Then the channels of water appeared, and the foundations of the world
were laid bare, at thy rebu)e %H:H (the 5ord!, from the breath of spirit (nishmat ruach!
of your nostrils.
Guess what. 4owhere in the Torah and Tanach is neshamah or nishmat used with soul, while it is
used 3 times with spirit. God is Gpirit* and man is spirit, inhabiting a fleshly body while here on earth.
The spirit of man is eternal and the soul is not* the soul is the energy interface between the spirit body
and fleshly body. The soul is made up of mind, will and emotions* and the soul processes the 0 fleshly
senses of touch, taste, smell, hearing and seeing.
How is the energy of this temporal soul (non$eternal soul! present or connected in our bodies.
5eiticus /K1// ,or the soul (nefesh) of the flesh, it is in the blood* and # hae gien it to
you on the altar to ma'e atonement for your souls (al$nafshotey)em!* for it is the blood
that ma'es atonement for the soul (nefesh). (translated literally!.
5eiticus /K1/8 ,or the soul (nefesh) of all flesh is its blood, it is in its soul (nefesh).
And # said to the sons of #srael, I%ou are not to eat the blood of all flesh, for the soul
(nefesh) of all flesh, it is its blood. All eating of it will be cut off.J
#oul energy resides in the blood2
The soul energy is connected to the blood in eery liing thing, and that is why %H:Hin the
Torahcommanded the people not to eat blood. "f course, today we )now that eating blood is not
healthy* since any diseases and hormones, etc. are in the blood. ,or e=ample, the prions of &ad (ow
disease are more easily passed in the brain, spinal column and blood for those consuming it. The dried
blood from infected cattle fed bac) to cattle (and sheep to sheep! as a protein supplement seems to be
the e=act cause for the transmission of &ad (ow disease. Gince the life of the soul is in the blood, then
haing healthy blood in the body will lead to soul strength. That;s also why eating gies us strength
(will!, mental concentration (mind!, and emotional energy (emotions! as compared to a staring person.
Deeping in mind that the soul energy is in the blood, and eating or not eating affects our soul
energy leel* we should as) whether the soul can also be strengthened from the top downthat is
whether energy can flow downwards from the eternal spirit body to the soul.
/7
+salms /3L13 #n the day # called, %ou answered me* <ou strengthen me with strength in
my soul (nefesh).
+roerbs /L1/8 The spirit (ruach) of a man will sustain (nourish) from his infirmity*
and a wounded spirit (ruach!, who can bear it.
2 (orinthians 81/7$/L Therefore we do not lose heart (spirit!, but though our outer man is
decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. ,or momentary light affliction
is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we loo) not
at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen* for the things which are
seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
Romans L1// -ut if the Gpirit of Him who raised %eshua ('esus! from the dead dwells in
you, He who raised &essiah %eshua ((hrist 'esus! from the dead will also gi&e life to
your mortal bodies through %is #pirit who indwells you.
#n reality, one can find many erses li)e +salms /3L13 and Romans L1//, which shows that %H:H
our (reator can interene and strengthen our spirit@heart, or our soul, or our hands (our body!. That top$
down energy input is supernatural interention in our lies. &eanwhile, +roerbs /L1/8 reeals that our
spirit can sustain us when we hae sic)ness in our soul and body. The answer then is that we can be
strengthened in a top$down manner from spirit to soul.
2 (orinthians 81/7$/L is another te=t telling us about the temporal fleshly body in comparison to
our eternal spirit body. This is the same concept that &aimonides tal)ed about* but unfortunately he
used the wrong word IsoulJ when tal)ing about spirit. That muddied the waters considerably for
eeryone. &y point though is that &aimonides was on the trac) in spite of his mista)e.
#oul energy is obtained normally from eating= but can come
from our spirit or from <%,% (the *reator)2
,inally, what is the consciencethat 'nowledge within us that guides us morally with a sense
of right and wrong, with a compulsion to do right and a sense of guilt when we choose wrongly1
#s the conscience of the soul, or is it part of the spirit.
Titus /1/0 To the pure, all things are pure* but to those who are defiled and unbelieing,
nothing is pure, but both their mind (soul) and conscience are defiled.
Hebrews /A122 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, ha&ing our
hearts sprin'led clean (a new heart) from an e&il conscience and our body washed with
pure water.
/K
As you can see, there is a distinction between conscience and soul (mind!, and also a distinction
between conscience and fleshly body. Therefore, we can be sure that the conscience is of the spirit2
That conscience is a spiritual part of us, that is in eery person before they incarnate into the body (this
is not to ta)e sides on the issue of one incarnation or reincarnation!. +eople can and do sear their
conscience by repeated bad choices* and the result is addictions and doing eil things. ?e also can
instill a societal sense of right and wrong in the mind and will and emotions through training and
education, but that is of the soul. The conscience is a built$in sense of right and wrong in the eternal
spirit, that is part of us from birth (and before!.
*onscience is part of the spirit (and not of the soul or body)2
?e are an eternal spirit with a spirit body inhabiting a temporal fleshly body* and we hae a soul,
which is the energy interface between the spirit body and fleshly body. "ur soul is made up of mind
and will and emotions. ?e were made to lie here on earth in the hierarchy of spirit oer soul oer
body. ?e were made to hae a relationship with the (reator while here on earth, and God our (reator
spea)s to us, Gpirit to spirit.
/L
Romans L1/7 The #pirit (of .od) %imself bears witness with our spirit that we are the
children of God.
The normal way for God our (reator to spea) to us is by His Gpirit to our spirit. &any (hristians
hae told me, I# hae neer heard God spea)ing to me with my ears.J And you probably won;t, since
the normal method is Gpirit to spirit. A person can be religious and not spiritual at all. ?hile being
religious is "D, what is more important is whether we are spiritual. #t is the way that the prophets
heard God spea)ing and wrote down what He told them (that;s how we got the -ible!. #n seeing with
the eyes of their spirit body, they saw isions and wrote them down. That relationship with .od our
*reator is open to e&eryone, to hear %im. After all, He said1
-eremiah >>:> *all to Me, and / will answer you, and / will tell you great and mighty
things, which you do not 'now2
hat About *ounter?Arguments on the #oul in the +ible1
A reiewer of an early draft of this paper suggested that there are seemingly a few possible counter$
arguments in the -ibleespecially in the Torahto this presentation on spirit, soul and body. That;s a
alid point, and in order not to ma)e this paper into a boo)$length document, # hae chosen to create a
+art 2 in order to address those possible counter$arguments. Howeer, any reader of this paper may
submit opposing arguments (with -iblical proof te=ts! to me and # will also address them in part 2 by
e=panding it as necessary. send to1 prophecyA8Ycomcast.net
The Tabernacle in the ilderness0/t )epresents Man
After %H:H (the 5ord! brought the children of #srael out from <gypt led by &oses (&oshe! and
Aaron (Aharon!, He showed &oses the pattern (blueprint. or archetype in heaen.! for the Tabernacle
and directed &oses to build it e=actly as shown. ?hy. ?hat was the purpose for doing this. ?hat
does the Tabernacle represent. ?hat is %H:H showing us in His design for the Tabernacle.
&any scholars, both 'ewish and (hristian, hae written lengthy treatises that minutely detail their
theories about what each aspect of the Tabernacle means. ,ran)ly, most of them missed it entirely.
That doesn;t mean their e=planations don;t hae alue* but the Tabernacle (and later Temple! has a
specific purpose in its design to show each generation the nature of man, and what is God;s desire for
man. The Tabernacle shows that man is a tripartite being with 2 distinctly immaterial parts and a part
that is seen by the outside world (our flesh!. 5et;s start off at the beginning.
/H
<=odus 201L$H And they will ma)e for me a sanctuary (mi)dash!, and # will dwell in the
midst of you. According to all which # showed you, a pattern of the tabernacle (mish)an!
and a pattern of all its essels, so you shall ma)e it.
<=odus 2018A (concerning the menorah and ar) and essels! And see that you ma'e them
after the pattern for them, which was shown you on the mountain.
Hebrews L10 ...who sere a copy and shadow of the hea&enly things, Bust as &oses is
warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle* for, IGee,J He says, Ithat you
ma)e all things according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain.J
Hebrews L1/$2 4ow the main point in what has been said is this1 we hae such a high
2A
priest, who has ta)en His seat at the right hand of the throne of the &aBesty in the heaens,
a minister in the sanctuary (sacred tent), and in the true tabernacle, which .od
pitched and not man.
#n 'ungian terminology, &oses was shown the heaenly archetype or pattern from which to
construct the Tabernacle and all its essels. ?hat &oses was shown is the heaenly Tabernacle* and he
was to construct the earthly imitation of the heaenly. # recently mentioned to a Rabbi on the telephone,
that # was writing an article about the Tabernacle specifically being designed to show the nature of
man. He suggested to me that <=odus 201L seemed to be about both the physical and spiritual* and
further mentioned that the Rabbis had discussed that I# will dwell in the midst of youJ can and does
mean both in the physical and in the immaterial (part of man!. -ut we will get bac) to that concept
later.
,or those unfamiliar with the Tabernacle, it was a
tent with 2 sections in it called the Holy +lace and the
&ost Holy +lace* and the tent was set in the courtyard
which contained the altar and the laer (water basin!.
The courtyard was surrounded by a K foot high cloth
screen with one entranceway. There was one entrance
into the tent with a curtain or screen to )eep people
from seeing inside the tent* and only the priests
ministered in the Tabernacle tent. The Holy +lace
contained 3 things called the menorah (lampstand!,
the table of showbread, and the altar of incense. There
was a eil or curtain between the Holy +lace and
&ost Holy +lace. #nside the &ost Holy +lace was the
ar) of the coenant. Throughout the 8A years in the
wilderness, the fiery cloud hoered oer the mercy
seat of the ar) of the coenant in the &ost Holy +lace part of the Tabernacle.
-eing straightforward, the Tabernacle represents man (humans). ?e are made in the image of
God, and li)e the Tabernacle we can moe about (the Tabernacle could be moed!. 'ust as the children
of #srael could loo) through the main entranceway to the courtyard and see what was going on in the
Tabernacle courtyard, so can other people see our actions. 5i)ewise, Bust as the children of #srael could
not loo) into the tent to see what was going on, so other people cannot see into our soul and spirit to
see eerything going on within us.
The courtyard represents our physical body. The laer in the courtyard with water represents a
cleansing of actions and choices through obedience to God;s way of doing things, or not being cleansed
by our actions (holy liing or not holy liing!. The altar represents the actions we do1 whether it is a
pure sacrifice or polluted* whether we are doing the will of God in our lies or choosing selfish actions
obliious to our eternal best interests. Gtill we hae freedom of choice in our lies.
2/
The first section, inside the tent, is called the %oly !lace= and it represents our soul. #n the
Holy +lace are the menorah (lampstand!, table of showbread and altar of incensethese represent
aspects of our soul called the mind, will and emotions. "ur mind, will and emotions process the
physical senses; inputs (sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste!. 'ust as the Holy +lace is the means to go
from the courtyard to the &ost Holy +lace, so the soul is the intermediary between our spirit body
and fleshly body.
The ery inner part of the tent is the &ost Holy +lace, which is separated from the Holy +lace by
the curtain or eil. The separating eil shows the separation or diision between soul and spirit. The
Most %oly !lace represents our spirit or heart. #nside the &ost Holy +lace is the ar) of the
coenant. The fiery cloud (God;s presence! hoered oer the ar) of the coenant* and in the same way
the Holy Gpirit (ruach ha)odesh! indwells those who turn to God, in their spirit.
6ualists see the body (courtyard! and the tent (Tabernacle!, but they do not see inside the tent to see
that it is separated into two distinct areas called the Holy +lace and &ost Holy +lace. The dualists Bust
see the tent representing the immaterial or unseen nature of man* and thus they use the words soul,
spirit, heart, etc. to all mean the same thing. #t is li)e bac) in the mid$/LAA;s when scientists thought
that the human cell was Bust a glob. They didn;t )now that the human cell was an incredibly comple=
mechanism made up of many parts. #n the same way, the dualistic iew of the nature of man is too
simplistic.
"oes the +ible really say that the Tabernacle5Temple represents man1 <ou be the 7udge2
/ (orinthians 31/7$/K 6o you not )now that you are a temple (sanctuary) of .od, and
that the #pirit of .od dwells in you. #f any man destroys the temple (sanctuary! of God,
God will destroy him, for the temple (sanctuary! of God is holy, and that is what you are.
2 (orinthians 71/7 "r what agreement has the temple of God with idols. @or we are the
temple of the li&ing .od* Bust as God said, I/ will dwell in them and wal' among them*
and # will be their God, and they shall be &y people.J
5eiticus 271/2 And / will cause myself to wal' in the midst of you (or, inside you), and
# will be your God, and you will be for me a people. (erb is hitpael, which is refle=ie1
meaning that the person does the action to themseles. God chooses to indwell those who
turn to Him!.
<=odus 201L$H And they will ma)e for me a sanctuary (mi)dash!, and / will dwell in the
midst of you (or, inside you). According to all which # showed you, a pattern of the
tabernacle (mish)an! and a pattern of all its essels, so you shall ma)e it.
'ohn 21/H$2/ %eshua ('esus! answered and said to them, I6estroy this temple (sanctuary!
and in three days # will raise it up.J The 'ews (actually representaties of the Ganhedrin!
22
therefore said, I#t too) forty$si= years to build this temple (sanctuary!, and will you raise it
up in three days.J -ut %e was spea'ing of the temple (sanctuary) of %is body.
Hmmm, it seems clear to me, that man (a human being! is a tabernacle@temple. 'ust as the fiery
cloud hoered oer the mercy seat of the ar) of the coenant in the physical tabernacle tent, so %H:H
made humans to interact with Him during this life1 Gpirit to spirit, and spirit to Gpirit (a two$way
conersation!. Howeer, as you might guess, this relationship is resered for those who turn to %H:H
(God!.
#saiah 80122 Turn to Me, and be sa&ed, all the ends of the earth* for / am .od, and there
is no other.
'ames 81L "raw near to .od and %e will draw near to you. (leanse your hands (fleshly
body), you sinners* and purify your hearts (spirit body), you double$minded.
'oel 21/2$/3 I%et een now,J says %H:H (the 5ord!, ITurn to &e with all your heart,
and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning1 and rend your hearts, and not
your garments. And return to %H:H your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to
anger, and great in loe, and relenting of eil.
6euteronomy 812H -ut if from there you will see) %H:H your God, and you will find
%im if you search for %im with all your heart (le&a&) and with all your soul (nefesh).
'eremiah 3313 *all to Me and / will answer you, and # will show you great and mighty
things, which you did not )now. (Gpirit to spirit!
# could hae cited e=tensie 4ew Testament (brit chadashah! scriptures which show the same
consistent message* but # deliberately wanted to show this identical theme throughout the -ible ("ld
and 4ew Testaments!. Repentance and turning to God is in our heart (spirit body, the eternal part of us!
and not tearing our garments, or putting ashes on our forehead, or mouthing words that someone else
wrote in a prayerboo). The consistent message in scriptures is that our spirit (our heart! is the real
eternal IusJ, and this eternal part of us can be a sanctuary of the Gpirit of God in us. #t;s our indiidual
choice.
hat does the Ar' of the *o&enant in the Most %oly !lace )epresent1
#n the #ndiana 'ones moies, the ar) of the coenant represented great treasure* it was a gold
coered bo= worth a great deal of money. #ts fascination to people is also deried from its supposed
mystical powers as a direct communication deice with God. %et, in e=plaining the symbolic meaning
of the Tabernacle, the ar) of the coenant must surely hae significant meaning in regards to the nature
of man.
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Cp to this point, # hae shown you that man is an eternal spirit body inhabiting a temporal fleshly
body* and # hae ta)en pains to show that the spirit of man or the heart is the eternal part of usgiing
the impression that spirit and heart are the same thing. They are not the same thing. ?e are an eternal
spirit with a spirit body. The eternal heart is a part of the eternal spirit body. The premise # wish to
show you is that as the ar) of the coenant is in the &ost Holy +lace of the Tabernacle, so the heart of
man is in the spirit of man. ,irst, let;s loo) at the physical ar) of the coenant.
<=odus 281/2 And %H:H (the 5ord! said to &oses, I(ome up to &e on the mountain and
remain there, and # will gie you the stone tablets, and the Torah, and the
commandments, which # hae written to teach them.J
<=odus 3/1/L And He gae to &oses, when He had made and end of spea)ing to him upon
&ount Ginai, two tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of
.od.
<=odus 321/7 And the tablets were the wor' of .od, and the writing was the writing of
God, engra&ed upon the tablets.
<=odus 2012/$22 And you shall put the mercy seat (coer! on top of the ar), and in the ar'
you shall put the Testimony which / shall gi&e to you. And there / will meet with you,
and from aboe the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ar) of
the Testimony, / will spea' to you about all that # will gie you in commandment for the
children of #srael.
2 (hronicles 01/A (when Golomon;s Temple was completed! There was nothing in the ar'
eAcept the two stone tablets which Moses put there at %ore& (#inai), when %H:H cut
the coenant with the children of #srael, when they came out of <gypt.
These select erses lay the groundwor) for the premise by presenting the physical ar) of the
coenant and the two stone tablets of the Testimony. The ar) was built to contain the tablets of the
Testimony* and it was to be the place where God spo)e to &oses. %H:H wrote the ten
commandments (the Testimony! on the stone tablets with His own finger and gae them to &oses.
&oses then presented them to the children of #srael and put the tablets of stone in the physical ar) of
the coenant. The one additional piece of information concerns the original scroll of the Torah written
by &oses.
6euteronomy 3/128$27 And it came to pass when Moses finished writing the words of
this Torah in a boo' (scroll), until they were finished, that &oses commanded the 5eites
who carried the ar) of the coenant of %H:H, saying, ITa'e this boo' of the Torah and
put it in the side of the ar' of the co&enant of <%,% your .od, and it will be there for
a witness against you.
28
There is leeway in interpreting erse 27 to mean either Iput it in the sideJ of the ar) in a place
prepared to hold the original Torah scroll, or to mean Iplace it alongsideJ the ar) of the coenant, but
not really attached to it. <ither way, it is important that the original Torah scroll be co$located with the
ar) of the coenant.
?hat is the eidence that the heart of man is represented by the ar) of the coenant. ?hile not
stated directly, still the elements for the physical ar) and tablets as gien apply to the eternal heart of
man within the spirit body.
+roerbs 313$8 6o not let 'indness and truth leae you* bind them around your nec),
write them on the tablet of your heart. Go you will find faor and good repute in the
sight of God and man.
+roerbs K1/$3 &y son, )eep my words, and treasure my commandments within you. Deep
my commandments and lie* and my Torah as the apple of your eye. -ind them on your
fingers* write them on the tablet of your heart.
'eremiah 3/133$38 (32$33! I-ut this shall be the coenant that # will ma)e with the house
of #srael after those days,J says %H:H, I/ will put my Torah in their inward parts, and
write it on their hearts* and # will be their God, and they shall be &y people.
+salms //H1// %our word # hae hidden in my heart, that # might not sin against %ou.
The same terminology used for the tablets of the Testimony in the physical ar) are used for the
commandments and Torah being written in the heart of man (who turns to God!. #t is plain to see that
the heart corresponds to the ar) of the coenant* and the ar) of the coenant is in the &ost Holy +lace
of the Tabernacle which corresponds to the heart of man within the eternal spirit body.
There is another direct physical representation of this concept with the Crim and Thummin placed
in the breastplate of Budgment of the High +riestdirectly o&er his heart (<=odus 2L12H$3A!. The
Crim and Thummin enabled direct enhanced communication with Godthe same as being before the
ar) of the coenant mentioned aboe in <=odus 2012/$22 (where God spo)e to &oses and Aaron!. The
Crim and Thummin were a physical deice placed oer the physical heart to communicate with God.
/ Gamuel 2L17 ?hen ()ing! Gaul inquired of the 5ord, the 6ord did not answer him,
either by dreams or by the Brim or by the prophets.
/ Gamuel 3A1K$L Then 6aid said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, I!lease
bring me the ephod2C #o Abiathar brought the ephod to "a&id2 And "a&id in4uired
of <%,% (the 6ord), saying, IGhall # pursue this band. Ghall # oerta)e them.J And He
said to him (God to 6aid!, I+ursue, for you shall surely oerta)e them, and you shall
surely rescue all.J
20
The term IephodJ refers to the entire apparatus that the High +riest wore, where the breastplate of
Budgment with the Crim and Thummin and shoulder pieces were all one unit. 6aid needed critical
adice about going to battle (or not! and needed to hear from %H:H. Go...6aid obtained the ephod
unit from a priest and put it on, with the Crim and Thummin oer the heart, enabling him to hear
%H:H;s oice clearly. ?hat is important to )now is that the Crim and Thummin placed oer the heart
is a physical representation of how we hear from God in our heart (the eternal part of us!.
?hy should we )now that the heart of man is in the spirit of man* and that it corresponds to the ar)
of the coenant in the &ost Holy +lace of the Tabernacle. -ecause it tells us how and where God
communicates with us* and hearing from the (reator is important. &oses was told that God would
spea) to him from aboe the mercy seat of the ar)* and we hear from God our creator not with physical
ears, but with our heart. He spea)s to us Gpirit to spirit* and we spea) to Him spirit to Gpirit. ?e hear
with our spiritual ears and see with our spiritual eyes, which are part of our eternal spirit body. ?e hear
His oice as the still small oice within.
.od the *reator spea's to us in our heart, in the still small &oice2
How does a personwho is not spiritualdeelop this ability to hae a direct relationship and
direct communication with God who created all things. ?e must turn to God and repent of our sins,
and ma)e an effort to hear. This option is open to all human beings and not Bust to special or chosen
people. ?e all can deelop the ability to hear the still small oice within.
'ames 81L "raw near to .od and %e will draw near to you2 (leanse your hands
(physical body!, you sinners* and purify your hearts (spirit body!, you double$minded.
'eremiah 3313 *all to Me, and / will answer you, and # will tell you great and mighty
things, which you do not )now.
Hebrews 81/7 6et us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace
(mercy seat of the ar'), that we may receie mercy and may find grace to help in time of
need.
Romans L1/8 ,or all who are being led by the #pirit of .od, these are the sons of .od.
+roerbs 2A12K The candle (lamp, lightbulb) of <%,% is the spiritual breath of man
(nishmat adam, spirit breath of man). Zoften wrongly translated as1 The spirit of man is
the candle of the 5ord. -ut the word is nishmat and not ruach, meaning1 spirit breath of
man. That said, the oerall concept is the same, that %H:H illuminates our spirit.[
God our (reator is soereign in power* and it is entirely presumptuous and out of place for a mere
human to thin) (as some hae told me!, Iwell if God wants to spea) with me, #;m willing to listen.J #t
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is presumptuous, because He e=pects us to come to Him and He promises to respond. He promises to
answer us. ?e need to call to Him* we need to draw near to Him* and then we will hear the still small
oice within. #t;s a two$way relationship open to eeryone.
#n olden times in America, natie #ndians would go on a spirit quest by fasting, cleansing and
meditations, and wait for the IGreat ?hite GpiritJ to gie them a ision or spea) to them (or both!. #;e
got news for a lot of people who thin) God our (reator belongs to Bust their little group1 He often did
gie isions and spea) to the natie American #ndians who sought him with prayers and fasting and
meditations. #t;s not a matter of belonging to a specific religious group, denomination, etc.* what
matters is that an indiidual ma)es the effort. Hearing from God our (reator is a learned s)ill* and it
gets easier as you do it. At first it can be difficult* but li)e lifting weights to deelop muscles, so
learning to hear with our spirit ears ta)es practice (maybe more for some and less for others!.
hich elements of the soul (mind, will, and emotions) correspond with the menorah, table of
showbread and altar of incense in the %oly !lace in the Tabernacle1
Gome might want to )now which of the parts of mind, will and emotions correspond to which of
the lampstand, table of showbread and altar of incense, in a specific way. The -ible holds the answer*
but # am not going to answer it here, because this paper is getting too long already. ?e;ll leae that as a
homewor) assignment for you. 'ust be aware of the clues concerning physical characteristics of the
Tabernacle furniture in the Holy +lace1 the lampstand has se&en lamps, while the table of
showbread has D3 loa&es on it2
hy a temporary Tabernacle for a time, and then a permanent Temple location1
The temporary Tabernacle (preceding the permanent Temple in 'erusalem! shows the process
%H:H has for man. ?e are in a schoolhouse here on earth where we lie and deelop character and
loe (or not!1 and we either turn to God (or not!, depending on our free will choices. Howeer, there is
coming a timeafter the <nd of 6ays periodwhen the &essiah will come and establish the )ingdom
of God on earth. He will establish his headquarters in Eion@'erusalem on earth (as aboe so below,
where the heaenly city is also called Eion and the heaenly 'erusalem aboe!. The -ible shows us this
process where there is a temporary Tabernacle for an appointed period, and then the permanent. The
building of the permanent Temple in 'erusalem is portrayed as a type of the coming of Ding &essiah to
reign on the earth after the <nd of 6ays transitional period.
#n the same way, we as humans lie our lies as eternal spirit beings temporarily inhabiting a
fleshly body, and parta)ing of the lessons life has to offer. After this life is oer, there is a permanent
status. +eople who die don;t cease to e=ist* their spirit body doesn;t die at all. The Hindus teach that
man has a spar) of the eternal God in them* but that is incorrect in a way. ?e hae an eternal spirit
body that has free willor else why does the -ible say, Iturn to %H:H, and rend your hearts.J %es,
when a person turns to God, He does choose to indwell the person;s spirit with His Gpiritthe same
way that the fiery cloud hoered oer the ar) of the coenant in the &ost Holy +lace. -ut if a person
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does not turn to God, then He chooses not to indwell the person. The choice to hae this relationship
with the (reator is a free will choice of each human.
Romans L1/7 ,or the #pirit %imself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of
God.
/ (orinthians 21//$/2 ,or who among men )nows the thoughts of a man e=cept the spirit
of the man, which is in him. <en so the thoughts of God no one )nows e=cept the #pirit
of .od. 4ow we ha&e recei&ed, not the spirit of the world, but the #pirit who is from
.od, that we may 'now the things freely gi&en to us by .od.
This is the whole purpose of salation in %eshua our &essiah, that we hae a relationship with the
,ather (God!, who spea)s with us Gpirit to spirit. ?e are one being5a unity* but we are a tripartite
being made up of spirit, soul, and body. ?hile we can dissemble ourseles into parts, yet we are one.
/s the spirit of man eternal1
#t is in fact the error in understanding the nature of man, which led to arguments about what
happens after a person dies. Gome taught that the soul goes to heaen, some that the spirit goes to
heaen, etc. #n actuality, the spirit goes to heaen (or the other place! at death. The body is laid in the
ground, and the soul energy, which is the interface between the body and spirit of man is in a sleep
state (the soul dies, but is presered by God in a sleep state for the future resurrection!. %eshua ('esus!
addressed the +harisees and Gadducees in &atthew 22 oer the issue of a resurrection.
&atthew 22123 "n that day some Gadducees (who say there is no resurrection! came to
Him, and questioned Him.
%eshua ('esus! answered clearly1
&atthew 22132 (spo)en by God...! # am the God of Abraham, and the God of #saac, and the
God of 'acob. .od is NOT the .od of the dead but O@ T%( 6/,/N..
%eshua ('esus! was saying that Abraham, and #saac and 'acob are alie right now in heaen. He
was referring bac) to the statement in <=odus 317, where God spo)e to &oses from the burning bush.
<=odus 317 &oreoer, He said, I# am the God of your father1 the God of Abraham, the God
of #saac, and the God of 'acob.
He didn;t say, I-efore they died, # was the God of ...J The fleshly bodies of Abraham, and #saac
and 'acob were dead* but they presently lie in heaen in their spirit bodies which has substance there
the same as our earthly bodies do here on earth. The following te=ts show e=istence of the spirit body
of man before they are born1
+salm 221/A ...%ou hae been my God from my mother;s womb.
2L
#saiah 8812 (to 'acob@#srael! ...and formed you from the womb*...
#saiah 88128 Thus says the 5ord, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the
womb...
#saiah 8H1/ (to #srael@&essiah! The 5ord called me from the womb* from the body of my
mother He named me.
#saiah 8H10 ...who formed me from the womb to be His serant...
'eremiah /10 (to 'eremiah! +efore / formed you in the womb / 'new you* and before you
were born # consecrated you*...(God )new 'eremiah as a spirit before he was in the womb!.
Galatians /1/0 (to Ghaul@+aul! -ut when He had set me apart, een from my mother;s
womb, and called me through His grace...
5u)e /1/0 (to %ochanan@'ohn the bapti>er! ...and he will be filled with the Holy Gpirit
while yet in his mother;s womb.
'ohn /1/8 And the ord became flesh, and tabernacled (dwelt) among us, and we
beheld His glory, glory as the only begotten from the ,ather, full of grace and truth.
+salms /3H1/3$/7 ,or you formed my inward parts* you weaed me in my mother;s womb.
# will gie than)s to you, for # am fearfully and wonderfully made* wonderful are %our
wor)s, and my soul )nows it well. My frame was not hidden from <ou, when / was
made in secret, and s'illfully wrought in the depths of the earth2 <our eyes ha&e seen
my unformed substance= and in <our boo' they were all written, the days that were
ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them2
God ordained His plan for our life (each of us! in a boo) before we were eer born. He has a plan
for each of us. Howeer, He gies us free will to choose whether we will )now Him and follow His
plan for us* or whether we will choose by our free will to go our own way.
hat happens when we die1
+salms /8713$8 6o not trust in princes, in mortal man, in whom there is no salation. %is
spirit departs (to the spirit world), he returns to the earth (his flesh).
Genesis 31/H -y the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground,
because from it you were ta)en* for you are dust, and to dust you shall return2 (the flesh
returns to the earth).
<cclesiastes 01/0 As he had come na)ed from his mother;s womb, so he will return as he
came2 (spirit coming to inhabit the flesh, spirit lea&ing at death).
2H
<cclesiastes /210 ...,or man goes to his eternal home while mourners go about in the
street.
<cclesiastes /21K ...then the dust will return to the earth (the flesh) as it was, and the
spirit will return to .od who ga&e it2
+salms L210$K They do not )now nor do they understand* they wal) about in dar)ness* all
the foundations of the earth are sha)en. # said, Iyou are gods, and all of you are sons of
the Most %igh. 4eertheless you will die li)e men and fall li)e any one of the princes.J
#t is clear that we hae a spirit body and a fleshly body. ?hen we die, our spirit body departs to the
spirit dimension. The spirit of man is eternal, but the soul is not (it dies!. That;s the mista)e of dualists
and those who sloppily use the word soul wrongly. #s there real eidence for this* or do we hae to only
ta)e the -ible;s case for this premise.

&uch scientific research has been done on 4ear 6eath <=periences (46<!, in which a person
clinically dies and is later resuscitated. Thousands of indiiduals hae gone through this 46<
e=perience and there are common threads to their stories. There is at first a separation from the body
and the person is aware and can loo) down and see medical people wor)ing on their body. They can
remember what the medical people did and what they said. Then there is a tunnel (li)e a wormhole!
which draws the person in and they trael at high speed through the tunnel. They come out on the other
side into an area of light and are met there by light beings. They are gien some information and told
they must go bac), because they still hae things to accomplish in this life. "thers are gien the choice
on whether they will go bac). ,ollowing this they are placed bac) in their body.
There is also a negatie 4ear 6eath <=perience. A small percentage of peopleinstead of going to
the lighthae gone to what is a hell e=perience (going to the dar)ness!. They saw a place where
there is separation from God the (reator. There is consistency too in the e=periences of those who had
the negatie 46<. 4eedless to say, those who;e had a negatie 46< are much more reluctant to
publicly share what they went through. "ne can conclude that the negatie 46< is an e=ample of the
boundless mercy of God* warning those who are on the wrong path, so that they can return and repent.
Gome would scoff at scientific research into 46<;s* but the eyewitness eidence of an 46<
includes countless catalogued cases. The e=periencer testified in great detail what went on in the
operating room while they were clinically dead* and often what went on in other rooms in the hospital.
Anyone who thoughtfully e=amines the e=tensiely documented cases of 46<;s cannot so easily write
off these cases as a dying brain still being aware for a time. After all, how could this dying brain )now
details of what went on in other rooms of the hospital at the same time (while they were clinically
dead!.
Another area that testifies to the eternal part of man are the thousands of people who;e been isited
3A
by the spirit of a person who Bust died. There are thousands of cases where a person across the country,
separated by thousands of miles, was isited momentarily by the spirit of the departing person. "ften,
those isited by the departing spirit didn;t een )now yet that the person had died. %et, they isually
saw the personwho oftentimes then faded out. #t was a way for the person who had Bust died to say
goodbye and to proide comfort to the loed one. The phenomena also proides a strong witness that
life does not end at the death of the body.
The redeemed ha&e a down?payment now, what is The !romise to *ome1
The spirit body departs at death, but is the accumulation of the soul and the fleshly body thrown off
foreer li)e a used up rag. The spirit body does go to the spirit dimension at death* but there is a
promise in the -ible of a future timewhen people will receie bac) their flesh in a perfected state as
well as their soul in a perfected state. # won;t go through all the scriptural eidence (see / (orinthians
/0, and / Thessalonians 81/3$/L!* but the promise is of a future perfect spirit, soul and body being put
bac) together. #t will be a body that does not age and is always at the prime of life and strength. #t is the
promise of what Adam and <e had before the fall into sin.
#ummary
&an is a tripartite being made up of spirit, soul and body. The spirit body inhabits this fleshly body,
and the spirit body is eternal. The spirit body has within it the heart and conscience. The soul is the
energy interface between the fleshly body and the spirit body. The soul is made up of mind, will and
emotions. 5astly, the fleshly body has the 0 physical senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste.
The whole purpose for the design of the Tabernacle and Temple is to show eery generation the
tripartite nature of man. ,urther, it shows how God the (reator interacts with and inhabits people in
their spiritspea)ing to us Gpirit to spirit ia the still small oice within. The courtyard of the
Tabernacle represents the fleshly body of man* the Holy +lace represents the soul of man* and the &ost
Holy +lace represents the spirit@heart of man. The presence of God in the fiery cloud shows where the
(reator inhabits usoer the ar) of the coenant in the &ost Holy +lace (the heart in the spirit of
man!.
?e deelop spiritually as humans through an identifiable process1
+salms 812$3 (8$0! -ut )now that %H:H (the 5ord! has set apart the godly man for
Himself* %H:H will hear when # call to Him. Tremble, and do not sin* meditate in your
heart upon your bed, and be still.
+salms /H1/8 (/0! 5et the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart, be
acceptable before you %H:H, my roc) and my redeemer.
3/
+salms 2L1K %H:H (the 5ord! is my strength and my
shield* my heart trusts in %im and / am helped*
therefore my heart greatly reBoices, and with my song # will
than) Him.
+salms KK10$7 (7$K! # hae considered the days of old, the
years of long ago. # will remember my song in the night* /
will meditate with my heart= and my spirit searches.
&editationupon the written word of God (the -ible! and
upon God;s words when He spea)s to uswor)s to deelop
our spirit. This is not a meditation process whereby we empty
our minds* but we e=amine our lies and choices made against
the standard of the written and spo)en word of God. "f course,
reading the -ible proides the source material for the Gpirit of
God to teach us in our inward parts.
?hen the &essiah comes to reign on the earth for /AAA
years after the <nd of 6ays period, a new Temple will be built
on an e=panded Temple &ount in 'erusalem. #t has a purpose
besides proiding a place for the &essiah to reside. #ts purpose
is to show people the tripartite nature of man throughout the
/AAA years. -abies will still be born* and there will remain a
need to show man that he is more than a temporary person who dies and ceases to e=ist foreer
(secularist or eolutionist iew!, or more than a simplistic duality. Man is a tripartite being of eternal
spirit body with temporal fleshly body and a soul energy interface between the two.
contact Roy A. Reinhold at prophecyA8Ycomcast.net
,or those who would li)e to print this article and distribute it to their group, # hereby gie my
permission. #t is copyrighted, so copy it right. 4ot to be sold. Roy
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