Re: Question concerning psyche/soul?

From: Wes Williams (WesWilliams@usa.net)
Date: Tue Jan 20 1998 - 00:47:06 EST


> I know that the Greek word "psyche" is translated into English as "soul."
> But, what does it mean? Is there a different Greek word for "spirit?"
> Does the Greek word "psyche" mean the same thing that we typically think
> the English word "soul" means? Any help would be appreciated.
> Rev. Dr. Lawrence Michael Cameron

Larry,

When it comes to words like YUCH for which various theological institutions
express different meanings, I like examining the texts themselves and
bypassing the commentaries. Since YUCH translates the Hebrew NEPHESH,
examining the usage of the Old Testament NEPHESH (or Greek LXX usage of YUCH)
is an excellent place to start, since this will give the indication what YUCH
meant to the first century Israelite who later became a Christian.

Here are all of the instances where YUCH is in the LXX:
(I posted all 899 instances in 675 citations from the LXX but decided it was
too much so I deleted them. Here are the references from the first five
books, which is plenty.) You will find it variously translated "being"
"creature" "person" "self" "life." You will find that, as translated
"person" "creature" "being," it does all the various concrete things that
people and animals do (it eats meat, pursues others, it is born and dies, it
can be counted as it walks by and given as a tax, etc). When it has reference
to life, or the life someone enjoys, (the English translation "life") it can
be spoken of abstractly in terms of "losing one's soul," "gaining one's
soul," etc.

Gen. 1:20, Gen. 1:21, Gen. 1:24, Gen. 1:30, Gen. 2:7, Gen. 2:19, Gen. 9:4,
Gen. 9:5, Gen. 9:10, Gen. 9:12, Gen. 9:15, Gen. 9:16, Gen. 12:5, Gen. 12:13,
Gen. 17:14, Gen. 19:17, Gen. 19:19, Gen. 19:20, Gen. 23:8, Gen. 27:4, Gen.
27:19, Gen. 27:25, Gen. 27:31, Gen. 32:31, Gen. 34:3, Gen. 34:8, Gen. 35:18,
Gen. 37:21, Gen. 41:8, Gen. 42:21, Gen. 44:30, Gen. 46:15, Gen. 46:18, Gen.
46:22, Gen. 46:25, Gen. 46:26, Gen. 46:27, Gen. 49:6, Exod. 1:5, Exod. 4:19,
Exod. 12:4, Exod. 12:15, Exod. 12:16, Exod. 12:19, Exod. 15:9, Exod. 16:16,
Exod. 21:23, Exod. 21:30, Exod. 23:9, Exod. 30:12, Exod. 30:15, Exod. 30:16,
Exod. 31:14, Exod. 35:21, Lev. 2:1, Lev. 4:2, Lev. 4:27, Lev. 5:1, Lev. 5:2,
Lev. 5:4, Lev. 5:15, Lev. 5:17, Lev. 5:21, Lev. 7:18, Lev. 7:20, Lev. 7:21,
Lev. 7:25, Lev. 7:27, Lev. 11:10, Lev. 11:43, Lev. 11:44, Lev. 11:46, Lev.
16:29, Lev. 16:31, Lev. 17:4, Lev. 17:10, Lev. 17:11, Lev. 17:12, Lev. 17:14,
Lev. 17:15, Lev. 18:29, Lev. 19:8, Lev. 19:28, Lev. 20:6, Lev. 20:25, Lev.
21:1, Lev. 21:11, Lev. 22:3, Lev. 22:4, Lev. 22:6, Lev. 22:11, Lev. 23:27,
Lev. 23:29, Lev. 23:30, Lev. 23:32, Lev. 24:17, Lev. 24:18, Lev. 26:11, Lev.
26:15, Lev. 26:16, Lev. 26:30, Lev. 26:43, Lev. 27:2, Num. 5:2, Num. 5:6,
Num. 6:6, Num. 6:11, Num. 9:6, Num. 9:7, Num. 9:10, Num. 9:13, Num. 11:6,
Num. 15:27, Num. 15:28, Num. 15:30, Num. 15:31, Num. 17:3, Num. 19:11, Num.
19:13, Num. 19:18, Num. 19:20, Num. 19:22, Num. 21:5, Num. 23:10, Num. 29:7,
Num. 30:3, Num. 30:5, Num. 30:6, Num. 30:7, Num. 30:8, Num. 30:9, Num. 30:10,
Num. 30:11, Num. 30:12, Num. 30:13, Num. 30:14, Num. 31:28, Num. 31:35, Num.
31:40, Num. 31:46, Num. 35:11, Num. 35:15, Num. 35:30, Num. 35:31, Deut. 4:9,
Deut. 4:15, Deut. 4:29, Deut. 6:5, Deut. 6:6, Deut. 10:12, Deut. 10:22, Deut.
11:13, Deut. 11:18, Deut. 12:20, Deut. 12:21, Deut. 12:23, Deut. 13:4, Deut.
13:7, Deut. 14:26, Deut. 16:8, Deut. 18:6, Deut. 19:6, Deut. 19:11, Deut.
19:21, Deut. 22:26, Deut. 23:26, Deut. 24:6, Deut. 24:7, Deut. 26:16, Deut.
27:25, Deut. 28:65, Deut. 30:2, Deut. 30:6, Deut. 30:10

Sincerely,
Wes Williams



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