Animals, Do They Have a Soul, Can the Soul Die?
ANIMALS, DO THEY HAVE A SOUL?
CAN THE SOUL DIE?
Soul in our English Bible is translated from “nehphesh” in the Hebrew Old
Testament. In all 870 times this word is used it is associated with the activity of a
living being, mankind, animals, and sea life, including dying, it never implies
anything about life after the death of the living being. None of the 870 times are an
immortal, immaterial, inter something in a person that has no substance; souls
(nehpheshs) are the living being (persons, animals, or any living thing) that can die, be
killed, or is already be dead.
Soul (nehphesh) as it is used in the Bible although that it is used it is more often
than not hid for the English readers by the way it was translated or mistranslated.
 Genesis 1:20 "The moving creature that has life" [soul–nehphesh, used referring
to animals]. Footnote in the King James Version, "The moving creature that has soul."
"Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures" [soul–nehphesh] (American
Standard Version) "The moving creature that has life" (footnote in KJV).
If “soul” were an immortal "immaterial, invisible part of man" (W. E. Vine,
Expository Dictionary Of Old And New Testament Words), why is this Hebrew
word that is translated soul also translated "living creature" when it is speaking of
animals in Genesis 1:21; 1:24; 2:19; 9:10; 9:12; 9:15; 9:16 when the same
Hebrew word [nehphesh] is translated "living soul" in Genesis 2:7 when it is
speaking of a person? In the Hebrew, if this word were an immaterial, immortal
part of a person, it would also be an immaterial, immortal part of animals.
 Genesis 1:21 "living creature" [soul–nehphesh, used referring to animals], "And
God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature [soul–nehphesh] that
moves wherewith the water swarmed.”
 Genesis 1:24 "living creature" [soul–nehphesh, used referring to animals], "And
God said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures [soul–nehphesh] after their kind,
cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth."
 Genesis 1:30 "life" [soul–nehphesh, used referring to animals], "And to every
beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that creeps upon
the earth, wherein there is life" [soul–nehphesh]; animals are "a living soul."
ALL FOUR TIMES THAT SOUL [nehphesh] IS USED IN GENESIS ONE, IT IS
USED REFERRING TO ANIMALS, NOT TO A PERSON. ANIMALS WERE
SOULS, LIVING BEINGS, BEFORE ANY MAN EXISTED. "Then God said, 'Let
the waters teem with swarms of living souls [soul–nehpheshs], and let birds fly above the
earth in the open expanse of the heavens.' And God created the great sea monsters, and
every living soul [soul-nehphesh] that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their
kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good. And God
blessed them, saying, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let
birds multiply on the earth.' And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.
Then God said, 'Let the earth bring forth living souls [soul–nehpheshs] after their kind:
cattle and creeping thing and beasts of the earth after their kind'; and it was so...and to
every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to everything that creeps upon
the earth, wherein there is life [soul–nehphesh], I have given every green herb for meat"
[Genesis 1:20-30]. “Living creatures" [soul–nehphesh] is used to describe all living