Biblical anthropology is the
study of human beings as they relate to God. The main aspect of biblical
anthropology is the nature or constitution of man—both the outer and inner man.
Genesis 2:7 states, “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.”
The phrase “became a living soul” (Genesis 2:7)
does not refer to the inner, immaterial aspect of man. Rather, “soul” (nephesh) is used in this passage to
describe the entire person or that man became an animated being, cf. Numbers
19:13 where “whosever” touches a dead body (nephesh),
“that soul (nephesh)” was cut off
from the congregation of Israel. Nevertheless, this passage also illustrates a
difference between the idea of the physical, material aspect of man—that which
was “formed,” and the inner, immaterial aspect of man—the breath of life. The
physical and spiritual natures of man are also indicated in Job 33:4, “The
Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life,”
and Job 32:8, “But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the
Almighty giveth them understanding.” Jesus also noted the distinction between
the material and immaterial person in Luke 24:39 where He encouraged the
disciples to handle his hands and feet because a “spirit hath not flesh and bones.”
The physical, material aspect of man is that which is
discernable by sight and touch (Luke 24:39). This nature of man is referred to
as “flesh” (John 3:6), “flesh and blood” (1 Corinthians 15:50), body (Matthew
14:12), and “outward man” (2 Corinthians 4:16). The material aspect of man is
also used to refer to the complete being of a person. For example, in Acts
2:17, when God says that He will pour out His Spirit “upon all flesh,” the term
“flesh” is used regards to the entire person not just the skin that covers the
body. This is easily understood given that Spirit is said to “dwell in”
believers (Romans 8:9). The term “flesh” can also refer to the inner desires of
a person specifically in regards to sin. The idiom “lust of the flesh” is not
limited simply to those desires that appeal to the natural flesh, but also
include inward desires such as lust, hate, envy, etc. (Galatians 5:19-21).
The physical, “outward man” is distinguished from the
immaterial “inward man.” The distinction between the material and immaterial
aspect of man is described as “soul and body” (Isaiah 10:18; Matthew 10:28) or
“body and spirit” (Daniel 7:15; 1 Corinthians 7:34). The question, then, in
regards to the study of biblical anthropology is this: are there two parts of
the immaterial, inner man—soul and spirit, or do the terms “soul” and “spirit”
refer to the same immaterial nature? These two views are referred to as
Trichotomy—man is made up of three parts: body, soul, and spirit; or
Dichotomy—man is comprised of two parts: material (body) and immaterial
(soul/spirit).
Among early church theologians, the “trichotomic
conception of man found considerable favor with the Greek or Alexandrian Church
Fathers,” however leading theologians in the Latin Church “distinctly favored
the twofold division of human nature” (Clark) .
The Dichotomy view also gained much support among both Roman Catholic and
Protestant Reformers. In the nineteenth century, Trichotomy became favored
among German and English scholars such as Olshausen, Beck, Delitsch, White and
Heard. Modern scholars and theologians are equally divided concerning this
issue of biblical anthropology.
Trichotomy
Trichotomy understands humans as being composed of three
parts or natures: body, soul, and spirit. The foundation of the trichotomy view is the idea that “Man
is made in the Image of the Triune
God” (Stewart) .
Stewart argues that Trinitarian theology is the “single greatest reason to
believe in our tri-part nature: God is Three in One. Man in God’s Image is
three in one.” This idea can be traced back as far as Augustine who reasoned
that if God is triune, then the best reflection of His triune nature would be
found in humans who were created in the image of God (Erickson) .
However, this is not an adequate parallel because even if we understand a
tri-part nature in man, the body, soul, and spirit are not three separate and
distinct persons as Trinitarians distinguish between Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit. At best, the body, soul, and spirit can be described as “modes of
being” of one person. Thus, a Trichotomist comparison of body, soul, and spirit
to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit would lead to one of two possibilities (1)
each person in the Godhead is only 1/3 God, given that body, soul, and spirit
each comprise a “part” of the complete man, or (2) the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit are not three separate and distinct persons, but are three “modes of
being” (Erickson, Christian Doctrine) .
Trichotomist appeal to 1 Thessalonians 5:23 as their
greatest Scriptural proof for a three-fold nature of man. In his final address
to the Thessalonians, Paul stated, “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify
you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless
at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” On the surface this passage appears to
teach a three-part division of the whole man: body, soul, and spirit. However,
given that this passages is simply a final prayer of Paul towards the Thessalonians,
these words should not be regarded as a detailed treaty on the material and
immaterial man. Philip Schaff commented, “Language thus used should not be too
closely analyzed” (Schaff,
Popular Commentary on the New Testament) . Marvin Vincent
agreed, “It is useless to attempt to draw from these words a technical,
psychological statement of a threefold division of the human personality” (Vincent) . Most commentators
simply recognize this statement as being a literary repetition i.e. using
synonyms for effect. We might compare this to the way Paul distinguished
adultery from fornication in Galatians 5:19, yet the same term fornication
includes adultery in passages such as Matthew 19:9; Acts 15:20; and 1 Corinthians
6:18. Taken to extreme, the Trichotomist interpretation of 1 Thessalonians 5:23
would lead to the conclusion that Mark 12:30 in fact teaches a four-fold
division of man: “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”
The only other passage in the Bible that seems to teach a
distinction between the soul and spirit is Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God
is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the
division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the
thoughts and intentions of the heart.” However, the term “soul” (psyche) can easily be understood to refer
to the entire person, including the material man. In Acts 2:27, speaking of the
resurrection of Christ, it was prophesied, “For you will not abandon my soul to
Hades.” The word “soul” in regards to Christ’s resurrection can only refer to
the complete person—both material and immaterial. Thus, in Hebrews 4:12 the dividing
of “soul and spirit” seems to indicate the division of the immaterial (spirit) from the complete person
(material—soul).
Dichotomy
The Dichotomy view understands man as being comprised of
two parts—material (body, flesh), and immaterial (soul/spirit). According to
the Dichotomy view, the terms “soul” and “spirit” are used synonymously to
refer to the same immaterial nature of man. A careful study of the Scriptures
shows that the terms “soul” and “spirit” are used interchangeably. For example,
Job 7:11, “Therefore I will not refrain my mouth; I will speak in the
anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.” The final
clause “complain in the bitterness of my soul” is simply an emphatic repetition
of the proceeding statement, “speak in the anguish of my spirit.” The same is
true with Isaiah 26:9, “With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea,
with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in
the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.” Isaiah was
not saying that he sought the Lord at night with one aspect of his inner being,
and in the morning with a different aspect. In Luke 1:46-47, Mary used this
same parallelism in her song of praise, “My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my
spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.”
What is said of the soul is also said of the spirit. The
Scriptural formula for humans in some passages is “body and soul” (Isaiah
10:18; Matthew 6:25), while in others “body and spirit” (Daniel 7:15; 1
Corinthians 6:20). Death is described as the soul departing (Genesis 35:18) or
“gave up the ghost” (ekpsychō—out of breath
from psyche i.e. soul). Yet in other passages death is referred to as
giving up the spirit (Psalm 31:5; Acts 7:59). In addition, the dead in heaven
are referred to as both “spirits” (Hebrews 12:23) and “souls” (Revelation 6:9).
Any distinctions seen between the terms “soul” and “spirit” may be explained as
“the word ‘spirit’ designates the spiritual element in man as the principle of
life and action which controls the body; while the word ‘soul’ denominates the
same element as the subject of action in man” (Clark) .
Conclusion
The Scriptures seem to indicate a
two-fold division or dichotomy of man: material (physical body/flesh) and
immaterial (soul/spirit). The ramifications of this conclusion play an
important part on our view of the humanity of Christ. The Trichotomist are
faced with the question of whether or not Jesus had a human “soul” separate and
distinct from His divine Spirit, given that they distinguish the soul from the
spirit. However, to the Dichotomist this is no issue at all, and is confirmed
by the fact that Jesus could say “Now is my soul troubled” (John 12:27), yet
later read that Jesus was “troubled in spirit.” Thus, the Dichotomy view better
explains the dual nature of Jesus Christ: the immaterial Deity (spirit)
manifest in material flesh (humanity) cf. John 1:1, 14; 1 Timothy 3:16.
Work Cited
Clark, R. Scott. Reformed Basics
on Dichotomy and Trichotomy. 14 March 2014. Web. 22 November 2016.
Erickson, Millard. Christian
Doctrine. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001. Print.
—. Making Sense of the Trinity.
Grand Rapids: Baker, 2000. Print.
Schaff, Philip. "Popular
Commentary of the New Testament." Excursus A. On the Pentecostal
Miracle. New York: T&T Clark, 1890. E-Sword Module.
—. Popular Commentary on the New
Testament. n.d. E-Sword Module.
Stewart, Spencer. Dichotomy versus
Trichotomy. El Dorado: Project one28 Publishing, 2010. Print.
Vincent, Marvin. Word Studies.
n.d. E-Sword Module.
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