What is the soul?

The truth is simple. The sad fact is, though, most people prefer to believe lies. And consequently, the truth is an alien thing to them.

No doubt the primary reason most people embrace the prevalent lies common to the world is due to the evil influence of the one whom Jesus described as both the ruler of the world and the father of the lie - Satan the Devil.

One of the most pervasive lies among both religious and non-religious persons alike is the belief that humans have a soul that lives on after death. If any religious belief could be considered universal it is the belief in an immortal soul. The belief in an immortal soul is as ancient as it is widespread. Ironically, the most ancient and authoritative book on such matters of belief - the Holy Bible - does not teach it. That is why Jehovah's Witnesses do not believe in the immortality of the soul.

The simple truth contained in the ancient Scriptures is that man is mortal and death brings about a complete loss of consciousness. That is why the Bible speaks of those asleep in death. Death is likened to sleep because when a person is deep asleep they are not conscious. Death is the opposite of life. There is no support in the Bible for the popular belief in an undying soul.

The truth revealed in the Bible is very simple: God originally made man out of the dust of the earth and animated him with the spark of life. The Scriptures word it this way: "And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." - Genesis 2:7 (American Standard Version)

However, most modern translations do not translate Genesis 2:7 to say, "Man became a living soul," for obvious reasons. Instead, they use expressions like: "and the man became a living being." (NIV) But the original Hebrew word used there is nephesh, which in other passages is translated as soul. Evidently the translators of popular Bibles like the New International Version prefer not to confuse their readers with inconvenient truths, such as the obvious truth that man is a soul, rather than being endowed with an immortal soul.

Elsewhere in the Bible, such as the very first chapter in Genesis, animals and even fish are referred to as living souls. (Genesis 1:21) Again, translators of popular versions also inconsistently render those passages without using the word soul, preferring to use the word "creatures" instead and usually without providing so much as a footnote explaining their omission. Obviously, this is done in order to perpetuate the fraud that humans have souls that survive death.

But according to the way the Hebrew word for soul is used, it is apparent that a soul is any breathing creature. In fact, the Hebrew word nephesh literally means "breather." And when a breather stops breathing the soul dies. The afterlife promised in the Bible will be accomplished by means of a resurrection of the dead.