Module 7 · Lesson 30
What Does "Spirit" Mean in the Bible?
Let the Bible define its own word.
15 minutes
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“For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:11)
- Learn how the Bible uses the word "spirit" of ordinary people
- See how it uses "the spirit of Jesus" and "the Spirit of God"
- Find out how "Holy Spirit" is used of both the Father and the Son
- Test the principle against the "distinct someone" argument from Romans 8:16
- Discover why the phrase "God the Holy Spirit" is absent from Scripture
Start with a question When the Bible says "his spirit was troubled," whose spirit is it? Is it a second, separate person living inside him, or is it the man himself? To answer this, we must do what The Antichrist Across Scripture demands: we must let the Bible define its own terms, rather than importing a philosophical creed from the fourth century.
Step 1: "Spirit" of an ordinary person The Hebrew ruach and the Greek pneuma both mean breath, wind, and spirit (as we saw in Lesson 13). Used of a person, the "spirit" is the inner, non-physical side of that person: their life, mind, and heart.
“And her spirit came again, and she arose straightway.” (Luke 8:55) “Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him.” (Daniel 2:1) “Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him.” (Acts 17:16)
Whose spirit came back into the girl? Her own. Whose spirit was troubled? The king's. Whose spirit was stirred? Paul's. In every case, "his spirit" is the person himself, seen from within.
Before we go further, read how the words for spirit are used. The same word means wind, breath, and the life and mind of a person:
“And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.” (Genesis 3:8) “And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.” (Isaiah 7:2) “The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8) “Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:” (Isaiah 42:5) “Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.” (Matthew 27:50) “The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear?” (Proverbs 18:14) “And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.” (Luke 1:46–47) “Therefore we were comforted in your comfort: yea, and exceedingly the more joyed we for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all.” (2 Corinthians 7:13) “But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.” (Matthew 10:19–20) “Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.” (1 Peter 1:10–11)
Has anyone ever suggested that "Nebuchadnezzar's spirit" was a second person living in Nebuchadnezzar? Why not? Because logic and Scripture dictate that a person's spirit is the person themselves.
Step 2: The "spirit" of Jesus The Gospels use the exact same language of Jesus: “And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, he said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts?” (Mark 2:8) “And he sighed deeply in his spirit.” (Mark 8:12)
It was Jesus who perceived, and Jesus who sighed. And on the cross: “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.” (Luke 23:46) “And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” (Acts 7:59)
Stephen wasn't handing over a second person called "my spirit." Neither was Jesus. They were committing themselves.
Step 3: The "Spirit" of God Paul draws the comparison himself, and it is the master key to this entire module:
“For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:11)
Notice the argument. As a man's spirit knows his own thoughts, so God's Spirit knows God's thoughts. Paul compares the Spirit of God to the spirit of a man: it is God's own inner life, mind, and presence. Paul also treats "the Spirit of the Lord" and "the mind of the Lord" as the exact same thing: “Who hath directed the Spirit of the LORD, or being his counsellor hath taught him?” (Isaiah 40:13) “For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?” (Romans 11:34)
Paul quotes Isaiah's "Spirit of the LORD" and writes "mind of the Lord." In Paul's understanding, the Spirit of the Lord is the Lord's own mind.
Step 4: Whose Spirit is "the Holy Spirit"? The words "Holy Spirit" do not name a new, third person. They describe what kind of spirit it is: holy, because it belongs to one who is holy. And the Bible uses the exact same words for both the Father's Spirit and the Son's:
| The Father's Spirit | The Son's Spirit |
|---|---|
| "It is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you." (Matthew 10:20) | "The Spirit of Christ which was in them [the prophets]." (1 Peter 1:11) |
| "Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." (2 Peter 1:21) | "The Spirit of Jesus suffered them not." (Acts 16:7, RV/ASV) |
And compare Matthew 10:20 with the parallel in Mark 13:11: "it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost." Matthew calls it "the Spirit of your Father." Mark calls it "the Holy Ghost." They are the exact same Spirit.
“But Romans 8:16 says ‘The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit.’ The Spirit and our spirit are two. So the Spirit is a distinct someone, a third person.”
Look at how this verse works. Our spirit and the Spirit of God are distinct, yes: God is not us. But that does not make the Spirit a third Person within God. It means God's Spirit, God's own presence, witnesses with our spirit. The Father and the Son are not our spirit, and their Spirit is not us either. What the verse shows is that God's Spirit and our spirit are different. It does not show that God's Spirit is a third being distinct from God. As The Indwelling Hope makes clear, if the Holy Spirit were a third person, we would be receiving a proxy. But because the Spirit is the very mind and presence of the Father and the Son, when we receive the Spirit, we are receiving Christ Himself. Lesson 32 will show that the texts which seem to say the Spirit is a distinct person actually point back to the Father and the Son acting by their own Spirit.
The Missing Phrase Search your Bible from Genesis to Revelation. You will find "Spirit of God," "Spirit of Christ," "Spirit of truth," and "Holy Ghost." But you will never find the phrase "God the Holy Spirit." Why? Because the Bible does not teach a third person in a triune Godhead. It teaches the Spirit of the Father, and the Spirit of the Son, which is the very life of God dwelling in His people.
- In Scripture, a person's "spirit" is the person's own life and mind.
- The Bible speaks of Jesus' spirit in the exact same way.
- Paul compares God's Spirit to a man's spirit, proving it is God's own inner life.
- "Holy Spirit" is used of the Father's Spirit and of the Spirit of Christ.
- "Holy" describes whose spirit it is; it does not create a third person.
- When I read "the Spirit of God," whom do I picture? A third person, or the Father and the Son dwelling in me?
- What does 1 Corinthians 2:11 say about the relationship between God and His Spirit?
- How would I answer someone who uses Romans 8:16 to prove a "third person"?
1 Corinthians 2:11
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If "the Holy Spirit" is the Spirit of the Father and of the Son, whose Spirit is the promised Comforter? And why did Jesus say, "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you"?