Topical Encyclopedia In the biblical context, the term "spirits" encompasses a range of meanings, including the Holy Spirit, human spirits, and evil or unclean spirits. Each of these plays a significant role in the narrative of Scripture and the life of believers.The Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit is active in creation, inspiration of Scripture, and the life of believers. In Genesis 1:2, the Spirit of God is described as hovering over the waters during creation. The Holy Spirit's role in the inspiration of Scripture is affirmed in 2 Peter 1:21: "For no prophecy was ever brought about through human initiative, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit." In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit is central to the life of the Church and individual believers. Jesus promised the coming of the Holy Spirit as a Helper and Comforter in John 14:16-17: "And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth." The Holy Spirit empowers believers for service, convicts the world of sin, and guides into all truth (John 16:8-13). Human Spirits The human spirit is the immaterial part of a person, often associated with the soul. It is the aspect of humanity that connects with God. Ecclesiastes 12:7 states, "Then the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it." The human spirit is capable of worship, as seen in John 4:24: "God is Spirit, and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." The human spirit is also subject to renewal and transformation through the work of the Holy Spirit. Romans 8:16 affirms, "The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children." Evil and Unclean Spirits Evil spirits, also known as unclean spirits or demons, are fallen angels who rebelled against God under the leadership of Satan. These spirits are active in opposing God's purposes and afflicting humanity. The Gospels frequently recount Jesus' encounters with evil spirits, demonstrating His authority over them. In Mark 1:23-26, Jesus commands an unclean spirit to come out of a man, and the spirit obeys. Believers are warned to be vigilant against the influence of evil spirits. Ephesians 6:12 reminds Christians, "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." Discernment of Spirits The discernment of spirits is a spiritual gift mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:10, enabling believers to distinguish between the Holy Spirit, human spirits, and evil spirits. This gift is vital for maintaining doctrinal purity and spiritual health within the Church. Conclusion The concept of spirits in the Bible is multifaceted, encompassing the divine presence of the Holy Spirit, the essence of human beings, and the malevolent forces of evil spirits. Each plays a distinct role in the biblical narrative and the spiritual life of believers. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia DISCERNINGS OF SPIRITSdi-zurn'-inz, (diakriseis pneumaton, "judicial estimation," "through judgment or separation"): Occurs in 1 Corinthians 12:10 as being one of the gifts of the Spirit. The Greek word occurs in Hebrews 5:14; and Romans 14:1: "But him that is weak in faith receive ye, yet not for decision of scruples." This translation scarcely expresses the meaning, which Thayer has freely rendered, "not for the purpose of passing judgment on opinions, as to which one is to be preferred as the more correct." Taking these three passages together it is evident that the Greek term which is rendered "discerning" means a distinguishing or discriminating between things that are under consideration; hence, the one who possessed the gift of "discernings of spirits" was able to make distinction between the one who spoke by the Spirit of God and the one who was moved by a false spirit. This gift seems to have been exercised chiefly upon those who assumed the role of teachers, and it was especially important in those days, because there were many false teachers abroad (see 2 John 1:7 Acts 20:29, 30). See also SPIRITUAL GIFTS. PRISON, SPIRITS IN The phrase occurs in the much-disputed passage, 1 Peter 3:18-20, where the apostle, exhorting Christians to endurance under suffering for well-doing, says: "Because Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God; being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison, that aforetime were disobedient, when the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water." It is plain that in this context "the spirits in prison" (tois en phulake pneumasin) denote the generation who were disobedient in the days of Noah, while the words "spirits" and "in prison" refer to their present disembodied condition in a place of judgment in the unseen world (compare 2 Peter 2:4-9). The crucial point in the passage lies in what is said of Christ's preaching to these spirits in prison. The interpretation which strikes one most naturally is that Christ, put to death in the flesh, and made alive again in the spirit, went in this spiritual (disembodied) state, and preached to these spirits, who once had been disobedient, but are viewed as now possibly receptive of His message This is the idea of the passage taken by the majority of modern exegetes, and it finds support in what is said in 1 Peter 4:6, "For unto this end was the gospel preached even to the dead, that they might be judged indeed according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit." On this basis is now often reared a mass of doctrine or conjecture respecting "second probation," "restoration," etc.-in part going back to patristic times-for which the passage, even so taken, affords a very narrow foundation (see on this view, Plumptre, The Spirits in Prison; Dorner, System of Christian Doctrine, IV, 130-32; E. White, Life in Christ, chapter xxii). It must be admitted, however, that, on closer examination, the above plausible explanation is compassed with many difficulties. A preaching of Christ in Hades is referred to in no other passage of Scripture, while Peter appears to be speaking to his readers of something with which they are familiar; it seems strange that these antediluvians should be singled out as the sole objects of this preaching in the spiritual world; the word "made alive" does not exegetically refer to a disembodied state, but to the resurrection of Christ in the body, etc. Another line of interpretation is therefore preferred by many, who take the words "in which also he went," to refer, not to a disembodied manifestation, but to the historical preaching to the antediluvian generation through Noah while they yet lived. In favor of this view is the fact that the apostle in 1 Peter 1:11 regards the earlier prophetic preaching as a testifying of "the Spirit of Christ," that God's long-suffering with Noah's generation is described in Genesis 6:5, which Peter has doubtless in his mind, as a striving of God's Spirit, and that in 2 Peter 2:5 there is another allusion to these events, and Noah is described as "a preacher of righteousness." The passage, 1 Peter 4:6, may have the more general meaning that Christians who have died are at no disadvantage in the judgment as compared with those who shall be alive at the Parousia (compare 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18). (For an exposition of this view, with a full account of the interpretations and literature on the subject, compare Salmond's Christian Doctrine of Immortality, 4th edition, 364-87.) SPIRITS, DISCERNINGS OF See DISCERNINGS OF SPIRITS; SPIRITUAL GIFTS. SPIRITS IN PRISON See PRISON, SPIRITS IN. Greek 86. hades -- Hades, the abode of departed spirits ... Hades, the abode of departed spirits. Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: hades Phonetic Spelling: (hah'-dace) Short Definition: Hades Definition ... //strongsnumbers.com/greek2/86.htm - 7k 4747. stoicheion -- one of a row, hence a letter (of the alphabet) ... 2709. katachthonios -- under the earth 5440. phulakterion -- an outpost, fortification, an amulet 145. aistheterion -- organ of perception 2115. euthumos -- of good cheer 954. Beelzeboul -- Beelzebul, a name of Satan 2174. eupsucheo -- to be of good courage 3791. ochleo -- to disturb, trouble 2114. euthumeo -- to be of good cheer Strong's Hebrew 7496. rapha -- shades, ghosts... 7495, 7496. rapha. 7497 . shades, ghosts. Transliteration: rapha Phonetic Spelling: (raw-faw') Short Definition: spirits. Word Origin ... /hebrew/7496.htm - 6k 3820. leb -- inner man, mind, will, heart 7307. ruach -- breath, wind, spirit 8424. tugah -- grief Library The Unclean Spirits. The Success of the Spirits. Agency of Evil Spirits. Good or Bad Spirits? November the Eighteenth Exhilarant Spirits The Corruption of Rational Spirits is on the one Hand Voluntary ... Agency of Evil Spirits Subjection to the Father of Spirits. Commandment Sixth. How to Recognise the Two Spirits Attendant on ... The Two Kinds of Spirits. Thesaurus Spirits (129 Occurrences)... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia DISCERNINGS OF SPIRITS. di-zurn ... 30). See also SPIRITUAL GIFTS. AW Fortune. PRISON, SPIRITS IN. The ... /s/spirits.htm - 42k Sends (94 Occurrences) Wizards (10 Occurrences) Mediums (10 Occurrences) Driving (144 Occurrences) Foul (41 Occurrences) Spiritists (8 Occurrences) Familiar (35 Occurrences) Discernings (1 Occurrence) Divined (6 Occurrences) Resources What are familiar spirits? | GotQuestions.orgWhat does it mean to test the spirits? | GotQuestions.org Are the demons the disembodied spirits of the Nephilim? | GotQuestions.org Spirits: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com Bible Concordance • Bible Dictionary • Bible Encyclopedia • Topical Bible • Bible Thesuarus Concordance Spirits (129 Occurrences)Matthew 4:24 Matthew 7:22 Matthew 8:16 Matthew 8:28 Matthew 8:31 Matthew 8:33 Matthew 9:34 Matthew 10:1 Matthew 10:8 Matthew 12:24 Matthew 12:27 Matthew 12:28 Matthew 12:45 Mark 1:27 Mark 1:32 Mark 1:34 Mark 1:39 Mark 3:11 Mark 3:15 Mark 3:22 Mark 5:13 Mark 5:15 Mark 5:16 Mark 5:18 Mark 6:7 Mark 6:13 Mark 9:38 Mark 16:9 Mark 16:17 Luke 2:13 Luke 4:36 Luke 4:41 Luke 6:18 Luke 7:21 Luke 8:2 Luke 8:27 Luke 8:30 Luke 8:32 Luke 8:33 Luke 8:35 Luke 8:36 Luke 8:38 Luke 9:1 Luke 9:49 Luke 10:17 Luke 10:20 Luke 11:15 Luke 11:18 Luke 11:19 Luke 11:20 Luke 11:26 Luke 13:32 Acts 5:16 Acts 8:7 Acts 10:38 Acts 19:12 Acts 19:13 Acts 23:8 Acts 27:36 Romans 8:10 Romans 8:16 1 Corinthians 10:20 1 Corinthians 10:21 1 Corinthians 12:10 1 Corinthians 14:12 1 Corinthians 14:32 2 Corinthians 5:3 Galatians 4:3 Galatians 4:9 Galatians 6:18 Ephesians 2:2 Philippians 4:23 Colossians 2:8 Colossians 2:20 1 Thessalonians 5:23 1 Timothy 4:1 Hebrews 1:7 Hebrews 1:14 Hebrews 12:9 Hebrews 12:23 James 2:19 James 3:15 James 5:13 1 Peter 3:19 1 John 4:1 Revelation 1:4 Revelation 3:1 Revelation 4:5 Revelation 5:6 Revelation 9:20 Revelation 16:13 Revelation 16:14 Revelation 18:2 Revelation 22:6 Genesis 26:35 Leviticus 17:7 Leviticus 19:31 Leviticus 20:6 Leviticus 20:27 Numbers 16:22 Subtopics Related Terms |