The soul and body of man after the fall — The Spiritual Man

The soul and body of man after the fall

Adam’s ability to live depended entirely on the breath of life—that is, the spirit. The spirit had a perception of God: it could hear God’s voice, commune with Him, and possessed a keen awareness of divine things. But after Adam’s fall, his spirit died.

In the beginning, God said to Adam, “On the day that you eat of [the tree of the knowledge of good and evil] you shall die” (Genesis 2:17, NRSVue). After Adam and Eve ate the fruit, they still lived for several hundred years. This makes it clear that the death God referred to was not merely physical death. Adam’s death began with the death of his spirit.

So what kind of death was this, in essence? According to scientific understanding, death means "inability to communicate with one’s environment." The death of the spirit, then, is the severing of communication between man’s spirit and God. Physical death occurs when the spirit and the body are separated. Therefore, the death of the spirit does not mean the spirit no longer exists, but that it has lost its sensitivity toward God—it is dead to Him. For example, a mute person is not without a mouth or lungs, but due to a defect, they cannot speak. Their mouth is "dead" to human speech. In the same way, because Adam disobeyed God, his spirit died—it still existed, but it was dead toward God and lost its original function.

Sin corrupts the spirit, causing it to lose its keen sensitivity to the things of God. Afterward, man may still possess religion, morality, knowledge, talent, strength, and even mental and physical health, but he remains dead toward God. He may talk about God, speculate about God, or preach about God, but he is still dead toward Him. He cannot hear or feel the voice of the Holy Spirit. This is why the New Testament often refers to people who are physically alive but spiritually dead.

The death of man’s spirit gradually extended, eventually reaching the body. Although Adam continued to live for a long time after his spirit died, death was already at work in him, operating continually until his spirit, soul, and body were all dead. At that point, the body—originally capable of glorified transformation—returned to dust. The inner man became disordered and fallen, and the outer body was doomed to perish and decay.

From that moment on, Adam’s spirit (and that of his descendants) came under the suppression of the soul. Before long, due to this suppression, the spirit and soul were intertwined so tightly that Hebrews 4:12 says the word of God must "pierce and divide soul and spirit." This division is necessary precisely because the two have been fused together. As the soul and spirit became deeply interwoven, man began to live entirely in the realm of the mind—everything was governed by intellect or emotion. The spirit lost all its capacity and awareness, like being asleep or dead. Though the spirit was originally designed to know and serve God, it now lost all function and lay in a stupor, as if nonexistent.

Jude 1:19 says, "They are worldly people, devoid of the Spirit." (Here, “spirit” refers not to the Holy Spirit but to the human spirit. The previous phrase, “worldly people,” uses a Greek word meaning “soulish” or “psychical.” Since the first part refers to the soul—the human soul—it follows that the “spirit” here also refers to the human spirit. The Greek article structure supports this interpretation.) This does not mean the human spirit ceases to exist. Numbers 16:22 clearly tells us that God is "the God of the spirits of all flesh." Every person still possesses a spirit, but it has been darkened by sin and can no longer commune with God.

Though the spirit is dead toward God, it may still function vigorously in other aspects, just like the mind or body. In fact, some fallen individuals have a spirit that is stronger than their soul or body, ruling over the whole person. Such people are called “spiritual”—not in a godly sense, but because their human spirit is more powerful than average. These include mediums, spiritists, witches, etc. Their communication with the spiritual realm is not by the Holy Spirit but by evil spirits. The fallen human spirit is compatible with Satan and demons. Though dead toward God, it is alive to Satan, receptive to the operation of evil spirits within.

The soul, having yielded to the demands of the senses, became their slave. Thus, even if the Holy Spirit strives for God's dominion in man, He finds no foothold. Scripture says, “My spirit shall not remain with mortals forever, for they are flesh” (Genesis 6:3, NRSVue). In the Bible, “flesh” refers to the unregenerated soul and body—their life and nature. More often, it refers specifically to the sinful nature in the body. This “flesh” is the nature shared by humans and animals. Now man is completely dominated by the power of the flesh, with no way of escape.

The soul replaces the spirit as ruler. Everything is done autonomously, following one’s own desires. Even in religious matters—even in the fervent pursuit of God—it is merely the soul exerting its own effort and rules to seek God or please Him, without revelation from the Holy Spirit. Not only is the soul self-directed, but it is also subject to the body. The lusts, sensations, and desires of the body all command the soul to obey, to act, and to satisfy. Not only are all of Adam’s descendants spiritually dead, but they are also "of the earth, earthly"—completely under the control of the flesh, acting according to the soul’s life and the body’s nature. Such a person cannot commune with God. Sometimes the intellect dominates, sometimes the passions, but usually both. The flesh governs the entire person, unimpeded and unchecked.

This is what Jude 1:18–19 describes: “In the last time there will be scoffers, indulging their own ungodly lusts. It is these worldly people, devoid of the Spirit, who are causing divisions.” Such "soulish" people are the opposite of those who are “spiritual.” The highest part—the spirit that should be united with God and rule the soul and body—has lost its place, encircled and dominated by a soul with earthly motives. The spirit’s current condition is abnormal; it is as if the person has no spirit at all. This wholly soulish condition results in mockery, indulgence in lusts, and divisiveness.

1 Corinthians 2:14 further describes this unregenerate, soulish person: “Those who are unspiritual do not receive the gifts of God’s Spirit, for they are foolishness to them, and they are unable to understand them because they are discerned spiritually.” This kind of person is dominated by the soul, suppressing the spirit—opposite to the spiritual person. Though they may possess brilliant intellect and imagination, they cannot appreciate or accept the things of the Holy Spirit. They cannot receive revelation. This stands in stark contrast to the world’s belief that human intelligence and reason are all-powerful and capable of discovering every truth. But the Word of God regards such reasoning as utterly vain.

When man is soulish, he often senses the insecurity of this present life and seeks eternal life in the next. But man cannot find the way to life through intellect and theory. These are unreliable. Often, even two very intelligent people will hold utterly opposing views. Human theories mislead more than anything else—they are like castles in the air, leading only to eternal darkness.

Indeed, if human reason is not led by the Holy Spirit, it is not only unreliable but also dangerous. It may confuse right and wrong, truth and error. One misstep can lead to not just temporary loss, but eternal ruin. Mankind’s darkened thoughts often lead to eternal death. If only the unregenerate, soulish man understood this!

Moreover, when man is carnal, he is not only ruled by the soul but often by the body itself. The soul, being joined to the body, is frequently commanded by it to commit the vilest sins. The sinful body is full of lusts and cravings. Formed from the dust, it naturally tends toward the earthly. After the poison of the serpent entered man’s body, all its formerly lawful desires were transformed into lusts. Once the soul yielded to the body’s rebellion against God, it was bound to submit again and again. The sinful passions of the body now frequently manifest through the soul in various acts of wickedness. The power of the body is so great that the soul lacks the strength to resist—it becomes a submissive slave.

Man is divided into three parts: spirit, soul, and body. God’s original intention was for the spirit to be the highest, ruling over the soul. When man became soulish, the spirit sank to serve the soul. When man became carnal, the lowest part—the body—rose to reign. Man thus fell from “spirit rule” to “soul rule,” and from “soul rule” to “body rule.” He fell step by step, until the flesh took over. What a tragedy!

Sin killed the spirit, resulting in spiritual death for all mankind—“dead in trespasses and sins” (cf. Ephesians 2:1). Sin made the soul self-centered, producing a life that is autonomous and selfish. Sin empowered the body, enabling the sinful nature to reign through it.