The Doctrine of Man (Anthropology)
4.1 Overview
Anthropology is the doctrine of man [i.e. "man" in Greek is the term ἄνθρωπος (anthropos)]. We teach the biblical position on anthropology. Anthropology is a very important subject because it concerns one of man’s great problems – that is, the understanding of himself. We teach that anthropology must be approached from a theocentric perspective – that is, thinking God’s thoughts after Him. Consequently, we teach the biblical position concerning the origin of man (the creation of man, the original state of man and the unity of mankind), the image of God in man, the constitution of man and how man can be restored and renewed to the original image that has been marred by sin due to the original fall of man from his original state. We teach that man is the product of the intra-Trinitarian work of the Triune God. We teach that the creation of man is the climax of God’s creative activity in the creation week before God rested on the seventh day.
4.2 The Origin and Purpose of Man
We teach that it was according to the divine plan of God to create man because the “Us” from the phrase “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man . . .’ ” is a reference to the Triune God – specifically, it was the consultation of the three Persons of the Triune Godhead to create man in the image and likeness of God (cf. Genesis 1:26). We teach that God did not consult anyone outside of the Godhead when He created man (cf. Genesis 1:26-27; Isaiah 40:12-14; Isaiah 48:12-13, 16; Romans 11:33-36).
We teach that the creation of man was according to the divine pattern and the divine process – that is, man was directly and immediately created by God in the image and likeness of God through the unique and special act of God forming man from the dust of the ground and breathing into his nostrils the breath of life (cf. Genesis 1:26-27; 2:7).
We teach that the purpose of man is to glorify God, enjoy God, and fellowship with God (cf. Isaiah 43:7; Acts 17:24-28; Romans 11:36; Colossians 1:16; Revelation 4:11). We teach that man was created by God to reflect, relate and represent God as God’s image bearer. Consequently, God’s plan for why man was created was that man would rule over the rest of the creation as God’s vice regency on Earth under God’s sovereign rule. We teach that God’s intention in the creation of man was that man would live and behave by performing the will of God from the heart and rule as God’s vice regency on the Earth and fulfill the cultural mandate to be fruitful and to multiply (cf. Genesis 1:26-28; 2:15-17; Psalm 8:4-8).
4.2.1 The Creation of Man.
We teach that man was created by the direct and special act of God on the sixth day of creation (cf. Genesis 1:26-31; 2:4-25). We teach that man is the climax, or aptly put – the crowning achievement of God in the creation week (cf. Psalm 8:4-8).
We teach that the entire human race was present in Adam when he was created (e.g. Acts 17:26; Romans 5:12; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22, 45-49).
We teach that God was personally and actively involved in the creation process of man.
God did not use evolution to create man or animals or birds or fish and seafaring creatures. Although man and animals share similarities in the sense of being the creation of God made from the dust (cf. Genesis 2:7, 19) – man however is unique and different from the animals because God directly breathed into the nostrils of man the breath of life (cf. Genesis 2:7). We DO NOT teach evolution. We DO NOT teach that man evolved from the animal creation (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:39).
We teach that the origin of the first human soul began at the special and unique moment when God formed the first man Adam of dust from the ground and breathed into the nostrils of the first man and Adam became a living soul (cf. Genesis 2:7).
We teach that the origin of the human soul and human physical life for all individual persons of Adam’s race begins at the moment of impregnation and conception – not later after the person in the womb is fully developed at the duration of whatever trimester of pregnancy when an individual person is born (cf. Genesis 1:26-31; 9:1, 7; Isaiah 42:5; Jeremiah 1:5).
We teach that because man was created in the image of God that abortion during any trimester is most certainly murder (cf. Genesis 9:5-6).
We teach that the murder of a human being is a direct attack against the Creator and the intent to destroy the image of God in man (cf. Genesis 4; 9:5-6; John 8:44; 1 John 3:15). The term murder in Greek is ἀνθρωποκτόνος (anthrópoktonos), a compound word in Greek – namely, ἄνθρωπος (anthrópos) man + kteinó (to kill).
4.2.2 The Original State of Man.
We teach that God originally created man in righteousness and holiness of the truth and thus true knowledge according to the image of God who created man (cf. Colossians 3:10).
Concerning the character of man, we teach that the original state of man before the fall was that of concreated holiness. We teach that man was originally created in concreated holiness – that is, Adam’s original character was positively holy.
We DO NOT teach that man when he was originally created in his original condition was characterless.
We DO NOT teach that God created man in his first condition without holiness and a will because that would therefore render the first man characterless.
We teach that God created Adam with holiness and righteousness and without sin.
We teach that man was created in his original state free of sin. We teach that because man was created by God – man had original righteousness and holiness before the fall (cf. Genesis 1:31; Ecclesiastes 7:29). We teach that man was created free from moral corruption. We teach that man was created without spiritual or physical corruption. The authority for the evaluation of man being created originally by God in perfection and maturity is the divine evaluation at the end of the creation week – namely, “God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31; 1 Timothy 4:4). We teach that man was created in perfection and maturity in righteousness and holiness of the truth, with a rational nature having true knowledge of God, intelligence, volition (will), and moral responsibility to God (cf. Genesis 1:28-31; Genesis 2:7, 15-25; Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10; James 3:9).
We teach that man was originally created with moral nature in original righteousness and holiness. The divine evaluation from God at the end of the sixth day of creation established this point about the original moral nature of man because God called what He saw very good (cf. Genesis 1:31). In the original state of man, Adam was endowed by God with a righteous and holy moral nature.
We teach that holiness comes only from God and when God either made (cf. Genesis1:26, 31; 2:18; 5:1; 6:7), created (Gen. 1:27; 5:1, 2) or formed (Gen. 2:7) anyone or anything that is created – God did so in the perfect way. We teach that everything God does is good and everything God does is perfect.[1]
4.2.3 The Unity of Mankind
We teach that all humans were present in Adam when he was created (cf. Acts 17:26). We teach monogenism – namely, that the entire human race originated, descended from, and is traced to one single pair – namely, Adam and his wife Chawwah (cf. Genesis 1:27, 28; 2:7, 22; 3:20; 9:19).
All the children of mankind (with the exception of the Lord Jesus Christ) are born into the world through the generation of a male father and a female mother. However, the first man Adam did not have a human father or a human mother and the first woman was fashioned by the LORD God from Adam’s rib (cf. Genesis 2:21-22). The Last Adam (i.e. the Lord Jesus Christ) did not have his physical generation that comes from a human father but He did have the physical generation of the human mother – for He was born miraculously of the virgin Mary (cf. Isaiah 7:14-16; Matthew 1:16-23; Luke 1:26-56; 2:1-21). Therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ is truly human and possesses all of the constitution of man in His human nature in both the material and immaterial constitution– yet without sin. Therefore, there are two headships to humanity. The entire human race was originally under the headship of the first Adam. However, only the redeemed from the human race are under the federal and seminal headship of the Last Adam.
We teach that there is one common human nature in the original state of man for what it means to be human.
We teach that there is no excuse for racism. Racism is wrong because the image of God in man has profound implications for how we treat our fellow man. People of every ethnicity deserve equal dignity and rights. What is more, the unity of mankind negates triaging elderly people, or people with terminal illness, or people who are mentally incapacitated, or children in the womb who are yet unborn. All of the spheres of mankind deserve man’s respect, protection and honor as fellow human beings. When the unity of mankind is denied then the value of human life is depreciated and triaged.
Concerning the nations, we teach that every nation on earth is traceable back to one of Noah’s three sons – namely, Japheth, Ham and Shem (cf. Genesis 9-11).
We teach that there are many distinct ethnicities that collectively comprise the human race.
We DO NOT teach that there are different races of mankind.
We teach that the image of God universally applies to all humans and this fact rules out any argument that one ethnic group is superior to any other ethnic group.
4.3 The Constitution of Man
The Word of God teaches that man is tripartite in his constitution, namely that man has three distinct parts to his constitution – that is, a physical body, an incorporeal soul, and an incorporeal spirit (cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 1 Corinthians 15:44-45; Luke 1:46-47; John 11:33; 12:27; 13:21; Hebrews 4:12).
We DO NOT teach dichotomy – that is, the doctrine that man is made up of only two parts – specifically, body, soul or spirit. Dichotomists argue that soul and spirit are synonymous terms referring to the same thing without any distinction. However, dichotomists ignore and dismiss significant biblical data that does not agree with what they think and their conclusions concerning the constitution of man. Dichotomists who hold rigidly to the notion that man is just a body and soul or spirit is likely to redefine the biblical evidence that is contrary to the dichotomist’s conclusions.[2] Dichotomists reject altogether the distinction between psuche (soul) and pneuma (spirit).
On the other hand, the Word of God teaches that there is a distinction between psyche (soul) and pneuma (spirit). The main text from Scripture to support trichotomy concerning man’s constitution in the sense of the distinction between psyche (soul) and pneuma (spirit) is 1 Thessalonians 5:23 which reads, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The Greek construction of this verse is presented this way, “Αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ Θεὸς τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς, καὶ ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τὸ πνεῦμα καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ καὶ τὸ σῶμα ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τηρηθείη.” In the Greek construction of 1 Thessalonians 5:23 there is a definite article before each of the three parts mentioned. For example, spirit has a definite article (e.g. “τὸ πνεῦμα” the spirit), soul has the conjunction καὶ (and) with a definite article directly before it (e.g. “καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ” and the soul) and the word for body has a καὶ conjunction and a definite article before it (e.g. “καὶ τὸ σῶμα” and the body). The exact same construction is found in Matthew 28:19 for the doctrine of the Trinity to show that God is one in three distinct persons (e.g. “βαπτίζοντες αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος). Each member of the Trinity has a definite article to show distinction of personhood. Also the verse reveals that God is one being. It is important to clearly articulate that the trichotomist argument is not an argument for the doctrine of the Trinity, because it is wrong to use that which is created as a way to define the Creator (e.g. the soul, spirit, and body are not one God in three persons in which three persons are distinct yet are one being, substance, essence or nature, co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial yet three distinct persons). The argument concerning the human constitution being three parts is based on comparing the way the grammar is presented in Greek. For example, both verses (i.e. Matt 28:19 and 1 Thess 5:23) reveal both unity and distinction based on the grammar construction. The Granville Sharp rule number six claims that for nouns that all have the same cases (e.g. each spirit, soul, and body are in the nominative case), are joined together in a sentence by the conjunction kai (i.e. “and”) and where each noun has a definite article (i.e. “the”) which is directly before each noun, the second noun is a different person, thing, or quality than the first noun.
1 Corinthians 15:44 clearly teaches a distinction between psyche (soul) and pneuma (spirit). For instance, the Apostle Paul in his defense of the physical bodily resurrection made a distinction between the ψυχικός (psuchikos) body and the πνευματικός (pneumatikos) body when he wrote, “it is sown a soulish body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So also it is written, “The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.”
Mary’s magnificat from Luke 1:46-47 clearly teaches a distinction between psyche (soul) and pneuma (spirit). For instance, “And Mary said: ‘My soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.’” Question: Should this statement by Mary be understood as synonymous Hebrew parallelism in the sense of an Old Testament expression that soul and spirit are parallel to one another in which spirit is synonymous with the preceding soul? Answer: Spirit is not an expansion of the idea of soul in the preceding statement. Mary did not intend that soul and spirit are the same thing when she said “my soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.” Mary’s poetic expression in Luke 1:46-47 does not mean that soul and spirit are the same. The Greek tense of the verb “exalts” from the phrase “My soul exalts the Lord” (Luke 1:46), is in the present tense form of the Greek term μεγαλύνω (magnify). The present tense denotes a continuous action. Mary’s soul is continually exalting the Lord. This is because God had spoken to Mary (cf. Luke 1:45). The Greek tense of the verb “rejoiced” from the phrase “and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior” (Luke 1:47), is in the aorist tense form of the Greek term ἀγαλλιάω which has the sense to mean full of joy. In other words, Mary’s soul when she said this was exalting the Lord at present because her spirit in the past rejoiced in God. God had spoken to Mary, and her spirit, as a result of hearing the good news, was filled with joy. Consequently, her soul at present exalts the Lord. Mary’s soul exalts the Lord, but it's because her spirit has already rejoiced in God her Savior and, as a result of that, she exalts the Lord. Clearly there is a distinction between psyche (soul) and pneuma (spirit) on account of the two different tenses of the individual verbs (which are different terms) governing two different nouns. Although Mary was a Hebrew and expressed exaltation and joy in the Lord poetically, Luke recorded the magnificat in Greek and grammatically maintained a distinction between psyche (soul) and pneuma (spirit)
Psalm 42:5, 11 and Luke 12:19-20 are examples of a person speaking to their soul – which, as we consider the continuity of Scripture, makes a distinction between psyche (soul) and the incorporeal mind which is associated with the pneuma (spirit) (cf. 1 Corinthians 2:11-16).[3] This shows a consciousness in man of a distinction between one’s soul and one’s spirit.
Moreover, there is a distinction between soul and spirit in the Gospel of John based on the lexical meaning/value of each word itself and also based on the context in which each word is found. For example, John 12:27 reads of Jesus being troubled in His soul ψυχή (psuche) when the text reads, “Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour.” In John 13:21 John describes the Lord Jesus being troubled in His spirit about his imminent prophesied betrayal to fulfill Scripture when Scripture records the following, “When Jesus had said this, He became troubled in spirit, and testified and said, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray Me’” (cf. John 11:33). Why would John not use the exact same word (e.g. soul “psuche”) in John 13:21 that He used in the immediate preceding chapter if He was not indicating two different parts? There is nothing in the context that explicitly claims that the words “soul” and “spirit” are used interchangeably. His spirit in John 13:21 is not the Person of God the Holy Spirit, but Jesus’ human spirit. Jesus is God in human flesh, that is two natures united in One Person (“Acknowledged in two natures unconfusedly, unchangeably, indivisibly, inseparably; the difference of the natures being in no way removed because of the Union, but rather the properties of each Nature being preserved, and (both) concurring into One Person and One Hypostasis; not as though He were parted or divided into Two Persons, but One and the Self-same Son and Only-begotten God, Word, Lord, Jesus Christ”). The Lord Jesus Christ is truly God, that is, He is every way God is in His Divine Nature. Jesus Christ is distinct from the Father in Personhood yet One Essence, Substance or Nature with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. (Co-essential and co-eternal with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit, Jesus is YHWH in human flesh). Jesus is also truly man, that is, Jesus Christ is every way man is in His human nature except the Lord Jesus is without sin (Hebrews 4:15; 1 John 3:5). The Lord Jesus has a human soul, spirit and body.
The Greek word soul ψυχή (psuche) just by itself is used in the NT to identify just an entire person/individual. For example, after Peter’s amazing sermon on the day of Pentecost in Acts, the Scripture claims that about three thousand souls were saved (cf. Acts 2:41). Souls is used in this context to simply mean individuals. Concerning every single person who has ever lived, each person has an immortal soul. This is to be understood that every single person (i.e. the scope of humanity) that has been, is or will be in the future is born with an immortal soul. Human persons are creatures (except the Lord Jesus who is God in human flesh, the agent of creation and its Redeemer) and human persons as creatures have a point in time when they were created and brought into existence. However each person will exist for all of eternity, because everything that God does will last forever (cf. Ecc 3:14). God has created man and set eternity in man’s heart (cf. Ecclesiastes 3:11), therefore man will remain for eternity. Man will remain for eternity in one of two places, (i.e. the unredeemed souls will remain for eternity in Hell paying God back for breaking His law, whereas the redeemed souls will remain in Heaven for eternity because Jesus being their Redeemer and them being joined to Him in and by means of substitution on the cross, Christ has secured the salvation of their souls forever). The reason this argues that man is three parts is because every person has a soul but not every person has a new spirit that has been given them by God as a result of the new covenant and thus the new birth. In the new covenant God gives persons (i.e. souls) a new heart, a new spirit, and He puts His Spirit in a person (i.e. God the Holy Spirit causes a person to be regenerate and takes up residence inside the regenerate person). For example, Ezekiel 36:26-27 argues for a trichotomous view of the believer when the text reads the following, “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.” Notice in this verse that the NASB 1995 update translation identifies the first spirit as lowercase and the second Spirit mentioned as God’s Spirit as uppercase, referring to God the Holy Spirit.
The soulish unbelieving are spiritually dead (i.e. those who have not been born again by God the Holy Spirit, and as such have not become spiritually alive to trust in Christ to save them from the wrath of God). For example, in the new covenant a person is given a spirit from God along with God the Holy Spirit to understand spiritual truths. Those who have not been born again have neither a new spirit from God to receive revelation from God nor God the Holy Spirit salvifically dwelling inside of them. The most explicit Scripture concerning the absolute necessity of receiving a new spirit from God and primarily to have the Holy Spirit of God to understand spiritual things is 1 Corinthians 2:14 which contrasts the natural man (i.e. the spiritually dead soulish man) vs the spiritual man (i.e. the spiritually alive man in Christ) when the text reads, “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” There is continuity between Ezekiel 36:26-27 and 1 Corinthians 2:11-16. Likewise, Romans 8:16 reveals that God the Holy Spirit (uppercase Spirit) testifies with the believer’s spirit (lowercase spirit) that the believer is in fact a child of God (cf. 1 Jn 3:24; 4:13). Moreover, when Paul was absent in body from the Corinthians he was present with them in spirit concerning the church discipline described in 1 Corinthians 5:3. His soul did not leave his body to join with the Corinthians, but he was “in spirit” with them.
One of the strongest arguments for the distinction between psuche (soul) and pneuma (spirit) is Hebrews 4:12 which reads, “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword,
And piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit.” The sense of piercing even to the dividing of soul from spirit clearly indicates that the word of God is so sharp that it may actually sever or divide soul from spirit, or separate soul and spirit. Therefore, Hebrews 4:12 is a very strong text that argues for two immaterial parts of a man in his constitution.
We teach a holistic understanding of the constitution of man (cf. Matthew 10:28; 26:41: Luke 23:46). We teach the regenerated man has an incorporeal spirit, soul, heart, mind and conscience and all of these incorporeal aspects of man were designed by God to work in concert with each other holistically. Therefore, we teach the constitution of man is holistic. We teach that man is a unity – that is, a whole person. The commandment, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37) means that we are to love the LORD will all of our being. All of the intricacies of everything material (physical) and non-material (metaphysical) of the constitution of man is very complicated. That is why the word of God “cuts” and divides all the parts of man so that no part of man is hidden. There is clearly distinction of parts that the word of God surgically divides; “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do” (Hebrews 4:12-13).
4.3.1 Trichotomy in Church History
One of the most influential Christians in church history that held to the tripartite doctrine concerning the constitution of man was the Apostle Paul (cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 1 Corinthians 15:44-45; Hebrews 4:12).
The Pauline tripartite doctrine of the constitution of man was considered the orthodox interpretation of the first three centuries of church history (e.g. trichotomy was the belief of Justin Martyr[4] and Irenaeus[5]).
Other notable Christians throughout church history that held to the Pauline tripartite doctrine of the constitution of man were Martin Luther[6], Charles Haddon Spurgeon[7], S. Lewis Johnson[8] James Montgomery Boice,[9] and Robert Thomas.[10]
4.3.2 Against Heresies
We DO NOT teach the heresy called Apollinarianism. The heresy called Apollinarianism denied the completeness of Jesus’ humanity and argued that the “divine logos” was put in the place of the human spirit of Christ or that the human spirit was replaced by the “divine logos.” Therefore, Apollinarianism is not compatible with the biblical tripartite position on the constitution of man. What is more, Pauline tripartite constitution is not Platonic constitution (e.g. Platonic constitution confounds the platonic logos or nous with the pneuma of the New Testament).
We DO NOT teach Gnosticism, Platonism, Pelagianism or Semi-pelagianism. Semi-pelagianism argues that the spirit is excepted from the original sin which affected the body and soul and therefore human nature is essentially good and retains genuine freedom in the will to initiate salvation. We DO NOT teach Semi-pelagianism. Semi-pelagianism is heresy.
The ancient philosopher Plato did not have the same view on the constitution of man as the biblical Pauline tripartite constitution. Plato was influenced by ancient Greek origin mythology - especially Orphism and Pythagoreanism.[11]
4.4 The Image of God in Man
We teach that God created man in the image and likeness of God (cf. Genesis 1:26-27; 5:1; 9:6; 1 Corinthians 11:7; James 3:9).
We teach that the image of God is a description that is only true of human beings. For example, nowhere in Scripture are angels or terrestrial animals or birds or fish or maritime creatures said to be made in the image of God. Therefore, man is unique and special because he is said to be made in the image of his Creator.
4.4.1 The Definition of the Image of God in Man
We teach that there are three aspects that define the image and likeness of God in man. These three aspects include (1) the rational or substantival aspect (i.e. the spirit, the soul, the conscience (self-awareness), the will, and the ability to think rationally and have emotions – namely, all those immaterial metaphysical aspects of man in which man was to reflect the image of God); (2) the relational aspect (i.e. the social likeness of love and communion that God has endowed man with a social nature to relate the image of God); and (3) the regal aspect, a.k.a. dominion or functional aspect (i.e. man’s God-given authority to represent God as God’s vice regency, to rule and subdue the Earth).
All three of these aspects are presented from Scripture to elucidate what exactly is the image and likeness of God in man.
We teach that man’s original created condition is that man reflected, related, and represented God and therefore man was originally created to resemble God in that sense.
4.4.1.1 The Rational or Substantival Aspect of the Image of God in Man
We teach that man’s original created condition was capable to have rational, conscious, willful, voluntary and spiritual communion with God without any conflict. We teach that Adam in Adam’s original created condition knew God.
Concerning the rational aspect – that is, man was created to reflect the image of God, the human soul is incorporeal. Likewise, the human spirit is incorporeal. God is Spirit (cf. John 4:24). Genesis 2:7 reads, “Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living soul.” The spiritual attributes of man that reflect the image of God are the rational and moral constitution, self-awareness/self-consciousness, and the capacity to know God, have communion with God, and to receive and be directed by spiritual knowledge that comes from God. Man was originally created to have substantive intellectual senses of rational power perfectly capable to perform that which God had intended for man (cf. Genesis 1:26-28; 2:15, 19, 20).
We warn of the danger in merely presenting the substantival aspect of the image of God in man as the only view to the neglect of the other two aspects of the image of God in man, because with fallen man, when he isolates the substantival aspect, it can lead him into dangerous mysticism and eastern philosophical thought of enlightenment and Greek esotericism like Gnosticism, et cetera.
We DO NOT teach that the image of God in man is only the reason – namely, that which flows out of his incorporeal rational nature. The image of God in which man was created does not consist exclusively in man’s rational nature.
We teach one of the aspects of the image of God in man is man’s rational nature. Man’s reason is a special attribute endowed to man by God. Adam before his fall, was able to know God. Adam was able to name the woman. Adam was able to name the animals. Adam was able to govern the world. Adam was able to keep the Garden of Eden.
We teach that without the rational aspect of the image of God in man there cannot be the relational aspect or the regal aspect because man’s regal office in his original state proceeded out of his rational nature and his moral nature (cf. Ephesians 6:6).
We teach that man in his original state had moral likeness to God. In the original state of man when man was created by God, man had a moral nature. This moral nature was righteousness and holiness because man was directly created by God (cf. Genesis 1:31; Ecclesiastes 7:29). We teach that Adam was created in his original state in original righteousness. Righteousness, holiness, and knowledge of God comes from God the Spirit of truth (cf. 2 Corinthians 3:18; Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10). And when Adam was created, God endowed Adam with a rational nature and Adam was endowed with a moral nature originally (cf. Genesis 1:31 - "God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good").
We teach that the moral likeness with which Adam was created in Adam’s first condition before the fall, was not the entire substance or essence of human nature in the image of God in man, because if it was then human nature would have completely ceased to exit when Adam sinned. Likewise, if moral likeness was the entire substance or essence of human nature then the image of God would have entirely been removed in such a way that after the fall man would no longer be said to be in the image of God by the truth of man’s inalienable nature in creation (cf. Genesis 9:6; 1 Corinthians 11:7; James 3:9).
4.4.1.2 The Relational Aspect of the Image of God in Man
We teach that man was created to be in relationship with God, other people, and the rest of creation. Man has a social aspect to his nature endowed to him from God. The relational aspect of the image of God in man suggests that to be made in the image of God means that man is destined to have relationships with God and then with other human beings.
God has an intra-Trinitarian relational communion shared among the Three Persons of the Eternal Triune God. The divine model for the relational aspect is that within the Godhead there is an intra-Trinitarian relational harmony between each Person of the Trinity. God is one Being and Essence in three distinct Persons, each person is fully God, yet there is one God. The doctrine of the Trinity defines objectively the meaning of what it means to have a true relationship with someone in perfect unity. For example, in John 5:20 Jesus used the Greek word for love, namely φιλέω (phileo), which carries with it the weight of relationship (i.e. identifying one’s self with another in like-mindedness and friendship) to describe God the Father’s relationship with God the Son – “For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will marvel.”
Adam in his original state had fellowship with God, conversed with God, was directly taught by God, and walked with God (cf. Genesis 1:28-30; 2:7-8, 15-25). What is more, Adam had very personal human fellowship with the woman in the divine institution of marriage (cf. Genesis 2:18-25).
God said in Genesis 2 that isolation for man is not good just before God created the woman for man when Genesis 2:18 records the following, “Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.’” This suggests a high view of relationships in the sense of what it means to be made in the image of God (cf. Genesis 1:27).
We teach the social nature of man or the relational aspect of the image of God in man has not been lost in the fall but instead marred and disfigured.
To this effect, if the relational aspect of the image of God in man is overemphasized to the neglect of the other two aspects of what is meant to be made in the image of God – namely, to the neglect of the rational aspect and the regal aspect, then there will be an overemphasis on something like community groups for the purpose of socializing in church to the neglect of proper teaching from the word of God. The church must never sacrifice expository preaching and the high doctrinal exhortation from studying the word of God together at the expense of a mere relational model. If such is the case, before long a church will become comparable to the Emergent Church movement where community is overemphasized, and truth is deconstructed and redefined.
4.4.1.3 The Regal Aspect (aka Dominion or Functional Aspect) of the Image of God in Man
We teach that under the federal headship of Adam, man was created to be a king on the earth (i.e. God’s vice-regency) as well as a son of God to rule, fill and subdue the earth for God’s glory (cf. Genesis 1:26-28; Luke 3:38).
We teach that man represents God through the authority of ruling the created order. For example, God delegated to man the authority to rule over fish, birds, cattle, all creeping things, as well as over all the earth (cf. Genesis 1:26) and to subdue the earth (cf. Genesis 1:28). All the geophysical properties were under Adam’s authority (cf. Genesis 1:28) and all the flora for food (cf. Genesis 1:29).
We teach that the regal aspect of the image of God in man has the sense that God has given man authority (cf. Psalm 8:4-8; 1 Corinthians 11:3, 7; Hebrews 2:5-8)
We teach that man was created from dust and immediately put in a position of royalty before the fall of man – therefore, in that sense the original state of man is unique from the animal world because man immediately went from dust to royalty. We teach that man in his original state was a humble king. This is because of man’s commonality with the terrestrial animals and the birds in the sense that God also created the animals out of the ground (cf. Genesis 2:19). However, this does not remove the difference between man and the animals, for man was originally created to rule over the animals and only man is said to be made in the image and likeness of God (cf. Genesis 1:26-28; 2:7).
There is the danger of isolating the regal aspect as the only aspect of the image of God in man to the neglect of the other two aspects. For instance, isolating the regal aspect can promote dominion theology and wrong views of Eschatology like postmillennialism, where it is man’s chief end to take back the earth in and of himself without waiting for Christ to return and restore these things. Postmillennialism over-materializes as well as politicizes the regal aspect of the image of God in man.
4.4.1.5 Against Heresies
We DO NOT teach that the image of God in man is the corporeal physical body. The image of God in man cannot be the physical body of man because God possesses the incommunicable perfections called omnipresence, infinity and immensity. Man’s physical body is not omnipresent nor is man’s physical body infinite or immense. We DO NOT teach that the image of God in man is physical likeness. God is Spirit and does not have physical parts like a man (cf. John 4:24; Exodus 20:4-6).
We DO NOT teach that the image of God in man is God’s divine essence. The image of God in man cannot be God’s divine essence because God’s divine essence is incommunicable.
We teach that God is Self-Existent and therefore God is uncaused. God is the only uncaused being. Man on the other hand is caused. Man has an original point of origin. Man is a created being. Therefore, the image and likeness of God in man cannot be God’s divine incommunicable essence.
The image and likeness of God in man does not remove the essential difference between God and man. Even though man is said to be made in the image and likeness of God there is certainly sense in which humans are not like God. Because human beings are created beings there is the sense that they are not like God because God possesses the incommunicable perfection as the Creator. Likewise, human beings do not possesses the divine perfection called eternality since man has a beginning point. Unlike God, human beings are not a necessary being or self-sustaining.
We DO NOT teach pantheism that suggests that human beings are identical to God.
We DO NOT teach panentheism that suggests that human beings are part of God’s essential being.
4.4.2 The Condition of the Image of God in Man as Result of the fall
Man disobeyed God’s command (cf. Genesis 2:17; 3:6) and therefore man failed to fulfill the purpose for which man was originally created for – that is, to reflect, relate and represent God as God’s image bearer. Man failed the cultural mandate to rule, fill, and subdue the earth for God’s glory (cf. Genesis 3:17-19, 24). Man went from dust to royalty to fall (i.e. spiritual death – Genesis 2:17; 3:6-7).
We teach that man’s reason has been affected by the fall. We teach that man’s will was affected by the fall. We teach that there is a clear distinction between the original state of man (i.e. Genesis 1-2) versus the state of man when he fell (cf. Genesis 3:6-13; 6:5; 1 Kings 8:46; 2 Chronicles 6:36; Psalm 51:5; 58:3; Proverbs 20:9; Ecclesiastes 7:20; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 3:9-12, 23; Ephesians 2:1). We teach that with Adam that the entire human race fell in Adam (cf. Genesis 3; Romans 5:12). We teach that man in his original state when he was created by God had a moral nature endowed to him by God. We teach that this moral nature included righteousness and holiness from the truth and true knowledge of God. We teach that righteousness and holiness from the truth and true knowledge of God was lost because of Adam’s sin.
We DO NOT teach that man has lost the image of God entirely and today is no longer in the image of God (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:7; James 3:9).
4.4.3 The Image of God in Man Restored and Renewed
We teach that fallen man does not have the ability in and of himself to recover himself nor does fallen man have the power to fulfill a restoration concerning any aspect of the image of God in man that has been marred because of sin.
We teach that Jesus Christ (the last Adam) is the only one that can renew and restore us to the rational aspect of the image of God in man because Jesus is the Logos, the Word, the very reason of God in the sense that Jesus Christ is the expression of the rational factor in God (cf. John 1:1-5, 14, 17-18; 1 Corinthians 2:10-16; Colossians 1:15; Hebrews 1:3).
We teach that the renewal to the image of God in man begins at regeneration and continues throughout the process of sanctification and is the work of God – that is, the work of God in the regenerated man to the restoration to the image of God (cf. 2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10).
We teach that a person’s regenerated state is the beginning of the restoration to the original state of man before the fall (cf. Ephesians 4:24). We teach this renewal begins at regeneration, continues in sanctification and is completed at glorification (cf. Romans 8:29; 1 Corinthians 15:49; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Philippians 3:20-21; 1 John 3:2-3).
We teach that only in Jesus Christ (the last Adam) can a person have true knowledge of God. This is what man is renewed to and restored to in Christ. The believer in Christ is renewed to righteousness and holiness from the truth and the believer in Christ has a new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him (Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10).
We teach that proper relationships with others please God – that is, post fall when a person is converted through the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. When a person is converted the vertical relationship with God is restored through Jesus Christ, and as a result, horizontal relationships with other human beings are properly restored on behalf of the one who has been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ.
We teach that it is only through Jesus Christ (the last Adam) that those who identify with Him have redemption and restoration before man returns back to the dust (physical death), but because of Christ the believer will then to go to glory (i.e. physical bodily resurrection).
We teach that it is only through Jesus Christ (the last Adam) that man can be restored to the regal aspect of the image of God in man (cf. Psalm 8:4-8; Hebrews 2:5-18). Jesus demonstrated dominion over the earth with His first coming when Jesus healed many and performed miracles. These signs were purposed to identify Him as the Messiah and a primer that there will be the future restoration of all things. The restoration to the regal aspect of the image of God in man will not be fully fulfilled until the literal thousand year millennial kingdom as described in Revelation 20:1-6, when the Lord Jesus Christ reigns from David’s throne and the saints reign with Him (cf. Genesis 3:15; 17:6; 49:10; Numbers 24:17; 2 Samuel 7:12-16; Psalm 110:1; Luke 1:78; 1 Cor 15:24-28; Hebrews 10:12-13; 2 Peter 1:19; Revelation 1:6; 2:26-28; 3:21; 5:10; 20:4-5).
Just as the federal headship of Adam over all mankind resulted in the regal aspect of the image of God in man being marred concerning all men because of the fall of Adam, consequently, the federal headship of the last Adam the Lord Jesus Christ who never sinned will result in all those whom He came to save from mankind to succeed with Him and participate in the restoration of the regal mandate to have global dominion to rule and subdue the earth. We teach that the creation mandate to multiply, rule and subdue the earth are completely fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ and the saints participate in this rule in the literal 1,000 year millennial kingdom when the earth will be successfully ruled over and subdued (cf. Revelation 20:1-6). After this, the kingdom will transfer to God the Father’s everlasting kingdom of the eternal state forever in a new heavens and a new earth where there will no longer be any death, mourning, crying or pain and where God will be among the redeemed men in perfect harmony forever and ever (cf. 1 Cor 15:24-28; Rev 21-22).
4.5 Male and Female
Mankind is the creation of God. We teach when God created mankind He created ‘them’, “male and female He made them” (Genesis 1:27). We teach that mankind is incomplete, if either the male or the female should be considered by itself in segregation from the other in the definition of mankind – for the Scriptures testify the following: “Then the LORD God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.’” The two – that is, the male and the female together constitute the human race (cf. Genesis 2:21-23). Without male and without female the human race could not generate offspring (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:8-12). We teach that both male and female were created in the image of God and therefore both male and female are equal in worth and destiny in the sight of God (cf. Genesis 5:2; 1 Corinthians 11:11-12; Galatians 3:27-29).
We teach that the first divine institution before the fall of man was marriage between one man and one woman (cf. Genesis 2:22-25; Matthew 19:4-6; Mark 10:6-9).[12]
We teach that even though that male and female are equal, there also is a difference. The woman has the female body that is distinct from the male body in the sense that God created the female body for the purpose that the woman would have feminine characteristics and traits to fulfill God’s purpose for her as the man’s help-mate to be fruitful and to multiply (cf. Genesis 5:2; 1 Corinthians 11:9). For example, God said concerning the necessity for the creation of the woman as a helpmate for the man in Genesis 2:18 the following: “I will make him a helper suitable for him.” In Hebrew the word for suitable has the sense to mean in the positive sense a counterpart – that is, someone in front of the man that belongs to the man, opposite of the man in the positive sense, and someone who completes the man. Yet the distinction remains – God created the man with a male body to fulfill God’s purpose for him and God created the woman with a female body to fulfill God’s purpose for her – and it was the purpose of God in creating the woman to complement the man and complete mankind.
We teach that the man is the head of the woman and therefore the man was originally created to be in authority over the woman. We teach that this function and distinction was established at creation and is a creation principle, not a cultural principle (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:3, 7; Ephesians 5:23; 1 Timothy 2:11-14).
We teach that marriage is defined by the lifetime covenant between one man and one woman when the two become one flesh and their union is not separated until physical death (cf. Genesis 2:18-25; Malachi 2:13-16; Matthew 19:4-6; Romans 7:1-3).
We DO NOT teach marriage permanence in the case of adultery – that is, the only condition for divorce is if a spouse is unfaithful and commits the sin of adultery. Only then is the marriage covenant broken and divorce is permissible (cf. Matthew 5:32; 19:3-12).
We teach that God intended sexual activity to only be practiced in the marriage union between a husband and wife. God purposed sexual activity to generate offspring in mankind so that mankind would procreate and multiply over the face of the earth. Any and all sexual activity outside the marriage union between a husband and wife is sexual immorality and therefore grievous sin in the sight of God (cf. Leviticus 18:1-30; Romans 1:24-27; 1 Corinthians 5:1-6:20; 7:9; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8; Hebrews 13:4).
We teach that marriage is not mandatory for every man or woman because some men and women have been called by God to remain unmarried in the sense of being given the gift of singleness for God’s glory (cf. Jeremiah 16:1-2; Matthew 19:10-12; 1 Corinthians 7:8-9; 9:5).
We DO NOT forbid marriage except if it will result in adultery (cf. Matthew 19:9; 1 Corinthians 7; 1 Timothy 4:3).
We teach that the husband is to love his wife self-sacrificially and be gentle and understanding with her and the wife is to respect and be submissive to her husband (cf. Colossians 3:18; 1 Peter 3:1-7). In this sense, marriage is a metaphor for the relationship that Jesus Christ has with His bride the Church and the nature and extent of the atonement (cf. Ephesians 5:22-33).
4.5.1 The Human Family
We teach that human family is a divine design and children are a gift from God and their parent’s legacy, reward and responsibility (cf. 127:3-5). The human family is a good and humble testimony and a positive influence that is meant to be a blessing from God as an evidence that God is good, loves mankind and provides for His creation (cf. Psalm 8:2; 128:3-6). We teach that the father and mother of the human family are called to discipline, teach, train, nurture, encourage, and provide for their children in the Lord (cf. Deuteronomy 6:1-9; 11:18-21; Proverbs 1:8-10:1; 13:22; 22:6; 23:13-26; Ephesians 6:1-4; Colossians 3:20-21).
We teach that while biological children of believers are being raised in a Christian household, they belong to a sanctification that is familial but not personal or spiritual (cf. 1 Corinthians 7:14; Ephesians 6:4). Children that belong to at least one believing parent are exposed to the blessing of Christian discipline and teaching and compassion and therefore are protected in that sense until they are adult and there can be great reward and blessing if that child truly becomes a believer by God’s grace (cf. Exodus 20:6; Ephesians 6:3; 2 Timothy 1:5 see Acts 16:1-5). However, growing up in a Christian household with one or two believing parents does not guarantee the regeneration of that child or “make” the child a Christian in referring to salvation. Salvation is by God’s grace alone, through faith alone in Christ Jesus alone – not personal merit (cf. Titus 3:5). We teach that a person must be born again in order to be brought to spiritual life. Human parents can procreate physical offspring but human parents cannot cause their children to be born again (cf. John 1:12-13; 3:1-21; Ephesians 3:1-10; Titus 3:5; 1 Peter 1:3-4, 18-19).
We DO NOT teach that the human family in any way can be defined as a human family if a cohabitating group of people have a same-sex homosexual parenthood, even if they have adopted children (cf. Leviticus 18:22; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10).
We teach that adopting an orphan or running a foster home for suffering infants and children is a good work in the Christian context (cf. James 1:27). In fact, God rebuked Israel in the OT for their uncompassionate disposition toward the orphan (cf. Isaiah 1:17). Adoption can be a loving action of giving to the poor orphan (e.g. food, clothing, shelter, home and attention). In fact, visiting orphans in their distress is an element of pure religion before God the Father (cf. James 1:27).
We teach that physical families in this life (e.g. nuclear family) are not the same as being in the family of God (cf. Matthew 12:47-50; 10:37). Members of a believer’s true family are those in the family of God, which are those who have been saved by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, not by their own personal merit.
4.6 The Value of Man
We teach that man has inalienable worth and value because man is said to be made in the image and likeness of God. The fact that man is said to be made in the image and likeness of God gives worth, purpose, dignity and value even to unregenerate man because of the certainty of the elect from mankind’s capacity for redemption (cf. Genesis 9:6; 1 Corinthians 11:7; James 3:9; Revelation 5:9).
Since the fall of man in Genesis 3, the image of God in man has been marred and disfigured, yet the image of God in man still is somewhat present in all men (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:7). For example, James 3:9-10 argues that the image of God in man is still somewhat present in all men when James indicted an imprecatory disposition towards other men with the tongue when the text reads, “With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way.” James made an inseparable connection between one’s disposition towards God and one’s disposition towards man by exhorting man not to be hypocritical by blessing God and cursing men, because man is made in the image of God.
We teach that the regenerate redeemed man has value because of the work of the Lord Jesus Christ in redemption. Jesus Christ (the last Adam) is the ultimate reason why man has value to God. We teach the value of man is because of the image of God in man from creation that is ultimately restored by the Lord Jesus Christ who is the God-man and has infinite value to God the Father (cf. John 5:20; 17:1-5; 1 Corinthains 15:9-10; Ephesians 1:3; Philippians 3:8-9).
We DO NOT teach utilitarianism, that is the doctrine that actions are right if they are useful or for the benefit of a majority. Utilitarianism is the philosophy of men that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or whatever pragmatic human philosophy that men compete over to define as “the greater good” to the expense of the suffering of others and the depreciation of the value of the image of God in man.
We do not teach utilitarianism because our Lord Jesus Christ said, “'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did it to Me” Matthew 25:40 (cf. Proverbs 14:31; 19:17; Matthew 10:31, 42; 18:5, 6, 10; 25:45; Mark 10:18; 1 Corinthians 12:26; Ephesians 5:30; 1 Timothy 5:21; James 1:9-10; 2:1-7; 3:17-18).
[1] This does not mean that God shares His incommunicable divine Self-Existent Essence with anyone or anything. God cannot share the incommunicable perfections of God with another (cf. Isaiah 42:8; 48:11).
[2] For example, one writing on behalf of the dichotomist’s position redefined the rules of grammar when he wrote the following, “It would be more accurate then, to say that man has a spirit, but is a soul. Furthermore the interchangeability of the terms argues for dichotomy. On the negative side are those passages (1 Thess. 5:23; Heb. 4:12) that seem to distinguish between soul and spirit as advocated by trichotomists. . . the “and” connecting soul and spirit (cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:23) could be understood as an epexegetical kai (and) rather than a simple connective, so that the terms in question would represent different ways of referring to the same immaterial aspect of man.” Ken L. Sarles, “Why does biblical counseling hold to a dichotomous rather than a trichotomous view of mankind?” Counseling; How to Counsel Biblically (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2005), 256-8. However, the connecting kai (and) between spirit and soul in 1 Thessalonians 5:23 is not epexegetical. Robert Thomas who correctly exegeted 1 Thessalonians 5:23 correctly explained the Greek construction showing that soul and spirit are two distinct parts when he wrote, “That Paul saw human beings as a threefold substance in this verse has been generally recognized since the early church fathers. The symmetrical arrangement of the three nouns with their separate articles and their connection by means of two “ands” (kai) renders this the most natural explanation. This becomes a distinct enunciation of three component parts of the nature of man” Robert Thomas, The Expositors Bible Commentary: 1 & 2 Thessalonians (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996).
[3] The soulish man is the natural man [the Greek term ψυχικός (psuchikos)] that was translated into English ‘natural’ but is better translated ‘soulish,’ who does not accept the things of the Spirit of God because the soulish man has not been born again and therefore has not been given a new spirit promised in the new covenant cf. 1 Corinthians 2:14; 15:44-46; Ezekiel 36:26-27; Romans 8:5-16; James 3:15; Jude 1:19).
[4] Justin Martyr (c. 100 – 165 AD), On the Resurrection (Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol 1), p. 532.
[5] Irenaeus (2nd Century), Against Heresies (Ante-Nicene Fathers), p. 532.
[6] Martin Luther (c. 1483-1546) in his Commentary on the Magnificat. Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Psychology, p. 460-2.
[7] Charles Haddon Spurgeon (c. 1834-1892).
[8] S. Lewis Johnson Jr. (c. 1915-2004), “Man in His Nature, Part 1,” www. sljinstitute.net, Copyright © 2007 Believer’s Chapel, Dallas, Texas. All Rights Reserved, https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/sljinstitute-production/doctrine/systematic_theology/113_SLJ_Systematic_Theology.pdf (accessed 11 September 2023).
[9] James Montgomery Boice (c. 1938-2000), Genesis 1-11; Volume 1 Creation and Fall (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1998), 92-3.
[10] Robert Thomas, The Expositors Bible Commentary: 1 & 2 Thessalonians (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996).
[11] The argument against a tripartite view of the constitution of man is that it has been heavily influenced by Greek secular philosophy, particularly the ancient Greek philosopher Plato in his famous work “The Allegory of the Cave.” The dichotomist argues that the trichotomist view was developed by Plato, and the early church fathers who held to Trichotomy were more influenced by Greek philosophy in this area rather than those who held to dichotomy. However, such an assertion is not true and the argument from dichotomists is a false narrative. Plato’s Allegory of the Cave only presents two realities, not three. In Plato’s cave the soul is a prisoner of the body, not the soul and the spirit being imprisoned by the body. Plato had a tripartite division of the soul into three parts, but Plato had a dipartite division of the constitution of man. There are Greek philosophers that predate Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle during the golden era of Attic and Classical Hellenistic Greek who influenced Socrates and Plato in their understanding and development of anthropology in the constitution of man. These philosophers names were Orpheus and Pythagoras. Pythagoras’ famous contributions to geometry was the famous Pythagorean theorem A² + B² = C², meaning the sum of the areas of the two squares on the legs (a and b) equals the area of the square on the hypotenuse (c). Pythagoras lived c. 570 BC - d. 495 BC. Orpheus was a philosopher who lived before Pythagoras. Because of these men, Greek philosophy in the origin and constitution of man has been influenced by what is referred to as Orphism Greek Religion. The main story tells of Dionysus' previous incarnation. According to their mythology, Dionysus was the son of Zeus and Persephone. Zeus named the child as his successor, which angered his wife Hera. She instigated the Titans to murder the child. Dionysus was then tricked with a mirror and children's toys by the Titans, who shredded him to pieces and consumed him. Athena saved the heart and told Zeus of the crime, who in turn hurled a thunderbolt on the Titans. The resulting soot, from which sinful mankind was born, contained the bodies of the Titans and Dionysus mixed together. The soul of man (the Dionysus part) was therefore divine, but the body (the Titan part) held the soul in bondage – hence, very similar to Plato’s understanding that the physical body is the prison cell for the soul which represents more of a bipartite constitution.
[12] The Hebrew words used in Genesis 2:23 for “woman” and “man” are different words in Hebrew then the word used for man in Genesis 2:7 – namely, Adam or ha Adam. Man or the man (i.e ha Adam) has the sense of that aspect of man signifying that he was created by God from the dust of the ground. This aspect (formed from the dust of the ground) is what Adam shared with the animals because the animals also were formed from dust of the ground, but in Adam’s poem in Genesis 2:23 the Hebrew word he used for woman was Ishshah. And the Hebrew word Adam used for man was Ish. The Hebrew term Ish is a different word for man than ha Adam. This is because Ish and Ishshah have the sense to mean that aspect of man in the marriage union between male and female, which is the first divine institution and signifies the dignity of man.