Directory | Site Map Spirit of God Studies The articles in this portal focus on the Hebrew foundations of New Testament teaching on the Spirit.

From Holy Spirit to Holy Ghost (Evolution in the Godhead or Theological Bias?) Since the Middle Ages, Christian English Bibles have contained translational and typographical biases involving the Holy Spirit. Their purpose has been to bolster an idea that the "Holy Ghost" is not the "Holy Spirit." The Medieval Church taught that the Holy Ghost was unknown to the Jews in Ancient Israel, because the third member of the Trinity had not been revealed to them. [8 HTML pages] The Messiah and the Spirit This table lists activities that the NT attributes to both the Messiah and to the Holy Spirit. [3 PDF pages, 60k] The Personhood of the Holy Spirit  Various Christian scholars have expressed the view that—within the pages of Scripture—the Holy Spirit of God is not clearly thought to be a distinct person from God himself or as a third member of the Godhead. These brief quotations summarize those positions. [4 HTML pages]

The Shepherd Mashiach of Acts Who supervised the emergence and growth of the Messianic Community following Yeshua's resurrection? The Book of Acts attributes this work to the Holy Spirit and to the Resurrected Messiah. How do we reconcile this dual headship? [7 HTML pages] Synonyms of Ruach (A Study in Hebrew Metaphors) To understand why Yeshua is called Messiah, examining the Hebrew Bible word ruach is key. The breadth of meaning encompassed by ruach also explains the oneness between God and Yeshua, Yeshua and his disciples, and what defines a true child of God. [1 HTML + 7 PDF pages, 159k] Related Text Lists • Occurrences of "Holy Ghost" in the King James Version

In an English Bible, the Hebrew word behind the word "spirit" is ruach, which occurs nearly 400 times * in a Hebrew Bible. The base meaning of ruach is "moving air": in the form of breath (from a mouth), a breeze, or storm winds. In many passages this is the simple idea of the word. But our interest in theological archeology moves us to examine the metaphorical or analogical use of the term ruach. Since a person's breath causes or creates words, which in turn convey the speaker's thoughts or "mind," breath is closely tied with the idea of one's inner person, their animating, motivating force or drive ("driven like the wind"). In Hebrew usage, ruach can be a synonym for the heart, the organ of thought (not emotions). By further metaphorical extension, it also means one's nature or disposition. When reading the Bible, paying attention to these variations of meaning behind ruach can be profoundly insightful for understanding numerous biblical texts. * Ruach occurs 378x per Even-Shoshan's Konkordantzyah Hadashah and Kohlenberger & Swanson's Hebrew English Concordance to the Old Testament. Though seldom tried, study of "the Spirit" ["of God," "of the Lord," and "Holy Spirit"] in the Bible is equally important for understanding the nature of the Messiah in the New Testament. Most discussions about the divinity or deity of Yeshua focus on a limited group of texts. But rarely is the question raised why he is called "Messiah" ("Christos" in the original Greek texts). Being anointed with the Spirit of God is what defines a “messiah” in the Bible. So clearly, to discern whether Yeshua of Nazareth was a messiah or the Messiah depends on how we understand his anointing. The term "Spirit," when belonging to God, has different uses in both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. On the deeper, metaphorical level: "Spirit" can denote God's life-giving or revelation-communicating breath, which comes from his mouth and forms his word. Thus, his Spirit/Breath can denote his inner thoughts or mind. The normal Hebrew word for "mind" is lev (or levav), that is, heart. And God's Spirit-Heart is what, in some passages, could be called his nature. This nature is what he wants implanted in human beings to remake them, rebirth them, in his image, so they become truly his children. When God approaches human beings and speaks to them, his Breath and Word convey his Presence. In some Hebrew texts, Spirit (ruach) is synonymous with Presence (panim, literally: face). Thus, the Spirit of God is another way of saying the Presence of God. Where can I go from your Ruach? Or where can I flee from your Panim? (Psalm 139:7) God's Presence is himself. His Spirit is not someone else. God's Ruach is God. When you are present among other people, your personality, character, nature are present or manifested through your "body": your eyes, mouth, hands. Body talk. Though several passages in the NT lead one to think the Spirit is a distinct, other person — other than God (or Yeshua) — the overall presentation of the Scripture suggests that the Ruach/Pneuma is a descriptive way of pointing to God's (or Yeshua's) active presence. This is similar to how the terms "the Angel of God/the Lord" and "the Hand of God" are used in both the Hebrew Bible and NT. God gives his Spirit to his Son and makes him "Messiah," the Anointed One. He anointed him with his mind or nature. In so giving, God did not lose his Spirit; it wasn't diminished. His Spirit is still within himself and is himself. But his Spirit can reside in his Messiah in the same way a human father's nature resides in his children. No one in Scripture prays to or worships the Spirit of God as a separate entity. They pray to and worship God and his resurrected Messiah-Son, Yeshua of Nazareth. But the Spirit is not included as a third party. This is particularly evident in the worship scenes in the book of Revelation and the personal prayers and praises of Yeshua himself. [Top]