Two kinds of life ‘zoe
vs psuche’ – ‘fleshly vs
spiritual’ life according
to the original Greek
Overview: Here we will refer to Strong’s Exhaustive
Concordance of the Bible to see the
original Greek words used in the New Testament concerning two kinds of life. God
sent Jesus to bring us a new kind of life—eternal life, called zoe in the Greek (Concordance word #2222) completely different from
our old flesh nature life that we receive through our natural earthly birth.
This earthly birth life is called psuche
in the Greek (Concordance word #5590). It is biological life. If we remain in psuche life, we remain separated from the full
heavenly blessings of eternal life with God.
Therefore the original scriptures used very specific Greek words to make
clear distinctions between the old biological life and the new life in Christ.
Concordance Words for
Live and Life
2222: zoe --(from 2198); life (lit or
fig.): life, lifetime [a noun]
Usage in New Testament —
John 1:4 -- In him was life (2222); and the life (2222) was the light of
men.
1 John 5:11-13 --
And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal
life (2222), and this life (2222) is in his Son. 12 He that hath the Son hath life (2222); and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life (2222). 13 These things have I
written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know
that ye have eternal life (2222),
and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
Mat 19:29— And every one that hath
forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or
children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall
inherit everlasting life (2222).
John 3:15— That whosoever believeth in
him should not perish, but have eternal life (2222).
John 14:6 -- Jesus said unto him, I am
the way, the truth, and the life (2222): no man cometh unto the
Father, but by me.
2198: zao
—to live (lit or fig.): life, lifetime,
alive, live, lively, quick. [a verb]
Usage in New Testament—
Rev 20:4 And
I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I
saw the souls of them that were beheaded
for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped
the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their
foreheads, or in their hands; and they
lived [2198; zao] and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
1 John 4:9—In this was manifested the love of God toward us,
because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live (2198) through him.
COMMENT: Two Greek words in the New Testament zao (Concordance word 2198) and zoe
(Concordance word 2222) are the verb and noun forms of a lively
type of life also called a quick,
quickened life that comes only from being renewed or
regenerated spiritually by union with Christ.
5590: psuche—breath spirit, (the animal
sentient principle only): heart, life, mind, soul.
Usage in New Testament--
Mark 8:35-- For
whosoever will save his life (5590) shall lose it; but whosoever
shall lose his life (5590) for my sake and the gospel's, the
same shall save it.
Luke 12:22-23-- “22And
he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life (5590), what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. 23 The life (5590) is more than meat, and the body is
more than raiment.”
John 13:37— Peter said unto him, Lord, why cannot I follow
thee now? I will lay down my life (5590) for thy sake.
COMMENT: The Greek word psuche (Concordance
word 5590) refers to a type of biological life, i.e., life in
the flesh without Christ. That is the condition of life that is of the animal sentient principle only, as
opposed to ‘quickened’ as in people who are born again
by having received the Holy Spirit to me us a new creation—inside..
326: anazao—to
recover life, (lit or fig.), be alive, live, live again, revive.
Only
used once in New Testament --
Rev 20:5a
‘But the rest of the dead lived [326: anazao] not again until the thousand years were
finished.’
COMMENT: The Greek word anazao (Concordance
word 326) refers to reviving of life (as to live again), implying the
reviving of the previous life. It is a physical resurrection of life reviving of the previous
condition in life--likely either zoe or psueche (i.e., life with
or without Christ).
2227: zoopoieo: make alive, give life, quicken.
Usage in New Testament --
John 5:21-- For as the Father raises up the dead, and quickens
(2227) them; even so the
Son quickens (2227) whom he will.
John 6:63—It is the spirit that quickens (2227); the flesh profits nothing: the words that I
speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life (2222: zoe—as in eternal life in
Christ).
1 Pet 3:18-- For Christ also hath once suffered for
sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to
death in the flesh, but quickened (2227) by the Spirit:
Ephesians 2:1-6 --
And you hath he quickened (2227), who
were dead in trespasses and sins;….5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath
quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly
places in Christ Jesus:
COMMENT: The Greek word zoopoieo (Concordance
word 2227) refers to making alive (or quickening) people who are dead
in sins (un-saved or un-regenerated) to having eternal life with Christ. This
would be a spiritual resurrection of life—going from being dead in sins (yet
biologically alive) to being ‘quickened’ or alive spiritually by being born
again. This is like a spiritual resurrection in which biologically
living people who are dead in sins are raised
up by faith in Christ to newness of eternal life by the Spirit of God.
CONCEPT OF SPIRITUAL LIFE IN CHRIST
1 Cor. 15:42-50
–
35 But some man will say, How
are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come?
36 Thou fool, that which thou
sowest is not quickened, except it die:
37 And that which thou
sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance
of wheat, or of some other grain:
38 But God giveth it a body
as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body…….
42 So also is the
resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in
incorruption:
43 It is sown in
dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:
44 It is sown a natural
body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a
spiritual body.
45 And so it is written,
The first man Adam was made a living
(2198) soul; the last Adam was made a quickening
(2227) spirit. [COMMENT: A living (2198: zao)
soul refers to quickened life with Christ.]
46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but
that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
47 The first man is of
the earth, earthy; the second man is the Lord from heaven.
48 As is the earthy,
such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also
that are heavenly.
49 And as we have borne
the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
50 Now this I say,
brethren, that flesh and blood cannot
inherit the kingdom
of God
COMMENT: God sent Jesus to bring us a new kind of
life—eternal life, called zoe in the
Greek (Concordance
word #2222)
completely different from our old flesh nature life that we receive in our
natural earthly birth. This earthly birth life is called psuche in the Greek (Concordance word #5590). It is biological
life. If we remain in psuche life, we remain separated from the full
heavenly blessings of eternal life with God.
Therefore the Bible uses very specific Greek words to make clear
distinctions between the old biological life and the new life in Christ;
however, modern English translations loose these distinctions that can be found
by researching the original Greek words
in Strong’s Concordance to the King James Bible. There, the distinctions between the kinds of
life are made clear. Psuche life
reproduced biologically by the flesh is life of merely in the flesh, not
spiritual eternal life in Christ. Psuche
life represents spiritual separation from God, and eventual damnation. To have zoe life or eternal life, everyone must
be born again (be quickened) by faith in Christ. As John 3:3 says: ‘Except a man be born again he cannot
see the kingdom
of God
Sources: King James Bible and Strong’s Exhaustive
Concordance of the Bible (with Greek and Hebrew Dictionary) by James Strong,
Crusade Bible Publishers, Inc, Nashville ,
TN.
Last revision: 2016-02-25 hgk
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