Nephesh — H5315

Definition

feminine noun

properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental)

1. soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion
1. that which breathes, the breathing substance or being, soul, the inner being of man
2. living being
3. living being (with life in the blood)
4. the man himself, self, person or individual
5. seat of the appetites
6. seat of emotions and passions
7. activity of mind
1. dubious
8. activity of the will
1. dubious
9. activity of the character
1. dubious

“Soul” often means the living being, the whole person, hence counts: “all the souls of the house of Jacob” (Gen 46:27).

With a possessive, “my soul” often amounts to “I, myself”: “Let me die with the Philistines” renders literally “let my soul die” (Judg 16:30).

Usually translated as

soul, life, person, heart, mind, creature, body, himself, dead, desire, man, pleasure, will, beast, themselves, any, appetite, ghost, he, lust, herself, slay, thing, breath, deadly, discontented, fish, greedy, mortally, one, own, myself, thyself, they, contented, hearty, me, self, them, tablet, would have it

Origin

from H5314

• Derived from Nâphash (H5314)

Greek equivalents

• anḗr (G435)
• eleútheros (G1658)
• elpís (G1680)
• enýpnion (G1798)
• kardía (G2588)
• kephalḗ (G2776)
• pnoḗ (G4157)
• sōma (G4983)
• psychḗ (G5590)

Occurrences

Nephesh occurs 753 times in 682 verses of the King James.

Distribution of the word across the Bible: Genesis (38), Exodus (15), Leviticus (48), Numbers (44), Deuteronomy (31), Joshua (15), Judges (8), Ruth (1), 1 Samuel (28), 2 Samuel (14), 1 Kings (18), 2 Kings (13), 1 Chronicles (4), 2 Chronicles (4), Esther (6), Job (33), Psalms (141), Proverbs (54), Ecclesiastes (7), Song of Songs (7), Isaiah (32), Jeremiah (58), Lamentations (12), Ezekiel (33), Hosea (2), Amos (3), Jonah (5), Micah (3), Habakkuk (3), Haggai (1), Zechariah (1)

• Genesis 1:20 — And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life (נֶ֣פֶשׁ), and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
• Genesis 1:21 — And God created great whales, and every living creature (נֶ֣פֶשׁ) that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
• Genesis 1:24 — And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature (נֶ֤פֶשׁ) after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
• Genesis 1:30 — And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life (נֶ֣פֶשׁ), I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
• Genesis 2:7 — And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul (לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ).
• Genesis 2:19 — And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature (נֶ֥פֶשׁ), that was the name thereof.
• Genesis 9:4 — But flesh with the life (בְּנַפְשׁ֥וֹ) thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.
• Genesis 9:5 — And surely your blood of your lives (לְנַפְשֹֽׁתֵיכֶם֙) will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man’s brother will I require the life of man.
• Genesis 9:5 — And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man’s brother will I require the life (נֶ֥פֶשׁ) of man.
• Genesis 9:10 — And with every living creature (נֶ֤פֶשׁ) that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth.
• Genesis 9:12 — And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature (נֶ֥פֶשׁ) that is with you, for perpetual generations:
• Genesis 9:15 — And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature (נֶ֥פֶשׁ) of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.
• Genesis 9:16 — And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature (נֶ֣פֶשׁ) of all flesh that is upon the earth.
• Genesis 12:5 — And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls (הַנֶּ֖פֶשׁ) that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.
• Genesis 12:13 — Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul (נַפְשִׁ֖י) shall live because of thee.
• Genesis 14:21 — And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons (הַנֶּ֔פֶשׁ), and take the goods to thyself.
• Genesis 17:14 — And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul (הַנֶּ֥פֶשׁ) shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.
• Genesis 19:17 — And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life (נַפְשֶׁ֔ךָ); look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
• Genesis 19:19 — Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life (נַפְשִׁ֑י); and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:
• Genesis 19:20 — Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul (נַפְשִֽׁי) shall live.
• Genesis 23:8 — And he communed with them, saying, If it be your mind (נַפְשְׁכֶ֗ם) that I should bury my dead out of my sight; hear me, and intreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar,
• Genesis 27:4 — And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul (נַפְשִׁ֖י) may bless thee before I die.
• Genesis 27:19 — And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy firstborn; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul (נַפְשֶֽׁךָ) may bless me.
• Genesis 27:25 — And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s venison, that my soul (נַפְשִׁ֑י) may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine, and he drank.
• Genesis 27:31 — And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son’s venison, that thy soul (נַפְשֶֽׁךָ) may bless me.
• Genesis 32:30 — And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life (נַפְשִֽׁי) is preserved.
• Genesis 34:3 — And his soul (נַפְשׁ֔וֹ) clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel.
• Genesis 34:8 — And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul (נַפְשׁוֹ֙) of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife.
• Genesis 35:18 — And it came to pass, as her soul (נַפְשָׁהּ֙) was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Ben-oni: but his father called him Benjamin.
• Genesis 36:6 — And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons (נַפְשׁ֣וֹת) of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his substance, which he had got in the land of Canaan; and went into the country from the face of his brother Jacob.
• Genesis 42:21 — And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul (נַפְשׁ֛וֹ), when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.
• Genesis 44:30 — Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father, and the lad be not with us; seeing that his life (וְנַפְשׁ֖וֹ) is bound up in the lad’s life;
• Genesis 44:30 — Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father, and the lad be not with us; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad’s life (בְנַפְשֽׁוֹ);
• Genesis 46:15 — These be the sons of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob in Padan-aram, with his daughter Dinah: all the souls (נֶ֧פֶשׁ) of his sons and his daughters were thirty and three.
• Genesis 46:18 — These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter, and these she bare unto Jacob, even sixteen souls (נָֽפֶשׁ).
• Genesis 46:22 — These are the sons of Rachel, which were born to Jacob: all the souls (נֶ֖פֶשׁ) were fourteen.
• Genesis 46:25 — These are the sons of Bilhah, which Laban gave unto Rachel his daughter, and she bare these unto Jacob: all the souls (נֶ֥פֶשׁ) were seven.
• Genesis 46:26 — All the souls (הַ֠נֶּפֶשׁ) that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob’s sons’ wives, all the souls were threescore and six;
• Genesis 46:26 — All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob’s sons’ wives, all the souls (נֶ֖פֶשׁ) were threescore and six;
• Genesis 46:27 — And the sons of Joseph, which were born him in Egypt, were two souls (נֶ֣פֶשׁ): all the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were threescore and ten.
• Genesis 46:27 — And the sons of Joseph, which were born him in Egypt, were two souls: all the souls (הַנֶּ֧פֶשׁ) of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were threescore and ten.
• Genesis 49:6 — O my soul (נַפְשִׁ֔י), come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall.
• Exodus 1:5 — And all the souls (נֶ֛פֶשׁ) that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.
• Exodus 1:5 — And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls (נָ֑פֶשׁ): for Joseph was in Egypt already.
• Exodus 4:19 — And the LORD said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life (נַפְשֶֽׁךָ).
• Exodus 12:4 — And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls (נְפָשֹׁ֑ת); every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb.
• Exodus 12:15 — Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul (הַנֶּ֤פֶשׁ) shall be cut off from Israel.
• Exodus 12:16 — And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man (נֶ֔פֶשׁ) must eat, that only may be done of you.
• Exodus 12:19 — Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul (הַנֶּ֤פֶשׁ) shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land.
• Exodus 15:9 — The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my lust (נַפְשִׁ֔י) shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.