He Formeth the Spirit of Man within Him • Deshen Daily

The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. (Zechariah 12:1 KJV)

Zechariah revealed a profound truth that is often overlooked in the creation story: God did create not only the human body but also created the human spirit.

The human spirit, like angels, was created; it did not exist eternally in God. In Genesis 2:7, we are told that God created the human body from dust and breathed the spirit into man’s nostrils. Since the creation of the body is explicit, and the creation of the spirit is implied, the creation of the spirit is less well recognized.

The Hebrew word “formeth” in Zechariah 12:1 is the same word used in Genesis 2:7 when God formed man from the dust of the ground (the body):

“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.” (Genesis 2:7, KJV)

God created both the body and the spirit. Furthermore, God recreated the human spirit in the new birth—not repair but a creative act. Contrary to the first creation in Genesis 2:7, God has only recreated the spirit in the believer. He will recreate the body, a spiritual body, one of these days when Jesus comes!

Meditate

We have seen that the body and the spirit were created. What about the soul? Did God make the soul as He did the body and spirit? Please reread Genesis 2:7 to see what the scripture says about this question.

Apply the Word

Be conscious that there is a spirit in you, and that spirit has been created anew. Although your body is pending transformation, you are a new creation, as new as one that has never existed. Let this consciousness be engrained in your mind.