John Gill 帖撒罗尼迦前书五23解经

A like division of man is made by the Jews: says one of their writers {y} “a man cannot know God, unless he knows נפשו ונשמתו וגופו, ‘his soul, his breath, or his spirit, and his body.'” Says {z} R. Isaac, “worthy are the righteous in this world, and in the world to come, for lo, they are all holy; their body is holy, their soul is holy, their spirit, and their breath is holy” See Gill on “Heb 4:12.” Some by “spirit” understand the graces and gifts of the Spirit in a regenerate man; and by “the soul,” the soul as regenerated, and as it is the seat and subject of these graces; and by the body, the habitation of the soul, which is influenced by the grace that is last; and this is a sense not to be despised. Others by “the spirit” understand the rational and immortal soul of man, often called a spirit, as in Ecclesiastes 12:7 and by the soul, the animal and sensitive soul, which man has in common with brutes; see Ecclesiastes 3:21 and by the “body,” the outward frame of flesh and blood, and bones; but rather “spirit” and “soul” design the same immaterial, immortal, and rational soul of man, considered in its different powers and faculties. The “spirit” may intend the understanding, Job 32:8 which is the principal, leading, and governing faculty of the soul; and which being enlightened by the Spirit of God, a man knows himself, Christ Jesus, and the things of the Spirit, the truths of the Gospel, and receives and values them. The “soul” may include the will and affections, which are influenced by the understanding; and in a regenerate man the will is brought to a resignation to the will of God, and the affections are set upon divine things, and the body is the instrument of performing religious and spiritual exercises: and these the apostle prays may be preserved blameless; not that he thought they could be kept from sinning entirely in thought, word, or deed; but that they might be preserved in purity and chastity from the gross enormities of life, and be kept from a total and final falling away, the work of grace be at last completed on the soul and spirit, and the body be raised in incorruption, and glory; and both at the coming of Christ be presented faultless, and without blame, without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing, first to himself, and then to his Father.

犹太人对于人也做出了类似的区分法，他们的一位作者说到：「一个人若非清楚的知道 נפשו ונשמתו וגופו ，『他的魂，他的气息，或他的灵，与他的身体』，就不能认识身。」R. Isaac说，「在这个世界并要来的世界中的义人当得到我们的尊重，因为，看那！他们是全然圣洁的；他们的身体是圣洁的，他们的魂是圣洁的，他们的灵是圣洁的，他们的气息也是圣洁的。」参考Gill对希伯来四12的解释。有些人把「灵」理解为圣灵在重生之人里面的恩典与恩赐；身体是魂的居所，是恩典最后才能影响的部分；我们不能鄙视这样的观点。有些人将「灵」理解为人理性并不死的魂（the rational and immortal soul of man），往往被称为灵，就如同传道书十二7所说的一样，至于魂，是兽性并感性的魂（the animal and sensitive soul），也是野兽所共有的；参考传道书三21，而「身体」，就是外在的血肉和骨头；然而「灵」与「魂」指的都是人里面同一个非物质，不死，并理性的魂，它们的分别乃是在于能力与官能。「灵」可以根据乔布记三十二8来理解，就是魂主要的，领导的并管理的官能；被神的灵光照，人就能够认识自己，耶稣基督，并与圣灵相关的事情，福音的真理，能够接受并珍赏它们。「魂」包括意志与情感，被理解力所影响；在重生的人中，他的意志也听从于神的意志，情感也关注神的事物，身体则成为操练宗教并属灵实行的工具：保罗为这些部分祷告，希望它们都能够成为无可指摘的；并不是因为他认为它们能够被保守，在心思、言语、或行为中完全被保守不犯罪；而是它们的纯洁和贞洁能够得到保守，免除人生的错误，也不会完全的堕落，恩典在魂与灵里面的工作至中得以完全，身体也被会被提升到不朽与荣耀中；两者在基督在来的时候将会是毫无缺失，无可指摘，没有任何的斑点或皱纹，或类似的东西，先对祂自己而言，然后是对祂的父而言。