ChristiansUnite Forums

Hello, I am new here. Nice to meet you all! I hope my question is in the right forum.... Well, I have had a question that has been bothering me for quite some time. I want to know if animals have a soul. In Genesis 1:24-25, it states that the land produced living creatures. In Genesis 1:30 God said every living thing has the breath of life in it.... So does that mean they do? It would be kinda sad if they didn't. I hope you can help me. Thank you!

Epsilon - welcome to CU!

I believe I’ve seen this question posted before, but I couldn’t locate the thread.  Sentimentally, we all would wish our pets have souls, but what about vipers and mosquitoes?  Would we be as anxious to see them in Heaven?

I tend to agree with Mr. John Myers, Christian lay speaker/columnist who writes:

Bible Question: "How do we know that animals do not have souls?"
Bible Answer: Because the Bible says so, is the short answer.

In Genesis 1, the creation account says God created all the animals, the birds of the air, the fish and other sea creatures and the living creatures on the earth. Of none of these did God say anything about a soul. They were given life, but not souls.
Then in the latter part of Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 comes the creation of man, the first creature of which it is said has a soul.
"Then God said, 'Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth,'" Genesis 1:27 says.
God, we learn through the Scriptures, is Father, Son and Holy Spirit, three parts of the Godhead, three parts of a single whole.
And man, created in God's image, is also a three-part creation, body, soul and spirit, three parts of a single whole.
Genesis 2:7 in the New King James Version says, "And the Lord God created man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being."
The King James Version of this verse changes that last word. "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." The 21st Century King James Version and the American Standard Version also translate it with "soul," while most other versions simply use "living being" or similar words.
The point is, man is the only creature that is created in God's image and the only one of which God literally breathed life into.
You could easily say that the breath of God is our soul, and when we take our last breath down here on earth, the breath or soul goes out of the body and goes home to God who made it.
And in the many references to the word "soul" in the Bible, nowhere is it used referring to an animal, always to humans.
"For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" Jesus asks in Matthew 16:26.
With this passage, Jesus gives us the value of one human soul. It is worth more, He says, than the entire creation of God, than "the whole world." That's how much God values one human soul.
In the conclusion of the movie, Schindler's List, the thousands of Jews saved by Oskar Schindler from the Holocaust gave him a ring they made on the day the war ended, in grateful thanks.
Inside the ring was inscribed an old Jewish proverb, "He who saves one soul saves the world entire." No doubt this proverb is the basis for the words of Jesus about the value of a single soul.
Every soul shall spend eternity somewhere, in heaven or hell. We are eternal beings, created in the likeness of the eternal God.  

Having said and posted that, I also believe if we want a pet in heaven our wish will be granted.  That would probably work to keep heaven mosquitoe-free!  ;D  

Judgenot, I would have to disagree with John Myers. The Hebrew word -nephesh- for 'soul'  means "that which breathes." The same term is used is used in Gen 1:20 and Gen 1:30 in reference to the living animals.


That is false. The words refering to life (in animals) in Genesis 1:20 and Genesis 1:30 is the same as that refering to life in humans in Genesis 2:7. The word is nephesh.




I believe that animals have a body and soul. But they do not have a spirit. Man has a body, soul, and a spirit. Man was the only thing that God breathed into...this is the spirit. As we can see Jesus breathed onto His disciples and they received the HOly Spirit. Also, the word of God is God-breathed and Jesus said, "the words I speak are spirit and are life."

The spirit is what enables us to worship God. (For the true worshippers are those who worship in spirit and in truthfulness John 4:23,24) Animals cannot (or  do not) worship God.

The spirit is what makes us like God. This is where I believe we were made in the image of God. When man sinned they fell out of touch with the spirit. That is why we are charged to walk in the spirit. I learned a lot from brother Gary Cook. It is true that when we walk in the spirit we do not sin because that is not the spirit's desire. (gal 5:16 So I say, live by teh Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature) That was how man fell short of the glory of God. That is why when we are born again were are born again of the spirit.

YOu see...animals have feelings. Anyone with pets know that they have a mind, emotion, and will. This is the soul. But nowhere do we see animals worshipping a statue or something. A brother shared with me that out in nature, we never ever see monkeys worshipping or building an altar of a sun god to worship. That would just be bizarre. However that is common with man. Throughout all of time, Man has inherently worshipped something. In the primitive areas this is apparent, yet this is also apparent in the modern areas. It is worship of this world. This is because Man has the spirit. This inherent desire can only come from something within us, and that is the spirit which no other being in this universe possesses.

A body can detect another body (with our 5 physical senses). A soul can detect another soul (communication or sharing thoughts: humans talking to each other, animals talking to each other, and humans communicating with animals. In doing so, we make known what is on our mind, our emotion, and our will...which are the 3 parts of the soul). A spirit detects the Spirit (one way is through prayer). That is why in John 4:24 it says

John 4:24
God is spirit. And those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth.

God is spirit. That is why worship to God must be in spirit. (spirit-Spirit...just like body-body, soul-soul)


It's confusing cause soul and spirit are used interchangeably today. It must be understood that they are seperate. We are tripartite. We have three parts: body, soul, and spirit. Animals just have a body and soul. The Lord is one with us in spirit (1 cor 6:17).


Brothers and Sisters, we should constantly pray that we can live and walk by the spirit  

Galatians 5:25
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

If you can't fast, you can call on the name of the Lord to exercise your spirit. Just call out with your mouth Jesus is Lord! At first you may feel ashamed because Satan is trying to stop you. If people are around you, it will be even more difficult cause Satan definetely does not want those people and you yourself to hear it. But say it 3 times anywhere...each time with more of your being. Praying is also exercise of the spirit.

This exercise is profitable for both this age and the age to come!


This may still be unclear or it may be new to some. So please ask questions or make comments. If you have different views or ideas please feel free to present them.

Psa 74:19 O deliver not the soul of thy turtledove unto the multitude [of the wicked]: forget not the congregation of thy poor for ever.

Rev 16:3 And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead [man]: and every living soul died in the sea.