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Sorry but whoever told you Pneuma only means breath was incorrect.
In this verse "Ghost" in english is the greek word Pneuma. Strong's says:
1) the third person of the triune God, the Holy Spirit, coequal, coeternal with the Father and the Son
a) sometimes referred to in a way which emphasises his personality and character (the "Holy" Spirit)
b) sometimes referred to in a way which emphasises his work and power (the Spirit of "Truth")
c) never referred to as a depersonalised force
2) the spirit, i.e. the vital principal by which the body is animated
a) the rational spirit, the power by which the human being feels, thinks, decides
b) the soul
3) a spirit, i.e. a simple essence, devoid of all or at least all grosser matter, and possessed of the power of knowing, desiring, deciding, and acting
a) a life giving spirit
b) a human soul that has left the body
c) a spirit higher than man but lower than God, i.e. an angel
1) used of demons, or evil spirits, who were conceived as inhabiting the bodies of men
2) the spiritual nature of Christ, higher than the highest angels and equal to God, the divine nature of Christ
4) the disposition or influence which fills and governs the soul of any one
a) the efficient source of any power, affection, emotion, desire, etc.
5) a movement of air (a gentle blast)
a) of the wind, hence the wind itself
b) breath of nostrils or mouth
From: Blue Letter Bible - Lexicon
Here is something you never thought of. Do you recall at Pentecost the Disciples heard a rushing wind? Pneuma does mean breath but also means spirit. The rushing pneuma was the Holy Spirit coming to the Disciples. Do you see? That to me is very interesting as we see both definitions of the word pneuma come together.
In this verse "Ghost" in english is the greek word Pneuma. Strong's says:
1) the third person of the triune God, the Holy Spirit, coequal, coeternal with the Father and the Son
a) sometimes referred to in a way which emphasises his personality and character (the "Holy" Spirit)
b) sometimes referred to in a way which emphasises his work and power (the Spirit of "Truth")
c) never referred to as a depersonalised force
2) the spirit, i.e. the vital principal by which the body is animated
a) the rational spirit, the power by which the human being feels, thinks, decides
b) the soul
3) a spirit, i.e. a simple essence, devoid of all or at least all grosser matter, and possessed of the power of knowing, desiring, deciding, and acting
a) a life giving spirit
b) a human soul that has left the body
c) a spirit higher than man but lower than God, i.e. an angel
1) used of demons, or evil spirits, who were conceived as inhabiting the bodies of men
2) the spiritual nature of Christ, higher than the highest angels and equal to God, the divine nature of Christ
4) the disposition or influence which fills and governs the soul of any one
a) the efficient source of any power, affection, emotion, desire, etc.
5) a movement of air (a gentle blast)
a) of the wind, hence the wind itself
b) breath of nostrils or mouth
From: Blue Letter Bible - Lexicon
Here is something you never thought of. Do you recall at Pentecost the Disciples heard a rushing wind? Pneuma does mean breath but also means spirit. The rushing pneuma was the Holy Spirit coming to the Disciples. Do you see? That to me is very interesting as we see both definitions of the word pneuma come together.
R
ok i want to continue my student of the spirits mentioned in the bible by figuring out what they actually -are- from their scriptural context...
the first one i put on my list was 'spirit of jealousy'...here is the scripture it comes from...
numbers 5:11-31...
"Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 'Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, "If any man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him, and a man has intercourse with her and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband and she is undetected, although she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her and she has not been caught in the act, if a spirit of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife when she has defiled herself, or if a spirit of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife when she has not defiled herself, the man shall then bring his wife to the priest, and shall bring as an offering for her one-tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall not pour oil on it nor put frankincense on it, for it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering of memorial, a reminder of iniquity."
"Then the priest shall bring her near and have her stand before the Lord, and the priest shall take holy water in an earthenware vessel; and he shall take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. The priest shall then have the woman stand before the Lord and let the hair of the woman’s head go loose, and place the grain offering of memorial in her hands, which is the grain offering of jealousy, and in the hand of the priest is to be the water of bitterness that brings a curse. The priest shall have her take an oath and shall say to the woman, 'If no man has lain with you and if you have not gone astray into uncleanness, being under the authority of your husband, be immune to this water of bitterness that brings a curse; if you, however, have gone astray, being under the authority of your husband, and if you have defiled yourself and a man other than your husband has had intercourse with you'(then the priest shall have the woman swear with the oath of the curse, and the priest shall say to the woman), 'the Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people by the Lord's making your thigh waste away and your abdomen swell; and this water that brings a curse shall go into your stomach, and make your abdomen swell and your thigh waste away.' And the woman shall say, 'Amen. Amen.'"
"The priest shall then write these curses on a scroll, and he shall wash them off into the water of bitterness. Then he shall make the woman drink the water of bitterness that brings a curse, so that the water which brings a curse will go into her and cause bitterness. The priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman’s hand, and he shall wave the grain offering before the Lord and bring it to the altar; and the priest shall take a handful of the grain offering as its memorial offering and offer it up in smoke on the altar, and afterward he shall make the woman drink the water. When he has made her drink the water, then it shall come about, if she has defiled herself and has been unfaithful to her husband, that the water which brings a curse will go into her and cause bitterness, and her abdomen will swell and her thigh will waste away, and the woman will become a curse among her people.But if the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, she will then be free and conceive children."
"This is the law of jealousy: when a wife, being under the authority of her husband, goes astray and defiles herself, or when a spirit of jealousy comes over a man and he is jealous of his wife, he shall then make the woman stand before the Lord, and the priest shall apply all this law to her. Moreover, the man will be free from guilt, but that woman shall bear her guilt."
this one is easy because the text defines it plainly...'a spirit of jealousy comes over a man and he is jealous of his wife'...so the spirit of jealousy is a state of suspicion within a marriage...the suspicion can turn out to be justified or it can turn out to be unjustified...
i doubt that a demonic spirit would be responsible for both justified and unjustified suspicions...so this 'spirit' just appears to be an attitude within a person's own heart...and not an outside influence from a demonic spirit...
in this text the problem of a spirit of jealousy is resolved by either a confirmation of the suspicions and the imposition of an associated judgment...or by a demonstration that the suspicions are unfounded...
the first one i put on my list was 'spirit of jealousy'...here is the scripture it comes from...
numbers 5:11-31...
"Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 'Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, "If any man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him, and a man has intercourse with her and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband and she is undetected, although she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her and she has not been caught in the act, if a spirit of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife when she has defiled herself, or if a spirit of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife when she has not defiled herself, the man shall then bring his wife to the priest, and shall bring as an offering for her one-tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall not pour oil on it nor put frankincense on it, for it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering of memorial, a reminder of iniquity."
"Then the priest shall bring her near and have her stand before the Lord, and the priest shall take holy water in an earthenware vessel; and he shall take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. The priest shall then have the woman stand before the Lord and let the hair of the woman’s head go loose, and place the grain offering of memorial in her hands, which is the grain offering of jealousy, and in the hand of the priest is to be the water of bitterness that brings a curse. The priest shall have her take an oath and shall say to the woman, 'If no man has lain with you and if you have not gone astray into uncleanness, being under the authority of your husband, be immune to this water of bitterness that brings a curse; if you, however, have gone astray, being under the authority of your husband, and if you have defiled yourself and a man other than your husband has had intercourse with you'(then the priest shall have the woman swear with the oath of the curse, and the priest shall say to the woman), 'the Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people by the Lord's making your thigh waste away and your abdomen swell; and this water that brings a curse shall go into your stomach, and make your abdomen swell and your thigh waste away.' And the woman shall say, 'Amen. Amen.'"
"The priest shall then write these curses on a scroll, and he shall wash them off into the water of bitterness. Then he shall make the woman drink the water of bitterness that brings a curse, so that the water which brings a curse will go into her and cause bitterness. The priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman’s hand, and he shall wave the grain offering before the Lord and bring it to the altar; and the priest shall take a handful of the grain offering as its memorial offering and offer it up in smoke on the altar, and afterward he shall make the woman drink the water. When he has made her drink the water, then it shall come about, if she has defiled herself and has been unfaithful to her husband, that the water which brings a curse will go into her and cause bitterness, and her abdomen will swell and her thigh will waste away, and the woman will become a curse among her people.But if the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, she will then be free and conceive children."
"This is the law of jealousy: when a wife, being under the authority of her husband, goes astray and defiles herself, or when a spirit of jealousy comes over a man and he is jealous of his wife, he shall then make the woman stand before the Lord, and the priest shall apply all this law to her. Moreover, the man will be free from guilt, but that woman shall bear her guilt."
this one is easy because the text defines it plainly...'a spirit of jealousy comes over a man and he is jealous of his wife'...so the spirit of jealousy is a state of suspicion within a marriage...the suspicion can turn out to be justified or it can turn out to be unjustified...
i doubt that a demonic spirit would be responsible for both justified and unjustified suspicions...so this 'spirit' just appears to be an attitude within a person's own heart...and not an outside influence from a demonic spirit...
in this text the problem of a spirit of jealousy is resolved by either a confirmation of the suspicions and the imposition of an associated judgment...or by a demonstration that the suspicions are unfounded...
R
the next spirit i had on my list is the 'spirit of confusion'...and here is the scripture text for that one...
isaiah 19:11-15...
"The princes of Zoan are utterly foolish;
the wisest counselors of Pharaoh give stupid counsel.
How can you say to Pharaoh,
'I am a son of the wise,
a son of ancient kings'?
Where then are your wise men?
Let them tell you
that they might know what the Lord of hosts has purposed against Egypt.
The princes of Zoan have become fools,
and the princes of Memphis are deluded;
those who are the cornerstones of her tribes
have made Egypt stagger.
The Lord has mingled within her a spirit of confusion,
and they will make Egypt stagger in all its deeds,
as a drunken man staggers in his vomit.
And there will be nothing for Egypt
that head or tail, palm branch or reed, may do."
the spirit of confusion causes people to become foolish...that is displaying irrational and unwise thought or behavior...with the end result being self destruction...
according to this passage the spirit of confusion is actually sent from God...so it appears that this one really is a spiritual influence...and not just an attitude of the heart...however since it is sent from God it does not seem to be a -demonic- spirit...but actually a spirit obedient to God...
similar examples of God sending confusion in order to cause self destructive behavior in his enemies are the confusion of the egyptians as they pursued the israelites through the parted red sea in exodus 14:24...the confusion of the canaanites as they fought against the invading israelites predicted in exodus 23:27 and deuteronomy 7:23...and the confusion that the israelites would be cursed with if they turned away from God according to the warning in deuteronomy 28:20...
also in each of these examples a spirit of confusion is sent as a judgment from God...so a person with a spirit of confusion can be regarded as being under God's judgment...
finally 1 corinthians 14:33 says..."for God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints."
this indicates that the 'churches of the saints' have peace and not confusion...so a church with a spirit of confusion can be regarded as a 'church of the unsaved'...that is an apostate church or cult...
there is no text that tells how to remedy a spirit of confusion...however since the spirit of confusion is a form of divine judgment...it is reasonable to suppose that repentance could turn aside or lighten the judgment and possibly remove the spirit of confusion... God's promise in deuteronomy 30:1-10 to restore a repentant israel after judging them with the various punishments mentioned in deuteronomy 28 is in agreement with this conclusion...
isaiah 19:11-15...
"The princes of Zoan are utterly foolish;
the wisest counselors of Pharaoh give stupid counsel.
How can you say to Pharaoh,
'I am a son of the wise,
a son of ancient kings'?
Where then are your wise men?
Let them tell you
that they might know what the Lord of hosts has purposed against Egypt.
The princes of Zoan have become fools,
and the princes of Memphis are deluded;
those who are the cornerstones of her tribes
have made Egypt stagger.
The Lord has mingled within her a spirit of confusion,
and they will make Egypt stagger in all its deeds,
as a drunken man staggers in his vomit.
And there will be nothing for Egypt
that head or tail, palm branch or reed, may do."
the spirit of confusion causes people to become foolish...that is displaying irrational and unwise thought or behavior...with the end result being self destruction...
according to this passage the spirit of confusion is actually sent from God...so it appears that this one really is a spiritual influence...and not just an attitude of the heart...however since it is sent from God it does not seem to be a -demonic- spirit...but actually a spirit obedient to God...
similar examples of God sending confusion in order to cause self destructive behavior in his enemies are the confusion of the egyptians as they pursued the israelites through the parted red sea in exodus 14:24...the confusion of the canaanites as they fought against the invading israelites predicted in exodus 23:27 and deuteronomy 7:23...and the confusion that the israelites would be cursed with if they turned away from God according to the warning in deuteronomy 28:20...
also in each of these examples a spirit of confusion is sent as a judgment from God...so a person with a spirit of confusion can be regarded as being under God's judgment...
finally 1 corinthians 14:33 says..."for God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints."
this indicates that the 'churches of the saints' have peace and not confusion...so a church with a spirit of confusion can be regarded as a 'church of the unsaved'...that is an apostate church or cult...
there is no text that tells how to remedy a spirit of confusion...however since the spirit of confusion is a form of divine judgment...it is reasonable to suppose that repentance could turn aside or lighten the judgment and possibly remove the spirit of confusion... God's promise in deuteronomy 30:1-10 to restore a repentant israel after judging them with the various punishments mentioned in deuteronomy 28 is in agreement with this conclusion...
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