Is There Any Proof That Animals Have Only Physical Bodies Because I Have Heard That Their Souls Are In Their Blood And We Need To Pour Out The Blood Before Cooking?
In the Bible, we find that the words "soul" and "spirit" are sometimes used interchangeably for the same entity, which is the spiritual component of man that will never die (Matthew 10:28). Sometimes these same two words are used interchangeably to define the "life principle".
Ecclesiastes 3:17-22 describes the case where Solomon is looking at life "under the sun." He describes the "spirit" of the animal and asks the question whether or not it goes out of existence or whether it is likened to the "spirit" of man, which continues to exist even after physical death (Luke 16:19-31). Without special revelation (the Bible), we would not know if an animal had a soul/spirit like a human being (unlike animals, man is made in the image of God, Genesis 1:26,27). The "spirit" of the animal in this passage is referring to the "life principle" of the animal; when the animal dies, then its "life" (spirit) goes out of existence. It is not like a human being who has both a "soul" (life principle - Genesis 2:7) and a "spirit" (spiritual component that will never die - Ecclesiastes 12:7; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Matthew 10:28). A human being can lose his/her soul (life principle), but his/her spirit cannot go out of existence because it continues to exist after physical death (Luke 16:19-31). Jesus is an example of this in that He physically died on the cross and His spirit went to Paradise for three days (the Hadean compartment of bliss and peace, Luke 16:19-31; 23:43,46; Acts 2:25-28). Then His spirit returned to His physical body three days later.
In Genesis 9:1-7, we find that God permits mankind to kill animals, but not to murder human beings because they are made in the image of God. This shows that animals are not made in the image of God.
From God's word we have established that animals have physical bodies and they have a soul (defined as the "life principle"). They do not have a spirit (the spiritual component that is eternal) as mankind who is made in God's image does (Genesis 1:26,27). Technically, animals only have physical bodies.
In Leviticus 17:11-13, the Bible states that the life of the flesh is in the blood. Animals do have this "soul" (life principle) in their blood because it is the blood running throughout their bodies that keep their life running (as we learn from a study of anatomy and physiology). This is why God required an animal sacrifice for sin because its blood was shed [its soul (life principle) was given] in order to forgive the sinner of the penalty of sin, which is death (Romans 6:23). God held this principle to be very serious: that anyone who ate blood would violate a commandment.
There is an underlying principle as to why this commandment also was given; for it is not healthy to eat the blood of the animal. Thus before cooking the blood ought to be poured out from the animal so that human beings will not get sick.
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