Psalms 8:4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
What is man and why of all the beings created upon this earth, does he have the ability to think and reason? Why is he regarded above all other life forms?
- Gen: 26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
- 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
- 28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
Here is the answer. God created man in his likeness and gave him dominion over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. So man is regarded above all other life forms because God decreed it to be so.
How was man made and what does he consist of?
- Gen: 7 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.
Here is the complete recipe for the makeup of man. Dust of the ground and Breath of life. Nothing else was put into man. This mixture of Dust and Breath became a living soul. When man dies his breath goeth forth and the remaining dust becomes a dead soul
- Psalms 146:4 His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish
- Ezekiel 18:4 Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
So we see that a soul can die and consists only of dust if it is dead or consists of dust and breath if it is alive. A soul was not placed in man but man became a living soul when the breath of life was breathed into him. Man or no part of him is immortal. Upon dying, all thoughts cease and man becomes a dead soul knowing nothing.
- Psalms 146:4 His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish