Keywords
Ecclesiastes, Biblical Studies, Ancient Religion, Bible
Abstract
Influenced by the Restoration doctrine of premortality, some Latter-day Saints have employed the KJV translation “the spirit” in Ecclesiastes 12:7 to support the doctrine that spirit personages leave their mortal bodies at death. Furthermore, Latter-day Saints have sometimes asserted, again citing Ecclesiastes 12:7, that a premortal spirit being can only “return” to God because it previously came from him. This verse has thus become one of several in the Old Testament that some Latter-day Saints have employed as support for premortal existence, a doctrine that is so important in the broader plan of salvation.
BYU ScholarsArchive Citation
Pike, Dana M., "The “Spirit” That Returns to God in Ecclesiastes 12:7" (2016). Faculty Publications. 3699.
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/3699
Document Type
Peer-Reviewed Article
Publication Date
2016
Permanent URL
http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/6509
Publisher
Reflections on Study and Faith, Essays in Honor of Robert. L. Millet
Language
English
College
Religious Education
Department
Ancient Scripture
Included in
Biblical Studies Commons, Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons