Scriptural Support for the Immortal Soul
Scripture itself speaks of the soul existing outside the body after death if taken literally. We will divide this between the Old Testament and the New Testament. I will also address common objections to these verses. This is far from an exhaustive list, and I intend to add to it over time. Old Testament Support: The story of the Witch of Endor in 1 Samuel 28 portrays the spirit of the prophet Samuel coming up from the ground. The witch describes Samuel as an elohim. An elohim is any divine being in the spirt realm, including angels. The implication is Samuel is alive and conscious after death in the same spiritual realm as God and the angels. There are those who would dismiss this account as a deception either by the witch or a demon, which I have addressed here . Regardless, it demonstrates that the ancient Israelites had an understanding of the immortal soul at least three thousand years ago, minimum. Enoch walked or pleased God and was taken (Gen 5:24), meaning that he did not die....