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.
All Commentaries on Genesis 2:7 Go To Genesis 2
John Chrysostom
AD 407
It was pleasing to God’s love of humanity to make this thing created out of earth a participant of the rational nature of the soul, through which this living creature was manifest as excellent and perfect. “And he breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,” that is, the inbreathing communicated to the one created out of earth the power of life, and thus the nature of the soul was formed. Therefore Moses added “And man became a living soul”; that which was created out of dust, having received the inbreathing, the breath of life, “became a living soul.” What does “a living soul” mean? An active soul, which has the members of the body as the implements of its activities, submissive to its will.
