Also see the Holy Spirit.
Pneuma, breath or spirit in the Bible denotes an active outgoing of divine power (creation, preservation, revelation to and through the prophets, regeneration, or judgment. The New Testament reveals this to be a Person of the Godhead. God's breath (the Holy Spirit) produced Scripture.
(The Origin of the Bible: Newly Updated by F. F. Bruce, J. I. Packer, Philip W. Comfort, and Carl F. H. Henry, 2020. The Inspiration of the Bible by J. I. Packer. Pages 29-30.)
Cosmology
All components of the universe have heavenly/spiritual meaning and earthly/material support.
The spirit that animates life and breath are the same. Breathing involves the ability to speak.
(The Language of Creation: Cosmic Symbolism in Genesis - A Commentary by Matthieu Pageau, 2018. Pages 51-53)
Verses
- Psalm 33:6 - By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, / and by the breath of his mouth all their host.
- Job 33:4 - The Spirit of God has made me, / and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
- Genesis 1:2 - The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
- Genesis 2:7 - then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.
Preservation
- Isaiah 48:16 - Draw near to me, hear this: / from the beginning I have not spoken in secret, / from the time it came to be I have been there.”And now the Lord God has sent me, and his Spirit.
- Isaiah 61:1 - The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
- Micah 3:8 - But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the Lord, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin.
- Joel 2:28 - “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.
Regeneration
- Ezekiel 36:27 - And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.
- Isaiah 30:28 - his breath is like an overflowing stream that reaches up to the neck; to sift the nations with the sieve of destruction, and to place on the jaws of the peoples a bridle that leads astray.
- Isaiah 30:33 - For a burning place has long been prepared; indeed, for the king it is made ready, its pyre made deep and wide, with fire and wood in abundance; the breath of the Lord, like a stream of sulfur, kindles it.