Spirit of God E1 — In 2017, we released a 3-episode series on the theme of the Holy Spirit. And now eight years later, we’ve decided there’s still a lot more to reflect on and explore! The word we translate in English as “spirit” is ruakh in the Hebrew Bible and pneuma in the Greek New Testament. The word refers to God’s personal presence, but it also often refers to wind, breath, and a human’s mind. So how can this word refer to God’s manifest presence and energy, but also created things? In this episode, Jon and Tim kick off a new expanded series on the Spirit of God.
CHAPTERS

The Frequency of Ruakh and Pneuma in the Bible (0:00-13:32)
The Meaning of Ruakh (13:32-25:05)
The Paradox of Wind and God’s Spirit (25:05-40:39)
Ruakh as a Mind or Idea (40:39-53:39)

OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
View this episode’s official transcript.
REFERENCED RESOURCES

Tim mentions the work of scholar Benjamin Kantor. Here is an introduction to his work: A Short Guide to the Pronunciation of New Testament Greek.
Here is the original Holy Spirit podcast series and the original Holy Spirit video.
Check out Tim's extensive collection of recommended books here.

SHOW MUSIC

"City Sunset ft. Marc Vanparla" by Lofi Sunday
“But Hopeful ft. Maddox” by Lofi Sunday
“The Kingdom” by Lofi Sunday, Marc Vanparla
BibleProject theme song by TENTS

SHOW CREDITS
Production of today’s episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey and Aaron Olsen edited today’s episode and provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty writes the show notes. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Released on 20 Jul 2026