The Holy Spirit in the Hebrew Scriptures – Episode 40

May 17, 2021

Do we find the Holy Spirit at work or manifest in the Tanakh, the Hebrew Scriptures? The answer clearly is, “Yes!” The Hebrew Scriptures are filled with the moving of the Holy Spirit and it is very exciting to see how He moved and the things that He did.

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Show Notes:

The Holy Spirit—Ruach HaKodesh—appears in the Hebrew Scriptures in three specific places: Psalms 51:11 (“Do not cast me away from your presence and do not take your Holy Spirit from me”), Isaiah 63:10 (“But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit”), and Isaiah 63:11 (“Where is He who put His Holy Spirit in the midst of them?”). Here we have an exact translation as “Holy Spirit”— but this does not give us a complete picture of all occurrences and functions of the Holy Spirit within the Hebrew Bible. We find there is far more about the Holy Spirit in the Hebrew Scriptures!

Genesis 1:2–3. “The Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.”
Exodus 31:1–11. “I have filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship.”
Exodus 35:30–36:2. “And He has filled him with the Spirit of God.”
Numbers 11:16–17. “… the Spirit who is upon you, and will put Him upon them.”
Numbers 11:23–30. “Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!”
Numbers 24:1–2. “And the Spirit of God came upon him.”
Numbers 27:18–20. “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit.”
Deuteronomy 34:9. “Joshua the son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom.”
Judges 3:9–10. “The Spirit of the Lord came upon him.”
Judges 6:34. “So the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon.”
Judges 11:29. “Now the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah.”
Judges 13:24–25. “The Spirit of the Lord began to stir him.”
Judges 14:6. “The Spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily.”
Judges 14:19. “Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily.”
Judges 15:14. “And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily.”
1 Samuel 10:6–11. “The Spirit of God came upon him mightily.”
1 Samuel 11:5–7. “Then the Spirit of God came upon Saul mightily.”
1 Samuel 16:13–15. “The Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David.”
1 Samuel 19:20–24. “The Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul.”
2 Samuel 23:1–3. “The Spirit of the Lord spoke by me.”
1 Kings 18:11–12. “The Spirit of the Lord will carry you where I do not know.”
1 Kings 22:24. “How did the Spirit of the Lord pass from me to speak to you?”
2 Kings 2:16. “The Spirit of the Lord has taken him up.”
1 Chronicles 12:18. “Then the Spirit came upon Amasai.”
2 Chronicles 15:1–4. “Now the Spirit of God came on Azariah.”
2 Chronicles 20:14–15. “The Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel.”
2 Chronicles 24:20. “Then the Spirit of God came on Zechariah.”
Nehemiah 9:20–21. “You gave Your good Spirit to instruct them.”
Nehemiah 9:30–31. “You … admonished them by Your Spirit.”
Job 33:4. “The Spirit of God has made me, and … the Almighty gives me life.”
Psalm 51:11–12. “Do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.”
Psalm 104:29–30. “You send forth Your Spirit.”
Psalm 143:9–10. “Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.”
Isaiah 11:1–5. “The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him.”
Isaiah 30:1. “And make an alliance, but not of My Spirit, in order to add sin to sin.”
Isaiah 32:15. “Until the Spirit is poured out upon us from on high.”
Isaiah 42:1. “I have put My Spirit upon Him.”
Isaiah 44:2–3. “I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring.”
Isaiah 48:12–16. “And now the Lord God has sent Me, and His Spirit.”
Isaiah 59:20–21. “My Spirit which is upon you.”
Isaiah 61:1. “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me.”
Isaiah 63:9–11. “But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit … Where is He who put His Holy Spirit in the midst of them?”
Isaiah 63:14. “The Spirit of the Lord gave them rest.”
Ezekiel 2:1–2. “As He spoke to me the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet.”
Ezekiel 3:12–14. “Then the Spirit lifted me up.”
Ezekiel 3:24. “The Spirit then entered me and made me stand on my feet.”
Ezekiel 8:3. “The Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven.”
Ezekiel 11:1. “Moreover, the Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the east gate.”
Ezekiel 11:5. “Then the Spirit of the Lord fell upon me, and He said to me…”
Ezekiel 11:24–25. “The Spirit … brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God.”
Ezekiel 36:26–29. “I will put My Spirit within you.”
Ezekiel 37:1. “He brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord.”
Ezekiel 37:13–14. “I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life.”
Ezekiel 39:28–29. “For I will have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel.”
Ezekiel 43:4–7. “And the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court.”
Joel 2:28–29. “I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind.”
Micah 3:8. “I am filled with power—with the Spirit of the Lord.”
Haggai 2:4–9. “My Spirit is abiding in your midst; do not fear!”
Zechariah 4:6. “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit.”
Zechariah 7:12. “The Lord of hosts had sent by His Spirit.”
Zechariah 12:9–10. “The Spirit of grace and of supplication.”
Malachi 2:15. “But not one has done so who has a remnant of the Spirit.”

Quotes:

“The Holy Spirit of God is found abundantly throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, and almost every manifestation or function of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament is first found, revealed, and available in the Hebrew Bible.”
“Hopefully, an in-depth study of the Holy Spirit at work in the Hebrew Scriptures will open the eyes of those who have been taught incorrectly that the Old Testament is not spiritual and deals only with a natural physical level, and that only the New Testament deals with things of Spirit or the moving of the Spirit.”

Takeaways:

Take the time to review these 62 scriptures that refer to the Holy Spirit in the Hebrew Scriptures. This list is in no way complete, but may it spark in you an unquenchable hunger to study the Hebrew Scriptures and revere them even more as the living word of God.
Let this be an opportunity to renew your awareness that the Spirit rests upon us and fills us, that we can expect His manifestations in our lives—including the ability to prophesy the word of the Lord in this day and age. Remember that throughout the Bible, whenever the Holy Spirit manifests Himself on individuals, they often prophesy.