Breath Breath and Wind You have heard of it, maybe you have learned to practise it, you may have been witness to someone’s life being saved by its use; we are thinking of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. This is one of the most dramatic ways by which someone can sustain and save the life of another who has stopped breathing. Simply put, perhaps too simply, the practitioner inhales deeply, then exhales firmly by mouth into the opened mouth of the unconscious person, continuing in a regular rhythm until breathing returns. By this merciful act, one human’s breath keeps another alive; without it, irreparable brain damage or death would ensue. In all respects but one, the body of earth’s first man was wonderfully complete. God had formed him from the inert dust of the ground. The bones, sinews and all the functional systems were present in Adam’s body, but he was not alive. Genesis 2:7 tells us how God took his masterpiece the one indispensable step further; he ‘breathed into his nostrils the breath [Hebrew ruÌ‚ah] of life, and the man became a living being’. So it was that the inanimate body of the first human being was quickened; the Creator’s breath entered his lungs and all the vital systems became operational. What is more, it was by means of this sublime act that an intimate, sweet and unsullied relationship was established between the man and his Maker; profound mutual appreciation was the daily joy of God and man. The breath of God had established a oneness between the Living God and the living being. Cruden wrote about how Genesis 2:7 signifies the infusion by God of the soul into the body. That man was immortal.
