We have an interesting OT verse that speaks of what happens at death: Ecclesiastes 12:7 (ESV), "And the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it". Other translations are: "Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it" (KJV); "and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it" (NIV).
Some who support annihilation for the unbeliever at death want to translate 'spirit' as 'breath'. None of these translations uses "breath" instead of "spirit". Why? Because that is not what the word means in context. See the support for "spirit" translated as "breath"
HERE.
How do we know that "spirit" in Eccl. 12:7 does not mean "breath"?
If we look at the context in Eccl. 12:5, it states what is happening at death, "Man is
going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets" (ESV). What happens at death as breath ceases is not what is stated in Eccl. 12. It is referring to human beings going to their "eternal home", which means at death, "The dust returns to the earth as it was, and the
spirit returns to God who gave it" (ESV). How do we know?
Eccl. 3:21 asks, "Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?" (KJV). The implication is that the spirit of beasts perishes with the body (goeth downward to the earth), but the human spirit survives death (as in Eccl. 12:5-7). It is inaccurate contextually to say that "the
breath of man goeth upward". Why? Because at death, the breath ceases but the person lives on.
Psalm 104:29 also emphasises that the breath ceases at death: "Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust" (KJV). Cf. Gen. 3:19; Job 10:9; Ps. 90:3; 103:14; and Eccl. 3:20.
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