Do not fear … kill the soul may be translated “Do not be afraid of people. They can only kill the body, but not the soul.”
The word soul must be interpreted in light of its Jewish background, where it has a wide range of meaning. For example, it can refer both to the vital life principle that animated all living creatures (humans and animals alike) and to an individual’s real self that did not cease to exist at death. The second of these meanings is obviously in focus here. Jesus warns his followers not to be afraid of people; they may have the power to kill one’s body, but they cannot kill one’s soul.
This verse can pose several problems to translators. Kill the body may sound strange, in which case it will have to be “kill you (physically)” or “cause you to die.”
Some languages will know of some force that men have that is their real self and that continues to exist after their death. If so, translators can use that here for soul. Others may be able to say “your spirit that does not die” or, if “spirit” poses a problem, “your true nature that lives on always.”
Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell is correctly identified as “God” by Good News Translation, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, and Bible en français courant. Barclay attempts to achieve the same goal by capitalizing “One,” but this is of no help to the persons who must depend upon hearing the Scripture read.
Hell is literally “Gehenna” (Moffatt, New American Bible, RSV footnote). Most translations have hell, though An American Translation has “the pit,” and Phillips “the fires of destruction.” See comments on 5.22 (also 5.29). Hell can also be here “the fires that destroy the wicked.”
This relative clause may be easier to express as a separate sentence: “But instead you should fear God. He is the one who can kill you and destroy your soul in hell.”
Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .