sophia · wisdom

What it means

sophia (σοφία) is a Greek word of the Bible that means “wisdom”.

How to say it

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

1. Knowing how to live and act well, as God teaches.

From Abbott-Smith (1922) · Thayer (1889)

Word study

Wisdom: knowing how things are and how to act well. It is said of human wisdom, of God’s wisdom, and of God’s gift to a person. Of the same family is σοφός, ‘wise’.

• The wisdom of God and that of the world 1 Corinthians 1:211 Corinthians 1:24Romans 11:33
• Jesus grew in wisdom Luke 2:40Luke 2:52Matthew 13:54
• The wisdom of Solomon, of the Egyptians Matthew 12:42Acts 7:22
• Asking God for wisdom; the wisdom from above James 1:5James 3:17
• Men “full of the Spirit and of wisdom” Acts 6:3Acts 6:10

How we translate it

Always “wisdom” (51 times), distinct from gnōsis, ‘knowledge’, and synesis, ‘understanding’; wisdom and knowledge go together in Colossians 2:3 (“all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge”).

Related words

Words of the same family, by Strong’s numbering.

Where it appears

• Matthew×3
• Mark×1
• Luke×6
• Acts×4
• Romans×1
• 1 Corinthians×17
• 2 Corinthians×1
• Ephesians×3
• Colossians×6
• James×4
• 2 Peter×1
• Revelation×4

• Matthew 11:19

  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a man who is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ And wisdom was declared righteous by her works.”

• Matthew 12:42

  The queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and look, something greater than Solomon is here.

• Matthew 13:54

  And coming to his hometown, he was teaching them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and the miracles?

• Mark 6:2

  And when the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue; and the many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things? And what is the wisdom given to him, and such miracles done by his hands?

• Luke 2:40

  And the child grew and became strong, being filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon him.

• Luke 2:52

  And Jesus kept advancing in wisdom and stature and favor with God and people.

• Luke 7:35

  And wisdom has been declared righteous by all her children.”

• Luke 11:31

  The queen of the South will be raised at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and look, something greater than Solomon is here.

• Luke 11:49

  Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send to them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,’

• Luke 21:15

  for I will give you a mouth and wisdom that all those who oppose you will not be able to resist or contradict.

• Acts 6:3

  So, brothers, select from among you seven men of good testimony, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint over this task;

• Acts 6:10

  And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by whom he was speaking.

• Acts 7:10

  and rescued him from all his afflictions, and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he made him governor over Egypt and all his household.

• Acts 7:22

  And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was powerful in his words and deeds.

• Romans 11:33

  O the depth of the riches and of the wisdom and of the knowledge of God! How inscrutable are his judgments and unfathomable his ways!

• 1 Corinthians 1:17

  For the Messiah did not send me to immerse but to proclaim the good news, not with wisdom of word, so that the cross of the Messiah may not be emptied.

• 1 Corinthians 1:19

  For it is written: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the understanding of the discerning I will set aside.

• 1 Corinthians 1:20

  Where is the wise one? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has God not made foolish the wisdom of the world?

• 1 Corinthians 1:21

  For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God was pleased through the foolishness of the proclamation to save those who believe.

• 1 Corinthians 1:22

  For Jews ask for signs and Greeks seek wisdom,

• 1 Corinthians 1:24

  but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, the Messiah is the power of God and the wisdom of God.

• 1 Corinthians 1:30

  But from him you are in the Messiah Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,

• 1 Corinthians 2:1

  And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come with superiority of word or of wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony of God.

• 1 Corinthians 2:4

  and my word and my proclamation were not with persuasion of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power,

• 1 Corinthians 2:5

  so that your faith might not rest on the wisdom of men but on the power of God.

• 1 Corinthians 2:6

  Yet we speak wisdom among the mature, but a wisdom not of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away.

• 1 Corinthians 2:7

  But we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God destined beforehand before the ages for our glory,

• 1 Corinthians 2:13

  These things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual things with spiritual words.

• 1 Corinthians 3:19

  For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written: He catches the wise in their craftiness;

• 1 Corinthians 12:8

  For to one through the Spirit is given a word of wisdom, and to another a word of knowledge according to the same Spirit,

• 2 Corinthians 1:12

  For our boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and sincerity of God, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you.

• Ephesians 1:8

  which he lavished on us in all wisdom and understanding,

• Ephesians 1:17

  that the God of our Lord Jesus the Messiah, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him,

• Ephesians 3:10

  so that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known to the principalities and the authorities in the heavenly places through the assembly,

• Colossians 1:9

  For this reason we also, from the day we heard it, have not stopped praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,

• Colossians 1:28

  Him we proclaim, admonishing every person and teaching every person in all wisdom, so that we may present every person mature in the Messiah.

• Colossians 2:3

  in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

• Colossians 2:23

  Such things have, indeed, a reputation for wisdom in self-made religion and humility and harsh treatment of the body, but they are not of any value against the indulgence of the flesh.

• Colossians 3:16

  Let the word of the Messiah dwell in you richly, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to God.

• Colossians 4:5

  Walk in wisdom toward those outside, making the most of the time.

And 11 more times.