What does νόημα (nóēma) mean in the Bible?
G3540 can name a thought or mind and, in a hostile setting, a design or scheme. Second Corinthians 2:11 speaks of Satan's schemes while urging forgiveness so the congregation is not outwitted.
Greek · G3540
νόημα
Mind/thought
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νόημα G3540
Pronunciation nóēma
What does νόημα (nóēma) mean in the Bible?
G3540 can name a thought or mind and, in a hostile setting, a design or scheme. Second Corinthians 2:11 speaks of Satan's schemes while urging forgiveness so the congregation is not outwitted.
Reader summary
Full entry for νόημα (G3540) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G3540?
The BSB source-word alignment has 6 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include minds (4), schemes (1), thought (1).
Where does νόημα (nóēma) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at 2 Corinthians 2:11. Its strongest book concentrations include 2 Corinthians (5), Philippians (1).
What This Word Actually Means
G3540 can name a thought or mind and, in a hostile setting, a design or scheme. Second Corinthians 2:11 speaks of Satan's schemes while urging forgiveness so the congregation is not outwitted. In 3:14, minds are hardened in Paul's discussion of reading the old covenant and the veil removed in Christ; the verse does not authorize contempt for Jewish people, Judaism, or the Hebrew Scriptures.
Second Corinthians 4:4 says the god of this age has blinded unbelievers' minds to the gospel's light. That spiritual claim must not be used to diagnose mental illness, neurological difference, trauma, or ordinary disagreement as demonic. In 10:5, Paul describes demolishing arguments and taking every thought captive to obey Christ within his defense of apostolic ministry.
It is not a command for leaders to monitor another person's inner life or for anxious believers to suppress every intrusive thought. In 11:3, Paul fears minds being led from sincere devotion to Christ by deception. Philippians 4:7 promises that God's peace will guard hearts and minds in Christ following prayerful petition and thanksgiving. It offers real comfort without promising that faithful Christians never experience anxiety or need clinical care.
Lexical sourcePassage contextPastoral application
How the Bible Uses It
Six governed uses move through hostile schemes, hardened or blinded minds, thoughts made obedient to Christ, vulnerability to deception, and minds guarded by God's peace.
- 2Cor.10.5
We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
The military metaphor belongs to Paul's argument and does not authorize coercive access to another person's private thoughts.
- 2Cor.11.3
Your minds may be led astray from your simple and pure devotion to Christ.
The danger is deceptive departure from Christ, not the mere presence of a difficult or unwanted thought.
- Phil.4.7
The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
The promise locates guarding peace in Christ and follows prayer with thanksgiving.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It minds 4× 2 Corinthians 3:14, 2 Corinthians 4:4, 2 Corinthians 11:3, Philippians 4:7
schemes 1× 2 Corinthians 2:11
thought 1× 2 Corinthians 10:5
Show sample aligned rows
2 Corinthians 2:11 νοήματα to schemes Noun - Accusative Neuter Plural 2 Corinthians 3:14 νοήματα to minds Noun - Nominative Neuter Plural 2 Corinthians 4:4 νοήματα to minds Noun - Accusative Neuter Plural 2 Corinthians 10:5 νόημα to thought Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular 2 Corinthians 11:3 νοήματα to minds Noun - Nominative Neuter Plural Philippians 4:7 νοήματα to minds Noun - Accusative Neuter Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row 2 Corinthians 2:11
Aligned rows 6
Books represented 2
2 Corinthians 5 Philippians 1
Source forms
νοήματα 5x noēmata 2 Corinthians 2:11, 2 Corinthians 3:14, 2 Corinthians 4:4, 2 Corinthians 11:3
νόημα 1x noēma 2 Corinthians 10:5
Parsing patterns
Noun - Accusative Neuter Plural 3x 2 Corinthians 2:11, 2 Corinthians 4:4, Philippians 4:7
Noun - Nominative Neuter Plural 2x 2 Corinthians 3:14, 2 Corinthians 11:3
Noun - Accusative Neuter Singular 1x 2 Corinthians 10:5
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Test teachings and chosen beliefs while treating involuntary thoughts and health symptoms with patience and appropriate care.
- Seek spiritual and clinical support as needed; the two forms of care need not compete.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that an unwanted thought is itself consent, faithlessness, or moral action.
- Do not claim that mental illness proves demonic control or inadequate prayer.
- Do not claim that 2 Corinthians 10:5 gives a leader authority to inspect or control another person's inner life.
- Do not claim that Philippians 4:7 guarantees immediate relief from every anxiety symptom.
- Do not use hardened-mind language as an anti-Jewish stereotype.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. Mental intention or deliberate purpose, distinct from mere surface thought; often connotes hidden designs or schemes.
Strong's G3540
Lexical occurrences 6 verses Greek text appearances 6 times Word forms 3 forms 6 references Verse guides 0 guides
Source Gloss
mind/thought
Extended definition Source: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
Mental intention or deliberate purpose, distinct from mere surface thought; often connotes hidden designs or schemes.
(νοέω) [in LXX: Sir.21:11, Bar.2:8, 3Ma.5:30 * ;] a thought, purpose, design: 2Co.2:11 10:5 11:3, Php.4:7. Meton., of the mind, 2Co.3:14 4:4.
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
6 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
2 Corinthians 2:11 Noun Accusative Plural Neuter
νοήματα nohmata
a thought, design, the mind
Read verse 2 Corinthians 3:14 Noun Nominative Plural Neuter
νοήματα nohmata
a thought, design, the mind
Read verse 2 Corinthians 4:4 Noun Accusative Plural Neuter
νοήματα nohmata
a thought, design, the mind
Read verse 2 Corinthians 10:5 Noun Accusative Singular Neuter
νόημα nohma
a thought, design, the mind
Read verse 2 Corinthians 11:3 Noun Nominative Plural Neuter
νοήματα nohmata
a thought, design, the mind
Read verse Philippians 4:7 Noun Accusative Plural Neuter
νοήματα nohmata
a thought, design, the mind
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 3 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Form patterns 3 Aligned forms 6 Case pattern Accusative (4) Number pattern Plural (5)
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Nominative · Plural · Neuter 2 Cor 3:14 · 2 Cor 11:3 2×
Accusative · Plural · Neuter 2 Cor 2:11 · 2 Cor 4:4 · Phil 4:7 3×
Accusative · Singular · Neuter 2 Cor 10:5 1×
Word Origins
νόημα is built from this root:
For the Preacher and Teacher
G3540 gives pastors language for real spiritual and intellectual conflict, but it must be handled without invading or stigmatizing people. Paul takes arguments and thoughts captive to Christ in the context of apostolic warfare, not by demanding that members disclose every mental event to a leader. An intrusive thought is not identical to belief, consent, or action.
Anxiety, depression, psychosis, trauma, dementia, and neurological difference should not be labeled Satanic blindness from these verses. At the same time, deception and destructive ideas matter, and Christian communities need truth, forgiveness, accountable teaching, prayer, and wise care. Philippians promises God's guarding peace while leaving room for repeated prayer, supportive relationships, and appropriate professional treatment.
A faithful sermon directs minds toward Christ and creates safety for honest struggle rather than rewarding secrecy or certainty.
Anchor passage
2Cor.10.5
Doctrinal connections
- Second Corinthians 2:5-11 connects awareness of schemes with forgiveness, comfort, reaffirmed love, and congregational restoration.
- Second Corinthians 3:7-18 places hardened minds within Paul's old-covenant reading and unveiled transformation argument.
- Second Corinthians 4:1-6 contrasts blinded minds with God's light shining in the face of Jesus Christ.
- Second Corinthians 10:1-6 defines the apostolic weapons and their targets as arguments and pretensions against the knowledge of God.
- Second Corinthians 11:1-4 connects corrupted minds with another Jesus, a different spirit, and a different gospel.
- Philippians 4:4-9 joins prayer, thanksgiving, guarding peace, disciplined attention, and practiced apostolic teaching.
All six governed forms are neuter nouns. Five are plural and one is singular. English renderings vary among schemes, minds, and thought because the noun can point to a mental product, a person's thinking, or a hostile design. The surrounding verb and agent establish the sense.
From Old to New Testament
Scripture calls God's people to love God with their whole person, guard the heart, receive wisdom, reject deception, and seek peace. Those themes can illuminate Paul's uses, but none authorizes anti-Jewish readings, amateur mental-health diagnosis, or control of another person's conscience.
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain