χάρισμα
Gift
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What does χάρισμα (chárisma) mean in the Bible?
χάρισμα (chárisma) is a Greek word meaning "gift". χάρισμα, -τος, τό (χαρίζομαι) [in LXX: Sir. Emphasizes that spiritual abilities are gifts of grace, not achievements.
Full entry for χάρισμα (G5486) · Browse the biblical lexicon
Meaning
A Spirit-empowered gift freely given, emphasizing supernatural grace rather than earned ability or natural talent.
(χαρίζομαι) [in LXX: Sir.7:33 א (AB, χάρις) Sir.38:30 Bl (א AB2R, χρῖσμα) * ;] a gift of grace, a free gift, esp. of extraordinary operations of the Spirit in the Apostolic Church, but including all spiritual graces and endowments (Lft., Notes, 148 f.): Rom.1:11 5:15-16 6:23 11:29 12:6, 1Co.1:7 7:7 12:4 12:9 12:28 12:30-31, 2Co.1:11, 1Ti.4:14, 2Ti.1:6, 1Pe.4:10.
Why This Word Matters
Emphasizes that spiritual abilities are gifts of grace, not achievements. 1 Timothy 4:11-16
Contrasts earned wages with the gracious gift of eternal life. 2 Timothy 1:1-7
Ministry capacity is received, not self-produced. Timothy is called to steward and rekindle what God has already supplied. Romans 12:3-8
Spiritual gifting is a divine enablement that must not be neglected. Romans 6:15-23
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Biblical Occurrences
Each occurrence shows the passage reference, the original language term as it appears in that context, its transliteration, and the contextual sense.
New Testament Witnesses
Word Pictures (Robertson)
A.T. Robertson's Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) discusses this term in the following chapters. Open any chapter and go to the Word Pictures tab to read his verse-by-verse commentary.
A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) — public domain