StrongerBible

ploutos

πλοῦτος

GreekG4149riches, wealth

Appears 22 times · tap a cell to see the verses

Mat 13:22Mrk 4:19Luk 8:14Rom 2:4Rom 9:23Rom 11:12 (2×)Rom 11:332Co 8:2Eph 1:7Eph 1:18Eph 2:7Eph 3:8Eph 3:16Php 4:19Col 1:27Col 2:21Ti 6:17Heb 11:26Jas 5:2Rev 5:12Rev 18:17
Word studyPLOO-tosnoun

What ploutos means

riches: an abundant store of value, whether material wealth or a lavish supply of some good thing

TranslatabilityApproximateCertaintySettled

At its core this word names abundance, a full and overflowing store. In everyday use that store is money and possessions, so most often it simply means riches or wealth.

But the New Testament writers, and Paul above all, stretch the same word to describe how lavishly God gives. They speak of the riches of his grace, his glory, his goodness, and his wisdom: not money, but an inexhaustible supply of these things. The link between the two senses is the single idea of overflowing plenty. Whether the subject is a full treasury or the depth of God's kindness, the word pictures more than enough.

The two senses often carry opposite moral weight. Material riches are portrayed as a spiritual hazard that can choke faith and prove worthless in the end, while the riches of God are the surest and most desirable wealth of all.

Nuances

1amaterial wealth: money and possessions, often shown as a spiritual danger
Mat 13:22Mrk 4:19Luk 8:141Ti 6:17Jas 5:2Rev 18:17
1ban abundant supply of some good thing, especially of God's grace, glory, goodness, and wisdom
Rom 2:4Rom 9:23Rom 11:12 (2×)Rom 11:332Co 8:2Eph 1:7Eph 1:18Eph 2:7Eph 3:8Eph 3:16Php 4:19Col 1:27

What scholars say about ploutos

The standard lexica (BDAG, LSJ) give a single semantic field of abundance, with the two poles of concrete material wealth and a figurative plentiful supply. Of the 22 New Testament occurrences the great majority are Pauline, and Paul concentrates the figurative use, applying the term to God's grace, glory, goodness, and wisdom. A notable morphological feature is that the noun appears in both masculine and neuter gender in the New Testament, the neuter forms (e.g. 2 Corinthians 8:2 and several Ephesians and Colossians texts) reflecting a later Koine development alongside the older masculine.

Sources

  • BDAG, s.v. πλοῦτοςlexicon
  • LSJ, s.v. πλοῦτοςlexicon
  • Friedrich Hauck and Wilhelm Kasch, "πλοῦτος κτλ.," TDNT 6:318-332theological-dictionary

All attested forms of πλοῦτος

accusative n s

πλοῦτος

2Co 8:2, Eph 1:7, Eph 2:7, Eph 3:8, Eph 3:16, Php 4:19, Col 2:2

genitive m s

πλούτου

Mat 13:22, Mrk 4:19, Luk 8:14, Rom 2:4, Rom 11:33, 1Ti 6:17

nominative m s

πλοῦτος

Rom 11:12, Rom 11:12, Eph 1:18, Jas 5:2, Rev 18:17

accusative m s

πλοῦτον

Rom 9:23, Heb 11:26, Rev 5:12

nominative n s

πλοῦτος

Col 1:27