# G3341 - metanoia **Strong's:** [G3341](https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g3341/) · BLB lookup **Pronunciation:** met-an'-oy-ah **Part of speech:** feminine noun **Root:** from [G3340 - metanoeo](/codex/g3340-metanoeo/), verbal noun: "the act / state of changing one's mind." **NT occurrences:** 22 **LXX equivalent:** rendering Hebrew *nicham* (regret / be sorry, H5162) and *teshuvah* (turning / repentance, derived from H7725 *shuv*). ## Semantic range (Thayer / BDAG) 1. **A change of mind**, basic etymology 2. **A change of mind for the better**, moral-spiritual reorientation 3. **Repentance**, the standard NT theological sense, comprising: - Recognition of sin - Sorrow for sin - Decisive turning from sin - Reorientation toward God / godliness 4. **The state of being changed**, ongoing condition of repentant orientation Thayer's classic gloss: "the change of mind of those who have begun to abhor their errors and misdeeds, and have determined to enter upon a better course of life, so that it embraces both a recognition of sin and sorrow for it and hearty amendment, the tokens and effects of which are good deeds." ## *Metanoia* as the noun-form of the gospel call Where [G3340 - metanoeo](/codex/g3340-metanoeo/) is the verb (*Repent!*), *metanoia* is the corresponding state / act / process (*repentance*). They function as a paired set: - *metanoeite*, "Repent!" (imperative) - *metanoia*, "repentance" (the substance / outcome) - *metanoēsantes*, "having repented" (state of having turned) NT preaching uses both: "Repent" (the call) and "fruit-worthy-of-repentance" (the demand for evidence, [Matt 3:8](/codex/matthew-3-8/); [Acts 26:20](/codex/acts-26-20/)). ## Theological force, repentance as fruit, evidence, gift Three NT axes for *metanoia*: **1. Repentance as response to gospel grace.** The gospel announces God's saving acts in Christ; the response is faith + repentance. [Mark 1:15](/codex/mark-1-15/), *metanoeite kai pisteuete*. The two-fold response is canonical. **2. Repentance as fruit of regeneration.** *Metanoia* is *granted* by God: - [2 Timothy 2:25](/codex/2-timothy-2-25/), God may grant *metanoia* - [Acts 5:31](/codex/acts-5-31/); 11:18, God grants *metanoia* to Israel; God has granted *metanoia eis zōēn* (repentance to life) to the Gentiles - [Romans 2:4](/codex/romans-2-4/), God's kindness *leads to* *metanoia* This grounds the Reformed / Augustinian doctrine: repentance is grace-effected, not autonomously achieved. **3. Repentance as ongoing orientation.** Luther's *95 Theses* (1517), Thesis 1: "When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, 'Repent (*Poenitentiam agite*),' he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance." Repentance is not just the *moment* of conversion but the *posture* of the whole Christian life. Calvin (*Institutes* III.3.2): "this renewal, indeed, is not accomplished in a moment, a day, or a year, but by uninterrupted, sometimes even slow progress." ## Repentance and faith, the dispute over priority A long-running debate within evangelical / Reformed theology: **does repentance precede faith, or does faith precede repentance?** Three positions: - **Repentance before faith** (some Puritan / Reformed: Thomas Watson, *The Doctrine of Repentance*, 1668). The sinner first turns from sin, then receives Christ. - **Faith before repentance** (other Reformed: Calvin *Institutes* III.3.5, "repentance not only constantly follows faith, but also flows from it"). Faith in Christ produces repentance as its fruit. - **Faith and repentance simultaneous / inseparable** (most modern Reformed: J. I. Packer, Sinclair Ferguson). The two are distinguishable but not separable; both flow from regeneration. Sinclair Ferguson's *The Whole Christ* (2016) addresses the historical debate (the Marrow Controversy of 1717-1722 in Scottish theology), defending the inseparability position against what Ferguson calls "preparationism" (the danger of requiring repentance before grace, making repentance a condition rather than a fruit). ## *Metanoia* and works, [James 2](/codex/james-2/) / fruit-of-repentance True *metanoia* produces fruit. [Matthew 3:8](/codex/matthew-3-8/), *poiēsate oun karpon axion tēs metanoias*, "bear fruit in keeping with repentance." [Acts 26:20](/codex/acts-26-20/), *axia tēs metanoias erga prassontas*, "doing deeds appropriate to repentance." This grounds the Reformed insistence that justification by faith alone is *not* by a faith that is alone (Westminster Larger Catechism 73; the Reformation's *fides non sola*). Genuine *metanoia* + *pistis* are inseparable from *karpos* (fruit), works flowing from regenerated heart, not earning salvation but evidencing it. The reformulation: *metanoia* is the change-of-mind; *karpos tēs metanoias* is the change-of-life that proves the change-of-mind real. ## Patristic / scholarly note Tertullian's *De Paenitentia* (c. AD 203) is the earliest sustained treatment of *metanoia* in the Christian tradition. Tertullian distinguishes *paenitentia ante baptismum* (pre-baptismal repentance) and *paenitentia post baptismum* (post-baptismal repentance), the latter being for grave post-baptismal sins (a doctrinal position that hardened into the medieval penance / sacramental confession system, the very system Luther later challenged). Origen (*De Principiis*; *Commentary on John*) reads *metanoia* as ongoing transformation. Chrysostom's nine *Homilies on Repentance* (c. AD 388) develop the pastoral-practical theology of *metanoia*. Augustine extensively in anti-Pelagian writings. The Reformation reset: Luther *95 Theses* (1517), the recovery of *metanoia* as inner-spiritual turning, against the medieval *poenitentiam agite* / sacramental-penance distortion. Calvin *Institutes* III.3, the foundational Reformed dogmatic treatment. Modern conservative: Sinclair Ferguson (*The Whole Christ*, 2016); Thomas Watson (*The Doctrine of Repentance*, 1668, Puritan classic still in print); J. I. Packer (*Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God*, 1961, ch. 4). ## Notable verses ### The gospel call - **[Matthew 3:8](/codex/matthew-3-8/), [11](/codex/matthew-3-11/)**, John's preaching: "fruit in keeping with repentance" - **[Mark 1:4](/codex/mark-1-4/)**, John's "baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins" - **[Luke 5:32](/codex/luke-5-32/)**, Jesus: "I have not come to call the righteous but sinners *eis metanoian*" - **[Luke 24:47](/codex/luke-24-47/)**, *metanoian eis aphesin hamartiōn*, "repentance for forgiveness of sins" preached to all nations ### Repentance as God's gift - **[Acts 5:31](/codex/acts-5-31/); 11:18**, God grants *metanoia* - **[Romans 2:4](/codex/romans-2-4/)**, God's kindness leads to *metanoia* - **[2 Timothy 2:25](/codex/2-timothy-2-25/)**, God may grant *metanoia* - **[2 Peter 3:9](/codex/2-peter-3-9/)**, God's patience desires all to come *eis metanoian* ### Genuine vs false repentance - **[2 Corinthians 7:9-11](/codex/2-corinthians-7-9-11/)**, godly grief produces *metanoia eis sōtērian* - **[Hebrews 6:6](/codex/hebrews-6-6/); 12:17**, limits / impossibility of *metanoia* for apostates / Esau ### Continuous repentance - **[Revelation 2:5](/codex/revelation-2-5/), [16](/codex/revelation-2-16/), [21](/codex/revelation-2-21/); 3:3, 19**, Christ to the seven churches calling for *metanoia* ## See also - [G3340 - metanoeo](/codex/g3340-metanoeo/), the cognate verb - *G3338 - metamellomai*, emotional-regret contrast - [G4100 - pisteuo](/codex/g4100-pisteuo/), faith; the second half of the gospel response - [G5485 - charis](/codex/g5485-charis/), grace; *metanoia* is a gift of grace - [H7725 - shuv](/codex/h7725-shuv/), OT "to turn" ## Notes _Lexical workspace for metanoia._