# G5485 - charis **Strong's:** [G5485](https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g5485/) · BLB lookup **Pronunciation:** khar'-ece **Part of speech:** feminine noun **Root:** from G5463 - chairo (χαίρω, "to rejoice"), that which causes joy. **Hebrew equivalent (LXX):** חֵן (*chen*, H2580, "favor"); often paired with [H2617 - hesed](/codex/h2617-hesed/) ("loyal love"). **NT occurrences:** ~155 (KJV: 130× "grace") ## Semantic range (Thayer / BDAG) 1. **Graciousness, charm, beauty**, that which delights or pleases. Classical Greek primary sense. 2. **Favor, goodwill, kindness**, the *attitude* of one who freely gives benefit; especially God's unmerited favor toward sinners. 3. **The divine influence upon the heart and its reflection in the life**, Strong's classic gloss; *charis* as an active power, not merely a disposition. 4. **A specific gift, benefit, blessing**, the *result* or *content* of gracious giving ([Romans 5:15](/codex/romans-5-15/) *to charisma*; [Acts 6:8](/codex/acts-6-8/) "full of *charis* and power"). 5. **Thanks, gratitude**, the response *to* grace; "thanks be to God" ([1 Corinthians 15:57](/codex/1-corinthians-15-57/)). ## Theological force, the heart of Reformation soteriology In Pauline usage, *charis* names the **unmerited divine favor** that initiates and sustains salvation. The classical Pauline structure: - **Source:** *charis tou theou*, the grace of God ([Romans 5:15](/codex/romans-5-15/); [Ephesians 2:8](/codex/ephesians-2-8/)). - **Means / channel:** through Christ's redemptive work, "the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ" ([2 Corinthians 8:9](/codex/2-corinthians-8-9/)). - **Instrument of reception:** [G4102 - pistis](/codex/g4102-pistis/) (faith), "by grace through faith" ([Ephesians 2:8](/codex/ephesians-2-8/)). - **Antithesis:** works / law / merit, "if by grace, no longer on the basis of works" ([Romans 11:6](/codex/romans-11-6/)). The Reformation *sola gratia* (grace alone) takes its lexical anchor here. The medieval scholastic distinction between "operating grace" and "cooperating grace" (gratia operans / cooperans) builds on Augustine's anti-Pelagian writings; the Reformation pressed grace as *exclusively* God's unilateral initiative against any synergistic reading. *Charis* is "unmerited" by definition, to receive it on the basis of merit is to convert it into wages ([Romans 4:4](/codex/romans-4-4/), "to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a *charis* but as what is due"). The greeting formula in nearly every NT epistle, *charis hymin kai eirēnē* ("grace to you and peace"), is itself a theological statement: grace is the comprehensive Christian condition; peace flows from it. ## Notable verses ### Salvation by grace - **[Ephesians 2.8-9](/codex/ephesians-2-8-9/)**, "by *charis* you have been saved through faith… not as a result of works" - **[Ephesians 1:6-7](/codex/ephesians-1-6-7/)**, "to the praise of the glory of His *charis*… in Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His *charis*" - **[Romans 3:24](/codex/romans-3-24/)**, "being justified as a gift by His *charis* through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus" - **[Romans 5:15](/codex/romans-5-15/)**, "the *charis* of God and the gift by the *charis* of the one Man, Jesus Christ" - **[Romans 11:6](/codex/romans-11-6/)**, "if by *charis*, it is no longer on the basis of works" - **[Titus 2:11](/codex/titus-2-11/)**, "the *charis* of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men" - **[Titus 3:5-7](/codex/titus-3-5-7/)**, "He saved us… according to His mercy… being justified by His *charis*" ### Christ as embodiment of grace - **[John 1:14](/codex/john-1-14/)**, "full of *charis* and truth" - **[John 1:16-17](/codex/john-1-16-17/)**, "of His fullness we have all received, and *charis* upon *charis*… *charis* and truth came through Jesus Christ" ### Sufficient grace - **[2 Corinthians 12:9](/codex/2-corinthians-12-9/)**, "My *charis* is sufficient for you" - **[Romans 5:20](/codex/romans-5-20/)**, "where sin increased, *charis* abounded all the more" ### Grace and gifts (charismata) - **[Romans 12:6](/codex/romans-12-6/)**, "since we have gifts (*charismata*) that differ according to the *charis* given to us" - **[1 Corinthians 12:4-11](/codex/1-corinthians-12-4-11/)**, gifts of the Spirit - **[Ephesians 4:7](/codex/ephesians-4-7/)**, "to each one of us *charis* was given according to the measure of Christ's gift" - **[1 Peter 4:10](/codex/1-peter-4-10/)**, "as good stewards of the manifold *charis* of God" ### Greeting formulas - **[Romans 1:7](/codex/romans-1-7/); [1 Corinthians 1:3](/codex/1-corinthians-1-3/); [Galatians 1:3](/codex/galatians-1-3/)** etc., "*charis* and peace" - **[Revelation 22:21](/codex/revelation-22-21/)**, "the *charis* of the Lord Jesus be with all" ## Patristic / scholarly note Augustine (*On the Spirit and the Letter*, c. AD 412; *On Grace and Free Will*, c. AD 426; *On the Predestination of the Saints*, c. AD 429) develops the doctrine of grace against Pelagius, who held that humans could fulfill God's commands by natural ability without supernatural grace. Augustine's victory at the Council of Carthage (AD 418) and the Council of Orange (AD 529) makes the priority of grace the catholic standard. The Reformation took up Augustine's anti-Pelagian writings against late-medieval semi-Pelagianism. Luther's *Bondage of the Will* (1525) and Calvin's *Institutes* III.21-24 develop *sola gratia* as one of the five solas. The Synod of Dort (1618-1619) codified the Reformed doctrine of grace against Arminian synergism: total depravity, unconditional election, particular redemption, irresistible grace, perseverance of the saints, the so-called TULIP, often misunderstood but rooted in Augustinian-Reformed grace theology. Contemporary works: Michael Horton (*Justification*, 2018; *The Christian Faith*, 2011), Thomas Schreiner (*Faith Alone*), and the Heidelberg Catechism Q. 60-62 develop the practical pastoral application. ## Verses in this codex _See Obsidian's backlinks pane for every verse page linking here._ Top-cited references: [Ephesians 2.8-9](/codex/ephesians-2-8-9/), [John 1.14](/codex/john-1-14/), [Romans 5.8](/codex/romans-5-8/) (closely related context). ## See also - [G4102 - pistis](/codex/g4102-pistis/), paired in [Ephesians 2:8](/codex/ephesians-2-8/) "by grace through faith" - [G1344 - dikaioo](/codex/g1344-dikaioo/), "to justify", grace's effect - [H2580 - chen](/codex/h2580-chen/), Hebrew "favor" - [H2617 - hesed](/codex/h2617-hesed/), Hebrew "loyal love", closely related theological concept