ἄνοια G0454
folly, senselessness, madness; lack of understanding or irrational behavior
This noun describes the state of being senseless or foolish, sometimes intensifying to madness. Luke 6:11 uses it to describe the irrational fury of the scribes and Pharisees after Jesus heals on the Sabbath—they were filled with madness. In 2 Timothy 3:9, Paul predicts that the folly of false teachers will become manifest to all. Classical usage distinguished folly from outright insanity, though overlap existed. The New Testament uses it for both irrational rage and manifest foolishness. Translations (Spanish locura/insensatez, French folie, German ἄνοια) span the range from foolishness to madness.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Luke describes religious leaders consumed with irrational fury after Jesus' Sabbath healing—their ἄνοια is reactive rage that cannot think clearly. Paul uses the noun to predict how false teachers' foolishness will eventually be exposed. The genitive ἀνοίας (of folly) in 2 Timothy suggests foolishness as a quality that becomes increasingly evident. Spanish distinguishes insensatez (folly) from locura (madness), though both apply—the scribes' madness in Luke, the teachers' exposed foolishness in Timothy. 2×
AR["حَماقَتَهُم", "سَفاهَةً"]·ben["ক্রোধে", "মূর্খতা"]·DE["ἀνοίας", "ἄνοια"]·EN["folly", "with-madness"]·FR["folie"]·heb["סִכְלוּת"]·HI["मूर्खता-से", "मोओरखत"]·ID["kebodohan", "kemarahan"]·IT["anoia", "anoias"]·jav["bodho", "muring"]·KO["미친-짓-으로", "어리석음이"]·RU["безумие", "безумия"]·ES["de-locura", "insensatez"]·SW["upumbavu"]·TR["akılsızlığı", "öfkeyle,"]·urd["بےوقوفی", "غصے-سے"]
Related Senses
H3045 1. Qal: to know, perceive, understand (829×)H5315 1. soul, inner being (647×)H3820a 1. heart, inner self (mind/will/emotion) (572×)H4672 1. Qal: find, discover (289×)G1492 1. know facts or truths (285×)H3824 1. heart, inner self (mind/will/emotion) (250×)H1245 1. seek, search for (200×)G1097 1. know, be acquainted with (196×)H2142 1. Qal: remember, recall (173×)G2588 1. heart (inner self, mind, will) (158×)H0977 1. choose, select (Qal active) (145×)G2147 1. find, discover (144×)G5590 1. soul, inner self (100×)H4672 2. Niphal: be found, be discovered (99×)H1875 1. seek, search for (96×)H5315 2. life, vitality (94×)H1847 1. knowledge, discernment (90×)H2450 1. wise, prudent (84×)H7911 1. Qal: to forget (83×)H3684 1. fool, dullard (70×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
ἄνοια, Epic dialect ἀνοίη Refs 6th c.BC+, ἡ:— the character of an ἄνοος, want of understanding, folly, ἀνοίη in folly, Refs 5th c.BC+; πολλῆ ἀνοια χρῆσθαι to be a great fool, Refs 5th c.BC+; ἄνοιαν ὀφλισκάνειν to be thought a fool, Refs 5th c.BC+; but opposed to μανία, Refs: plural, follies, Refs 5th c.BC+