What does σχῆμα (schēma) mean in the Bible?
σχῆμα (schēma): External appearance or outward form, distinct from inner nature or essence (μορφή).
Greek · G4976
σχῆμα
Form
Reading a lexicon entry
What this page is: Each lexicon entry shows the original Hebrew or Greek word behind the English translation: its meaning, its range of use, and where it appears in Scripture.
Strong's number: The Strong's code (H- or G-) is the standard reference number for this word. It connects this entry to chapter and passage language tabs.
Where it appears: The witness passages show where this word is used in context. Click any to open the study page for that passage.
This lexicon entry is part of our ongoing editorial review. If you notice missing content, unclear wording, or a possible correction, please send us a note through the Connect page. Screenshots are helpful.
σχῆμα G4976
Pronunciation schēma
What does σχῆμα (schēma) mean in the Bible?
σχῆμα (schēma): External appearance or outward form, distinct from inner nature or essence (μορφή).
Full entry for σχῆμα (G4976) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G4976?
The BSB source-word alignment has 2 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include in appearance (1), present form (1).
Where does σχῆμα (schēma) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at 1 Corinthians 7:31. Its strongest book concentrations include 1 Corinthians (1), Philippians (1).
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It in appearance 1× Philippians 2:8
present form 1× 1 Corinthians 7:31
Show sample aligned rows
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row 1 Corinthians 7:31
Aligned rows 2
Books represented 2
1 Corinthians 1 Philippians 1
Source forms
σχῆμα 1x schēma 1 Corinthians 7:31
σχήματι 1x schēmati Philippians 2:8
Parsing patterns
Noun - Dative Neuter Singular 1x Philippians 2:8
Noun - Nominative Neuter Singular 1x 1 Corinthians 7:31
Evidence Summary
Greek word. External appearance or outward form, distinct from inner nature or essence (μορφή).
Strong's G4976
Lexical occurrences 2 verses Greek text appearances 2 times Word forms 2 forms 2 references Verse guides 0 guides
Study link 1 Corinthians 7:31 Source Gloss
form
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
2 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
1 Corinthians 7:31 Noun Nominative Singular Neuter
σχῆμα schma
fashion, habit, form, appearance
Read verse Philippians 2:8 Noun Dative Singular Neuter
σχήματι schmati
fashion, habit, form, appearance
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 2 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Form patterns 2 Aligned forms 2 Case pattern Dative (1) Number pattern Singular (2)
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Nominative · Singular · Neuter 1 Cor 7:31 1×
Dative · Singular · Neuter Phil 2:7 1×
Selected Scripture Witness
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Biblical Witnesses
the outward appearance or fashion of this world, passing away
Showing 1 selected witness from 2 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
σχῆμα is built from this root:
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain