Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

VIRTUE

An ability or disposition toward excellence, usually in the moral sense (Heb. ḥayil; Ruth 3:11; Prov. 12:4; esp. 31:10); in the NT an excellence of any kind (Gk. aretḗ; Phil. 4:8; 1 Pet. 2:9; 2 Pet. 1:3, 5).

In Aristotle virtue is that which allows something to perform its function well (e.g., the virtue of the horse is running). In reference to the person the virtues are those qualities which constitute a person’s character (i.e., the excellence of one’s character). A virtue is a disposition which makes one good and causes one to do her/his work well.

Virtue lists appear in all of the Pauline Letters except for 1-2 Thessalonians and Philemon. Unlike classical Greek moral reflection, the NT places very little emphasis on virtue. In particular, the four cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude are missing from the NT ethical catalogs (which may reveal a Jewish background to the lists). However, while it is true that virtue language is not present in the way it is in Aristotle, virtue and character are themes present throughout the Bible. Indeed, the Bible’s continual storytelling of the great persons of the faith by necessity emphasizes the importance of virtue in the godly life.

What is important here is that virtue not be separated from character. The character of the believer is to be formed after the image of God, and the virtues are the habits which form that character. In the NT the emphasis is further defined as being conformed to the image of Christ (Gal. 4:19; cf. Phil. 3:17; 1 Thess. 1:6; 2:14) who is the incarnate image of God (Col. 1:15).

Therefore, while virtue catalogs can be found only sporadically throughout the NT, the notion of virtue permeates the Bible. The emphasis, however, is not on a formal analysis of virtue, but on discipleship. What virtue then means for the Christian can only be understood in reference to the character of Jesus Christ.

Bibliography. B. W. Farley, In Praise of Virtue (Grand Rapids, 1995); E. Schweizer, “Traditional Ethical Patterns in the Pauline and Post-Pauline Letters and Their Development,” in Text and Interpretation, ed. E. Best and R. McLachlan Wilson (Cambridge, 1979), 195-209.

Allan R. Bevere

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

VIRTUE

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)