οἴομαι (oiomai)
oiomai
to suppose
Quick Reference
- Language
- Koine Greek
- Testament
- New Testament
- Occurrences
- 2 verses
- Root
- —
Word Overview
The verb oiomai means to suppose or imagine something based on a personal opinion rather than certain knowledge. It appears only twice in the New Testament, carrying a sense of subjective belief that may not align with objective reality. In John 21:25, Jesus uses it to describe how people might think his ministry was limited to what is recorded, while James 1:7 employs it to illustrate the instability of a double-minded person who expects anything from God in return.
Its root suggests an internal mental act of forming a view. The sources note its use with infinitives or introductory clauses like "that" (hoti) to frame these suppositions. Unlike words for confident belief, oiomai often implies uncertainty or a presumption that can be mistaken. Translators typically render it as "think," "suppose," or "imagine," preserving the nuance of a personal, possibly flawed, perspective rather than established fact.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The Greek word oiomai describes a thought formed in the mind, often one that is subjective or uncertain rather than grounded in firm knowledge. It appears only twice in the New Testament, highlighting how human reasoning can sometimes drift into presumption or incomplete understanding. When we suppose something based on limited information, we are engaging in this kind of mental act.
In John 21:25, the phrase helps us grasp the sheer scale of Jesus’ ministry. The writer suggests that if every detail were recorded, the world itself could not contain the books. This is not a claim of absolute certainty about the number of miracles, but a humble acknowledgment of their overwhelming abundance. It invites us to rest in the mystery of Christ’s work without needing to measure it all.
James 1:7 uses the word differently, warning against instability. A double-minded person might suppose they can receive wisdom from God while maintaining divided loyalties. The text clarifies that such suppositions are unreliable. This reminds us that faith requires a steady heart, not just fleeting thoughts or hopeful guesses about what God might do.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 2 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- should suppose1×
- I suppose1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- οἶμαι1×
- οἰέσθω1×
Key Verses
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John 21:25
There are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they would all be written, I suppose that even the world itself wouldn’t have room for the books that would be written.
The word conveys the writer’s humble supposition that Jesus’ deeds were too numerous to record, emphasizing the overwhelming scope of his ministry rather than stating a factual count.
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James 1:7
For that man shouldn’t think that he will receive anything from the Lord.
Here the term illustrates the unstable expectation of a double-minded person, showing that such subjective suppositions about receiving from God are unreliable and lack spiritual foundation.