Topical Encyclopedia
The concept of being prosperous in the Bible is often associated with God's blessing, favor, and provision. It encompasses not only material wealth but also spiritual well-being, success, and peace. The Bible presents prosperity as a holistic state of flourishing that aligns with God's will and purposes.
Old Testament UnderstandingIn the Old Testament, prosperity is frequently linked to obedience to God's commandments.
Deuteronomy 28:1-6 outlines the blessings of obedience, stating, "Now if you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God and are careful to follow all His commandments I am giving you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings will come upon you and overtake you, if you will obey the voice of the LORD your God: You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, as well as the produce of your land and the offspring of your livestock, the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and kneading bowl will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out."
The patriarchs, such as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, experienced prosperity as a sign of God's covenantal faithfulness.
Genesis 24:35 records Abraham's servant saying, "The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and he has become wealthy. He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, menservants and maidservants, camels and donkeys."
Wisdom LiteratureThe wisdom literature, particularly the Book of Proverbs, frequently addresses the theme of prosperity.
Proverbs 3:9-10 advises, "Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your harvest; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine." This passage highlights the principle of honoring God with one's resources as a pathway to prosperity.
New Testament PerspectiveIn the New Testament, the focus shifts from material wealth to spiritual prosperity. Jesus teaches in
Matthew 6:19-21 , "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Here, prosperity is redefined in terms of eternal values and treasures in heaven.
The Apostle Paul echoes this sentiment in
1 Timothy 6:17-19 , instructing, "Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be conceited and not to put their hope in the uncertainty of wealth, but in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, and to be generous and ready to share, treasuring up for themselves a firm foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life."
Spiritual ProsperitySpiritual prosperity is emphasized as believers are encouraged to grow in their relationship with God. 3
John 1:2 expresses a prayer for holistic prosperity: "Beloved, I pray that in every way you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers." This verse underscores the importance of spiritual well-being as the foundation for all other forms of prosperity.
ConclusionThe biblical concept of prosperity is multifaceted, encompassing material, spiritual, and relational dimensions. It is ultimately rooted in a life aligned with God's will, characterized by obedience, faith, and a focus on eternal values.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
a.) Tending to prosperity; favoring; favorable; helpful.
2. (a.) Being prospered; advancing in the pursuit of anything desirable; making gain, or increase; thriving; successful; as, a prosperous voyage; a prosperous undertaking; a prosperous man or nation.
Greek
2137. euodoo -- to have aprosperous journey... to have a
prosperous journey. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: euodoo Phonetic
Spelling: (yoo-od-o'-o) Short Definition: I cause to prosper, have a happy
...5415. Phortounatos -- "prosperous, lucky," Fortunatus, a Christian
... Phortounatos. 5416 . "prosperous... Word Origin of Latin origin Definition "prosperous,
lucky," Fortunatus, a Christian NASB Word Usage Fortunatus (1). Fortunatus...
2141. euporeo -- to prosper
... to prosper. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: euporeo Phonetic Spelling:
(yoo-por-eh'-o) Short Definition: I have means, amprosperous Definition: I have...
Strong's Hebrew
1878. dashen -- to be fat, grow fat... root Definition to be fat, grow fat NASB Word Usage anointed (1), become greasy
(1), become
prosperous (1), find your acceptable (1), made fat (1), prosper (1
...6743b. tsaleach -- to advance, prosper
... to advance, prosper NASB Word Usage advanced (1), give us success (1), made his
successful (1), make his successful (1), make yourprosperous (1), make your...
7488. raanan -- luxuriant, fresh
... green, flourishing. From an unused root meaning to be green; verdant; by analogy,
new; figuratively,prosperous -- green, flourishing. 7487b, 7488....
3474. yashar -- to be smooth, straight, or right
... A primitive root; to be straight or even; figuratively, to be (causatively, to make)
right, pleasant,prosperous -- direct, fit, seem good (meet), + please...
7487. ra'anan -- to be or grow luxuriant, fresh, or green
... flourishing (Aramaic) corresponding to ra'anan; green, ie (figuratively)prosperous;
--flourishing. see HEBREW ra'anan. 7486, 7487. ra'anan. 7487a ....
3559. kun -- to be firm
... in a great variety of applications, whether literal (establish, fix, prepare, apply),
or figurative (appoint, render sure, proper orprosperous) -- certain(-ty...
50. Abishua -- "my father is rescue," two Israelites
... NASB Word Usage Abishua (5). Abishua. From 'ab and showa'; father of plenty (ie
Prosperous); Abishua, the name of two Israelites -- Abishua. see HEBREW 'ab....
6555. parats -- to break through
... root Definition to break through NASB Word Usage became...prosperous (1), breaches
(1), break (2), break their down (1), break down (1), break forth (1...
7961. shalev -- quiet, at ease
... Word Origin from shalah Definition quiet, at ease NASB Word Usage carefree (1),
ease (3), peaceful (1),prosperous (1), quiet (1), satisfied (1)....
1879. dashen -- fat
... Definition: sap. Word Origin adjective from dashen Definition fat NASB Word
Usage full of sap (1),prosperous (1), rich (1). fat. From...
Library
How to Secure aProsperous Voyage
... THE ACTS CHAP. XIII TO END HOW TO SECURE APROSPEROUS VOYAGE. 'And after
[Paul] had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to...
The Philistines, victorious in thisProsperous Battle, Brought the...
... The Sacred History Of Sulpitius Severus. Book I. Chapter XXXI. The Philistines,
victorious in thisprosperous battle, brought the ark of God?...
Happy Children andProsperous Days
... BOOK VI CHAPTER LXXI HAPPY CHILDREN ANDPROSPEROUS DAYS. Like the flower
of roses in the spring of the year, and like lilies by the...
Psalm 73 Part 1 Afflicted Saints Happy, andProsperous Sinners...
... THE PSALMS OF DAVID PSALM 73 PART 1 Afflicted saints happy, andprosperous sinners
cursed. CM Afflicted saints happy, andprosperous sinners cursed....
Psalm 73:1. First Part. CM Afflicted Saints Happy, andProsperous...
... THE Psalms of David, In Metre. Psalm 73:1. First Part. CM Afflicted saints
happy, andprosperous sinners cursed. 1 Now I'm convinc...
National Wealth
... For here, in the text, is Moses' answer to the first great question in
politics, What makes a nationprosperous? To that wise men...
Psalm XCII.
... When thou artprosperous, rejoice in God, for it is His mercy.... It is His mercy, when
I amprosperous; is it then His cruelty, when I am in adversity?...
The Rich and the Poor
... And thus a series of links is established between the mostprosperous and the least
prosperous classes, by means of which the rich and the poor may meet...
Smith -- Assurance in God
... One does not know whether the psalmist was aprosperous man or a poor one; the
inference that he wasprosperous and rich has sometimes been drawn, but wrongly...
A Little Sanctuary
... They spoke in a very cruel manner to those with whom they should have sympathized.
How often doprosperous brothers look with scorn on the unfortunate!...
Thesaurus
Prosperous (26 Occurrences)... 2. (a.) Being prospered; advancing in the pursuit of anything desirable; making
gain, or increase; thriving; successful; as, a
prosperous voyage; a
prosperous...Successful (16 Occurrences)
... (a.) Resulting in success; assuring, or promotive of, success; accomplishing what
was proposed; having the desired effect; hence,prosperous; fortunate; happy...
Success (29 Occurrences)
... effort. 3. (n.) The favorable orprosperous termination of anything attempted;
the attainment of a proposed object;prosperous issue. 4...
Weal (1 Occurrence)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) A sound, healthy, orprosperous state; happiness;
welfare.... 3. (vt) To promote the weal of; to cause to beprosperous....
Raamses (1 Occurrence)
... It was a veryprosperous city when this letter was written, and a pa-khennu or
"palace city." It had canals full of fish, lakes swarming with birds, fields of...
Ramses
... It was a veryprosperous city when this letter was written, and a pa-khennu or
"palace city." It had canals full of fish, lakes swarming with birds, fields of...
En-gannim (3 Occurrences)
... It is identified with the modern Jenin, a large andprosperous town of about 4,000
inhabitants, situated 15 miles south of Mount Tabor, through which the road...
Engannim (3 Occurrences)
... It is identified with the modern Jenin, a large andprosperous town of about 4,000
inhabitants, situated 15 miles south of Mount Tabor, through which the road...
Rameses (5 Occurrences)
... It was a veryprosperous city when this letter was written, and a pa-khennu or
"palace city." It had canals full of fish, lakes swarming with birds, fields of...
Prospered (35 Occurrences)
... Genesis 24:21 And the man looked stedfastly on her; holding his peace, to know whether
the LORD had made his journeyprosperous or not. (See RSV)....
Resources
What does the Bible say about prosperity? | GotQuestions.orgIs the Word of Faith movement biblical? | GotQuestions.orgWhat are some biblical examples of meditation? | GotQuestions.orgProsperous: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
Bible Dictionary •
Bible Encyclopedia •
Topical Bible •
Bible Thesuarus
