Greek word · G3701

ὀπτασία

optasia

vision

A sight or appearance, and especially a supernatural vision: something seen that comes from beyond the ordinary world.

Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Greek New Testament. · Updated October 24, 2026

What it means

ὀπτασία, -ας, ἡ

(ὀπτάζομαι, Numbers 14:14* = ὀπτάνομαι), later form of ὄψις, [in LXX: Malachi 3:2 (רָאָה ni.), Da TH Daniel 9:23 10:1, 7-8 10:16 (מַרְאֶה, מַרְאָה LXX, ὅραμα, -σις), Esther 4:7, Sirach 43:2, 16 * ;]

1. an appearing, coming into view (Ma, Es, Sir, ll. with).

2. a vision: Luke 1:22 24:23, Acts 26:19, 2 Corinthians 12:1 (Da, ll. with, also in MGr.).†

(AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

Range of meaning: A sight or appearance, and especially a supernatural vision: something seen that comes from beyond the ordinary world.
Against the English: 'Vision' is a fair translation. Modern English also uses 'vision' for goals and strategy, as in 'a vision for the church', but that sense is not in play here.
Used elsewhere in the period: Rare in the Greek Old Testament: Daniel 9:23; 10:1, 7–8 (Theodotion's version) for Daniel's visions, and Mal 3:2 for the Lord's 'appearing'. In the New Testament: Zechariah's vision in the temple (Luke 1:22), the women's vision of angels at the tomb (Luke 24:23), and Paul's own 'heavenly vision' on the Damascus road (Acts 26:19).

Range of meaning: A seeing, a sight, an appearance. It often refers to a supernatural being becoming visible, and it can mean either the act of appearing or the thing seen. It is not a daydream, a goal or a plan for the future.
Against the English: In modern English 'vision' often means a hoped-for future, an organisational goal ('vision statement') or a purely inward, imagined experience. The Greek word means something actually seen, in which someone appears and speaks.
How it drifted: Since the 20th century, business and church-leadership language has used 'vision' to mean strategic direction, and earlier romantic usage made it mean imaginative foresight. Both meanings now attach easily to the phrase 'heavenly vision'.
Used elsewhere in the period: Luke uses it for Zechariah's encounter with an angel in the temple (Luke 1:22) and for the women's 'vision of angels' at the empty tomb (Luke 24:23). In 2 Cor 12:1 Paul speaks of 'visions and revelations of the Lord'. In Greek Daniel the word recurs in ch. 10, where Daniel alone sees the vision and the men with him do not, which closely resembles the companions' partial experience in Acts 9:7; 22:9. Malachi 3:2 in the Septuagint uses it for the Lord's 'appearing'.

Luke · 2

Luke 1:22 ὀπτασίαν a vision

When he came out and was unable to speak to them, they realized he had seen a vision in the temple. He kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.
Luke 24:23 ὀπτασίαν a vision

but they did not find His body. They came and told us they had seen a vision of angels, who said that Jesus was alive.

Acts · 1

Acts 26:19 ὀπτασίᾳ, vision,

So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision.

Here: Something seen: a supernatural appearance in which a person shows himself and speaks. It refers back to the light, the voice and Jesus' words 'I have appeared (ōphthēn) to you' (v. 16), including the commission that came with them.

2 Corinthians · 1

2 Corinthians 12:1 ὀπτασίας visions

I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to gain, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord.

Here: Things seen: supernatural sights given to someone. The plural suggests Paul had more than one such experience, though he will tell only one.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.