Wise, skillful, learned — possessing wisdom in its various dimensions: practical, philosophical, and spiritual. Sophos in the NT is redefined by the cross: God's wisdom looks like foolishness to the world, and worldly wisdom is foolishness to God.
Paul's theology of wisdom inverts human expectations: 'God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise' (1 Corinthians 1:27). The cross is God's sophia — foolish by human standards, powerful by divine. James distinguishes two wisdoms: earthly wisdom (selfish, demonic) and wisdom from above (pure, peaceable, gentle — James 3:15-17). True wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord and culminates in Christ, 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' (Colossians 2:3).