12 Bible Verses about Craftiness

Now the serpent was craftier than any of the wild animals Jehovah God had made. He said to the woman: Did God really say, you must not eat from any tree in the garden?

They resorted to a ruse (scheme) (trick). They acted as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, worn out, torn, and mended.

We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in craftiness, after the wiles of error.

All of them, using deceit, worked together to capture Jesus and kill him.

He perceived their craftiness, and replied:

Pharisees and Herodians went to him that they might catch him in talk.

The Pharisees took counsel how they might trap him in his talk. They sent their disciples with the Herodians to Jesus. They said: Teacher we know you are truthful. You teach the way of God in truth. And you are not partial to the influence of men. Tell us what you think? Is it lawful to pay the poll tax to Caesar, or not?

Teacher, Moses said if a man dies having no children, his brother should marry his wife, and bring up seed for his brother. There were seven brothers. The first married and died, and having no children, left his wife to his brother. The same happened to the second, right on through the seventh. read more.
After that the woman died. In the resurrection, with which of the seven will she be married? All seven had her.

While they sat and ate Jesus said: Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me, even he that eats with me. They were sorrowful and said to him one by one: Is it I? He said to them: It is one of the twelve, he that dips with me in the dish. read more.
The Son of man goes even as it is written of him. Woe to that man through whom the Son of man is betrayed! It would have been better if he had not been born. While they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it, he gave the broken bread to them, and said: Take it, this means (represents) my body. He took a cup, and when he had given praise, he gave it to them and they all had a drink from it.

The scribes and the chief priests attempted to capture him in that very hour. They feared the people. They perceived that he spoke this illustration against them. They watched him and sent out spies, who pretended to be righteous. The spies listened for something in his speech to deliver him up to the authority of the governor. Teacher, they said, we know that you are right in what you say and teach. You are not partial and do not play favorites. Rather you teach the way of God truthfully. read more.
Is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not? He perceived their craftiness, and replied: Show me a denarius. Whose image and superscription does it have? They said, Caesar's. He said to them: Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. They were not able to apprehend him in front of the people. They were amazed by his answer and kept quiet.

As for me, I would seek God's help and present my case to him. He does great things that we cannot understand and miracles that we cannot count. He gives rain to the earth and sends water to the fields. read more.
He sets on high the lowly people. He lifts those who mourn to safety. He keeps shrewd (crafty) (cunning) people from carrying out their plans so that they cannot do anything successfully. He catches the wise with their own craftiness. The plans of schemers are quickly halted.

Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this age is foolishness with God. It is written: He catches the wise in their own craftiness (deception). (Job 5:13)

We have this ministry to do, even as we obtained mercy, we do not lose heart. We have renounced the hidden things of shame. And we do not walk in craftiness and deceit. We do not adulterate the word of God. But by the manifestation of the truth we commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.

All of them, using deceit, worked together to capture Jesus and kill him.

It was just two days until the feast of the Passover and the unleavened bread. The chief priests and the scribes sought how they might quietly capture and kill him.

Laban asked: What should I give you? Jacob answered: Do not give me anything. Instead, do something for me. Then I will go back to taking care of and watching your flocks again. Let me go through all of your flocks today and take every speckled and spotted sheep, every black lamb, and every spotted and speckled goat. They will be my wages. My honesty will speak for itself whenever you come to check on my wages. Any goat I have that is not speckled or spotted or any lamb that is not black will be considered stolen. read more.
Laban answered: I agree; we will do as you have said. Laban took out the striped and spotted male goats, all the speckled and spotted female goats (every one with white on it), and every black lamb. He had his sons take charge of them that same day. They moved away from Jacob with this flock as far as he could travel in three days. Jacob took care of the rest of Laban's flocks. Jacob took green branches of poplar (storax), almond, and plane trees and stripped off some of the bark so that the branches had white stripes on them. He placed these branches in front of the flocks at their drinking troughs. He put them there, because the animals mated when they came to drink. So when the goats bred in front of the branches, they produced young that were streaked, speckled, and spotted. Jacob kept the sheep separate from the goats and made them face in the direction of the streaked and black animals of Laban's flock. In this way he built up his own flock and kept it apart from Laban's. When the strongest of the flock were mating, Jacob would place the rods in the sight of the flock in the gutters, so that they might mate by the rods. When the flock was feeble, he did not put them in. That way the feebler were Laban's and the stronger Jacob's. He became exceedingly prosperous, and had large flocks and female and male servants and camels and donkeys.

Jacob answered: I will give it to you if you give me your birthright as the firstborn son. Esau said: All right! I am about to die. What good are rights as firstborn to me? Jacob answered: First make a vow that you will give me your birthright. Esau made the vow and gave his rights as firstborn to Jacob.

When the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, They resorted to a ruse (scheme) (trick). They acted as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, worn out, torn, and mended. They had worn out and patched shoes on their feet, they wore old garments; and all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy. read more.
They went to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the men of Israel: We come from a distant country, make a treaty with us. The men of Israel said to the Hivites: Perhaps you live near us. How can we make a treaty with you? They said: We are your servants. Joshua said to them: Who are you? Where do you come from? They said: From a very far country, your servants came because of the name of Jehovah your God, for we have heard about him and all he did in Egypt; and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, which was at Ashtaroth. Our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us, saying: 'Take provisions with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say to them: We are your servants. Therefore make a treaty with us.' We took hot fresh bread for our provision out of our houses on the day we came to you. Now it is dry, and it is moldy: These bottles of wine, which we filled, were new and now they are cracked. Our garments and shoes have become old by reason of the very long journey. The men sampled their provisions but did not ask for counsel from Jehovah. Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live. The leaders of the congregation ratified it by an oath.

Rebekah said to her son Jacob: I have just heard your father speak to your brother Esau. He said: 'Bring me some wild game, and prepare a good-tasting meal for me to eat. Then I will bless you in the presence of Jehovah before I die.' Now listen to me, Son, and do what I tell you. read more.
Go to the flock and pick out two fat young goats. I will cook them and make some of that food your father likes so much. You take it to him to eat. Then he will give you his blessing before he dies. Jacob said to his mother: You know that Esau is a hairy man. I have smooth skin. Perhaps my father will touch me and find out that I am deceiving him. That way, I will bring a curse on myself instead of a blessing. His mother replied: Let any curse against you fall on me, my son. Just do as I say, and go and get the goats for me. So Jacob brought the meat to his mother. And she cooked the tasty food that his father liked. Then she took Esau's best clothes and dressed Jacob in them. She also covered the smooth part of his hands and neck with goatskins. She gave her son Jacob the good-tasting meal and the bread she had prepared. He went to his father and said: Father? Yes, he answered. Who are you, Son? Jacob answered: I am your older son Esau. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of the meat that I brought you. Then you can give me your blessing. Isaac said: How did you find it so quickly, son? Jacob answered: Jehovah your God helped me find it. Isaac said to Jacob: Please come closer. Let me touch you. Are you really Esau? Jacob went closer. His father touched him. He said: You sound like Jacob, but your hands feel hairy like Esau's. So Isaac blessed Jacob, thinking he was Esau. Isaac asked: Are you really my son Esau? Yes, I am, Jacob answered. So Isaac told him: Serve me the wild meat. I can give you my blessing. Jacob gave him some meat, and he ate it. He also gave him some wine, and he drank it. Then his father Isaac said to him: Come close, my son, and kiss me. He came close and kissed him. He smelled the smell of his garments. Then he blessed him and said: See, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field Jehovah has blessed. May God give you of the dew of heaven, the fatness of the earth, and an abundance of grain and new wine. May peoples serve you. And nations bow down to you. Be master of your brothers. And may your mother's sons bow down to you. Cursed be those who curse you. Blessed be those who bless you.

Now the serpent was craftier than any of the wild animals Jehovah God had made. He said to the woman: Did God really say, you must not eat from any tree in the garden? The woman said to the serpent: We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden. However, God did say: 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden. You must not touch it, or you will die.' read more.
You will not die, the serpent said to the woman. God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened. Then you will be like God, knowing good and evil.