31 Bible Verses about Shrewdness

"Here I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. So you must be wise like serpents, and guileless like doves.

And his master praised the dishonest manager, because he had acted shrewdly. For the sons of this age are shrewder in their relation to their own age than the sons of the light. So I tell you, make friends for yourselves with your ill-gotten wealth, so that when it fails, they may take you into the eternal dwellings.

And he said to his disciples, "There was a rich man who had a manager, and it was reported to him that this man was squandering his property. So he called him in and said to him, 'What is this that I hear about you? Make an accounting for your conduct of my affairs, for you cannot be manager any longer!' Then the manager said to himself, 'What am I going to do, because my master is going to take my position away from me? I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg.read more.
I know what I will do, so that when I am removed from my position people will take me into their homes.' Then he called in each of his master's debtors, and he said to the first one, 'How much do you owe my master?' He said, 'Eight hundred gallons of oil.' And he said to him, 'Here is your agreement; sit right down and write four hundred!' Then he said to another, 'And how much do you owe?' He answered, 'Fifteen hundred bushels of wheat.' He said to him, 'Here is your agreement; write twelve hundred.'

"Everyone, therefore, who listens to this teaching of mine and acts upon it, will be like a sensible man who built his house on rock. And the rain fell, and the rivers rose, and the winds blew, and beat about that house, and it did not go down, for its foundations were on rock.

If anyone comes to me and listens to this teaching of mine and acts upon it, I will show you whom he is like. He is like a man who was building a house, who dug deep and laid his foundation upon the rock, and when there was a flood the torrent burst upon that house and could not shake it, because it was well built.

"Who then will be the faithful, thoughtful slave whom his master put in charge of his household, to give the members of it their supplies at the proper time? Blessed is that slave if his master when he returns finds him doing it. I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his property.

And the Master said, "Who then will be the faithful, thoughtful manager, whom his master will put in charge of his household, to give the members of it their supplies at the proper time? Blessed is that slave if his master when he returns finds him doing it. I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his property.

But he saw their malice, and said, "Why do you put me to such a test, you hypocrites? Show me the poll-tax coin!" And they brought him a denarius. And he said to them, "Whose head and title is this?"read more.
They answered, "The emperor's." Then he said to them, "Then pay the emperor what belongs to the emperor, and pay God what belongs to God!" And when they heard it they were amazed, and they went away and left him.

Should we pay it, or refuse to pay it?" But he saw through their pretense, and said to them, "Why do you put me to such a test? Bring me a denarius to look at." And they brought him one. He said to them, "Whose head and title is this?" And they told him, "The emperor's." And Jesus said, "Pay the emperor what belongs to the emperor, and pay God what belongs to God!" And they were astonished at him.

But he detected their trickery, and said to them, "Show me a denarius. Whose head and title does it bear?" They said, "The emperor's." He said to them, "Then pay the emperor what belongs to the emperor, and pay God what belongs to God!"read more.
So they could not fasten on what he said before the people, and they were amazed at his answer, and said nothing more.

But as to the resurrection of the dead, did you never read what was said to you by God, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He is not the God of dead men but of living!"

But as to the dead being raised, have you never read in the Book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God said to him, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He is not God of dead men but of living! You are entirely wrong."

But that the dead are raised to life, even Moses indicated in the passage about the bush, when he calls the Lord 'the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' He is not the God of dead men but of living, for all men are alive to him."

OMITTED TEXT

Then Herod saw that he had been tricked by the astrologers, and he was very angry, and he sent and made away with all the boys in Bethlehem and in all that neighborhood who were two years old or under, for that was the tune he had learned from the astrologers by his inquiries.

He said to her, "Let the children first eat all they want, for it is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." But she answered, "True, sir! and still the dogs under the table eat what the children leave!" He said to her, "If you can say that, go home; the demon has left your daughter."

He said, "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs!" But she said, "O yes, sir! For even dogs eat the scraps that fall from their masters' table!" Then Jesus answered, "You have great faith! You shall have what you want." And her daughter was cured from that time.

and said, "You monster of underhandedness and cunning! You son of the devil! You enemy of all that is right! Will you never stop trying to make the Lord's straight paths crooked?

We must not be babies any longer, blown about and swung around by every wind of doctrine through the trickery of men with their ingenuity in inventing error.

For the Scripture says, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And I will thwart the shrewdness of the shrewd!"

For this world's wisdom is foolishness to God. For the Scripture says, "He who catches the wise with their own cunning," and "The Lord knows that the deliberations of the wise are fruitless."

But I am afraid that just as the serpent by his cunning deceived Eve, your thoughts will be led astray from their single-hearted fidelity to Christ.

to keep Satan from getting the better of us. For we know what he is after.

Such men are sham apostles, dishonest workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan himself masquerades as a shining angel. So it is nothing strange if his servants also masquerade as servants of uprightness. But their doom will fit their actions.

Then the Pharisees went and made a plot to entrap him in argument. So they sent their disciples to him with the Herodians, to say to him, "Master, we know that you tell the truth, and teach the way of God with sincerity, regardless of the consequences, for you are impartial. So give us your opinion: Is it right to pay the poll-tax to the emperor, or not?"

They sent some Pharisees and Herodians to him to entrap him in argument. And they came up and said to him, "Master, we know that you tell the truth regardless of the consequences, for you are not guided by personal considerations, but teach the way of God with sincerity. Is it right to pay the poll tax to the emperor or not? Should we pay it, or refuse to pay it?" But he saw through their pretense, and said to them, "Why do you put me to such a test? Bring me a denarius to look at."

So they kept watch of him and set some spies who pretended to be honest men to fasten on something that he said, so that they might hand him over to the control and authority of the governor. And they asked him, "Master, we know that you are right in what you say and teach, and that you show no favor, but teach the way of God in sincerity. Is it right for us to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?"

Then the high priests and the elders of the people gathered in the house of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted to arrest Jesus by stealth and put him to death.

It was now two days before the festival of the Passover and of Unleavened Bread. And the high priests and scribes were casting about for a way to arrest him by stealth and put him to death, for they said, "It must not be during the festival, or there may be a riot."

The festival of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was approaching. And the high priests and the scribes were casting about for a way to put him to death, for they were afraid of the people.

But granting that I did not burden you myself, I was clever about it, you say, and took you in by a trick.