31 Bible Verses about Shrewdness

"Behold, it is I who am sending you forth like sheep among wolves. Be then as serpents and as guileless as doves.

"And the master praised the unjust steward because he had acted shrewdly; for the sons of this world are in relation to their own generation wiser than the sons of the light. "And to you I say, Use mammon, dishonest as it is, to make yourselves friends, so that when it shall fail they will welcome you to the eternal tabernacles.

To his disciples he said: "There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and this steward was accused to him of wasting his property. "He called to him to him and said: "'What is this that I hear about you? Render an account of your stewardship; for you can no longer be steward.' "Now the steward said to himself. 'What shall I do, now that my master is taking away my stewardship? I am not strong enough to dig, to beg I am ashamed.read more.
"'I know what I will do, so that when I am put out of my stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.' "So he called to him each of his master's debtors and said to the first, 'How much money do you owe my master?' "'A hundred measures of oil,' he answered. "He said to him, 'Take your bill and sit down quickly and write fifty." "To a second he said, 'How much do you owe?' "The man answered, 'A hundred measures of wheat.' "'Here is you bill,' he said, 'change it to eighty measures.'

"Every one who hears my words and does them I will liken to a wise man who built his house upon the rock. "And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon the house, but it fell not, for it was founded upon the rock.

"I will show whom the man that comes to me, and listens to my works, and does them, is like. "He is like a man who is building a house who digged and went deep and laid a foundation upon rock. And, when a flood came, the torrent dashed against that house, but could not move, because it had been founded upon rock.

"Who, then, is the faithful and prudent slave, to whom his master has entrusted his household, to give them their food in due season? Blessed is that slave whom his Master, when he comes, shall find so doing. In solemn truth I tell you that he will set him over all his property.

The Lord answered. "Who then is that faithful steward, the wise man whom his Lord will put in charge of the rations in due time? "Blessed is that slave whom his master on his coming shall find so doing. "Of a truth I tell you that he will put him in charge of his possessions.

And Jesus, because he knew their malice, said: "Hypocrites! Why are you tempting me? Show me the tribute money." So they brought him a shilling. "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" he asked.read more.
"Caesar's," they answered. Then he said to them, "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's." When they heard this they were astonished, and left him and went away.

Shall we pay, or not pay?" But he, knowing well their hypocrisy, said to them. "Why are you testing me? Bring me a dollar for me to look at." And they brought it. "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" "Caesar's," they answered. And Jesus said, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God, the things that are God's." They were amazed at him.

But he perceived their knavery and answered. "Show me a shilling. Whose image and superscription does it bear?" "Caesar's," they replied. "Then give to Caesar what belongs to him," he said, "to God give what is God's."read more.
So they could not lay hold of his sayings before the people; and marveling at his answer, they held their peace.

"But concerning the resurrection of the dead, did you never read what was spoken to you by God, "I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living."

But in regard to the rising again of the dead, have you never read in the Book of Moses, in the passage about the Bush, how God spoke to him, saying, "I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are in grave error."

"But that the dead are raised, even Moses clearly implied in the passage about the Bush, when he calls the Lord. "The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob. "Now he is not the God of the dead, but of the living; for to him all are alive.'

But Jesus stooped down, and began to write on the ground with his finger. When they continued to question him, he raised himself and said to them, "Let the innocent man among you be the first to throw the stone at her."

As soon as Herod saw that he had been mocked by the Magi, he was furious. He sent and put to death all the boys in Bethlehem and all the neighborhood who were two years old or under, in accordance with the date which he had ascertained from the Magi.

"Let the children be filled first," he said to her. "It is unseemly to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." "True, Master," she answered, "but the dogs under the table do pick up the children's crumbs." "For that saying of yours, go home," he replied; "the demon has departed from your daughter."

He answered, "It is not seemly to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs." "True, Lord," she said, "but even the little dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table." Then Jesus answered her. "O woman, great is your faith. It shall be for you even as you desire." And from that hour her daughter was healed.

"O full of all craft and cunning, you son of the devil! You enemy of all goodness! Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?

So we shall no longer be children, tossed up and down, and blown about by every wind of teaching, tricked by the craft of men in the snares of misleading error;

For thus it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the philosophers, And the prudence of the prudent will I confound.

For the philosophy of this world is foolishness in God's sight. It is written, He snares the wise in their own craftiness, and again, The Lord knows the reasonings of the wise, how futile they are.

But I fear lest, just as the serpent beguiled Eve in his craftiness, so your minds should be seduced from your single-mindedness and purity toward Christ.

for your sakes, that I may not be overreached by Satan, for I am not ignorant of his devices.

For such fellows are sham apostles of Christ. No wonder! for Satan himself disguises himself as an angel of light. It is no great marvel, then, if his ministers also disguise themselves as ministers of righteousness. Their end will be according to their works.

Then the Pharisees went and took counsel how they might ensnare him during conversation. So they sent their disciples to him, with the Herodians. "Teacher," they said, "we know that you are honest, and that you are teaching the way of God in sincerity; and are not afraid of any one, for you do not court men's favor. "Give us your advice, then. Is it allowable to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"

But they sent some of the Pharisees to Jesus afterward, and some of the Herodians to entrap him in conversation. So when they came, they said: "Teacher, we know that you are sincere and are not afraid of any one, for you do not regard the face of men; nay, but you reach the way of God in truth. Is it right to pay poll-tax to Caesar or not? Shall we pay, or not pay?" But he, knowing well their hypocrisy, said to them. "Why are you testing me? Bring me a dollar for me to look at."

So they watched him, and sent spies who pretended to be honest men, in order to seize on his speech, and to deliver him up to authority and jurisdiction of the governor. So they put a question to him saying. "Rabbi, we know that you speak and teach what is right, and that you do not regard any man's person, but teach the way of God honestly. "Is it lawful for us to pay tribute to Caesar or not?"

Then the chief priests and the elders of the people met together in the court of the palace of the high priest who was called Caiaphas, and they plotted together to get Jesus into their power by a trick, and to put him to death;

Now two days later was the feast of the Passover and of Unleavened Bread. Both the chief priests and the Scribes were continually seeking how they might arrest him by a stratagem and kill him; but, "Not on a feast-day," they said, "for fear there should be a riot among the people."

Now the festival of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was drawing near. The high priest and the Scribes continually sought means to put him to death.

But though it be granted that I was not a burden to you, yet, you say, this was my cunning with which I caught you by a trick.