What the Bible says about Shrewdness
(From Forerunner Commentary)

Genesis 3:1-5 The word “shrewd” more closely captures Satan's character than "cunning." Shrewd means “sharp and clever in a selfish way.” Though “cunning” is not incorrect, “shrewd” has clearer connotation. To be cunning and shrewd like Satan indicates malevolent brilliance—with the emphasis on malevolent. He is seeking to kill. His cunning is like that of a tiger, silently padding through the jungle with eyes malevolently seeking something to kill and eat. Consider how clever his tactic was. He subtly made a suggestion rather than an argument to discredit God's authority, casting doubt about God's credibility. Satan asked, "Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?'" Through the tone and inflection of his voice, Satan implied that there was doubt that God told them the truth. This is shown by the way Eve replied; she corrected him. She knew from the inflection of his voice that he was really asking a question and casting doubt. When she replied, she over-corrected. Like a good salesman, the serpent got his victim to agree with him, getting the victim to say “Yes, yes, yes,” and then, "I'll buy it!" Eve was already influenced when she gave her reply because she over-corrected. Satan successfully magnified God's strictness in her mind, reminding her that the way is narrow. She began to agree with him, thinking about God in terms the serpent wanted her to think. She began to agree, saying “Yes, yes, yes” to the salesman's ploys. Satan immediately minimized the penalty, saying an outright lie, "You shall not die" (3:4). Then to clinch the sale, he offers her a reward: "You shall be like God" (3:5). What a price she paid! Satan offered a reward that must have seemed so big to Adam and Eve that they could not afford to reject it. What he offered was enough to reorient their lives. They did not catch the complete significance of what he offered, but enough to know it was big. He offered the self to become the dominating focus of life; "You shall be God." He completely reoriented their lives by turning their focus away from obedience to God toward obedience to the self. He gave them the right to choose and to set the standards of right and wrong. They bought it hook, line, and sinker. From that point on, mankind has viewed God as a rival and competitor rather than a friend—Someone with whom to compete and outwit rather than cooperate, for they were now gods too! John W. Ritenbaugh Satan (Part 2) Related Topics: Competition | Competition Against God | Cunning | Cunning Deceit | Doubting | Doubts | Satan's Character | Satan's Deception | Satan's Lies | Self Centeredness | Shrewd | Shrewdness | Standards of Morality | Standards of Right and Wrong | Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil

Proverbs 22:3 Proverbs 22:3 poses an intriguing question. This maxim gives every appearance of involving a moral choice. Could it also involve the chicken-or-the-egg conundrum? To produce the good result, which came first, the prudence or the vision? In light of the cause-and-effect principle gleaned from Proverbs 29:18, from the Bible's point of view, God first gives revelation (true vision), and prudence is vision's fruit. Vision motivates carefulness in conducting our affairs. Prudence means "the ability to govern and discipline oneself by the use of reason; sagacity or shrewdness in the management of one's affairs; marked by circumspection, discreet." In other words, it enables us to exercise more control over the direction of our lives. It is a much-desired quality. Vision gives us a sensibility or carefulness that enables us to avoid dangerous pitfalls. The foolish are unwary and uncritical and naively blunder into trouble—even death. A major task of life is to learn what to respect highly. The Bible shows that most fear the wrong things. Above all, we should fear God, but most fear the world and other people. John W. Ritenbaugh The Elements of Motivation (Part Two): Vision Related Topics: Carefulness | Circumspect Living | Discretion | Prudence | Sagacity | Shrewdness | Vigilance | Vision

Luke 16:1-8 The manager of an estate, accused of wasting the owner's goods, cunningly reasons through the situation using his worldly wisdom. However, he continues to deal deceitfully with the rich man's estate. By clever thinking, he devises a plan to defraud his master still more and prepare the way for future employment. He turns the owner's debtors into his friends by forgiving up to half their debts. Reluctantly, the master commends the unjust steward for dealing shrewdly in the worldly ways of cleverness, level-headedness, and forethought. The master does not commend him for wasting his estate, for which he fires him. Martin G. Collins Parable of the Unjust Steward Related Topics: Cleverness | Planning | Preparedness | Shrewdness | Wisdom of Man | Wisdom, Worldly | Wise of the World

Luke 16:9 Jesus Himself interprets the parable for us. We ought to use spiritual wisdom just as shrewdly as the steward used his secular wisdom. He tells us we should "be wise as serpents and harmless as doves" (Matthew 10:16). "Unrighteousness mammon" signifies wealth or money gained by unrighteousness, that is, by sinful ways. Money becomes a power for evil in the hands of sinful people. James warns us not to make friends of those who are worldly and unconverted (James 4:4). We can make friends by means of money that the unconverted covet, thereby helping God to witness to them and eventually convert them. Martin G. Collins Parable of the Unjust Steward Related Topics: Mammon, Unrighteousness | Money | Secular Wisdom | Shrewdness | Spiritual Wisdom | Unrighteous Mammon | Wealth, Pursuing | Wisdom, Godly | Wisdom, Worldly | Wise as Serpents, Harmless as Doves

 

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