Proverbs 13:16
Prudent Men Deal with Knowledge
1.) Prudent: this term can have two possible senses: good and evil
a.) Evil: subtle; shrewd; crafty; sly; tricky; cunning.
i. This term is used of the devil—he was more subtle than any beast of the field. (sly; shrewd; crafty)
ii. It is also used in this sense in Job 5:3 – He disappointeth the devices of the crafty…
b.) Good: sensible… discerning… wise…
i. The term is used in a good sense here.
ii. Here it is used of a man who is shrewd in the sense of being wise… sensible…
iii. Prov.14:8 – the prudent man’s wisdom is defined here: he looks well to his goings…
iv. Prov. 22:3 – the term even adds a moral sense to it in Proverbs. Here a prudent man foresees evil and goes the other way! That is being shrewd in a spiritually sensible way!
v. The term is used 8 times in Proverb and always in a good sense.
2.) Deals with knowledge.
a.) A prudent man has knowledge: knowledge, perception, discernment, understanding, wisdom.
i. The man who (in a good sense) is shrewd and sensible wants to observe and works with the FACTS…
ii. He wants a proper understanding of things…
iii. He wants to perceive what is really happening…
iv. He uses his head… he thinks… he uses the intelligence God gave him…
v. He doesn’t want the wool pulled over his eyes. He wants to see clearly… to understand the situation…
vi. And he wants the discernment and wisdom to draw the proper conclusions from those facts.
vii. The prudent man does not act on gut impulse. He lets his head direct his steps, not his stomach.
viii. He does not let his feelings or his emotions blind him from the facts.
ix. He deals with knowledge… facts… not impulses.
b.) Deals with: to do; fashion; accomplish; make; use; produce; acts with; observes; acquires…
i. The term has a wide range of meaning… but the general meaning is clear. A prudent man observes and works with… acts with… knowledge.
ii. Darby translated it, “Every prudent man acteth with knowledge.”
iii. In another translation it reads: “The clever do all things intelligently.”
3.) The verb speaks of continual action or repeated action…
a.) This tells us that the prudent man Solomon is describing is CONSISTENTLY dealing with the facts… with knowledge…
b.) He isn’t swayed by his feelings on Monday… and thinks rationally on Wednesday…
c.) When situations arise, the prudent consistently seeks for the facts… and he then acts on knowledge… he acts intelligently…
4.) The prudent man deals with knowledge because he SEEKS knowledge. (Prov. 18:15)
a.) He is wise enough to know that he doesn’t know everything… that he doesn’t have knowledge in every realm…
b.) So he does his homework… he researches when necessary… because he wants knowledge… he wants the facts.
c.) Perhaps he consulted with others…
d.) He sought for counsel…
e.) He is careful not to meddle into affairs of which he has no knowledge.
f.) He knows when to speak and when to be quiet—when he doesn’t have the facts.
g.) He is a prudent man.
h.) This is the kind of man that we should strive to be.
1.) Folly: the term means what it says… but takes on a specialized meaning in this proverb.
a.) Here it is seen as the opposite of knowledge… the opposite of the facts…
b.) Hence, the particular KIND of folly described here is ignorance… a lack of knowledge or information.
2.) Lays open: scatter; spread out for all to see… spread abroad… make information or behavior known to others in a public manner.
a.) Solomon says that the fool (the opposite of a prudent man) shamelessly spreads out his ignorance for all to see…
b.) One translation reads: fools advertise their ignorance.
c.) They make their ignorance known:
i. By the things they say…
ii. By the things they do…
iii. Their words and their works… speech and behavior…
iv. Their walk and their talk BOTH display ignorance.
3.) The fool displays his ignorance in his speech… by the things he says and repeats.
a.) Prov. 29:11 – A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards.
i. The fool says what he thinks. Solomon says that is FOLLY!
ii. Why is it folly for a man to speak his mind? Because what we THINK may not be true… accurate… or kind!
iii. What we think may not be well researched.
iv. What we think is often lacking information…
v. Often that which is in the mind of a fool is folly!
vi. Just because we think something doesn’t make it so!
vii. Without all the information… without hearing both sides of the story, what we THINK could be misleading, inaccurate, and WRONG!
viii. Thus, it is NOT a good idea to utter all our mind. Not everything that goes through our head is worth uttering.
b.) Prov. 15:2 – the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.
i. When a fool speaks, foolishness comes out.
ii. And note that the fool POURS it out… shamelessly.
iii. It is as if he doesn’t care what comes out of his mouth…
iv. When the mouth is constantly pouring things out like a river—it is impossible for all that information to be verified… and with the fool, it isn’t!
v. Ignorance pours out…
c.) Prov. 18:13 – the fool answers a matter before he hears it!
i. He gives his opinion or view before he hears the whole story… before he hears both sides.
ii. He does not deal with knowledge. He speaks out of ignorance…
iii. It is a folly and a shame to him!
4.) The fool displays his ignorance in his behavior… by his WALK.
a.) His walk… his manner of life… display his ignorance and folly.
b.) Ecc. 10:1 – his walk says to every one that he is a fool.” He doesn’t have to open his mouth. His actions speak. And what do they say: “I am a fool.”
c.) Solomon says here, “Just observe such men. Their lifestyle sends out a clear message. I am a fool!”
5.) The fool does not deal with knowledge. Instead, the fool deals with:
a.) Hearsay… and is foolish enough to accept it as fact.
b.) Assumptions… without research, he assumes his view is right.
c.) Gossip… and he spreads it as if it were fact.
d.) Conclusions drawn without hearing the facts…
e.) Ignorance…don’t confuse me with the facts…
f.) Feelings… who cares about the facts; I feel it should be done this way…
g.) Impressions…
h.) Gut impulses…
i.) The fool is not moved by his head… at least he is not moved by an informed head. He is moved by all kinds of other things: pride; ignorance; showmanship;
j.) The fool blurts out what is in his head whether he has the facts or not. When he speaks and when he acts—he demonstrates his folly.
Conclusions:
1.) Learn from the folly of the fool. Make sure you have the facts before you speak… and before you act.
2.) If you go to a wise man for advice, you will get knowledge. Go to a fool and you will get foolish advice. Be careful from whom you seek advice!
3.) Let’s be like the prudent man.
a.) DEAL with the facts…
b.) SEEK the facts
c.) Seek to draw the proper conclusions from them…
d.) Don’t speak or act UNTIL you have good, solid knowledge of what you are about to say or do.
4.) A man’s speech and conduct are usually consistent with his character. This is true of the prudent man AND the fool!
5.) And of course, a prudent man deals with knowledge from God’s Word!
a.) The prudent believer will SEEK to know God’s word…
b.) He will seek guidance and counsel from God’s Word
c.) He will want the right information from the Word BEFORE he speaks… and before he acts…
d.) He is prudent enough to know that it is folly to ASSUME without consulting God and seeking knowledge from Him…
e.) It is folly to ACT without KNOWING what God would have us to do…
f.) A prudent man DEALS with knowledge. His life—his words and his works—all seek to be in conformity to the Word of God.
g.) When problems arise in the local church—the elders want to act in accordance with the knowledge of God’s Word—not hearsay; gossip; gut feelings etc… but the facts!
h.) When problems arise in the home—seek knowledge in dealing with it from Gods’ Word… it contains all we need…
i.) What folly to ignore the jewels of wisdom and knowledge in the Word… and go off speaking and acting … leaning on our own understanding. That’s true folly.
j.) Col. 2:3 – “In Him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” The better we know His word… and the closer we stay to Him… the more sound knowledge will be manifested in our lives… that’s the prudent man spiritually!