What is the Difference Between Knowledge and Wisdom?
One of the clearest differences contrasting the world and Jesus followers is the pursuit of knowledge vs the pursuit of wisdom.
“Get wisdom and understanding. Do not forget or turn away from the words of my mouth. Do not leave her [that is, wisdom] alone, and she will keep you safe. Love her, and she will watch over you. The beginning of wisdom is: Get wisdom! And with all you have gotten, get understanding.”
-Proverbs 4:5-7 NLV
Let’s begin with some basics.
The Questions of Knowledge and Wisdom
Knowledge answers the questions What and How. Wisdom answers the questions Why and Who. For example, in the realm of science, we see the study of cosmology. According to Space.com, cosmology is, “a branch of astronomy that involves the origin and evolution of the universe, from the Big Bang to today and on into the future.” Lest you think I’m going to talk about the age of the universe and the earth here, let me direct you to our post, What About the Dinosaurs?
In cosmology, it is a well-supported idea that the universe began with an event called The Big Bang. Scientists have studied an incredible amount of evidence, use computer modeling, and many other methods to describe the conditions of the universe from just after The Big Bang (specifically 10 to the negative 36 seconds after), but they can’t go back any further. Here is what one highly respected astrophysicist said:
“Earlier than 10 to the negative 36 seconds, we simply don't understand the nature of the universe. The Big Bang theory is fantastic at describing everything after that, but before it, we're a bit lost.”
I appreciate his refreshing honesty. Earlier in the same article he stated, “The Big Bang theory is not a theory of the creation of the universe. Full stop. Done. Call it. Burn that sentence into your brain”.
You see, cosmology, astrophysics, and all other branches of science are about What happened and How it happened. The only times science answers the question Why (such as Why is the sky blue?) is to describe the How, in this case, of what makes the sky blue.
But it’s not just science. The whole world seeks knowledge as a primary pursuit to get the desired results. We all want to know How to do things, and How to do them easier, faster, and better. We also want to know What things we should do in order to improve our lives. Let me say it this way. If you were to track how often you ask knowledge questions or sought knowledge-based answers vs wisdom answers, you would likely be well above 95% knowledge over wisdom. Don’t take that personally, it’s the default of the human condition.
However, answering What and How (knowledge) is critical to surviving and advancing in this world. How can I get a job? What is the process to cook a juicy steak? How do I lead people on my team? What do I need to do to get an amazing woman (or man) to go on a date with me? We can’t ignore knowledge. But What and How are limited. They are surface questions.
The Wisdom of Wisdom
Wisdom answers the questions of Why and Who. But to really understand wisdom, we need to realize a critical fact. Wisdom is ALWAYS about relating to others. Whether other people or God, wisdom is about relating and relationships. All other “wisdom” is simply dressed up forms of Why and How.
Another essential fact of wisdom is this: All true wisdom has its origin in God. Because wisdom is about relating and relationships, its origin is in the One who created the people who are doing the relating. You might argue that all knowledge also has its origin in God, but I doubt He is the source of the knowledge of many of our highly creative, but terribly degenerate sinful actions. There is sinful knowledge, there is no sinful wisdom. Wisdom, having its root source in God, can only be good.
Look at this verse:
“For wisdom is far more valuable than rubies. Nothing you desire can compare with it.”
-Proverbs 8:11 NLT
Here, we are told that nothing we desire can compare with wisdom. Now, you may ask, “Should we not desire love more than wisdom? After all, in 1 Corinthians 12:31, Paul calls love ‘a still more excellent way.’ And we are also told that ‘God is love’ in 1 John 4:8.”
The answer is no. But not because love is less important than wisdom. It’s because love is not comparable to wisdom. You see, wisdom is something to be sought and acquired.
“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”
-James 1:5 NIV
But love? You don’t have to ask God to love you. God loved you before you were ever conceived. And love is not something to be sought and acquired. Love is either freely given, or it is not truly love. We frequently use the word love when the more accurate word would be lust, desire, like, prefer, etc. Love is never acquired or taken. Real love, true love, love that is like the love of Christ is given…without any preconditions or expectations. You can acquire more wisdom; God is happy to give it. But you can’t acquire more love from God because He already loves you infinitely and unchangingly.
The Question of Why
As we mentioned above, wisdom answers the questions Why and Who. Let me give you a general Why example and I think it’ll make more sense. Wisdom asks the question, “Why is one option better than the other?” You might answer, “this one is safer” or “this one is more profitable” or “this one is more interesting”. But those aren’t wisdom answers. Those are knowledge answers. Safer, more profitable, or more interesting are not answers to the question Why is it better? they are answers to the question How is it better?
Why is one option better than another? “Because it allows me to love someone more.” “Because it is a way to grow closer to Christ.” Those are wisdom answers because wisdom is always about relating and relationships. Wisdom is FAR more important in the work of the Kingdom than knowledge…but wisdom cannot function without knowledge. Another way to define wisdom is: the application of knowledge in a relationship in order to benefit the other party. The primary beneficiary of wisdom is always someone other than yourself, but the benefit then returns to you. Here is one of my favorite wisdom verses, and it very clearly shows how the benefit of wisdom works.
“Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.”
-Proverbs 13:20 ESV
If you are one of the wise, then your wisdom benefits those who walk with you. If you are not yet wise, then you acquire wisdom from walking with the wise. At that point, you become wise and benefit those who walk with you! Wisdom is a never-ending circle of benefit to everyone who pursues it! Of course it is, God is the Source of all wisdom, so how could it be anything other than beneficial and good? And that leads us to Who.
The Question of Who
Wisdom answers the question of Who in three ways:
· Who is the Source?
· Who is the source?
· Who is the beneficiary?
That’s not a typo. The first two questions are not the same. Of course, the original Source of all wisdom is God. In 1 Kings 3, God gives Solomon the biggest blank check in the history of the universe. “Ask for whatever you want me to give you” (verse 5). Solomon asks for, “a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong” (verse 9). Here is the first part of God’s response.
“Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be.”
-1 Kings 3:11b-12
No one ever has had or ever will have the wisdom of Solomon. Why? Because God promised that to be the case…and God is the original Source of all wisdom.
The second who question is, “Who is the source?” (lower case S). As we saw in Proverbs 1:20, other people can also give us wisdom, because they got it from God. Now, you might ask, “Why would I go to anyone else if God is the original Source?” That’s a very valid question, and I’ve seen people use it to justify not reading anything outside the Bible and not trusting knowledge or wisdom except their own, assuming it’s all directly from the Holy Spirit. I did an entire post on that called, Why Should I Read Outside the Bible? Feel free to check it out if you like.
The gist is this. God doesn’t give all wisdom to any one person, and he often gives different wisdom to different people. Some wisdom is best learned from others because perhaps God did not reveal it directly to you or me, or the way they have shared it makes it easier for us to understand and apply.
And Here We Land
Finally, the third Who wisdom question. Who is the beneficiary? Remember one definition of wisdom is, “the application of knowledge in a relationship in order to benefit the other party.”
Can I bring this full circle? If wisdom always benefits someone else, and if wisdom is a practical application, then wisdom sounds very much like love. When we use wisdom to benefit the Kingdom of God, we are showing love to God. When we use wisdom to benefit another person, we are showing love to that person. The highest purpose of acquiring wisdom is to demonstrate love more effectively. You see, wise people know that the greatest virtue is love.
“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
- 1 Corinthians 13:13 NIV
You and I, we prove we are wise when we use knowledge and every other good gift from God, to show love to Him and the people He created. Knowledge alone can be cold and uncaring. But wisdom, true wisdom, can only exist as it is applied in the form of love.
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Love you Jesus follower!