Knowing Scripture

Thus there are times when it is foolish to answer a fool according to his folly, and there are times when it is wise to answer a fool with foolishness.

The same kind of thing can happen with the biblical proverbs. It can even happen with some of the wisdom sayings of Jesus. Jesus says, “He who is not with Me is against Me” (Mt 12:30). But Jesus also said, “He who is not against you is for you” (Lk 9:50). How can both be true? We all know that in some circumstances silence means consent, and in oth

A common mistake in biblical interpretation and application is to give a proverbial saying the weight or force of a moral absolute. Proverbs are catchy little couplets designed to express practical truisms. They reflect principles of wisdom for godly living. They do not reflect moral laws that are to be applied absolutely to every conceivable life

Note the Difference Between Proverb and Law

an innocent man is asked about his guilt on the witness stand and he replies, “I ain’t killed nobody no time,” he cannot be charged with perjury because he used bad grammar to state his case.

We see numerous “errors” of grammar manifested.

If

if we find thirty-six words in Ephesians that are found nowhere else in any of Paul’s writings, we might conclude that Paul did not or could not have written Ephesians.

hapax legomena