The Word of Wisdom and the Word of
Knowledge
I. How do we define “the word of knowledge’?
The word of knowledge is the
supernatural revelation of facts—past,
present or future—which were not
learned or developed through the
efforts of the natural mind. It may be
described as the mind of Christ being
imparted to the mind of the believer.
II. What are the four kinds of knowledge?
A. Natural Human Knowledge
1. This knowledge is natural not
supernatural.
2. This knowledge can be expanded
through research, study and human
effort (II Tim. 2:15).
3. This knowledge can be a source of
human pride (I Cor. 8:1).
4. This knowledge will increase
throughout the ages (Dan. 12:4).
B. Fallen Man’s Supernatural Knowledge
There are two sources of spiritual power
in the world—God and Satan. This
knowledge is that which is obtained from
the world of the occult. This includes
information gained from supernatural
sources other than the Holy Spirit of God.
It includes interactions with witches,
wizards, mediums, séances, divination,
astrology, horoscopes, Ouija boards,
fortune tellers and the like (I Sam. 28:8;
Is. 8:19-20).
1. This form of knowledge is a counterfeit to
the true and is an abomination to the Lord
(Lev. 19:26; Deut. 18:9-14; I Chr. 10:1314).
2. In the Old Testament those who practiced
these things were to be put to death (Ex.
22:18; Lev. 20:27).
3. Seeking this type of knowledge will lead to
defilement (Lev. 19:31).
4. God is offended when we seek this type of
knowledge (Lev. 20:6).
5. We can expect this type of activity to also
increase throughout the ages (I Tim. 4:1).
C. True Intellectual or Spiritual Knowledge
This is spiritual knowledge that can
only come to us through knowing God
and His word
1. This knowledge is that which comes to
us when we are born again and have our
eyes open to both see and enter the
Kingdom of God (John 3:3, 5).
2. This is knowledge that comes to us from
knowing God personally through Jesus
Christ (John 17:3).
3. This is knowledge of the ways of God
that comes to us from the Holy Spirit
who dwells within us (I Cor. 2:11-14).
4. This knowledge comes to us by seeking
the Lord in prayer and in His word (Ex.
33:13; Ps. 119:130).
5. This knowledge is eternal knowledge
that will last forever (Mt. 24:35; I Pet.
1:25).
6. This knowledge is also on the increase
(Is. 11:9b).
D. Divine Supernatural Knowledge
This is a word of knowledge as
described above.
1. This is not psychic phenomenon,
extrasensory perception,
clairvoyance or any other thing that
is forbidden by God.
2. This is not the result of human
ability or pursuit.
3. This is a supernatural gift given by
God in an instant of time.
4. This is the knowledge of a portion of
information from God’s total
knowledge that can only be known
divine impartation.
III. What are some examples of the “word of
knowledge” in operation?
A. Samuel was able to tell Saul that his lost
donkeys were found by a revelation from
God (I Sam. 9:15-20).
B. Samuel was able to find Saul hidden in
the baggage by a revelation from God (I
Sam. 10:21-23).
C. Nathan was able to know the secret sin
of David by a revelation from God (II Sam.
12:7-13).
D. The prophet Ahijah was able to see
through the disguise of Jereboam’s wife
by a revelation from God (I Kgs. 14:1-6).
E. Elijah knew that Gehazi had asked for a
reward from Naaman by a revelation from
God (II Kgs. 5:20-27).
F. Jesus knew that Nathanael was sitting
under a fig tree by a revelation from God
(John 1:47-50).
G. Jesus knew that the woman at the well
had five past husbands and that she was
living with a man who was not her
husband by a revelation from God (John
4:17-18, 29).
H. Jesus knew that Lazarus had died by a
revelation from God (John 11:13-14).
I. Peter knew that Jesus was the Christ by a
revelation from God (Mt. 16:16-17).
J. Peter knew about the conspiracy of
Ananias and Saphira by a revelation from
God (Acts 5:3).
K. Ananias knew where Saul (Paul) would be
residing by a revelation from God (Acts
9:11-12, 17).
L. Peter knew that three men were seeking
him by a revelation from God (Acts 10:1723).
IV. What are guidelines for the operation of
the “word of knowledge”?
A. Ask God for insight as to why you were
given this piece of information.
B. Ask God for wisdom as to how to act upon
this information.
C. Ask God for direction concerning with
whom this information should be shared.
D. Ask God how this information can be
used for the purpose of love and
edification.
V. How do we define “the word of wisdom”?
Whereas the word of knowledge is
informative, wisdom is directive.
The word of wisdom is the
supernatural application of
knowledge. It is knowing the divine
course of action to be taken in
regard to the natural or supernatural
knowledge God has given. It is
proper judgment for action.
VI. What are the four kinds of wisdom?
A. Natural Human Wisdom
Natural human wisdom is naturally
applied knowledge (I Cor. 1:18-31;
2:6; Jam. 3:15).
B. Fallen Man’s Supernatural Wisdom
This is the type of wisdom that is
forbidden by God that was used by
Satan to tempt man in the Garden of
Eden (Gen. 3:6; Dan. 2:27-28).
C. True Intellectual or Spiritual Wisdom
1. This is wisdom that comes down from
above (I Kgs. 3:28; I Cor. 2:7; Jam. 3:17).
2. This is the wisdom reflected in the Book
of Proverbs (I Kgs. 4:29-34).
3. We are told to get this type of wisdom by
respecting the Lord and the Word of God
(Job 28:28; Pro. 4:7-8; 9:10).
4. This wisdom can be a stumbling block to
the faith of some (I Cor. 1:18-25).
D. Divine Supernatural Wisdom
This gift of the word of wisdom is a
sudden and miraculous giving of
wisdom to be applied to a particular
situation, answer a particular
question or utilize a particular piece
of knowledge.
1. It is not human ability.
2. It is a gift from God.
3. It is a small part of God’s total wisdom
(Rom. 11:33-36; 16:27; I Tim. 1:17).
VII. What are some examples of the “word
of wisdom” in operation?
A. Joseph had a word of wisdom as to how
to save the world from the coming
drought (Gen. 41:25-36).
B. Moses’ mother had a word of wisdom as
to how to save her baby from Pharoah’s
sword (Ex. 2:1-10 with Heb. 11:23).
C. Jethro had a word of wisdom for Moses
as to how to oversee the nation of Israel
(Ex. 18:13-26).
D. Nathan used a word of wisdom as to how
to approach David about his sin (II Sam.
12:1-14).
E. Solomon had a word of wisdom for the
two women who were fighting over the
same baby (I Kgs. 3:16-28).
F. Jesus had words of wisdom when
answering those who were trying to trap
Him in His words (See Matthew 22:15-46).
1. When they questioned the source
of His authority (Mt. 21:23-27).
2. When they asked about paying
taxes to Caesar (Mt. 22:15-22).
3. When He asked them about Christ
being the Son of God (Mt. 22:4146).
G. Paul had a word of wisdom when he was
before the Sanhedrin and realized that
there was no way that he would get a fair
hearing (Acts 23:1-10).
H. Paul had a word of wisdom concerning
the safety of the crew during a violent
storm (Acts 27:21-35).