PODCAST
Discretion Through Wisdom
June 12th, 2025
Proverbs 5:1-6
A pastor-friend of mine says most people think that keeping a secret means telling just one person at a time. Discretion is hard to come by sometimes. The power of discretion lies not only in knowing when to be quiet and keep things private but also in its freedom to determine how to handle a given situation. I believe our passage today speaks to both: being wise, listening, and keeping quiet but also speaking up and passing along knowledge.
Discretion speaks not only to knowing what to keep to yourself, but also to steering clear of conversations in which others are practicing indiscretion. That speech is described in chapter 5 as “honey” and “smoother than oil,” no doubt seemingly sweet and tempting, but it the end, it is bitter, aimless, and nothing but trouble.
How do we avoid this? Our writer invites us to turn our ear to “words of insight” and to “pay attention to . . . wisdom” (v. 1). Rather than wandering thoughtlessly and aimlessly, we can join God intentionally in what He is doing in the world.
Author: Evan T. Offutt Boesiger
