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Who really said it

Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom

Spurgeon’s words, edited in circulation Charles Haddon Spurgeon Preacher
Disputed Free to reuse

The Spurgeon Library’s text opens this thought with “Wisdom is, I suppose, the right use of knowledge.” It later says that knowledgeable people can be “all the more fools for what they know,” rather than the popular wording supplied here. The Spurgeon Library sermon ↗

Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?

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Disputed wording — copy with the correction

“Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom” — Charles Haddon Spurgeon · Verbatim: “Wisdom is, I suppose, the right use of knowledge.”

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In context

Evoking the themes of wisdom and knowledge. Theme: "Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

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Minimalist editorial slide for the quote "Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom". Clean background, a single muted accent color, generous negative space, subtle paper or linen texture, no literal illustration — let the words carry it. Reserve clear space for a serif quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.

Provenance

The source

Source
The Fourfold Treasure, sermon 991
Evidence
Primary text checked

Wisdom is, I suppose, the right use of knowledge.

Documented wording; compare the popular version at the top.

The Spurgeon Library sermon

How we verified this

  • The Spurgeon Library’s text opens this thought with “Wisdom is, I suppose, the right use of knowledge.” It later says that knowledgeable people can be “all the more fools for what they know,” rather than the popular wording supplied here. The Spurgeon Library sermon ↗
  • The sermon is dated 27 April 1871. The popular passage preserves Spurgeon’s distinction between knowing and wisely using knowledge, but it should be labelled an edited version rather than an exact transcription. Read the supporting source ↗
Public domain

The documented original comes from a work published before 1931 and is in the US public domain. This does not automatically license a later adaptation or a new edition’s additions.

Rights status is our research, not legal advice — and copyright varies by country and edition. For commercial or published use, confirm with the rightsholder. See terms.

Fact-check

Often misattributed

The Spurgeon Library’s text opens this thought with “Wisdom is, I suppose, the right use of knowledge.” It later says that knowledgeable people can be “all the more fools for what they know,” rather than the popular wording supplied here.

Charles Spurgeon Wording changed

The sermon is dated 27 April 1871. The popular passage preserves Spurgeon’s distinction between knowing and wisely using knowledge, but it should be labelled an edited version rather than an exact transcription. The Spurgeon Library sermon ↗

The Spurgeon Library’s text opens this thought with “Wisdom is, I suppose, the right use of knowledge.” It later says that knowledgeable people can be “all the more fools for what they know,” rather than the popular wording supplied here. The Spurgeon Library sermon ↗

Explore

Filed under

More provenance-checked quotes on the same theme, each with its reuse status.

Wisdom Knowledge

Go further

Dig deeper

Trusted places to keep pulling the thread — primary archives, fact-checks, and scholarship. We show how we used each one before you leave.

The Spurgeon Library sermonwww.spurgeon.org

The Spurgeon Library sermon991 text begins Wisdom is,I suppose,the right use of knowledge and later says more fools for what they know.
Specialist source trailen.wikiquote.org

Wikiquote cites The Fourfold Treasure,sermon991,for a related passage beginning with I suppose.

The author

About Charles Spurgeon

Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Preacher

Charles Spurgeon delivered The Fourfold Treasure as a Christian sermon. The familiar maxim about knowledge appears inside a discussion of Christ as wisdom, rather than an isolated secular definition.

For writers & researchers

Cite this

The primary source (Chicago)

The Fourfold Treasure, sermon 991. See the linked evidence for the wording and attribution limitations.

This verification page

Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom’?” Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/wisdom-is-the-right-use-of-knowledge-to-know-is-not-to-be/

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