50 Discernment Quotes that are Truly Engaging

By Norbert Juma

Master quote curator and editor on a mission to inspire

Published December 20, 2022

When it comes to finding the best discernment quotes, things may not turn out as you plan.

You may face some difficulties when looking for accurate and relevant quotes.

We have created this list of the most popular and appropriate discernment quotes to simplify things.

Apart from the quotes, this article also gives you an insight into the meaning of discernment.

So, a lot is waiting for you.

What Does Discernment Mean?

According to the most common definitions, discernment is the ability of a person to judge other people or things.

It’s a kind of spiritual power that a person can gain through practice and strengthening his/her relationship with God.

In Christianity, discernment is a kind of decision-making process where an individual can make a discovery about a future happening or action.

Spiritual Discernment

Some people have heard the term “spiritual discernment,” but don’t really understand it.

If you are one of these, we have explained this term for you in a simple-to-understand way.

According to Christianity, discernment is a way through which God helps a person to reach a decision that is best for them.

The Latin origin of “Discernment” means to “set apart” or “separate.”

Hence, it’s a way to separate the evil from good, falsehood from wisdom.

No doubt, discernment is a precious gift from God, which can help us in various ways.

It allows us to evaluate the prevailing situation and make a decision accordingly.
It also gives us the wisdom to identify wrong from right.

By knowing and obeying God’s word, we gain mental strength and the capacity to distinguish between good and evil.

After understanding discernment, let’s discuss how to develop it.

The most common method for developing discernment is to practice using the best techniques.

We need to create a connection with God by offering unconditional obedience.

It might sound tricky, but you can successfully develop spiritual discernment with practice.

Top 10 Discernment Quotes

Here is the list of the best discernment quotes. So, read and enjoy.

1. “Elitism is the slur directed at merit by mediocrity.” — Sydney J. Harris

2. “The first rule of holes: When you’re in one stop digging.” — Molly Ivins

3. “Don’t fight a battle if you don’t gain anything by winning.” — Erwin Rommel

4. “Sound judgment, with discernment, is the best of seers.” — Euripides

5. “The more validation I need, the less discernment I have.” — Kurt Hanks

6. “Discernment is God’s call to intercession, never to faultfinding.” — Corrie Ten Boom

7. “Everyone is prejudiced in favor of his own powers of discernment.” — Pliny the Younger

8. “Education, properly understood, is that which teaches discernment.” — Philibert Joseph Roux

9. “He who knows others is clever; He who knows himself has discernment.” — Laozi

10. “Some people become so expert at reading between the lines they don’t read the lines.” — Margaret Millar

Discernment Quotes for Inspiration

The discernment quotes listed below have a powerful message, which can help you gain the required inspiration.

11. “Her great merit is finding out mine; there is nothing so amiable as discernment.” — Lord Byron

12. “We need discernment in what we see and what we hear and what we believe.” — Charles R. Swindoll

13. “To be ‘in the will of God’ is not a matter of intellectual discernment, but a state of heart.” — Oswald Chambers

14. “Don’t be seduced into thinking that that which does not make a profit is without value.” — Arthur Miller

15. “There seems to be no part of knowledge in fewer hands than that of discerning when to have done.” — Jonathan Swift

16. “A great deal may be done by severity, more by love, but most by clear discernment and impartial justice.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

17. “Look at the means which a man employs, consider his motives, observe his pleasures. A man simply cannot conceal himself!” — Confucius

18. “Discernment is not a matter of telling the difference between right and wrong; rather it is telling the difference between right and almost right.” — Charles Spurgeon

19. “Wisdom is your perspective on life, your sense of balance, your understanding of how the various parts and principles apply and relate to each other.” — Stephen Covey

20. “Discernment is a power of the understanding in which few excel. Is not that owing to its connection with impartiality and truth? for are not prejudice and partiality blind?” — Sir Fulke Greville

Discernment Quotes for Everyone

These discernment quotes are for everyone. Therefore, these quotes are worthy of sharing.

21. “All people deserve respect, but not all ideas do.” — Johann Hari

22. “Intelligence is not discernment and judgment or critical evaluation.” — Jiddu Krishnamurti

23. “God never gives us discernment in order that we may criticize, but that we may intercede.” — Oswald Chambers

24. “My shyness has been in reality my shield and buckler. It has allowed me to grow. It has helped me in my discernment of truth.” — Mahatma Gandhi

25. “If souls can suffer alongside, and I hardly know it, because the spirit of discernment is not in me, then I know nothing of Calvary love.” — Amy Carmichael

26. “We should not fret for what is past, nor should we be anxious about the future; men of discernment deal only with the present moment.” — Chanakya

27. “There is a quickness of perception in some, a nicety in the discernment of character, a natural penetration, in short, which no experience in others can equal.” — Jane Austen

28. “True knowledge is a virtue of the talented, but harmful to those without discernment. Spring water free of impurity, entering the ocean, becomes undrinkable.” — Akkineni Nagarjuna

29. “The Holy Spirit gives liberty to the Christian, direction to the worker, discernment to the teacher, power to the Word, and fruit to faithful service. He reveals the things of Christ.” — Billy Graham

30. “Yet you must not cling to the words of the old sages either; they, too, may not be right. Even if you believe them, you should be alert so that, in the event that something superior comes along, you may follow that.” — Dogen

Discernment Quotes with a Wow Factor

The quotes listed below are interesting enough to amaze you.

31. “Where there is not discernment, the behavior even of the purest soul may in effect amount to coarseness.” — Henry David Thoreau

32. “The right word may be effective, but no word was ever as effective as a rightly timed pause.” — Mark Twain

33. “Be courageous and face this moment in time consciously and with all the discernment and clarity within your power.” — James O’Dea

34. “When a person goes into a relationship emotionally needy, they are not going to have discernment in choosing people.” — Jennifer O’Neill

35. “I’ve been blessed with a good head on my shoulders and quite a good ability of discernment. I can see through people.” — Kellan Lutz

36. “The kinds of nets we know how to weave determine the kinds of nets we cast. These nets, in turn, determine the kinds of fish we catch.” — Elliot W. Eisner

37. “It is scarcely credible to what degree discernment may be dazzled by the mist of pride, and wisdom infatuated by the intoxication of flattery.” — Samuel Johnson

38. “The simple power of prayer can save us all kinds of time and trouble if we will ask God to give us wisdom and discernment in our relationships.” — Joyce Meyer

39. “This is a time when all of God’s people need to keep their eyes and their Bibles wide open. We must ask God for discernment as never before.” — David Jeremiah

40. “If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it.” — Albert Einstein

Heartfelt Discernment Quotes

These quotes are worthy of sharing via social media platforms.

41. “Discernment: Corruption’s worst enemy.” — George Richard Marek

42. “Obscurity is dispelled by augmenting the light of discernment, not by attacking the darkness.” — Socrates

43. “If souls can suffer alongside, and I hardly know it, because the spirit of discernment is not in me, then I know nothing of Calvary love.” — Amy Carmichael

44. “The victim of mind manipulation does not know that he is a victim. To him, the walls of his prison are invisible, and he believes himself to be free.” — Aldous Huxley

45. “Some people think they have discernment when actually they are just suspicious. Suspicion comes out of the unrenewed mind; discernment comes out of the renewed spirit.” — Joyce Meyer

46. “Leaders are people who can discern the inevitable and act accordingly. When people talk about business acumen, discernment is a big part of it. It’s a bit like gut instinct, but a little more developed.” — Donald Trump

47. “The supreme end of education is expert discernment in all things-the power to tell the good from the bad, the genuine from the counterfeit, and to prefer the good and the genuine to the bad and the counterfeit.” — Samuel Johnson

48. “True sincerity reveals a powerful form of clarity and discernment that is necessary in order to perceive yourself honestly without flinching or being held captive by your conditioned mind’s judgments and defensiveness.” — Adyashanti

49. “When you learn what you can live without, you are able to ask life for the very best because you possess the gift of discernment. You are able to create an authentic life because you are able to make conscious choices.” — Sarah Ban Breathnach

50. “It is the man and woman united that makes the complete human being. Separate she lacks his force of body and strength of reason; he, her softness, sensibility, and acute discernment. Together they are most likely to succeed in the world.” — Benjamin Franklin