Tolstoy, after Rousseau, on Knowledge and Wisdom

“Real wisdom is not the knowledge of everything, but the knowledge of which things in life are necessary, which are less necessary, and which are completely unnecessary to know. Among the most necessary knowledge is the knowledge of how to live well, that is, how to produce the least possible evil and the greatest goodness in one’s life. At present, people study useless sciences, but forget to study this, the most important knowledge.”

How Well Do You Know Your Oil?

Since the subject of oil is very much in our headlines as an industrial and environment concern, how about testing your knowledge regarding other kinds and uses for oil? Should you find you are not so slick with the answers, feel free to skim from the hints.



  1. Who asked the wise virgins for oil for their lamps? (Matthew 25:7-8)

  2. Who used oil on the wounds of a man beaten by robbers? (Luke 10:33-34)

  3. Who multiplied the oil of a widow so she could pay her debts? (2 Kings 4:2-7)

  4. What tribe received this blessing: “let him be the favorite of his brothers, and let him dip his foot in oil"? (Deuteronomy 33:24)

  5. To whom did Jesus say, “You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment”? (Luke 7:43, 46)

  6. Who poured oil a on a pillar of stone and named the place Bethel? (Genesis 35:14-15)

  7. Who asked a woman to pretend to be a mourner and not anoint herself with oil? (2 Samuel 14:2)

  8. Who was anointed with oil by Zadok? (1 Kings 1:29)

  9. To whom did Solomon give twenty thousand measures of pure oil in exchange for cedar trees? (1 Kings 5:11)

  10. Who told a woman to make him a cake of her last meal and oil and her supply of oil and meal would not run out? (I Kings 17:12-16)

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