Epaggelia

See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise ~ Ephesians 5:15

Diligent, carefully, circumspectly and perfectly are all 4 English words used to translate the Greek word “akribos”. It’s not the word usually translated “wise or wisdom”. The Greek word “sophos” is consistently translated wise, which appears at the end of the verse. Walking diligently is best described as fully knowing your entire environment while you’re walking. Being aware of all your options when you make any decision in life is good practice. Circumspectly is an old word we don’t use in modern English, but “perfect” is a word we all use in common, the same way circumspectly can be used. When a child receives his report card with straight “A”s on it, his parents can appropriately proclaim “PERFECT”! That doesn’t mean the child was an absolutely perfect student, it simply means that the child fully understood every assignment and did all the work expected of him to prepare for his exams. It’s better than the old saying “B’s & C’s get degrees”, because his straight A’s, are above that, in a sense, he was the “AKRIBOS” (perfect) student. A Christian’s goal should be to have a lifestyle or walk that is carefully diligent. The Governor Felix had an AKRIBOS knowledge of The Way, which the apostle Paul was being tried upon, see Acts 24:22.

A good example of a physical application of the word in the Bible is the way evil Herod told the wise men to search “carefully” for baby Jesus and then return to him and tell him his location, see Matthew 2:8. If we lived our life in a careful search for Jesus, we would be so blessed!

A good example of how the same word is used to treat the Bible itself is in Acts 18:25-26. Apollos was a (AKRIBOS) careful preacher of Jesus Christ, but only knew the baptism of John, however Apollos was blessed with Aquila & Priscilla teaching him the way of the Lord more perfectly (AKRIBOS). Apollos shows a progression of diligence in learning the truth of the gospel.

Factually, none of us are perfect if we use the word in the absolute sense, but if we use it the way Paul did, we can appreciate what Jesus said in Matthew 5:44-48. The word perfect is in the Greek “TELEIOS”, it actually means fully mature. Loving your enemies is as fully mature as God created us to be. His image he created us in, was for this goal to be met, with a spirit that can grow the fruit of His Spirit, and come to love our enemies. That is what it means to both walk in love, Eph. 5:2, and walk circumspectly!