Guile is considered a negative quality in a person's character because it conveys deceitfulness! It is a flaw of character flaw that portrays "doubleness." Jesus declared Nathanael to be "without" guile. In modern terms, "a straight-talker."
John 1:47 (KJV) "Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!"
The biblical meaning of someone with "guile" is to be "treacherously and deceptively cunning; skillfully deceitfully." It is a craftiness to attract and manipulate others to one's will. A person who is said to have "guile" has an agenda and a desire to dominate others. Such was Satan when he tempted Adam and Eve. The Bible described him as more "cunning" than all the other creatures. Eve, it was said that he beguiled or deceived her. Jesus' response seems strange, considering Nathanael appears to have sarcastically insulted Him. Jesus declares him a "true Israelite," attaching to his character "honesty" or without deceit. Jesus was making a jesting response to Nathaniel's sarcastic humor. (i.e., "Can any good thing come from Nazareth?”) Jesus wasn't in any way offended but was actually engaging Nathanael with like wit. In the Jewish culture of that time, calling Nathanael a "true Israelite having no deceit" would be considered a light-hearted "play on words." Jews of that era were caught up in "endless genealogies," as Paul acknowledged in 1 Timothy 1:4. They greatly valued their ancestral tribal lineage. They also believed that the Jewish culture revolved around the Temple and Jerusalem. Jews living outside of Judiah were considered uncultured and backward thinking.
For Nathanael to make fun of Jesus' birthplace would be a common pre-judgment.
Nazareth was considered a "backwater," an out-of-the-way town of no significance or culture. Indeed, the Messiah would come from such a place. Jesus, in calling Nathanael a "true Israelite," was acknowledging him to be a descendant of Jacob. Remember Jacob, a habitual liar, manipulator, and usurper of his birthright. Jesus was jestingly making the point that judging a person based on heritage or, in this case, marginalizing someone because of where they lived is a mistake.
Jesus was engaging Nathanael by mocking or making fun of him with the same tactic. Jesus saw Nathanael as having good character and an honest person who spoke his mind even though he made pre-judgments. He used the occasion to bring Nathanael into a revelation of Himself.
When Jesus declared He saw Nathaneal "sitting under a tree" before he was called, He was operating in a gift of the Holy Spirit called the "Word of Knowledge. He used Spirit-inspired perception and not a pre-judgment.
When Nathanael recognized what was happening he acknowledged Jesus as "Lord."
The apostle Paul addressed this same point about using spiritual perception and not prejudgment.
1 Corinthians 4:5 (NKJV) "Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God."
We all make pre-judgments about people, places, or things. This is usually because our life experiences are often based on wrong perceptions. It takes a revelation from Jesus to bring us into truth and understanding.
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