Bible verses about wisdom
In the Bible wisdom is practical skill at living, not intelligence, and it begins with humility before God: the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). James 1:5 promises that anyone who lacks wisdom can ask God, who gives liberally and without reproach. James 3:17 describes what real wisdom looks like — pure, peaceable, gentle, easy to be intreated — and Proverbs 13:20 and 15:22 say it is usually found in company rather than alone.
12 verses about wisdom
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.
Proverbs 9:10 (KJV) →5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
James 1:5 (KJV) →6 For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.
Proverbs 2:6 (KJV) →7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.
Proverbs 4:7 (KJV) →17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
James 3:17 (KJV) →2 When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.
Proverbs 11:2 (KJV) →20 He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.
Proverbs 13:20 (KJV) →22 Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established.
Proverbs 15:22 (KJV) →20 Hear counsel, and receive instruction, that thou mayest be wise in thy latter end.
Proverbs 19:20 (KJV) →12 So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
Psalm 90:12 (KJV) →3 In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Colossians 2:3 (KJV) →25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
1 Corinthians 1:25 (KJV) →
What the Bible means by wisdom
The wisdom books — Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Job — are not concerned with cleverness. Wisdom there is closer to craft: knowing how to speak, when to stay silent, how to handle money, anger, friendship and work. Proverbs 9:10 puts its starting point outside the self: the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Fear here means reverence, the recognition that you are not the measure of things. That is why Proverbs 11:2 pairs wisdom with lowliness and sets it against pride. A proud person cannot be taught, and in this literature being teachable is most of what wisdom is.
Asking for it
James 1:5 is unusually plain: if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not. Upbraideth not means without scolding — the request is not met with a reminder of how you got into the situation. Proverbs 2:6 says the same from the other side: the Lord giveth wisdom. A well-known example is Solomon, who in 1 Kings 3 is offered anything and asks for an understanding heart. The pattern is that wisdom is received before it is achieved, which makes it available to people who do not feel wise.
How to recognise it, and where it is found
James 3:17 gives a test: the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits. It is worth holding that list up against whatever advice is in front of you. Counsel that is harsh, partial or impossible to question fails it, however confident it sounds. Proverbs also insists that wisdom is social. He that walketh with wise men shall be wise (13:20); in the multitude of counsellors purposes are established (15:22). A decision made entirely alone has skipped a step the book treats as ordinary. Psalm 90:12 adds the last ingredient — number your days — because knowing time is limited is what makes choices matter.
Scripture quoted from the King James Version, which is in the public domain. Esther reads seven more translations in the app, including the ESV, NIV and NLT.