Sacred texts · Bible
35 Bible verses about wisdom
Bible verses about wisdom come mostly from the wisdom books, such as Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, and from the letter of James. Wisdom there is practical: speaking well, choosing friends, working, waiting, knowing that “To every thing there is a season.” It can also be asked for: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God,” James writes.
This page gathers Proverbs for everyday life, verses from Ecclesiastes, the wisdom “from above” in the New Testament letters, and passages about integrity. They are quoted word for word from the King James Version and come from the Selfia app. Many fit on one line and are easy to remember, which makes them good verses to carry for a whole week.
Bible verses from Proverbs for everyday life
Proverbs speaks in pictures: a shining light that grows to the perfect day, apples of gold in pictures of silver, a heart to keep with all diligence. Read one in the morning and look for the moment in your day where it applies.
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.
Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart.
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.
I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.
A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps.
There are many devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand.
A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.
Ecclesiastes: “To every thing there is a season”
Ecclesiastes looks at life without illusions, but it isn’t gloomy: it tells you to eat your bread with joy, to sow without knowing what will prosper, and to enjoy the light of the sun. These verses suit seasons of transition.
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.
He hath made every thing beautiful in his time.
The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much.
Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.
In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun.
Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.
The wisdom from above: James and the letters
James describes a wisdom that is “first pure, then peaceable.” These verses from the New Testament letters turn wisdom into a way of being with others: listening before speaking, thinking on what is true and lovely, and using your gifts to serve.
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.
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.
Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.
Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.
Study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands.
As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Bible verses about living with integrity
“Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” These verses speak of justice, humility, life choices and hospitality. They ask a simple question: what does doing good ask of you today?
So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
For the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.
And who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?
As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
How to meditate on these wisdom verses
Proverbs lends itself to slow reading: one verse a day, read in the morning and kept in mind until evening. Write it in a notebook and, at the end of the day, note one concrete situation where it helped you choose, stay quiet or speak up. After a month, that notebook becomes a small personal book of wisdom.
You can also read a verse with someone else, a child, a spouse or a small group, and ask what each person hears in it. The wisdom books themselves invite that kind of passing on, from parent to child.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Bible verse about wisdom?
James 1:5 is often quoted because it is so simple: ask God for wisdom, who “giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not.” Proverbs 3:13 says, “Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,” and Psalm 90:12 asks God to “teach us to number our days.” Three ways of saying wisdom is received as much as learned.
Which books of the Bible are about wisdom?
The wisdom books are usually listed as Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and the Song of Solomon; Catholic Bibles add Wisdom and Sirach. In the New Testament, the letter of James carries that tradition forward. The verses on this page come mostly from Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and the letters.
What does “To every thing there is a season” mean?
The line opens a poem in Ecclesiastes 3 that lists opposite times: to be born and to die, to weep and to laugh, to keep silence and to speak. It reminds you that no season of life lasts forever, and invites you to accept the one you are in rather than force it.