Proverbs 3:13
New International Version
Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding,

New Living Translation
Joyful is the person who finds wisdom, the one who gains understanding.

English Standard Version
Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding,

Berean Standard Bible
Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who acquires understanding,

King James Bible
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.

New King James Version
Happy is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains understanding;

New American Standard Bible
Blessed is a person who finds wisdom, And one who obtains understanding.

NASB 1995
How blessed is the man who finds wisdom And the man who gains understanding.

NASB 1977
How blessed is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains understanding.

Legacy Standard Bible
How blessed is the man who finds wisdom And the man who obtains discernment.

Amplified Bible
Happy [blessed, considered fortunate, to be admired] is the man who finds [skillful and godly] wisdom, And the man who gains understanding and insight [learning from God’s word and life’s experiences],

Christian Standard Bible
Happy is a man who finds wisdom and who acquires understanding,

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Happy is a man who finds wisdom and who acquires understanding,

American Standard Version
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, And the man that getteth understanding.

Contemporary English Version
God blesses everyone who has wisdom and common sense.

English Revised Version
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Blessed is the one who finds wisdom and the one who obtains understanding.

Good News Translation
Happy is anyone who becomes wise--who comes to have understanding.

International Standard Version
How joyful is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding,

Majority Standard Bible
Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who acquires understanding,

NET Bible
Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who obtains understanding.

New Heart English Bible
Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gets understanding.

Webster's Bible Translation
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.

World English Bible
Happy is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gets understanding.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
O the blessedness of a man [who] has found wisdom, "" And of a man [who] brings forth understanding.

Young's Literal Translation
O the happiness of a man who hath found wisdom, And of a man who bringeth forth understanding.

Smith's Literal Translation
Happy the man finding wisdom; and the man shall bring forth understanding.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Blessed is the man that findeth wisdom and is rich in prudence:

Catholic Public Domain Version
Blessed is the man who finds wisdom and who advances to prudence.

New American Bible
Happy the one who finds wisdom, the one who gains understanding!

New Revised Standard Version
Happy are those who find wisdom, and those who get understanding,
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, and the son of the man who finds understanding.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Blessed is the man who finds wisdom and the son of man who finds understanding
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, And the man that obtaineth understanding.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Blessed is the man who has found wisdom, and the mortal who knows prudence.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Blessings of Wisdom
13Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who acquires understanding, 14for she is more profitable than silver, and her gain is better than fine gold.…

Cross References
James 1:5
Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

James 3:17
But the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peace-loving, gentle, accommodating, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and sincere.

Matthew 13:44-46
The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and in his joy he went and sold all he had and bought that field. / Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls. / When he found one very precious pearl, he went away and sold all he had and bought it.

Colossians 2:2-3
that they may be encouraged in heart, knit together in love, and filled with the full riches of complete understanding, so that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, / in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

1 Corinthians 1:30
It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.

Ephesians 1:17-18
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in your knowledge of Him. / I ask that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know the hope of His calling, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints,

Philippians 3:8
More than that, I count all things as loss compared to the surpassing excellence of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ

2 Timothy 3:15
From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

Romans 11:33
O, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and untraceable His ways!

Luke 11:28
But He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”

Job 28:12-28
But where can wisdom be found, and where does understanding dwell? / No man can know its value, nor is it found in the land of the living. / The ocean depths say, ‘It is not in me,’ while the sea declares, ‘It is not with me.’ ...

Proverbs 8:10-11
Receive my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than pure gold. / For wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire compares with her.

Proverbs 16:16
How much better to acquire wisdom than gold! To gain understanding is more desirable than silver.

Proverbs 2:1-6
My son, if you accept my words and hide my commandments within you, / if you incline your ear to wisdom and direct your heart to understanding, / if you truly call out to insight and lift your voice to understanding, ...

Proverbs 4:5-7
Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or turn from them. / Do not forsake wisdom, and she will preserve you; love her, and she will guard you. / Wisdom is supreme; so acquire wisdom. And whatever you may acquire, gain understanding.


Treasury of Scripture

Happy is the man that finds wisdom, and the man that gets understanding.

is the

Proverbs 4:5-9
Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth…

Proverbs 8:32-35
Now therefore hearken unto me, O ye children: for blessed are they that keep my ways…

1 Kings 10:1-9,23,24
And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions…

getteth

Proverbs 2:4
If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;

Proverbs 18:1
Through desire a man, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom.

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Proverbs 3
1. various exhortations
13. The gain of wisdom
27. Exhortation to goodness
33. the different state of the wicked and upright














Blessed is the man
The Hebrew word for "blessed" is "אַשְׁרֵי" (ashrei), which conveys a sense of happiness, contentment, and divine favor. In the biblical context, being "blessed" is not merely about material wealth or success but about a deep, abiding joy that comes from living in alignment with God's will. This phrase sets the tone for the verse, emphasizing that true happiness is found not in worldly pursuits but in spiritual enlightenment and moral integrity.

who finds wisdom
The Hebrew word for "wisdom" is "חָכְמָה" (chokmah), which encompasses not only knowledge but also the skillful application of that knowledge in daily life. In the ancient Near Eastern context, wisdom was highly valued and often associated with the ability to make sound decisions and live a life pleasing to God. The act of "finding" wisdom suggests an active pursuit, indicating that wisdom is not passively received but diligently sought after. This pursuit is a lifelong journey, reflecting a heart that is open to learning and growth.

the man who acquires understanding
The word "understanding" in Hebrew is "בִּינָה" (binah), which implies discernment, insight, and the ability to see beyond the surface. It involves a deeper comprehension of God's ways and the complexities of life. The verb "acquires" suggests a process of gaining or obtaining through effort and experience. In the biblical narrative, understanding is often linked with the fear of the Lord, as it requires a reverence for God's wisdom and a commitment to applying it in one's life. This phrase underscores the value of not just possessing knowledge but also having the insight to apply it wisely.

Verses 13-18. - The teacher here enters upon the last part of this discourse. In doing so, he reverts to his main subject, which is Wisdom, or the fear of the Lord (see ver. 7 and Proverbs 1:7), and pronounces a panegyric upon her, comparing her, as in Job 28, with treasures whose value she exceeds, and showing wherein that value consists, viz. in the gifts which she confers on man. Verse 13. - Happy is the man (ash'rey adam); literally, blessings of the man. The plural of "excellence" used here, as in Job 5:17, to raise the sense. The man who has found Wisdom is supremely blessed. Beds connects this blessedness immediately with God's chastisements in the preceding verse. So Delitzsch. That findeth (matsa); properly, hath found. "The perfect expresses permanent possession, just as the imperfect, yaphik, denotes a continually renewed and repeated attaining" (Zockler). The Vulgate also uses the perfect, invenit, "hath found;" LXX., ο{ς εϋρε, "who found" - the aorist. The man that getteth understanding (adam yaphik t'vunah); literally, the man that draweth out understanding, as in the margin. Yaphik is the hiph. future or imperfect of puk, the primary meaning of which is educere, "to draw out," "to bring forth." This verb is used in two widely different senses. In the first place, it is equivalent to "bring forth" or "draw out" in the sense of imparting, as in Isaiah 58:10, "If thou draw out thy soul to the hungry," i.e. impart benefits to them; and Psalm 145:13, "That our garners may be full, affording all manner of store," i.e. yielding, giving out, presenting for our benefit. Its second sense is that of attaining, drawing out from another for one's own use. In this sense it occurs in Proverbs 8:35; Proverbs 12:2; Proverbs 18:22, where it is rendered "obtain." The latter sense is the one that suits the present passage, and best agrees with the corresponding matsa. The man is blessed who draws forth, i.e. obtains, understanding from God for himself. The Vulgate renders, qui affluit prudentia, "who overflows with understanding," or, has understanding in abundance; LXX., ο{ς εῖδε, equivalent to "who saw."

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Blessed
אַשְׁרֵ֣י (’aš·rê)
Interjection
Strong's 835: Happiness, interjection, how happy!

[is] the man
אָ֭דָם (’ā·ḏām)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 120: Ruddy, a human being

who finds
מָצָ֣א (mā·ṣā)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 4672: To come forth to, appear, exist, to attain, find, acquire, to occur, meet, be present

wisdom,
חָכְמָ֑ה (ḥāḵ·māh)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 2451: Wisdom

the man
וְ֝אָדָ֗ם (wə·’ā·ḏām)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 120: Ruddy, a human being

who acquires
יָפִ֥יק (yā·p̄îq)
Verb - Hifil - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6329: To issue, furnish, to secure, to succeed

understanding,
תְּבוּנָֽה׃ (tə·ḇū·nāh)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 8394: Intelligence, an argument, caprice


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OT Poetry: Proverbs 3:13 Happy is the man who finds wisdom (Prov. Pro Pr)
Proverbs 3:12
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