25 Bible Verses About Understanding (NIV)

² A fool finds no pleasure in understanding but delights in airing his own opinions.

¹³⁰ The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.

²⁹ A patient man has great understanding, but a quick-tempered man displays folly.

² turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, ³ and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, ⁴ and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, ⁵ then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.

²⁷ A man of knowledge uses words with restraint, and a man of understanding is even-tempered.

⁵ Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

¹ But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. ² People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, ³ without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, ⁴ treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God-- ⁵ having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them. ⁶ They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, ⁷ always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth. ⁸ Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth--men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. ⁹ But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone. ¹⁰ You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, ¹¹ persecutions, sufferings--what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. ¹² In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, ¹³ while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. ¹⁴ But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, ¹⁵ and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. ¹⁶ All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, ¹⁷ so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

⁶ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

¹³ Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding, ¹⁴ for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. ¹⁵ She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. ¹⁶ Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. ¹⁷ Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace. ¹⁸ She is a tree of life to those who embrace her; those who lay hold of her will be blessed.

⁷ Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.

⁵ The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.

¹ Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid. ² A good man obtains favor from the LORD, but the LORD condemns a crafty man. ³ A man cannot be established through wickedness, but the righteous cannot be uprooted. ⁴ A wife of noble character is her husband's crown, but a disgraceful wife is like decay in his bones. ⁵ The plans of the righteous are just, but the advice of the wicked is deceitful. ⁶ The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood, but the speech of the upright rescues them. ⁷ Wicked men are overthrown and are no more, but the house of the righteous stands firm. ⁸ A man is praised according to his wisdom, but men with warped minds are despised. ⁹ Better to be a nobody and yet have a servant than pretend to be somebody and have no food. ¹⁰ A righteous man cares for the needs of his animal, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel. ¹¹ He who works his land will have abundant food, but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment. ¹² The wicked desire the plunder of evil men, but the root of the righteous flourishes. ¹³ An evil man is trapped by his sinful talk, but a righteous man escapes trouble. ¹⁴ From the fruit of his lips a man is filled with good things as surely as the work of his hands rewards him. ¹⁵ The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice. ¹⁶ A fool shows his annoyance at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult. ¹⁷ A truthful witness gives honest testimony, but a false witness tells lies. ¹⁸ Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. ¹⁹ Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment. ²⁰ There is deceit in the hearts of those who plot evil, but joy for those who promote peace. ²¹ No harm befalls the righteous, but the wicked have their fill of trouble. ²² The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in men who are truthful. ²³ A prudent man keeps his knowledge to himself, but the heart of fools blurts out folly. ²⁴ Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in slave labor. ²⁵ An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up. ²⁶ A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray. ²⁷ The lazy man does not roast his game, but the diligent man prizes his possessions. ²⁸ In the way of righteousness there is life; along that path is immortality.

⁷ Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. ⁴ Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

²⁸ And he said to man, 'The fear of the Lord-that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.'"

¹ There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: ² a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, ³ a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, ⁴ a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, ⁵ a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, ⁶ a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, ⁷ a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, ⁸ a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. ⁹ What does the worker gain from his toil? ¹⁰ I have seen the burden God has laid on men. ¹¹ He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. ¹² I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. ¹³ That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil-this is the gift of God. ¹⁴ I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him. ¹⁵ Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before; and God will call the past to account. ¹⁶ And I saw something else under the sun: In the place of judgment-wickedness was there, in the place of justice-wickedness was there. ¹⁷ I thought in my heart, "God will bring to judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time for every deed." ¹⁸ I also thought, "As for men, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals. ¹⁹ Man's fate is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; man has no advantage over the animal. Everything is meaningless. ²⁰ All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return. ²¹ Who knows if the spirit of man rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?" ²² So I saw that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?

¹⁹ And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

¹² We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.

¹¹ Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you. ¹² Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men, from men whose words are perverse, ¹³ who leave the straight paths to walk in dark ways, ¹⁴ who delight in doing wrong and rejoice in the perverseness of evil, ¹⁵ whose paths are crooked and who are devious in their ways. ¹⁶ It will save you also from the adulteress, from the wayward wife with her seductive words,

¹⁸ They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.

¹³ keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.

²³ This is what the LORD says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, ²⁴ but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," declares the LORD.