1 Kings 3:9

3:9 So give your servant a discerning mind¹ so he can make judicial decisions for² your people and distinguish right from wrong.³ Otherwise⁴ no one is able⁵ to make judicial decisions for⁶ this great nation of yours.”⁷

1 Kings 3:12

3:12 I⁸ grant your request,⁹ and give¹⁰ you a wise and discerning mind¹¹ superior to that of anyone who has preceded or will succeed you.¹²

1 Kings 3:28

3:28 When all Israel heard about the judicial decision which the king had rendered, they respected¹³ the king, for they realized¹⁴ that he possessed supernatural wisdom¹⁵ to make judicial decisions.

Proverbs 2:6

2:6 For¹⁶ the Lord gives¹⁷ wisdom,

and from his mouth¹⁸ comes¹⁹ knowledge and understanding.

Daniel 1:17

1:17 Now as for these four young men, God endowed them with knowledge and skill in all sorts of literature and wisdom – and Daniel had insight into all kinds of visions and dreams.

Daniel 2:21

2:21 He changes times and seasons,

deposing some kings

and establishing others.²⁰

He gives wisdom to the wise;

he imparts knowledge to those with understanding;²¹

Daniel 2:23

2:23 O God of my fathers, I acknowledge and glorify you,

for you have bestowed wisdom and power on me.

Now you have enabled me to understand what I²² requested from you.

For you have enabled me to understand the king’s dilemma.”²³

Daniel 5:11

5:11 There is a man in your kingdom who has within him a spirit of the holy gods. In the days of your father, he proved to have²⁴ insight, discernment, and wisdom like that²⁵ of the gods.²⁶ King Nebuchadnezzar your father appointed him chief of the magicians, astrologers, wise men, and diviners.²⁷

James 1:5

1:5 But if anyone is deficient in wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without reprimand, and it will be given to him.

¹tn Heb “a hearing heart.” (The Hebrew term translated “heart” often refers to the mental faculties.)

²tn Heb “to judge.”

³tn Heb “to understand between good and evil.”

⁴tn Heb “for”; the word “otherwise” is used to reflect the logical sense of the statement.

⁵tn Heb “who is able?” The rhetorical question anticipates the answer, “no one.”

⁶tn Heb “to judge.”

⁷tn Heb “your numerous people.”

⁸tn This statement is introduced in the Hebrew text by the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) which draws attention to and emphasizes what follows.

⁹tn Heb “I am doing according to your words.” The perfect tense is sometimes used of actions occurring at the same time a statement is made.

¹⁰tn This statement is introduced by the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) which draws attention to and emphasizes what follows. The translation assumes that the perfect tense here indicates that the action occurs as the statement is made (i.e., “right now I give you”).

¹¹tn Heb “heart.” (The Hebrew term translated “heart” often refers to the mental faculties.)

¹²tn Heb “so that there has not been one like you prior to you, and after you one will not arise like you.”

¹³tn Heb “feared,” perhaps in the sense, “stood in awe of.”

¹⁴tn Heb “saw.”

¹⁵tn Heb “the wisdom of God within him.”

¹⁶tn This is a causal clause. The reason one must fear and know the Lord is that he is the source of true, effectual wisdom.

¹⁷tn The verb is an imperfect tense which probably functions as a habitual imperfect describing a universal truth in the past, present and future.

¹⁸sn This expression is an anthropomorphism; it indicates that the Lord is the immediate source or author of the wisdom. It is worth noting that in the incarnation many of these “anthropomorphisms” become literal in the person of the Logos, the Word, Jesus, who reveals the Father.

¹⁹tn The verb “comes” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.

²⁰tn Aram “kings.”

²¹tn Aram “the knowers of understanding.”

²²tn Aram “we.” Various explanations have been offered for the plural, but it is probably best understood as the editorial plural; so also with “me” later in this verse.

²³tn Aram “the word of the king.”

²⁴tn Aram “[there were] discovered to be in him.”

²⁵tn Aram “wisdom like the wisdom.” This would be redundant in terms of English style.

²⁶tc Theodotion lacks the phrase “and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods.”

²⁷tc The MT includes a redundant reference to “your father the king” at the end of v. 11. None of the attempts to explain this phrase as original are very convincing. The present translation deletes the phrase, following Theodotion and the Syriac.