Happy is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gets understanding.
World English Bible
Proverbs 3:13
This verse is examined in more than one Scripture Analysis section. Each lens is shown on its own terms, in the section's own words; GEBible reaches no verdict of its own.
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WEB World English Bible Public Domain ✓ - Modern English
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Examined in Scripture Analysis
Science (1)
Historical claims about the natural world, weighed against the scientific record.
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The anthem at Charles Darwin's funeral was based on a text praising the finding of wisdom and understanding.
Biology · Proverbs 3:13
The scientific record: Summarized with its sources on the statement page.
Contradictions (1)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
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Does wisdom make people happy?
Proverbs 3:13 says happy (ashre) is the one who finds wisdom and gains understanding. Ecclesiastes 1:18 says in much wisdom is much grief, and increasing knowledge increases sorrow.
Critical scholarship: Widely regarded as a genuine contradiction.
More on this question
The proposed answers and sources for each reading are on the question page.
Each section sets the viewpoints side by side; you weigh the evidence. Here, "critical scholarship" means academic study, not a value judgment. How this is built →
Other verses examined for the same kind of question or claim
Within each section, grouped by shared field or question type — not a cross-section comparison.
Cite this page
This citation refers to this GEBible page — the verse and the analysis gathered here. To cite the underlying scholarship, cite those sources directly.
"Proverbs 3:13 — Scripture Analysis" GEBible, https://gebible.app/analysis/verse/proverbs/3/13?version=WEB (retrieved 26 August 2026).