The Bible has dozens of verses that show God’s willingness to give wisdom.
This new series rests on the inviting promise of James 1:5: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him” (ESV).
It sounds too good to be true. Does God really want me to pray and believe for wisdom about everything that matters to me? My answer is yes, God wants to give us wisdom and wants us to pray and believe for it. I say that for four reasons.
1. God faults those who fail to inquire of him as they make decisions and manage their lives.
Isaiah says, “Should not a people inquire of their God?” (Isaiah 8:19) The prophet was faulting those who consulted instead with mediums and necromancers.
Jeremiah, bluntly rebuking the leaders of Israel, says, “The shepherds are stupid and do not inquire of the LORD; therefore they have not prospered, and all their flock is scattered” (Jeremiah 10:21).
At one point in Israel’s conquest of the Promised Land under Joshua’s leadership, one of the nations of the land, called Gibeonites, who were under God’s decree of extermination for their wickedness, sought to deceive them. The Gibeonites sent to the army of Israel a delegation who acted as though they had traveled from a distant land to make a treaty with them. God had forbidden Israel from making treaties with the residents of the Promised Land, though they could do so with neighboring countries.
The ruse of the Gibeonites rested on their giving the appearance of having traveled a great distance. They “took worn-out sacks for their donkeys, and wineskins, worn-out and torn and mended, with worn-out, patched sandals on their feet, and worn-out clothes. And all their provisions were dry and crumbly.” (Joshua 9:4–5)
They rode into the camp of Israel and asked the leaders to make a covenant of peace. “We are your servants,” the Gibeonites meekly concluded.
But Joshua was suspicious. “Who are you? And where do you come from?” he asked.
They replied, “From a very distant country your servants have come, because of the name of the LORD your God…. Here is our bread. It was still warm when we took it from our houses as our food for the journey on the day we set out to come to you, but now, behold, it is dry and crumbly. These wineskins were new when we filled them, and behold, they have burst. And these garments and sandals of ours are worn out from the very long journey.” So the men took some of their provisions, but did not ask counsel from the LORD. And Joshua made peace with them.” (Joshua 9:9, 12–15)
Joshua’s decision was wrong—even though he was a godly man—because he and the leaders of Israel used their own judgment instead of inquiring of God.
In Jeremiah’s day, the false prophets did not consult the Lord. The Lord rebukes them, asking, “Who among them has stood in the council of the LORD to see and to hear his word, or who has paid attention to his word and listened?” (Jeremiah 23:18) The answer, of course, was none of them had sought God’s counsel. God’s question shows what he expected from a true prophet.
Psalm 106 tells the history of God’s merciful work among the Israelites and their many failures in response. The psalm reveals how Israel could act with unbelief toward God after he had showed his benevolence toward them by judging Egypt with great plagues and then bringing Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground: “They soon forgot his works; they did not wait for his counsel. But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness, and put God to the test in the desert” (Psalm 106:13–14).
Again and again in the desert, the Israelites made bad choices because they did not wait for God’s counsel but instead impulsively followed their own desires.
Isaiah 9:13–16 says, “The people did not turn to him who struck them, nor inquire of the LORD of hosts. So the LORD cut off from Israel head and tail, palm branch and reed in one day.” The situation here is that God was punishing Israel with troubles for their stubborn, unrepentant sinfulness, but Israel never bothered to ask him why these troubles had come upon them.
So we see God’s willingness to give wisdom in how he paints in a negative light those who fail to ask for it. We also see that he wants to give us wisdom in his many invitations to seek it.
2. God gives many promises and examples that show his willingness to teach and counsel us.
Both the Old and New Testaments assure us of God’s pleasure in giving his children wisdom.
Psalm 16:7 says, “I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me.”
Psalm 32:8 says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.”
Psalm 73:24 says, “You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory”
Psalm 119:24 says, “Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors.”
Proverbs 2:6 says, “The LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.”
Proverbs 8:12, 17 says, “[12] I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion…. [17] I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.”
Isaiah 9:6 says, “To us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Isaiah 28:24–29 says, “[24] Does he who plows for sowing plow continually? Does he continually open and harrow his ground? [25] When he has leveled its surface, does he not scatter dill, sow cumin, and put in wheat in rows and barley in its proper place, and emmer as the border? [26] For he is rightly instructed; his God teaches him. [27] Dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge, nor is a cart wheel rolled over cumin, but dill is beaten out with a stick, and cumin with a rod. [28] Does one crush grain for bread? No, he does not thresh it forever; when he drives his cart wheel over it with his horses, he does not crush it. [29] This also comes from the LORD of hosts; he is wonderful in counsel and excellent in wisdom.”
Isaiah 48:17 says, “Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: ‘I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go.’”
Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.”
Daniel 2:17–23 says, “Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven. Daniel answered and said: ‘Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might. He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding; he reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him. To you, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, for you have given me wisdom and might, and have now made known to me what we asked of you, for you have made known to us the king’s matter.’”
Daniel 2:28 says, “There is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries.”
Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”
Matthew 23:10 says, “You have one instructor, the Christ.”
Philippians 3:15 says, “Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.”
2 Timothy 2:7 says, “Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.”
James 1:5 says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”
1 John 2:27 says, “The anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.”
So we see God’s willingness to give wisdom in many promises and examples. We also see that he wants to give wisdom because he tells us to ask for it.
3. God tells us to pray for wisdom.
Having wisdom is not automatic or guaranteed to all. If we do not have it, that does not mean he does not want to give it to us. Rather, the Lord tells us wisdom comes to those who ask for it.
James 1:5 says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”
Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”
Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.”
Daniel 2:17–19 says, “Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night.”
So we see God’s willingness to give wisdom in his instructions to pray.
4. God tells us not only to pray, but to believe for wisdom.
Prayer is necessary, but it is not enough. Our prayers must be mixed with faith that God will answer.
James 1:5–8 says, “[5] If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. [6] But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. [7] For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; [8] he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”
We often need wisdom immediately, and God grants it. At other times, we may pray for weeks, months, or years for wisdom until it comes. We must have the faith to persist until our prayer is answered.
How do you build up the faith necessary? You memorize the Scriptures in this article and meditate on them, which will take months. I have done it, and so can you. To maintain them in your memory, you will periodically have to review and refresh them. That is good, because each time you say them, they build your faith.
Conclusion: Never doubt God’s willingness to give wisdom
God wants to give you the wisdom and understanding you need for your job, marriage, child-raising, finances, health, emotions, ministry, goals, trials, prayers, sanctification, and any other holy thing that matters to you, frustrates you, or eludes you. Most importantly, in the process you can learn to know God better.
Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)