Good understanding wins favor, but the way of the faithless is difficult.
Parallel translations
- WEB Good understanding wins favor; but the way of the unfaithful is hard.
- KJV Good understanding giveth favour: but the way of transgressors is hard.
- NKJV Good understanding gains favor, But the way of the unfaithful is hard.
- NASB Good understanding produces favor, But the way of the treacherous is their own disaster.
- NLT A person with good sense is respected; a treacherous person is headed for destruction.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Good understanding wins favor, but the way of the treacherous is hard. A wise, faithful life goes better than a faithless one.
Overview
Sound understanding commends a person to others and to God, gaining goodwill, while the path of the unfaithful is rough and ruinous. The proverb states a general tendency, not a guarantee, since the wise still suffer in a fallen world. It nonetheless affirms that the way of faithfulness is finally blessed, fulfilled in Christ who walked the hard road to win our favor with God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Jer 2:19Your own evil will discipline you; your own apostasies will reprimand you. Consider and realize how evil and bitter it is for you to forsake the LORD your God and to have no fear of Me,” declares the Lord GOD of Hosts.
- Prov 4:19But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom; they do not know what makes them stumble.
- Prov 15:10Discipline is harsh for him who leaves the path; he who hates correction will die.
- Rom 6:21What fruit did you reap at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? The outcome of those things is death.
- Acts 7:10and rescued him from all his troubles. He granted Joseph favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt, who appointed him ruler over Egypt and all his household.
- Ps 111:10The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His precepts gain rich understanding. His praise endures forever!
- Prov 3:4Then you will find favor and high regard in the sight of God and man.
- Ps 95:9–11where your fathers tested and tried Me, though they had seen My work.
- 1 Sam 18:14–16and he continued to prosper in all his ways, because the LORD was with him.
- Luke 2:52And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.
- Prov 14:35A king delights in a wise servant, but his anger falls on the shameful.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 13:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.