Ancient Wisdom, Modern Brains

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All 36 passages

Each pairs a short passage from the NASB with a body of peer-reviewed studies, says honestly what the studies cannot tell us, and closes with five practices. The first twelve are the original paper. The rest are additions written since, and more will follow.

See how all 36 connect on the map →

The original paper

The twelve passages

Eleven meeting points between Scripture and research, plus one bonus. This is the paper that started the work.

  1. 1 Proverbs 17:22 A Joyful Heart and the Immune System “A joyful heart is good medicine, But a broken spirit dries up the bones.”
  2. 2 Romans 12:2 Renewing the Mind and Neuroplasticity “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
  3. 3 Philippians 4:8 “Dwell on These Things”: Attention, Rumination, and Gratitude “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”
  4. 4 Psalm 46:10 “Cease Striving”: Stillness and the Default Mode Network “Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
  5. 5 Ephesians 4:26 “Do Not Let the Sun Go Down on Your Anger”: Sleep and Emotional Memory “Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.”
  6. 6 Mark 2:27 The Sabbath, Chronic Stress, and the Hippocampus “Jesus said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.’”
  7. 7 Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, 12 “Two Are Better Than One”: Loneliness and Mortality “Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up . . . A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.”
  8. 8 Matthew 6:34 “Do Not Worry About Tomorrow”: Worry and the Body’s Stress Response “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
  9. 9 Proverbs 15:1 “A Gentle Answer”: Co-regulation in Conflict “A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.”
  10. 10 Matthew 6:14-15; Colossians 3:13 Forgiveness “For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.”
  11. 11 1 John 4:18 “Perfect Love Casts Out Fear”: Social Regulation of Threat “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.”
  12. Bonus Proverbs 22:6 “Train Up a Child” and the Neuroscience of Habit “Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

Ongoing additions

Strong evidence

Additions resting on meta-analyses, large cohorts, or randomized trials. About the additions →

  1. 13 Acts 20:35; Proverbs 11:25 Strong evidence “More Blessed to Give”: Generosity and the Reward System “In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
  2. 14 Proverbs 23:29–30; Proverbs 23:35 Strong evidence “I Will Seek Another Drink”: The Craving Cycle “Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaining? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who linger long over wine, Those who go to taste mixed wine.”
  3. 15 Proverbs 4:14–15; 2 Timothy 2:22 Strong evidence “Avoid It, Do Not Pass By It”: Fleeing Temptation “Do not enter the path of the wicked And do not proceed in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not pass by it; Turn away from it and pass on.”
  4. 16 Ecclesiastes 5:10; 1 Timothy 6:6 Strong evidence “He Who Loves Money Will Not Be Satisfied”: Contentment “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income. This too is vanity.”
  5. 17 Proverbs 13:12; Romans 15:13 Strong evidence “Hope Deferred Makes the Heart Sick”: Hope and the Heart “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”
  6. 18 Proverbs 13:20; 1 Corinthians 15:33 Strong evidence “He Who Walks with Wise Men”: The Company You Keep “He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will suffer harm.”
  7. 19 Colossians 3:21; Ephesians 6:4 Strong evidence “Do Not Exasperate Your Children”: Childhood Adversity and the Developing Brain “Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart.”
  8. 20 Luke 6:27–28; Galatians 3:28 Strong evidence “Love Your Enemies”: Contact Across the Dividing Wall “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”
  9. 21 James 1:19–20; Proverbs 29:11 Strong evidence “Slow to Anger”: Why Venting Backfires “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”
  10. 22 Psalm 62:8; Psalm 142:2 Strong evidence “Pour Out Your Heart Before Him”: Lament and Naming What Hurts “Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us.”
  11. 23 Deuteronomy 6:6–7; Psalm 1:2 Strong evidence “Talk of Them When You Walk”: Scripture Memory and Spaced Repetition “These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.”

Moderate evidence

Additions resting on sound but more limited studies.

  1. 24 Psalm 42:5 Moderate evidence “Why Are You in Despair, O My Soul?”: Talking to Yourself “Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him For the help of His presence.”
  2. 25 Romans 5:3–4; James 1:2–3 Moderate evidence “Tribulation Brings About Perseverance”: Trials and Resilience “And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope.”
  3. 26 Romans 12:15; Galatians 6:2 Moderate evidence “Weep with Those Who Weep”: Empathy and Compassion “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”
  4. 27 2 Corinthians 7:10 Moderate evidence “Godly Sorrow” and “the Sorrow of the World”: Guilt and Shame “For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.”
  5. 28 Psalm 32:3; James 5:16 Moderate evidence “When I Kept Silent”: Confession and the Weight of Secrets “When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away Through my groaning all day long.”
  6. 29 Psalm 8:3–4; Psalm 19:1 Moderate evidence “When I Consider Your Heavens”: Awe and the Right-Sized Self “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained; What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him?”
  7. 30 Matthew 6:28–29 Moderate evidence “Observe How the Lilies Grow”: Nature and the Ruminating Mind “And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these.”
  8. 31 Philippians 3:13–14 Moderate evidence “I Press On Toward the Goal”: Purpose and a Longer Life “Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
  9. 32 Psalm 127:2; Ecclesiastes 5:12 Moderate evidence “He Gives to His Beloved Even in His Sleep”: Sleep as Gift “It is vain for you to rise up early, To retire late, To eat the bread of painful labors; For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.”
  10. 33 1 Timothy 4:8; 1 Corinthians 6:19–20 Moderate evidence “Bodily Discipline Is Only of Little Profit”: The Body in Its Place “For bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”
  11. 34 Colossians 3:16 Moderate evidence “Singing with Thankfulness”: Music and Bonding “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”
  12. 35 Psalm 90:12; Job 12:12 Moderate evidence “Teach Us to Number Our Days”: Wisdom and Age “So teach us to number our days, That we may present to You a heart of wisdom.”
  13. 36 Proverbs 21:5; Proverbs 13:11 Moderate evidence “The Plans of the Diligent”: Patience and Delayed Reward “The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage, But everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty.”