38 Bible Verses about Character

Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and make your hearts pure, you double-minded.

Their eyes, full of adultery, never stop sinning; they entice unstable people. They have trained their hearts for greed, these cursed children!

"A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled on, and the wild birds devoured it. Other seed fell on rock, and when it came up, it withered because it had no moisture. Other seed fell among the thorns, and they grew up with it and choked it. read more.
But other seed fell on good soil and grew, and it produced a hundred times as much grain." As he said this, he called out, "The one who has ears to hear had better listen!" Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant. He said, "You have been given the opportunity to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that although they see they may not see, and although they hear they may not understand. "Now the parable means this: The seed is the word of God. Those along the path are the ones who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in a time of testing fall away. As for the seed that fell among thorns, these are the ones who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the worries and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. But as for the seed that landed on good soil, these are the ones who, after hearing the word, cling to it with an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with steadfast endurance.

Why do you constantly go about changing your political allegiances? You will get no help from Egypt just as you got no help from Assyria.

What am I going to do with you, O Ephraim? What am I going to do with you, O Judah? For your faithfulness is as fleeting as the morning mist; it disappears as quickly as dawn's dew!

And you will be hated by everyone because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

But these are the ones sown on good soil: They hear the word and receive it and bear fruit, one thirty times as much, one sixty, and one a hundred."

I am determined, O God! I am determined! I will sing and praise you!

A song, a psalm of David. I am determined, O God! I will sing and praise you with my whole heart.

He does not fear bad news. He is confident; he trusts in the Lord.

When the time came for Merab, Saul's daughter, to be given to David, she instead was given in marriage to Adriel, who was from Meholah.

But they did not obey their leaders. Instead they prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped them. They quickly turned aside from the path their ancestors had walked. Their ancestors had obeyed the Lord's commands, but they did not.

They have quickly turned aside from the way that I commanded them -- they have made for themselves a molten calf and have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and said, 'These are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt.'"

When a leader died, the next generation would again act more wickedly than the previous one. They would follow after other gods, worshiping them and bowing down to them. They did not give up their practices or their stubborn ways.

They supported the kingdom of Judah and were loyal to Rehoboam son of Solomon for three years; they followed the edicts of David and Solomon for three years.

Put yourselves to the test to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize regarding yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you -- unless, indeed, you fail the test!

And just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these people -- who have warped minds and are disqualified in the faith -- also oppose the truth.

They profess to know God but with their deeds they deny him, since they are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for any good deed.

For we too were once foolish, disobedient, misled, enslaved to various passions and desires, spending our lives in evil and envy, hateful and hating one another.

"Nonetheless they grew disobedient and rebelled against you; they disregarded your law. They killed your prophets who had solemnly admonished them in order to cause them to return to you. They committed atrocious blasphemies.

So you who believe see his value, but for those who do not believe, the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,

For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,

Your presumptuous heart has deceived you -- you who reside in the safety of the rocky cliffs, whose home is high in the mountains. You think to yourself, 'No one can bring me down to the ground!'

They speak sinful words. So let them be trapped by their own pride and by the curses and lies they speak!

This is the account of Noah. Noah was a godly man; he was blameless among his contemporaries. He walked with God.

Look, the one whose desires are not upright will faint from exhaustion, but the person of integrity will live because of his faithfulness.

Now there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon who was righteous and devout, looking for the restoration of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard all this, they derided us and expressed contempt toward us. They said, "What is this you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?"

and in the presence of his colleagues and the army of Samaria he said, "What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they be left to themselves? Will they again offer sacrifice? Will they finish this in a day? Can they bring these burnt stones to life again from piles of dust?"

unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, savage, opposed to what is good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, loving pleasure rather than loving God.

The wicked turn aside from birth; liars go astray as soon as they are born.

They spend all their time planning how to bring him down. They love to use deceit; they pronounce blessings with their mouths, but inwardly they utter curses. (Selah)

No one is concerned about justice; no one sets forth his case truthfully. They depend on false words and tell lies; they conceive of oppression and give birth to sin.

But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted.

But Pharaoh hardened his heart this time also and did not release the people.

When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder ceased, he sinned again: both he and his servants hardened their hearts.

When it was reported to the king of Egypt that the people had fled, the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was turned against the people, and the king and his servants said, "What in the world have we done? For we have released the people of Israel from serving us!"

He waits in ambush near the villages; in hidden places he kills the innocent. His eyes look for some unfortunate victim.

They kill the widow and the one residing outside his native land, and they murder the fatherless.

They are filled with every kind of unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, malice. They are rife with envy, murder, strife, deceit, hostility. They are gossips,

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,

For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. He has chosen you to be his people, prized above all others on the face of the earth.

For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. He has chosen you to be his people, prized above all others on the face of the earth.

And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem without knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit warns me in town after town that imprisonment and persecutions are waiting for me. But I do not consider my life worth anything to myself, so that I may finish my task and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the good news of God's grace.

Then Paul replied, "What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be tied up, but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." Because he could not be persuaded, we said no more except, "The Lord's will be done."

All of them conspired together to move with armed forces against Jerusalem and to create a disturbance in it.

Sanballat and Geshem sent word to me saying, "Come on! Let's set up a time to meet together at Kephirim in the plain of Ono." Now they intended to do me harm.

Those who seek my life try to entrap me; those who want to harm me speak destructive words; all day long they say deceitful things.

When Elijah arrived, Ahab said to him, "So, you have found me, my enemy!" Elijah replied, "I have found you, because you are committed to doing evil in the sight of the Lord.

They passed their sons and daughters through the fire, and practiced divination and omen reading. They committed themselves to doing evil in the sight of the Lord and made him angry.

Their end is destruction, their god is the belly, they exult in their shame, and they think about earthly things.

These people are divisive, worldly, devoid of the Spirit.

There are those who rebel against the light; they do not know its ways and they do not stay on its paths.

For everyone who does evil deeds hates the light and does not come to the light, so that their deeds will not be exposed.

For some of these insinuate themselves into households and captivate weak women who are overwhelmed with sins and led along by various passions.

My child, if sinners try to entice you, do not consent! If they say, "Come with us! We will lie in wait to shed blood; we will ambush an innocent person capriciously. We will swallow them alive like Sheol, those full of vigor like those going down to the Pit. read more.
We will seize all kinds of precious wealth; we will fill our houses with plunder. Join with us! We will all share equally in what we steal."

Now as for you, the anointing that you received from him resides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things, it is true and is not a lie. Just as it has taught you, you reside in him.

All your children will be followers of the Lord, and your children will enjoy great prosperity.

They will maintain the outward appearance of religion but will have repudiated its power. So avoid people like these.

The sovereign master says, "These people say they are loyal to me; they say wonderful things about me, but they are not really loyal to me. Their worship consists of nothing but man-made ritual.

Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What would we gain if we were to pray to him?'

All those who behave wickedly do not understand -- those who devour my people as if they were eating bread, and do not call out to God.

I do not condone the use of rigged scales, or a bag of deceptive weights.

Evil men borrow, but do not repay their debt, but the godly show compassion and are generous.

I was angry because of their sinful greed; I attacked them and angrily rejected them, yet they remained disobedient and stubborn.

The way of the guilty person is devious, but as for the pure, his way is upright.

When a wicked person dies, his expectation perishes, and the hope of his strength perishes.

We were pregnant, we strained, we gave birth, as it were, to wind. We cannot produce deliverance on the earth; people to populate the world are not born.

They are darkened in their understanding, being alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts.

And you were at one time strangers and enemies in your minds as expressed through your evil deeds,

But there is little hope for you ever doing good, you who are so accustomed to doing evil. Can an Ethiopian change the color of his skin? Can a leopard remove its spots?

They are determined to be experts at doing evil; government officials and judges take bribes, prominent men make demands, and they all do what is necessary to satisfy them.

Because they are callous, they have given themselves over to indecency for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness.

We are all like one who is unclean, all our so-called righteous acts are like a menstrual rag in your sight. We all wither like a leaf; our sins carry us away like the wind.

Your obedience is known to all and thus I rejoice over you. But I want you to be wise in what is good and innocent in what is evil.

Like obedient children, do not comply with the evil urges you used to follow in your ignorance,

An honorable man makes honorable plans; his honorable character gives him security.

Through the evidence of this service they will glorify God because of your obedience to your confession in the gospel of Christ and the generosity of your sharing with them and with everyone.

So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; what is old has passed away -- look, what is new has come!

For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them.

Thus people were scorched by the terrible heat, yet they blasphemed the name of God, who has ruling authority over these plagues, and they would not repent and give him glory.

They also said many other things against him, reviling him.

And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

All have turned away, together they have become worthless; there is no one who shows kindness, not even one."

among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe so they would not see the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God.

They are darkened in their understanding, being alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts.

In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.

You were taught with reference to your former way of life to lay aside the old man who is being corrupted in accordance with deceitful desires,

unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, savage, opposed to what is good,

A violent person entices his neighbor, and leads him down a path that is terrible.

"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

The downtrodden will again rejoice in the Lord; the poor among humankind will take delight in the Holy One of Israel.

He was a devout, God-fearing man, as was all his household; he did many acts of charity for the people and prayed to God regularly.

Then those who respected the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord took notice. A scroll was prepared before him in which were recorded the names of those who respected the Lord and honored his name.

All of your people will be godly; they will possess the land permanently. I will plant them like a shoot; they will be the product of my labor, through whom I reveal my splendor.

They were both righteous in the sight of God, following all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly.

"You stubborn people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors did!

For the Lord had said to Moses, "Tell the Israelites, 'You are a stiff-necked people. If I went up among you for a moment, I might destroy you. Now take off your ornaments, that I may know what I should do to you.'"

They are determined to be experts at doing evil; government officials and judges take bribes, prominent men make demands, and they all do what is necessary to satisfy them.

The one who plans to do evil will be called a scheming person.

For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to ungrateful and evil people.

For we too were once foolish, disobedient, misled, enslaved to various passions and desires, spending our lives in evil and envy, hateful and hating one another.

When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard all this, they were very displeased that someone had come to seek benefit for the Israelites.

The wicked person flees when there is no one pursuing, but the righteous person is as confident as a lion.

But to the cowards, unbelievers, detestable persons, murderers, the sexually immoral, and those who practice magic spells, idol worshipers, and all those who lie, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. That is the second death."

who delight in doing evil, they rejoice in perverse evil;

Although they fully know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them.

And you were at one time strangers and enemies in your minds as expressed through your evil deeds,

because the outlook of the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to the law of God, nor is it able to do so.

For they harass the one whom you discipline; they spread the news about the suffering of those whom you punish.

For he never bothered to show kindness; he harassed the oppressed and needy, and killed the disheartened.

They are filled with every kind of unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, malice. They are rife with envy, murder, strife, deceit, hostility. They are gossips,

They confiscate the fields they desire, and seize the houses they want. They defraud people of their homes, and deprive people of the land they have inherited.

They were devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your morale and the firmness of your faith in Christ.

"Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

All day long he shows compassion and lends to others, and his children are blessed.

Solomon replied, "You demonstrated great loyalty to your servant, my father David, as he served you faithfully, properly, and sincerely. You have maintained this great loyalty to this day by allowing his son to sit on his throne.

Whoever lives a blameless life, does what is right, and speaks honestly.

Now on the topic of brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another.

since we heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints.

I will boast in the Lord; let the oppressed hear and rejoice!

In the same way, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.

Is this how you repay the Lord, you foolish, unwise people? Is he not your father, your creator? He has made you and established you.

Arrogant people cannot stand in your presence; you hate all who behave wickedly.

With flaming fire he will mete out punishment on those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

Hear the word of the Lord, you Israelites! For the Lord has a covenant lawsuit against the people of Israel. For there is neither faithfulness nor loyalty in the land, nor do they acknowledge God.

You destroy liars; the Lord despises violent and deceitful people.

"Their throats are open graves, they deceive with their tongues, the poison of asps is under their lips."

For this is what the high and exalted one says, the one who rules forever, whose name is holy: "I dwell in an exalted and holy place, but also with the discouraged and humiliated, in order to cheer up the humiliated and to encourage the discouraged.

My hand made them; that is how they came to be," says the Lord. I show special favor to the humble and contrite, who respect what I have to say.

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

And everyone who has this hope focused on him purifies himself, just as Jesus is pure).

-- if so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from their trials, and to reserve the unrighteous for punishment at the day of judgment,

Realize that the Lord shows the godly special favor; the Lord responds when I cry out to him.

A good name is to be chosen rather than great wealth, good favor more than silver or gold.

A good reputation is better than precious perfume; likewise, the day of one's death is better than the day of one's birth.

For our reason for confidence is this: the testimony of our conscience, that with pure motives and sincerity which are from God -- not by human wisdom but by the grace of God -- we conducted ourselves in the world, and all the more toward you.

For we are not like so many others, hucksters who peddle the word of God for profit, but we are speaking in Christ before God as persons of sincerity, as persons sent from God.

Listen, O heavens, pay attention, O earth! For the Lord speaks: "I raised children, I brought them up, but they have rebelled against me!

For these are rebellious people -- they are lying children, children unwilling to obey the Lord's law.

Yes, the wicked man boasts because he gets what he wants; the one who robs others curses and rejects the Lord.

They trust in their wealth and boast in their great riches.

The wicked man is so arrogant he always thinks, "God won't hold me accountable; he doesn't care."

For the music director; by David. Fools say to themselves, "There is no God." They sin and commit evil deeds; none of them does what is right.

A man named Ananias, a devout man according to the law, well spoken of by all the Jews who live there,

Some devout men buried Stephen and made loud lamentation over him.

When he has brought all his own sheep out, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they recognize his voice.

My sheep listen to my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.

Suppose a man marries a woman, has sexual relations with her, and then rejects her, accusing her of impropriety and defaming her reputation by saying, "I married this woman but when I had sexual relations with her I discovered she was not a virgin!" Then the father and mother of the young woman must produce the evidence of virginity for the elders of the city at the gate. read more.
The young woman's father must say to the elders, "I gave my daughter to this man and he has rejected her. Moreover, he has raised accusations of impropriety by saying, 'I discovered your daughter was not a virgin,' but this is the evidence of my daughter's virginity!" The cloth must then be spread out before the city's elders. The elders of that city must then seize the man and punish him. They will fine him one hundred shekels of silver and give them to the young woman's father, for the man who made the accusation ruined the reputation of an Israelite virgin. She will then become his wife and he may never divorce her as long as he lives.

When Solomon became old, his wives shifted his allegiance to other gods; he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God, as his father David had been. Solomon worshiped the Sidonian goddess Astarte and the detestable Ammonite god Milcom. Solomon did evil in the Lord's sight; he did not remain loyal to the Lord, like his father David had. read more.
Furthermore, on the hill east of Jerusalem Solomon built a high place for the detestable Moabite god Chemosh and for the detestable Ammonite god Milcom. He built high places for all his foreign wives so they could burn incense and make sacrifices to their gods.

Soon after these things, his master's wife took notice of Joseph and said, "Have sex with me." But he refused, saying to his master's wife, "Look, my master does not give any thought to his household with me here, and everything that he owns he has put into my care. There is no one greater in this household than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you because you are his wife. So how could I do such a great evil and sin against God?" read more.
Even though she continued to speak to Joseph day after day, he did not respond to her invitation to have sex with her. One day he went into the house to do his work when none of the household servants were there in the house. She grabbed him by his outer garment, saying, "Have sex with me!" But he left his outer garment in her hand and ran outside.

The doorkeeper opens the door for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought all his own sheep out, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they recognize his voice.

Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might and the beginning of my strength, outstanding in dignity, outstanding in power. You are destructive like water and will not excel, for you got on your father's bed, then you defiled it -- he got on my couch!

Pilate answered, "What I have written, I have written."

And there you will remember your conduct and all your deeds by which you defiled yourselves. You will despise yourselves because of all the evil deeds you have done.

For there are many rebellious people, idle talkers, and deceivers, especially those with Jewish connections,

But when I stumbled, they rejoiced and gathered together; they gathered together to ambush me. They tore at me without stopping to rest.

Their end is destruction, their god is the belly, they exult in their shame, and they think about earthly things.

That is, I will punish the Egyptians, the Judeans, the Edomites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, and all the desert people who cut their hair short at the temples. I will do so because none of the people of those nations are really circumcised in the Lord's sight. Moreover, none of the people of Israel are circumcised when it comes to their hearts."

Such is the destiny of all who forget God; the hope of the godless perishes,

They are eager to do evil, quick to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are sinful; they crush and destroy.

A wicked scoundrel digs up evil, and his slander is like a scorching fire.

(Alef) How blessed are those whose actions are blameless, who obey the law of the Lord.

Blessed are those slaves whom their master finds alert when he returns! I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, have them take their place at the table, and will come and wait on them!

The one who is wise in heart is called discerning, and kind speech increases persuasiveness.

so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without blemish though you live in a crooked and perverse society, in which you shine as lights in the world

He gave himself for us to set us free from every kind of lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are truly his, who are eager to do good.

Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and exclaimed, "Look, a true Israelite in whom there is no deceit!"

They will make war with the Lamb, but the Lamb will conquer them, because he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those accompanying the Lamb are the called, chosen, and faithful."

It is better to be lowly in spirit with the afflicted than to share the spoils with the proud.

treacherous, reckless, conceited, loving pleasure rather than loving God.

The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and hard-hearted, and you must say to them, 'This is what the sovereign Lord says.'

But the house of Israel is unwilling to listen to you, because they are not willing to listen to me, for the whole house of Israel is hard-headed and hard-hearted.

unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, savage, opposed to what is good,

But to the cowards, unbelievers, detestable persons, murderers, the sexually immoral, and those who practice magic spells, idol worshipers, and all those who lie, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. That is the second death."

senseless, covenant-breakers, heartless, ruthless.

The righteous person hates anything false, but the wicked person acts in shameful disgrace.

With many other words he testified and exhorted them saying, "Save yourselves from this perverse generation!"

His people have been unfaithful to him; they have not acted like his children -- this is their sin. They are a perverse and deceitful generation.

The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and hard-hearted, and you must say to them, 'This is what the sovereign Lord says.'

For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,

treacherous, reckless, conceited, loving pleasure rather than loving God.

For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,

Is this how you repay the Lord, you foolish, unwise people? Is he not your father, your creator? He has made you and established you.

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God.

through glory and dishonor, through slander and praise; regarded as impostors, and yet true;

The wicked person flees when there is no one pursuing, but the righteous person is as confident as a lion.

The look on their faces testifies to their guilt; like the people of Sodom they openly boast of their sin. Too bad for them! For they bring disaster on themselves.

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.

I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them safe in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are one.

You are holy; you sit as king receiving the praises of Israel.