But while he was thinking about the matter, [suddenly] an angel from the Lord appeared to him in a dream [i.e., a supernatural revelation given during sleep], saying, "Joseph, you descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary to be your wife, for the baby she is carrying is by [the power of] the Holy Spirit.

But when he heard that Archelaus was then the king of Judea, in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go back. Then, being warned by God in a [supernatural] dream, he went on up to the region called Galilee,

And He called to them, "Why are you [so] afraid? You have such little faith!" Then He stood up and sternly commanded the wind and the waves, and they became very calm.

Therefore, do not be afraid [of these persecutors], for there is nothing [they do that will remain] covered up; it will [all] be exposed. And there is nothing they will do secretly that will not be made known [openly].

And do not be afraid of those who can kill your body but not your soul. Instead, fear Him [i.e., God] who is able to destroy both your soul and body in hell. [See note on 5:29].

So, do not be afraid, for you are [much] more valuable than many sparrows.

Just then Jesus called out to them, "Take courage and do not be afraid; it is I."

And when the disciples heard [the voice], they fell [to the ground] on their faces and became very afraid.

But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Get up, and do not be afraid."

But if we say, 'from men,' we are afraid the crowd will oppose us because they all consider John to be a prophet."

and I was afraid, so I went away and hid your talent in the ground. Look, you [can] have your own talent [back].'

[Then] Jesus said to the crowds at that very time, "Have you come out to arrest me with swords and clubs as [you would apprehend] a thief? I sat everyday teaching in the Temple, and you did not [come to] take me.

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know you are looking for Jesus, who has been crucified.

Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers [i.e., the disciples, that you have seen me], so they can head for Galilee where they will see me."

And He said to His disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you not still have [any] faith?"

And they were extremely afraid, and said to one another, "Who can this man be that even the wind and water obey him?"

And when people came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been dominated by 5,000 to 6,000 evil spirits sitting down with his clothes on and perfectly sane, and they were afraid.

But the woman became afraid and trembled with fear, for she knew what had happened to her [i.e., the healing], so she came and fell down in front of Jesus and told Him the whole truth.

But Jesus disregarded what the person said and told the official, "Do not be afraid; just believe [i.e., in my power to restore your daughter]."

It was because Herod was afraid of John, knowing he was a righteous and holy man, so he protected him. And Herod became very disturbed whenever he listened to John, yet he heard him gladly.

becoming [very] frightened when they saw Him. But He immediately spoke to them and said, "Take courage, and do not be afraid, it is I."

For he did not know what to say, because they [all] became very afraid.

But His disciples did not understand what He meant and were afraid to ask Him.

The leading priests and experts in the law of Moses heard this and began looking for some way to kill Jesus, because they were afraid of Him, since the whole crowd was amazed at His teaching.

"But pay attention to yourselves, for people will turn you over to [Jewish] councils [i.e., for judgment] and you will be beaten in synagogues. You will stand trial before governors and kings for being loyal to me. [This will afford you an opportunity] for witnessing to them.

So, they left, running out of the cave, [and] trembling with amazement. And they said nothing to anyone about this for they were afraid.

But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid Zacharias, for your earnest prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will give birth to a son and you will name him John.

Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid Mary, for you have received favor from God.

Then all those who lived in the area became afraid; and people were talking about all these things throughout the entire hill country of Judea.

[Suddenly] an angel from the Lord [was seen] standing near them and the glorious presence of the Lord shone around them, and they were very afraid.

And the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for look, I am bringing good news that will cause great joy to all people.

Simon's partners James and John, sons of Zebedee, were also amazed. So, Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will catch people."

Then He said to the disciples, "Where is your faith?" They became afraid and were amazed, saying to one another, "Who can this [man] be, that he can even command the winds and the water and they obey him?"

People went out to see [i.e., to find out] what had happened. And [when] they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the evil spirits had been driven out sitting down at Jesus' feet with his clothes on and perfectly sane, they were afraid.

But when Jesus heard this, He said [to the man], "Do not be afraid. Just believe [i.e., in my power to restore your daughter] and she will be made well [i.e., restored to life]."

Then He said to everyone, "If anyone wants to be my follower, he should deny self [i.e., of always having its own way] and accept his cross [i.e., his responsibilities, with all their difficulties] everyday, and [then he can] become my follower.

And while he was speaking, a cloud appeared and engulfed them and the apostles were afraid as Moses and Elijah entered the cloud [i.e., and disappeared].

But they did not understand what He was talking about, for it was hidden from them, so that they would not understand its meaning. And they were afraid to ask Him about what He had said.

And I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who can kill your body and after that can do nothing more.

[God even knows] the number of hairs on your head [Note: The average full head of hair has approximately 25,000 hairs]. [So], do not be afraid, for you are [much] more valuable than many sparrows.

" [And], do not be afraid, little flock [Note: Jesus refers to His small band of disciples as sheep following Him as their Shepherd], for your Father was pleased to give you the kingdom.

And while you are on your way to court with your opponent, make every effort to be reconciled [to him] so that he does not drag you in front of the judge, and then the judge turns you over to the officer, and the officer throws you into prison.

for I was afraid of you, knowing you are a hard man to deal with and that you pick up [and keep] something you did not lay down [i.e., lose], and you harvest a crop that you did not plant.'

And when you hear of wars and uprisings [going on], do not be afraid, for such things must necessarily happen first. But the end will not come right away." [Note: By "the end" here Jesus probably alludes to the downfall of Jerusalem, in AD 70, with its attending destruction of the Temple buildings].

And the leading priests and experts in the law of Moses were looking for a way to kill Jesus because they were afraid of the people [i.e., that people would riot if it were done during the Festival. See Matt. 26:5].

And when the disciples had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the [surface of the] water. They became afraid as Jesus got closer to their boat.

But He said to them, "Do not be afraid; it is I."

His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities who had already decided that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Christ would be expelled from the synagogue.

"Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion [i.e., people of Jerusalem]. Look, the King is coming [to you]; He [will be] riding on a donkey's colt."

I leave you with peace; I give you my peace. I am not giving you peace like the world gives. Do not allow your hearts to be upset or afraid.

So, when Pilate heard this statement, he was [even] more afraid

And so now I say, hold off your accusations and let these men alone, for if their planning and effort is [merely] of human origin, it will be defeated,

And when he came [back] to Jerusalem, Saul attempted to associate himself with the disciples but they were afraid of him [because of his past], and could not believe that he was a [true] disciple.

After seeing [the man in] the vision, we immediately made every effort to go to Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to proclaim the good news [about Jesus] to the people there. [Note: This is first use of "we" and "us" in the book of Acts and indicates that Luke, the writer of Acts, joined the party at this point. See 1:1 with Luke 1:1-3].

Then the Lord spoke to Paul in a night vision [i.e., a divinely given dream]: "Do not be afraid, but speak up and do not hold [anything] back,

And when a serious debate broke out, the commander was afraid that Paul might [virtually] be torn apart by the mob, so he ordered his soldiers to go down [to the Council meeting] and forcibly remove Paul and take him to the battalion headquarters.

So, for this reason I make every effort to have a clear conscience before God and men at all times.

I often persecuted them in the synagogues, [even] trying to get them to blaspheme [i.e., speak against God]. I had extreme anger toward them and [even] traveled to foreign cities [in my effort] to persecute them.

Agrippa said to Paul, "You expect to persuade me to be a Christian with such little effort [or, in such a short time]?"

saying, 'Do not be afraid Paul, for you must appear before Caesar, and look, God will grant you [the safety of] all these men aboard ship [along] with yourself.'

For [our] rulers are not a threat to [the person doing] a good deed, but to [the person doing] an evil one. So, do you want to avoid having to be afraid of the authorities? Then do what is good and you will be commended by them [generally].

For they are servants of God for your good. But you should be afraid if you do what is evil, because they do not carry the sword [i.e., for executing criminals] for nothing. For they are servants of God who take revenge [on wrongdoing] by punishing the person who does evil.

But I am afraid that somehow, just as the snake tricked Eve by his cunning, your minds might [also] be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.

For I am afraid that somehow, when I come [to you], I might not find you the way I want you to be, and you might not find me the way you want me to be. I am afraid there might be quarrelling, jealousy, angry outbursts, factious spirits, slander, gossip, arrogance and [other] disturbances [there].

I am afraid that, when I come, my God will humiliate me in front of you, and I will be grieved over many [of those] who have sinned in the past without repenting of the [moral] impurity, sexual immorality and unrestrained indecency they have practiced.

I am afraid for you, [i.e., for your spiritual safety], that possibly I may have spent a lot of effort on your behalf for nothing.

I want you to know how much I am struggling for you [Note: This probably refers to the great effort Paul was exerting in prayer, preaching, etc.], and for those at Laodicia [Note: This was a town ten miles west of Colosse], and for all those who have never met me in person.

[So], for this reason, when I could not stand it any longer, I also sent [Timothy] to find out about your faith. I was afraid that somehow the tempter [i.e., Satan] had tempted you [to give up] and that our work [on your behalf] will have become useless.

You should rebuke in front of everyone [in the church] those elders who continue to sin, so that the rest [of the congregation] will be afraid [of sinning].

By [having] faith, Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born because they saw that he was a handsome child, and they were not afraid of the king's decree [to destroy all male Hebrew children].

By [having] faith, he left Egypt, not being afraid of the king's anger, for he endured [all the rigors of wandering in the desert] because he could see the invisible God.

So, we can say with confidence [Psa. 118:6], "[Since] the Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid [of] what people might do to me." [or, "what (harm) can people do to me?"]

But even if you have to suffer for doing what was right, you still have [God's] blessing. So, do not be afraid of the threats [of your persecutors], and do not let it worry you.

And when the Supreme Shepherd [i.e., Jesus] comes back, you will receive [for your effort] a glorious crown [of reward] that will never fade away [Note: The idea of "fading away" is suggested by the laurel wreath bestowed on the winner of an athletic contest].

And for this very reason, you people should make every effort to develop goodness along with your faith,

And I will make every effort to see that, after I leave [i.e., die], you will always be able to recall the things [I said to you].

[This fate will come upon] those people especially who corrupt themselves with physical desires and despise being ruled by others. They are daring, self-willed, and are not afraid to speak against glorious beings [i.e., angels],

There is no [reason for] fear if one [really] loves, but a complete love removes fear [from us] because fear produces punishment [i.e., mental anxiety], and the person who is [always] afraid does not have a complete love.

And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as [though I were] dead. And He placed His right hand on me and said, "Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last,

Do not be afraid of the things you are about to suffer. [For] look, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, so that you may be tested, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. [But], you should be faithful [to God] even to the point of dying [for Him], and I will give you the crown of [never ending] life.