74 Bible Verses about encouragement, examples of

He set military commanders over the people and gathered the people in the square of the city gate. Then he encouraged them, saying, “Be strong and courageous! Don’t be afraid or discouraged before the king of Assyria or before the large army that is with him, for there are more with us than with him.

The Benjaminites came out of Gibeah and slaughtered 22,000 men of Israel on the field that day. But the Israelite army rallied and again took their battle positions in the same place where they positioned themselves on the first day.

Then Saul’s son Jonathan came to David in Horesh and encouraged him in his faith in God,

The following were the chiefs of David’s warriors who, together with all Israel, strongly supported him in his reign to make him king according to the Lord’s word about Israel.

Then Hezekiah encouraged all the Levites who performed skillfully before the Lord. They ate at the appointed festival for seven days, sacrificing fellowship offerings and giving thanks to Yahweh, the God of their ancestors.

He appointed the priests to their responsibilities and encouraged them to serve in the Lord’s temple.

But they were disobedient and rebelled against You.
They flung Your law behind their backs
and killed Your prophets
who warned them
in order to turn them back to You.
They committed terrible blasphemies.

urging them to ask the God of heaven for mercy concerning this mystery, so Daniel and his friends would not be killed with the rest of Babylon’s wise men.

The Lord of Hosts says this: “Peoples will yet come, the residents of many cities; the residents of one city will go to another, saying: Let’s go at once to plead for the Lord’s favor and to seek the Lord of Hosts. I am also going. Many peoples and strong nations will come to seek the Lord of Hosts in Jerusalem and to plead for the Lord’s favor.”

At that time those who feared the Lord spoke to one another. The Lord took notice and listened. So a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who feared Yahweh and had high regard for His name.

Then the report about them was heard by the church that was at Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to travel as far as Antioch. When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged all of them to remain true to the Lord with a firm resolve of the heart,

As you know, like a father with his own children, we encouraged, comforted, and implored each one of you to walk worthy of God, who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.

Joseph, a Levite and a Cypriot by birth, the one the apostles called Barnabas, which is translated Son of Encouragement,

After the synagogue had been dismissed, many of the Jews and devout proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who were speaking with them and persuading them to continue in the grace of God.

After they had evangelized that town and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, to Iconium, and to Antioch, strengthening the disciples by encouraging them to continue in the faith and by telling them, “It is necessary to pass through many troubles on our way into the kingdom of God.”

Both Judas and Silas, who were also prophets themselves, encouraged the brothers and strengthened them with a long message.

After leaving the jail, they came to Lydia’s house where they saw and encouraged the brothers, and departed.

When he wanted to cross over to Achaia, the brothers wrote to the disciples urging them to welcome him. After he arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace. For he vigorously refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating through the Scriptures that Jesus is the Messiah.

After the uproar was over, Paul sent for the disciples, encouraged them, and after saying good-bye, departed to go to Macedonia. And when he had passed through those areas and exhorted them at length, he came to Greece

For I want very much to see you, so I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you, that is, to be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.

I have great confidence in you; I have great pride in you. I am filled with encouragement; I am overcome with joy in all our afflictions.

Tychicus, our dearly loved brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you all the news about me so that you may be informed. I am sending him to you for this very reason, to let you know how we are and to encourage your hearts.

Most of the brothers in the Lord have gained confidence from my imprisonment and dare even more to speak the message fearlessly.

I have sent him to you for this very purpose, so that you may know how we are and so that he may encourage your hearts.

And we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you concerning your faith,

Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution, we were encouraged about you through your faith.

Brothers, I urge you to receive this message of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly.

I have written you this brief letter through Silvanus (I know him to be a faithful brother) to encourage you and to testify that this is the true grace of God. Take your stand in it!

We proclaim Him, warning and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

Then, along with many other exhortations, he proclaimed good news to the people.

Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship.

Now I appeal to you, brothers, through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to join with me in fervent prayers to God on my behalf.

Therefore I urge you to imitate me.

Brothers, you know the household of Stephanas: They are the firstfruits of Achaia and have devoted themselves to serving the saints. I urge you also to submit to such people, and to everyone who works and labors with them.

As a result, you should instead forgive and comfort him. Otherwise, this one may be overwhelmed by excessive grief. Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him.

Working together with Him, we also appeal to you, “Don’t receive God’s grace in vain.”

Therefore I, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received,

In fact, you are doing this toward all the brothers in the entire region of Macedonia. But we encourage you, brothers, to do so even more,

And I especially urge you to pray that I may be restored to you very soon.

Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and temporary residents to abstain from fleshly desires that war against you.

Strengthen the weak hands,
steady the shaking knees!
Say to the cowardly:
“Be strong; do not fear!
Here is your God; vengeance is coming.
God’s retribution is coming; He will save you.”

Joshua son of Nun, who attends you, will enter it. Encourage him, for he will enable Israel to inherit it.

But commission Joshua and encourage and strengthen him, for he will cross over ahead of the people and enable them to inherit this land that you will see.’

“Now get up! Go out and encourage your soldiers, for I swear by the Lord that if you don’t go out, not a man will remain with you tonight. This will be worse for you than all the trouble that has come to you from your youth until now!”

Learn to do what is good.
Seek justice.
Correct the oppressor.
Defend the rights of the fatherless.
Plead the widow’s cause.

According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts:

If prophecy,
use it according to the standard of one’s faith;
if service, in service;
if teaching, in teaching;
if exhorting, in exhortation;
giving, with generosity;
leading, with diligence;
showing mercy, with cheerfulness.

Each one of us must please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.

So also you—since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, seek to excel in building up the church.

Let the message about the Messiah dwell richly among you, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, and singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, with gratitude in your hearts to God.

Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up as you are already doing.

Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, younger men as brothers,

Proclaim the message; persist in it whether convenient or not; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching.

holding to the faithful message as taught, so that he will be able both to encourage with sound teaching and to refute those who contradict it.

Say these things, and encourage and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.

But encourage each other daily, while it is still called today, so that none of you is hardened by sin’s deception.

not staying away from our worship meetings, as some habitually do, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bandaged the injured, brought back the strays, or sought the lost. Instead, you have ruled them with violence and cruelty.

I have heard many things like these.
You are all miserable comforters.

Insults have broken my heart,
and I am in despair.
I waited for sympathy,
but there was none;
for comforters, but found no one.

Now this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, plenty of food, and comfortable security, but didn’t support the poor and needy.

For the idols speak falsehood,
and the diviners see illusions;
they relate empty dreams
and offer empty comfort.
Therefore the people wander like sheep;
they suffer affliction because there is no shepherd.

Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days. All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said. “I will go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” And his father wept for him.

I sought the Lord in my day of trouble.
My hands were continually lifted up
all night long;
I refused to be comforted.

This is what the Lord says:

A voice was heard in Ramah,
a lament with bitter weeping—
Rachel weeping for her children,
refusing to be comforted for her children
because they are no more.

A voice was heard in Ramah,
weeping, and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children;
and she refused to be consoled,
because they were no more.

Ahaziah was 22 years old when he became king and reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athaliah, granddaughter of Omri. He walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother gave him evil advice.

David told the messenger, “Say this to Joab: ‘Don’t let this matter upset you because the sword devours all alike. Intensify your fight against the city and demolish it.’ Encourage him.”

They encourage each other in an evil plan;
they talk about hiding traps and say,
“Who will see them?”

The craftsman encourages the metalworker;
the one who flattens with the hammer
supports the one who strikes the anvil,
saying of the soldering, “It is good.”
He fastens it with nails so that it will not fall over.

Among the prophets of Jerusalem also
I saw a horrible thing:
They commit adultery and walk in lies.
They strengthen the hands of evildoers,
and none turns his back on evil.
They are all like Sodom to Me;
Jerusalem’s residents are like Gomorrah.

For this is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “Don’t let your prophets who are among you and your diviners deceive you, and don’t listen to the dreams you elicit from them,

Because you have disheartened the righteous person with lies, even though I have not caused him grief, and because you have encouraged the wicked person not to turn from his evil way to save his life, therefore you will no longer see false visions or practice divination. I will deliver My people from your hands. Then you will know that I am Yahweh.”

But be careful that this right of yours in no way becomes a stumbling block to the weak. For if someone sees you, the one who has this knowledge, dining in an idol’s temple, won’t his weak conscience be encouraged to eat food offered to idols?