44 Bible Verses about Persecution, Nature Of

And I saw, and behold a pale horse, and the name of him that sat upon it was Death, and Hades followed him: and power was given them to slay a fourth part of the earth, by sword, and by famine, and by pestilence, and by wild beasts.

And the resemblance of the locusts was like horses prepared for war; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces as the faces of men. And they had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. And they had breast-plates like breast-plates of iron; and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, with many horses running to battle.read more.
And they had tails like scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.

Then entred Satan into Judas who was surnamed Iscariot, one of the twelve. And he went and conferred with the chief priests and the captains, how he might betray Him unto them.

Be sober, be vigilant; for your adversary the devil, like a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Fear none of the things which thou wilt suffer: behold the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall suffer affliction ten days. Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me first.

Wonder not then, my brethren, if the world hate you:

But the husbandmen said to one another, this is the heir, Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.

For this therefore the Jews sought the more to kill Him, because He had not only broken the sabbath, but had also called God his own Father, making Himself equal with God.

If ye were of the world, the world would love its own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

confirming the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and telling them that through many afflictions we must enter into the kingdom of God.

For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God, which are in Judea, in Christ Jesus, in that ye also have suffered the same things from your own countrymen, as they have from the Jews: who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; who are displeasing to God, and contrary to all men:

Behold then what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the children of God: though for this reason the world knoweth us not, because it knew not Him.

But look to yourselves; for they will deliver you up to councils, and synagogues: and ye shall be scourged, and set before governors and kings on my account, for a testimony against them.

Beware of evil men; for they will deliver you up to their councils, and will scourge you in their synagogues.

About that time Herod the king exerted his power to distress some of the church. And he cut off James, the brother of John, with the sword. And seeing that it was pleasing to the Jews, he proceeded to apprehend Peter also, (in the days of unleavened bread:)

For this also we thank God continually, that when ye received the word of God, which ye heard from us, ye received it not as the word of men, but (as it is in truth) the word of God, which also worketh effectually in you that believe. For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God, which are in Judea, in Christ Jesus, in that ye also have suffered the same things from your own countrymen, as they have from the Jews: who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; who are displeasing to God, and contrary to all men:read more.
forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, thus going on to fill up their sins perpetually: but wrath is coming upon them to extremity.

For behold I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes; and some of them ye will kill and crucify, and some of them ye will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel, to the blood of Zacharias the son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I tell you, all these things shall come upon this generation.read more.
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

For of a truth both Herod and Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles and the people of Israel, combined against thy holy child Jesus, (whom Thou hast anointed,) to do whatever thy hand and thy counsel had before determined to be done. And now, Lord, behold their threatenings; and give unto thy servants to speak thy word with all freedom, while Thou art stretching forth thy hand to heal,

Then the high priest rose up, and all that were with him, (being of the sect of the sadducees,) and were filled with rage: and laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the public prison.

And I persecuted those of this persuasion even unto death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women.

And he was permitted to make war upon the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over every tribe, and tongue, and nation.

And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great amazement.

and those of a man's own family shall be his enemies.

Brother shall betray his brother to death, and the father his child: and children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death:

And when his friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold on Him; for they said He spends Himself too much.

But as then he that was born after the flesh, persecuted him who was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.

And therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, and in straits for the sake of Christ: for when I am thus weak, then am I made strong.

being afflicted on every side, but not oppressed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be manifested in our body.read more.
For we, who are yet living, are always exposed to death for the sake of Jesus, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So that death is wrought in us, but life in you.

so am I: are they ministers of Christ? (if I may speak as a fool) I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes far exceeding, in prisons more frequently, and often even in deaths. From the Jews I have five times received forty stripes save one. Thrice I have been beaten with rods, once I was stoned, thrice I have been shipwrecked, and was a night and a day on the deep:read more.
in journies often, in perils from rivers, in perils from robbers, in perils from my own nation, in perils from the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the desert, in perils on the sea, in perils among false brethren:

And what need I say more? for the time would fail me to tell of Gideon, and Barak, and Sampson, and Jephthah, and David, and Samuel, and of the prophets: who by faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made powerful, became strong in battle, and turned to flight the armies of their enemies.read more.
Women received their dead raised to life again; and others were tortured to death, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. And others had the trial of mockings and scourgings, and of bonds too and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain by the sword: they went about in sheep-skins, and goat-skins, being destitute, afflicted, distressed, (of whom the world was not worthy) wandering in deserts, and mountains, and dens, and caves of the earth.

And indeed all, that are desirous to live godly in Christ Jesus, shall suffer persecution.

yet hath he no root in himself, and therefore is but for a short season; and when affliction cometh, or persecution on account of the word, he is as soon disgusted.

And Jesus answered and said, Verily I tell you, there is no one that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for my sake and the gospel's, but he shall receive an hundred-fold: now in this time indeed, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands with persecutions; but in the world to come life everlasting.

For when we were with you, we told you before that we should be afflicted, as it came to pass, and ye know.

For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes in several places: all which are but the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they afflict you, and kill you; and ye shall be hated by all nations for my name:read more.
and then will many take offense, and betray one another, and hate one another: and many false prophets will rise up and deceive many:

Let not any one deceive you by any means; for it shall not come till there come an apostasy first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or the object of worship; so that he sits as God in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

And white robes were given to each of them, and it was told them to rest a little while longer, till the number of their fellow-servants, and their brethren that should be killed as they were, should be complete.

And for this did the Jews persecute Jesus, and endeavoured to put Him to death; because He had done these things on the sabbath-day.

or lands for my sake and the gospel's, but he shall receive an hundred-fold: now in this time indeed, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands with persecutions; but in the world to come life everlasting.

But before all these things they will lay hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to synagogues, and prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake:

Remember what I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you: if they have observed my word, they will also observe yours.

and he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art Thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus the Nazarene whom thou art persecuting: it is hard for thee to kick against the goads.