81 Bible Verses about Unhappiness

The days of our lives add up to seventy years, or eighty, if one is especially strong. But even one's best years are marred by trouble and oppression. Yes, they pass quickly and we fly away.

And while they were eating he said, "I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me." They became greatly distressed and each one began to say to him, "Surely not I, Lord?"

They were distressed, and one by one said to him, "Surely not I?"

When Esau was forty years old, he married Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, as well as Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. They caused Isaac and Rebekah great anxiety.

When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were looking depressed. So he asked Pharaoh's officials, who were with him in custody in his master's house, "Why do you look so sad today?"

He turned away from them and wept. When he turned around and spoke to them again, he had Simeon taken from them and tied up before their eyes.

Finally her husband Elkanah said to her, "Hannah, why do you weep and not eat? Why are you so sad? Am I not better to you than ten sons?"

When I heard these things I sat down abruptly, crying and mourning for several days. I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

Then in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought to me, I took the wine and gave it to the king. Previously I had not been depressed in the king's presence. So the king said to me, "Why do you appear to be depressed when you aren't sick? What can this be other than sadness of heart?" This made me very fearful. I replied to the king, "O king, live forever! Why would I not appear dejected when the city with the graves of my ancestors lies desolate and its gates destroyed by fire?"

My eyes have grown dim with grief; my whole frame is but a shadow.

Have I not wept for the unfortunate? Was not my soul grieved for the poor?

Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you pay no attention during times of trouble?

How long must I worry, and suffer in broad daylight? How long will my enemy gloat over me?

Have mercy on me, for I am in distress! My eyes grow dim from suffering. I have lost my strength.

Whoever brings a fool into the world does so to his grief, and the father of a fool has no joy.

The fishermen will mourn and lament, all those who cast a fishhook into the river, and those who spread out a net on the water's surface will grieve. Those who make clothes from combed flax will be embarrassed; those who weave will turn pale. Those who make cloth will be demoralized; all the hired workers will be depressed.

You have said, "I feel so hopeless! For the Lord has added sorrow to my suffering. I am worn out from groaning. I can't find any rest."'"

Joab was told, "The king is weeping and mourning over Absalom."

But now I am going to the one who sent me, and not one of you is asking me, 'Where are you going?' Instead your hearts are filled with sadness because I have said these things to you.

After some time Judah's wife, the daughter of Shua, died. After Judah was consoled, he left for Timnah to visit his sheepshearers, along with his friend Hirah the Adullamite.

But Jacob replied, "My son will not go down there with you, for his brother is dead and he alone is left. If an accident happens to him on the journey you have to make, then you will bring down my gray hair in sorrow to the grave."

But as for me, when I was returning from Paddan, Rachel died -- to my sorrow -- in the land of Canaan. It happened along the way, some distance from Ephrath. So I buried her there on the way to Ephrath" (that is, Bethlehem).

I grieve over you, my brother Jonathan! You were very dear to me. Your love was more special to me than the love of women.

So Joab sent to Tekoa and brought from there a wise woman. He told her, "Pretend to be in mourning and put on garments for mourning. Don't anoint yourself with oil. Instead, act like a woman who has been mourning for the dead for some time.

Wail like a young virgin clothed in sackcloth, lamenting the death of her husband-to-be.

They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised." And they became greatly distressed.

When he got up from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping, exhausted from grief.

Then he said to them, "What are these matters you are discussing so intently as you walk along?" And they stood still, looking sad.

But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping. As she wept, she bent down and looked into the tomb.

especially saddened by what he had said, that they were not going to see him again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.

In fact he became so ill that he nearly died. But God showed mercy to him -- and not to him only, but also to me -- so that I would not have grief on top of grief.

Now we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve like the rest who have no hope.

The Lord said to him, "Go through the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of the people who moan and groan over all the abominations practiced in it."

It is actually reported that sexual immorality exists among you, the kind of immorality that is not permitted even among the Gentiles, so that someone is cohabiting with his father's wife. And you are proud! Shouldn't you have been deeply sorrowful instead and removed the one who did this from among you?

When Moses told these things to all the Israelites, the people mourned greatly.

So all the Israelites, the whole army, went up to Bethel. They wept and sat there before the Lord; they did not eat anything that day until evening. They offered up burnt sacrifices and tokens of peace to the Lord.

The Israelites regretted what had happened to their brother Benjamin. They said, "Today we cut off an entire tribe from Israel!

Any one of you that I do not cut off from my altar, I will cause your eyes to fail and will cause you grief. All of those born to your family will die in the prime of life.

Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priestly scribe, and the Levites who were imparting understanding to the people said to all of them, "This day is holy to the LORD your God. Do not mourn or weep." For all the people had been weeping when they heard the words of the law. He said to them, "Go and eat delicacies and drink sweet drinks and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared. For this day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." Then the Levites quieted all the people saying, "Be quiet, for this day is holy. Do not grieve."

A song, a psalm written by the Korahites; for the music director; according to the machalath-leannoth style; a well-written song by Heman the Ezrachite. O Lord God who delivers me! By day I cry out and at night I pray before you. Listen to my prayer! Pay attention to my cry for help! For my life is filled with troubles and I am ready to enter Sheol.read more.
They treat me like those who descend into the grave. I am like a helpless man, adrift among the dead, like corpses lying in the grave, whom you remember no more, and who are cut off from your power. You place me in the lowest regions of the pit, in the dark places, in the watery depths. Your anger bears down on me, and you overwhelm me with all your waves. (Selah) You cause those who know me to keep their distance; you make me an appalling sight to them. I am trapped and cannot get free. My eyes grow weak because of oppression. I call out to you, O Lord, all day long; I spread out my hands in prayer to you.

As for their enemies, they decreased in number and were beaten down, because of painful distress and suffering.

(Dalet) The roads to Zion mourn because no one travels to the festivals. All her city gates are deserted; her priests groan. Her virgins grieve; she is in bitter anguish! (He) Her foes subjugated her; her enemies are at ease. For the Lord afflicted her because of her many acts of rebellion. Her children went away captive before the enemy.

"And you, son of man, groan with an aching heart and bitterness; groan before their eyes. When they ask you, 'Why are you groaning?' you will reply, 'Because of the report that has come. Every heart will melt with fear and every hand will be limp; everyone will faint and every knee will be wet with urine.' Pay attention -- it is coming and it will happen, declares the sovereign Lord."

"I will pour out on the kingship of David and the population of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication so that they will look to me, the one they have pierced. They will lament for him as one laments for an only son, and there will be a bitter cry for him like the bitter cry for a firstborn.

Now when Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus had been condemned, he regretted what he had done and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders,

And he went outside and wept bitterly.

I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.

For if I make you sad, who would be left to make me glad but the one I caused to be sad? And I wrote this very thing to you, so that when I came I would not have sadness from those who ought to make me rejoice, since I am confident in you all that my joy would be yours. For out of great distress and anguish of heart I wrote to you with many tears, not to make you sad, but to let you know the love that I have especially for you.read more.
But if anyone has caused sadness, he has not saddened me alone, but to some extent (not to exaggerate) he has saddened all of you as well.

For even if I made you sad by my letter, I do not regret having written it (even though I did regret it, for I see that my letter made you sad, though only for a short time). Now I rejoice, not because you were made sad, but because you were made sad to the point of repentance. For you were made sad as God intended, so that you were not harmed in any way by us. For sadness as intended by God produces a repentance that leads to salvation, leaving no regret, but worldly sadness brings about death.read more.
For see what this very thing, this sadness as God intended, has produced in you: what eagerness, what defense of yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what deep concern, what punishment! In everything you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.

For the love of money is the root of all evils. Some people in reaching for it have strayed from the faith and stabbed themselves with many pains.

So Ahab went into his palace, bitter and angry that Naboth the Jezreelite had said, "I will not sell to you my ancestral inheritance." He lay down on his bed, pouted, and would not eat.

Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaints? Who has wounds without cause? Who has dullness of the eyes? Those who linger over wine, those who go looking for mixed wine.

But when the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he was very rich.

But at this statement, the man looked sad and went away sorrowful, for he was very rich.

But when the man heard this he became very sad, for he was extremely wealthy.

Jesus wept.

Then he said to them, "My soul is deeply grieved, even to the point of death. Remain here and stay awake with me."

He said to them, "My soul is deeply grieved, even to the point of death. Remain here and stay alert."

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the people who had come with her weeping, he was intensely moved in spirit and greatly distressed.

"Now my soul is greatly distressed. And what should I say? 'Father, deliver me from this hour'? No, but for this very reason I have come to this hour.

When he had said these things, Jesus was greatly distressed in spirit, and testified, "I tell you the solemn truth, one of you will betray me."

The Lord regretted that he had made humankind on the earth, and he was highly offended. So the Lord said, "I will wipe humankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth -- everything from humankind to animals, including creatures that move on the ground and birds of the air, for I regret that I have made them."

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

So the Lord said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so blatant

"I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned away from me and has not done what I told him to do." Samuel became angry and he cried out to the Lord all that night.

When the angel extended his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the Lord relented from his judgment. He told the angel who was killing the people, "That's enough! Stop now!" (Now the Lord's angel was near the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.)

How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness, and insulted him in the desert!

But they rebelled and offended his holy Spirit, so he turned into an enemy and fought against them.

If you will just stay in this land, I will build you up. I will not tear you down. I will firmly plant you. I will not uproot you. For I am filled with sorrow because of the disaster that I have brought on you.

Though he causes us grief, he then has compassion on us according to the abundance of his loyal kindness. For he is not predisposed to afflict or to grieve people.

This brings you great joy, although you may have to suffer for a short time in various trials.

My eyes grow dim from suffering; they grow weak because of all my enemies. Turn back from me, all you who behave wickedly, for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping!

You have taken notice, for you always see one who inflicts pain and suffering. The unfortunate victim entrusts his cause to you; you deliver the fatherless.

I love the Lord because he heard my plea for mercy, and listened to me. As long as I live, I will call to him when I need help. The ropes of death tightened around me, the snares of Sheol confronted me. I was confronted with trouble and sorrow.read more.
I called on the name of the Lord, "Please Lord, rescue my life!" The Lord is merciful and fair; our God is compassionate. The Lord protects the untrained; I was in serious trouble and he delivered me.

those whom the Lord has ransomed will return that way. They will enter Zion with a happy shout. Unending joy will crown them, happiness and joy will overwhelm them; grief and suffering will disappear.

Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return; they will enter Zion with a happy shout. Unending joy will crown them, happiness and joy will overwhelm them; grief and suffering will disappear.

Your sun will no longer set; your moon will not disappear; the Lord will be your permanent source of light; your time of sorrow will be over.

The spirit of the sovereign Lord is upon me, because the Lord has chosen me. He has commissioned me to encourage the poor, to help the brokenhearted, to decree the release of captives, and the freeing of prisoners, to announce the year when the Lord will show his favor, the day when our God will seek vengeance, to console all who mourn, to strengthen those who mourn in Zion, by giving them a turban, instead of ashes, oil symbolizing joy, instead of mourning, a garment symbolizing praise, instead of discouragement. They will be called oaks of righteousness, trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor.

Then I said, "There is no cure for my grief! I am sick at heart!

They will come and shout for joy on Mount Zion. They will be radiant with joy over the good things the Lord provides, the grain, the fresh wine, the olive oil, the young sheep and calves he has given to them. They will be like a well-watered garden and will not grow faint or weary any more. The Lord says, "At that time young women will dance and be glad. Young men and old men will rejoice. I will turn their grief into gladness. I will give them comfort and joy in place of their sorrow.

I tell you the solemn truth, you will weep and wail, but the world will rejoice; you will be sad, but your sadness will turn into joy. When a woman gives birth, she has distress because her time has come, but when her child is born, she no longer remembers the suffering because of her joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.