66 Bible Verses about Watchfulness, Of Believers

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour:

Keep your heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

Understand, you senseless among the people: and you fools, when will you be wise?

Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not. Blessed is the man that hears me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors.

And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.

Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them who cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which you have learned; and avoid them.

Watch, stand fast in the faith, be men, be strong.

Watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.

Take therefore good heed unto yourselves; for you saw no manner of form on the day that the LORD spoke unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:

That the LORD may continue his word which he spoke concerning me, saying, If your children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail you (said he) a man on the throne of Israel.

And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consists not in the abundance of the things which he possesses.

Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that temptations to sin will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! It would be better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he was cast into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble. Take heed to yourselves: If your brother trespasses against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.

Therefore let him that thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.

Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering yourself, lest you also be tempted.

Only take heed to yourself, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things which your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life: but teach them to your sons, and your sons' sons;

But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of the LORD charged you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.

And keep the charge of the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do, and wherever you turn yourself:

Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.

See that you refuse not him that speaks. For if they escaped not who refused him that spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape, if we turn away from him that speaks from heaven:

We have also a more sure word of prophecy; to which you do well that you take heed, as unto a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.

And I said unto them, Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot; and while they stand guard, let them shut the doors, and bar them: and appoint guards from the inhabitants of Jerusalem, every one at his station, and every one to be opposite his house.

[To the Chief Musician. To Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.] I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked are before me.

Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips.

He that keeps his mouth keeps his life: but he that opens wide his lips shall have destruction.

Whosoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps his soul from troubles.

If any man among you seems to be religious, and bridles not his tongue, but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is vain.

Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasts great things. Behold, how great a forest a little fire kindles! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell. For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and has been tamed by mankind:read more.
But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:

My eyes are ever toward the LORD; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net.

Because of your strength will I wait upon you: for God is my defense.

[A song of ascents.] Unto you I lift up my eyes, O you that dwell in the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until he has mercy upon us.

I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, and in his word do I hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning.

O Zion, that brings good tidings, get you up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that brings good tidings, lift up your voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!

Therefore I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.

And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

Continue in prayer, and watch in it with thanksgiving; Praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds:

Take you heed, watch and pray: for you know not when the time is.

Watch therefore, and pray always, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thus with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

But the end of all things is at hand: be therefore sober minded, and watch unto prayer.

Watch therefore: for you know not what hour your Lord does come. But know this, that if the owner of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore be you also ready: for in such an hour as you think not the Son of man comes.

Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, who took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:read more.
But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom comes; go out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go you rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of man comes.

But of that day and that hour knows no man, no, not the angels who are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. Take you heed, watch and pray: for you know not when the time is. For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to watch.read more.
Watch you therefore: for you know not when the Master of the house comes, at evening, or at midnight, or at the cock crowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

Let your waists be girded about, and your lamps burning; And you yourselves be like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he comes and knocks, they may open unto him immediately. Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he comes shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to eat, and will come forth and serve them.read more.
And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. And this know, that if the owner of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have allowed his house to be broken through. Be you therefore ready also: for the Son of man comes at an hour when you think not.

Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be weighed down with carousing, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.read more.
For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. You are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.read more.
For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that are drunk are drunk in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation.

Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

See then that you walk carefully, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Walk in wisdom toward them that are outsiders, redeeming the time. Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer every man.

Then came Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and said unto the disciples, Sit you here, while I go and pray yonder. And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very distressed. Then said he unto them, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death: tarry you here, and watch with me.read more.
And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as you will. And he came unto the disciples, and found them asleep, and said unto Peter, What, could you not watch with me one hour?

As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,

The wicked watches the righteous, and seeks to slay him.

And Saul eyed David from that day forward.

Saul also sent messengers unto David's house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning: and Michal David's wife told him, saying, If you save not your life tonight, tomorrow you shall be slain.

He sits in the lurking places of the villages: in the secret places does he murder the innocent: his eyes are secretly set against the poor.

For I heard the mocking of many, fear on every side. Report, say they, and we will report it. All my friends watched for my fall, saying, Perhaps he will be deceived, and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our revenge on him.

And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.

And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse him.

But their plot was known of Saul. And they watched the gates day and night to kill him.

Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found your works perfect before God. Remember therefore how you have received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore you will not watch, I will come on you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.