'Faint' in the Bible

Jacob had cooked [reddish-brown lentil] stew [one day], when Esau came from the field and was famished;

and Esau said to Jacob, “Please, let me have a quick swallow of that red stuff there, because I am exhausted and famished.” For that reason Esau was [also] called Edom (Red).

and shall say to them, ‘Hear, O Israel: you are advancing today to battle against your enemies. Do not lack courage. Do not be afraid, or panic, or tremble [in terror] before them,

Then the officers shall speak further to the soldiers and say, ‘Who is the man who is afraid and lacks courage? Let him go and return to his house, so that he does not cause his brothers’ courage to fail like his own.’

how he met you along the road and attacked all the stragglers at your rear when you were tired and weary; and he did not fear God.

and she said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the terror and dread of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land have melted [in despair] because of you.

They said to Joshua, “Certainly the Lord has given all the land into our hands; for all the inhabitants of the land have melted [in despair] because of us.”

So Gideon came to the Jordan and crossed over [the river], he and the three hundred men who were with him—exhausted, yet [still] pursuing [the enemy].

He said to the men of Succoth, “Please give loaves of bread to the people who are following me since they are exhausted, and I am pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian.”

He came to the men of Succoth and said, “Look here, Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me, saying, ‘Are Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your men who are exhausted?’”

But one of the people told him, “Your father strictly put the people under an oath, saying, ‘Cursed be the man who eats food today.’” And the people were exhausted [and hungry].

They struck the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. And the people were very tired.

But David pursued [the Amalekites], he and four hundred men, for two hundred who were too exhausted to cross the brook Besor stayed behind.

David came to the two hundred men who were so exhausted that they could not follow him and had been left at the brook Besor [with the provisions]. They went out to meet David and the people with him, and when he approached the people, he greeted them.

The king said to Ziba, “Why do you have these?” Ziba said, “The donkeys are for the king’s household (family) to ride on, the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat, and the wine is for anyone to drink who becomes weary in the wilderness.”

Now the Philistines were at war again with Israel. David went down with his servants, and as they fought against the Philistines, David became weary.

“But now adversity comes upon you, and you are impatient and intolerant;It touches you, and you are horrified.

“For the despairing man there should be kindness from his friend;So that he does not abandon (turn away from) the fear of the Almighty.

“For God has made my heart faint,And the Almighty has terrified me,

Have mercy on me and be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am weak (faint, frail);Heal me, O Lord, for my bones are dismayed and anguished.

I am numb and greatly bruised [deadly cold and completely worn out];I groan because of the disquiet and moaning of my heart.

O God, You are my God; with deepest longing I will seek You;My soul [my life, my very self] thirsts for You, my flesh longs and sighs for You,In a dry and weary land where there is no water.

I was afflicted and close to death from my youth on;I suffer Your terrors; I am overcome.

Kaph.My soul languishes and grows weak for Your salvation;I wait for Your word.

If you are slack (careless) in the day of distress,Your strength is limited.

Why should you be stricken and punished again [since no change results from it]?You [only] continue to rebel.The whole head is sickAnd the whole heart is faint and sick.

It will be as when a hungry man dreamsThat he is eating,But when he awakens, his hunger is not satisfied;Or as when a thirsty man dreamsThat he is drinking,But when he awakens, in fact, he is faintAnd his thirst is not quenched.So will the multitude of all the nations beWho fight against Mount Zion.

Do you not know? Have you not heard?The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earthDoes not become tired or grow weary;There is no searching of His understanding.

He gives strength to the weary,And to him who has no might He increases power.

Even youths grow weary and tired,And vigorous young men stumble badly,

But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him]Will gain new strength and renew their power;They will lift up their wings [and rise up close to God] like eagles [rising toward the sun];They will run and not become weary,They will walk and not grow tired.

The ironsmith shapes iron and uses a chisel and works it over the coals. He forms the [idol’s] core with hammers and works it with his strong arm. He also becomes hungry and his strength fails; he drinks no water and grows tired.

“You were wearied by the length of your road,Yet you did not say, ‘It is no use.’You found renewed strength,Therefore you did not grow weak.

“For I will not contend forever,Nor will I always be angry;For [if I did stay angry] the spirit [of man] would grow weak before Me,And the breath of those whom I have created.

Oh, that I (Jeremiah) could find comfort from my sorrow [for my grief is beyond healing],My heart is sick and faint within me!

“Now beware so that you do not lose heart,And so that you are not afraid at the rumor that will be heard in the land—For the rumor shall come one year,And after that another rumor in another year,And violence shall be in the land,Ruler against ruler—

“From on high He sent fire into my bones,And it prevailed over them.He has spread a net for my feet;He has turned me back.He has made me desolate and hopelessly miserable,Faint all the day long.

“Let all their wickedness come before You;And deal with them as You have dealt with meBecause of all my transgressions;For my groans are many and my heart is faint.”

My eyes fail because of tears [mourns Jeremiah],My spirit is deeply disturbed;My heart is poured out on the earth [in grief]Because of the destruction of the daughter of my people [Jerusalem],When little ones and infants faintIn the streets of the city.

They cry to their mothers,“Where is grain and wine?”As they faint like a wounded manIn the streets of the city,As their life [slips away and] is poured outIn their mothers’ arms.

“Arise, cry aloud in the night,At the beginning of the night watches;Pour out your heart like waterBefore the presence of the Lord;Lift up your hands to HimFor the life of your little onesWho are faint from hungerAt the head of every street.”

Because of this our heart is faint,Because of these things our eyes are dim.

And when they say to you, ‘Why do you sigh and groan?’ you shall answer, ‘Because of the news that is coming; and every heart will melt and all hands will be frail, and every spirit will faint and all knees will be weak as water. Behold, it comes and it will happen,’ says the Lord God.”

‘Thus says the Lord God, “On the day when Assyria went down to Sheol (the place of the dead) I caused mourning; I closed the deep [subterranean waters] over it and restrained its rivers. And the many waters [that contributed to its prosperity] were held back; and I made [the heart of] Lebanon mourn for it, and all the trees of the field wilted away because of it.

So I was left alone and saw this great vision; yet no strength was left in me, for my normal appearance turned to a deathly pale, and I grew weak and faint [with fright].

“In that day the beautiful virginsAnd [even the vigorous] young men shall faint from thirst.

She is emptied! She is desolate and waste!Hearts melting [in fear] and knees knocking!Anguish is in the whole body,And the faces of all grow pale!

Then Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, “I feel compassion for the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days and have nothing [left] to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, because they might faint [from exhaustion] on the way [home].”

If I send them away to their homes hungry, they will faint [from exhaustion] on the road; because some of them have come a long way.”

Now Jesus was telling the disciples a parable to make the point that at all times they ought to pray and not give up and lose heart,

Therefore, since we have this ministry, just as we received mercy [from God, granting us salvation, opportunities, and blessings], we do not get discouraged nor lose our motivation.

Let us not grow weary or become discouraged in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap, if we do not give in.

So I ask you not to lose heart at my sufferings on your behalf, for they are your glory and honor.

and you have forgotten the divine word of encouragement which is addressed to you as sons,“My son, do not make light of the discipline of the Lord,And do not lose heart and give up when you are corrected by Him;