Bible Verses by Topic
Bible Verses for Strength in Hard Times
Some seasons just take everything out of you. The Bible does not promise that hard seasons will end quickly. It promises that you will not face them alone, and that the strength to walk through them is available — not from you, but from Him. These fourteen passages are for the day you almost gave up.
Isaiah 40:29-31
He gives power to the weak. He increases the strength of him who has no might. Even the youths faint and get weary, and the young men utterly fall; but those who wait for Yahweh will renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run, and not be weary. They will walk, and not faint.
He does not just help the strong. He gives power to the weak. The renewal is for those who wait.
Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.
Paul wrote this in prison about contentment. The strength is for the things in front of you, not a superpower for ambition.
Psalm 46:1
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Refuge — a place to run to. Strength — what you receive once you are there. Both come from the same God.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
He has said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore I will rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest on me. Therefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, in injuries, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then am I strong.
His power is made perfect — not in your performance, but in your weakness. The weakness is not the problem. It is the doorway.
Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid. Do not be dismayed, for Yahweh your God is with you wherever you go.
Wherever you go — including the meeting tomorrow, the appointment you are dreading, the conversation you are avoiding.
Psalm 18:32
the God who arms me with strength, and makes my way perfect.
He arms you. The strength is given to you the way a weapon is given to a soldier — for the battle in front of you.
Habakkuk 3:19
Yahweh, the Lord, is my strength. He makes my feet like deer's feet, and enables me to go in high places.
Deer can climb steep ground that other animals cannot. He gives you the feet for the terrain you are on.
Nehemiah 8:10
Then he said to them, Go your way. Eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of Yahweh is your strength.
The joy of the Lord — not your own joy — is what holds you up. There is a kind of strength that comes through worship even in hard seasons.
Psalm 27:13-14
I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of Yahweh in the land of the living. Wait for Yahweh. Be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for Yahweh.
Twice he says wait. The strength comes in the waiting, not after it.
Ephesians 6:10
Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of his might.
Be strong IN the Lord. The source matters.
Romans 5:3-5
Not only this, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope: and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
Suffering produces something. The chain ends in hope — and the hope does not disappoint.
Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart fails, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
The psalmist admits his flesh and his heart fail. He does not pretend otherwise. The strength is somewhere else.
Deuteronomy 33:25
Your bars will be iron and brass. As your days, so your strength will be.
As your days, so your strength. The strength is sized for the day. He does not give next month's strength today.
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has taken you except what is common to man. God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able, but will with the temptation also make the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
He is faithful. He will not let it be more than you can bear with Him.
A prayer
Father, I am running low. You know that. I do not need to dress it up. Strengthen what is weak. Renew what is tired. Be my refuge today, and give me as much strength as today requires. Amen.