30 Bible Verses About Strength for Hard Times
Thirty Bible verses about strength for hardship, weakness, courage, and endurance, each paired with short commentary and links for deeper study.
30 Bible Verses About Strength to Memorize
Why these thirty verses
These thirty Bible verses about strength — drawn from Isaiah, the Psalms, the Gospels, and Paul's letters — are the most-memorized and most-quoted passages Christians turn to in hardship. Each appears below with a short fragment from the King James Version, a one-sentence note in the voice of Matthew Henry, John Calvin, or John Wesley, and a link to read the full verse in your preferred translation on TheoScriptura.
Strength in Scripture is not first an inner resource. It is the gift of being held by God. Read this list slowly. Memorize one or two. Return to them when courage thins.
Old Testament: the strength of God's covenant presence
1. Isaiah 41:10 — "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God." Matthew Henry calls this the comprehensive promise of the exile: not absence of trouble, but presence of the One who carries it. → Read Isaiah 41:10
2. Psalm 46:1 — "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." Calvin: God is not merely a help we may eventually receive, but a help already arrived, already at hand. → Read Psalm 46:1
3. Psalm 28:7 — "The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped." Wesley reads this as the order of Christian experience: trust first, help follows, song last. → Read Psalm 28:7
4. Joshua 1:9 — "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed." Henry notes the command is given four times in the opening chapter — God knew Joshua's heart needed it that often. → Read Joshua 1:9
5. Deuteronomy 31:6 — "The LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." Calvin: the form of the verb is intensive — God will absolutely not forsake. → Read Deuteronomy 31:6
6. Psalm 18:32 — "It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect." Henry: strength here is the soldier's belt — gathered, contained, ready for the long march. → Read Psalm 18:32
7. Psalm 27:1 — "The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?" Calvin observes that David doesn't say God gives him strength but that the LORD is his strength — possession by relation, not by transfer. → Read Psalm 27:1
8. Psalm 73:26 — "My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever." Wesley: the psalm names the felt failure first, then the deeper truth — the failure is the soil where the deeper truth grows. → Read Psalm 73:26
9. Isaiah 40:31 — "They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles." Henry: the waiting is the renewal — not its prelude. → Read Isaiah 40:31
10. Habakkuk 3:19 — "The LORD God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds' feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places." Calvin: the prophet has just watched his country collapse, and yet writes this — the most defiant verse in the Old Testament. → Read Habakkuk 3:19
The Gospels and Acts: strength in the person of Jesus
11. Matthew 11:28-30 — "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Henry: rest is named twice in two verses because Christ knew our hearts forget the first promise before they finish reading it. → Read Matthew 11:28
12. Mark 9:23 — "All things are possible to him that believeth." Wesley: not all things are possible to believing as a force, but to the believer as a person held by Christ. → Read Mark 9:23
13. Luke 1:37 — "For with God nothing shall be impossible." Calvin reads Gabriel's word to Mary as the foundation of every prayer for strength in Scripture. → Read Luke 1:37
14. Luke 22:43 — "And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him." Henry: even Christ, in his agony in Gethsemane, received ministered strength. The Christian who needs help is in the company of the Lord himself. → Read Luke 22:43
15. John 14:27 — "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you... let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." Calvin: Christ does not promise the absence of trouble but the displacement of fear by his own peace. → Read John 14:27
16. John 15:5 — "Without me ye can do nothing." Wesley: this is the negative side of every strength promise — when honestly faced, it sends the soul running back to the Vine. → Read John 15:5
17. John 16:33 — "In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." Henry: the verb is past tense — the victory is already won. We are not asked to win but to walk in what is won. → Read John 16:33
Paul's letters: strength in the gospel and the Spirit
18. Philippians 4:13 — "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." Calvin reads this in context: Paul has just spoken of contentment in plenty and in want — the strength he claims is the strength to be steady in either. → Read Philippians 4:13
19. Philippians 4:19 — "My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." Wesley: the measure of supply is not our need but his riches — a different order of arithmetic. → Read Philippians 4:19
20. Ephesians 6:10 — "Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might." Henry: the strength is found in the Lord, not in the self that goes to the Lord — a small distinction that changes everything. → Read Ephesians 6:10
21. 2 Timothy 1:7 — "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." Calvin sees a complete portrait here: power without love is tyranny, love without power is sentiment, both without a sound mind are dangerous. → Read 2 Timothy 1:7
22. 2 Corinthians 12:9 — "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness." Wesley: God's strength is not added to our weakness; it is brought to its perfection there. → Read 2 Corinthians 12:9
23. Romans 8:38-39 — "I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life... shall be able to separate us from the love of God." Henry calls this the most exhaustive list in Scripture — Paul names every category he can think of and rules each one out. → Read Romans 8:38
24. 1 Corinthians 16:13 — "Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong." Calvin: four imperatives in eight words — Christian strength is not passive. → Read 1 Corinthians 16:13
25. Colossians 1:11 — "Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness." Wesley reads the destination as the surprise: the strength is given so we may endure with joy, not merely endure. → Read Colossians 1:11
26. Galatians 6:9 — "Let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." Henry: the only condition is the negative one — do not stop. → Read Galatians 6:9
27. 1 Corinthians 10:13 — "God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able." Calvin: the strength promised is the strength to endure the specific temptation — fitted to the moment, not stockpiled in advance. → Read 1 Corinthians 10:13
The general epistles: strength for the long road
28. 1 Peter 5:7 — "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you." Wesley: the cause of the casting is in the second half — we cast our care because he cares, not in order to make him care. → Read 1 Peter 5:7
29. 1 Peter 5:10 — "The God of all grace... make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you." Henry: four verbs in sequence — the work of strengthening is layered, not instant. → Read 1 Peter 5:10
30. Hebrews 11:34 — "Out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens." Calvin's last word: the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11 are not strong people who trusted God; they are weak people whom God made strong. → Read Hebrews 11:34
Frequently asked questions about Bible verses on strength
What is the most popular Bible verse about strength?
Philippians 4:13 — "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" — is the most cited verse about strength in modern Christian devotion, though Calvin and the older commentators read it in context: as Paul's contentment-in-circumstances verse, not as a generic empowerment slogan.
What does the Bible say about being strong in hard times?
Scripture consistently locates strength in God's presence with the believer, not in the believer's own resources. Isaiah 41:10, Joshua 1:9, and 2 Corinthians 12:9 are the three passages most often pointed to when Christians face suffering. Each names hardship honestly and then anchors strength in covenant relationship.
Which Old Testament book has the most verses about strength?
The Psalms. David and the other psalmists return to the language of strength repeatedly because the Psalms are prayers in conditions of weakness — and these prayers are how the Old Testament saints both confess weakness and receive strength.
What did Paul say about strength?
Paul's most striking word on strength is 2 Corinthians 12:9 — God's strength is "made perfect in weakness." Paul doesn't bypass weakness on the way to strength; he locates Christian strength inside it.
How can I memorize Bible verses about strength?
Start with three: Isaiah 41:10, Philippians 4:13 in context, and 2 Corinthians 12:9. Speak them aloud each morning for a week. The point of memorizing strength verses is not to summon strength but to remember whose presence is promised.
