Bible Verses About Faith and Courage show that biblical boldness grows out of trust in God rather than confidence in ourselves. From Joshua preparing to enter Canaan to Esther approaching the king, Scripture tells of ordinary people who found courage because they believed God was with them. These passages explain where that strength comes from and how it looks in practice.
Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
Joshua 1:9 (KJV)
God commands Joshua to be strong and of good courage because the Lord is with him wherever he goes.
Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
Deuteronomy 31:6 (KJV)
Moses tells Israel to be strong and not fear their enemies, since God will not fail or forsake them.
Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.
Hebrews 11:33-34 (KJV)
The heroes of faith obtained promises and out of weakness were made strong, showing how faith produces courage.
If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Daniel 3:17-18 (KJV)
Three young men declare that God is able to deliver them, and even if not, they will not bow to the idol.
Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.
1 Samuel 17:45 (KJV)
David faces Goliath in the name of the Lord of hosts, trusting God rather than weapons.
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.
Acts 4:13 (KJV)
Leaders marvel at the boldness of Peter and John and recognise that they had been with Jesus.
And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word, By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.
Acts 4:29-31 (KJV)
The early church prays for boldness to speak God’s word, and they are filled with the Holy Ghost.
Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish.
Esther 4:16 (KJV)
Esther asks her people to fast and resolves to go before the king, saying, if I perish, I perish.
Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.
1 Corinthians 16:13 (KJV)
Paul urges believers to watch, stand fast in the faith, quit themselves like men and be strong.
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Ephesians 6:10-11 (KJV)
Strength for spiritual battles comes from the Lord and the whole armour of God, not our own power.
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)
God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind.
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalms 27:1 (KJV)
Because the Lord is light and salvation, David asks whom he should fear or be afraid of.
So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.
Hebrews 13:6 (KJV)
We may boldly say that the Lord is our helper and we will not fear what man can do.
The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.
Proverbs 28:1 (KJV)
The righteous are bold as a lion, a picture of courage that flows from a right relationship with God.
But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
Matthew 14:27-29 (KJV)
Jesus says be of good cheer, it is I, and Peter steps out of the boat onto the water.
For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
1 John 5:4 (KJV)
John teaches that faith is the victory that overcomes the world.
Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.
Philippians 1:27-28 (KJV)
Paul calls believers to stand fast in one spirit, in nothing terrified by their adversaries.
The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?
Psalms 118:6 (KJV)
The Lord is on my side and I will not fear, a psalm that links trust and courage.
Scripture rarely tells people to be brave without giving a reason. When God commands Joshua to be strong and of good courage in Joshua 1:9, the reason follows immediately: the Lord is with him wherever he goes. Biblical courage is therefore a fruit of faith. It rests on who God is and what He has promised, not on human strength or favourable odds.
The story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in Daniel 3 shows this clearly. Facing the king’s furnace, they said God was able to deliver them, and even if He did not, they would still not worship the golden image. Their courage did not depend on knowing the outcome. It depended on trusting God. Esther showed a similar resolve when she went before the king to plead for her people.
The New Testament carries the same pattern. Peter and John spoke so boldly that the leaders marvelled, and the believers later prayed for even more boldness in Acts 4:29-31. Paul reminds Timothy that God has not given a spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind. Courage, in Scripture, is less about feeling fearless and more about obeying God while trusting Him with the result.
Joshua 1:9’s command to “be strong and of a good courage” is grounded directly in faith that “the LORD thy God is with thee.”
For a related angle, see Bible Verses For Children's Protection or Bible Verses For Romantic Love.
Want the wider context? The complete King James Version is available at Blue Letter Bible.
Bible Verses About Sadness and Bible Verses About Blessings pick up threads that run through these verses.
You might also turn to Bible Verses About Encouragement and Bible Verses About Gratitude and Thankfulness.
Readers of this page often go on to Bible Verses About Strength and Courage or Bible Verses About Prayer in Difficult Times.
Some of the same ground is covered in Bible Verses About Growing in Faith and Bible Verses For Faith and Courage.
To see how other translations render these lines, look them up on Bible Gateway.
To trace a verse through the rest of Scripture, the cross-references on Bible Hub are useful.
Courage, biblically, is grounded in faith — confidence in God’s presence is what makes real courage possible.
These verses were never meant to sit on a page as decoration \u2014 they’re meant to shape how you actually respond the next time believing something is true and acting on it are two very different steps.
You don’t need polished or formal language for it \u2014 an honest, plainly worded sentence is enough, something as simple as telling God directly for the courage to actually live out what you say you believe.
Gideon is one of the most honest portraits of fear in the Bible. When the angel of the Lord found him, he was threshing wheat in a winepress, hiding from the Midianites. The greeting must have sounded almost ironic: “The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour” (Judges 6:12). Gideon answered with doubts and excuses, saying his family was poor in Manasseh and he was the least in his father’s house (Judges 6:15). God did not wait for him to feel brave before calling him.
What follows is a slow training in trust. Gideon tore down his father’s altar to Baal, but he did it by night because he feared his family and the men of the city (Judges 6:27). He asked for signs with the fleece, twice. God patiently answered. Then the Lord reduced his army from thousands to three hundred, so that Israel could not boast that its own hand had saved it (Judges 7:2). Among the courage passages of Scripture, Gideon’s story shows that God often grows boldness in stages rather than all at once.
On the night before the battle, God said, in effect, if you are still afraid, go down to the enemy camp with your servant Purah and listen (Judges 7:10-11). Gideon overheard a Midianite describing a dream of Israel’s victory, and he worshipped. His courage rose, not because his circumstances improved, but because he heard God’s promise confirmed. Hebrews 11:32 later names him among those who acted by faith. Many verses on this theme command boldness; Gideon’s life shows the patience with which God builds it.
For readers who feel more like Gideon in the winepress than Gideon with the trumpet, this is good news. God speaks to who you will become by his grace. When you read Bible verses about faith and courage, you can hear them as invitations from a patient Father, not as verdicts on your present weakness.
Nehemiah is rarely the first book people open when looking for Bible verses about faith and courage, yet it describes courage in a very ordinary setting: a building project under constant pressure. Nehemiah was cupbearer to the Persian king, and when the king noticed his sadness about Jerusalem, Nehemiah writes, “Then I was very sore afraid” (Nehemiah 2:2). He then prayed to the God of heaven and made his request anyway (Nehemiah 2:4-5). Courage here looks like a quick silent prayer followed by an honest sentence.
When enemies mocked and threatened the builders, Nehemiah did not choose between faith and practical action. “Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night” (Nehemiah 4:9). He armed the workers and reminded them, “Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren” (Nehemiah 4:14). Faith did not make him careless; it made him steady. Read beside other courage passages, this chapter shows that trusting God and taking sensible precautions belong together.
Later, a man urged Nehemiah to hide in the temple because assassins were coming. Nehemiah replied, “Should such a man as I flee?” (Nehemiah 6:11), recognizing the advice as a trap meant to make him afraid and discredit him. His short prayer in the same chapter, “Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands” (Nehemiah 6:9), is one of the most usable short prayers in Scripture for anyone facing steady opposition. The wall was finished in fifty-two days (Nehemiah 6:15), and even Israel’s enemies perceived that the work was of God.
Because these passages are so often quoted, they are also easy to misread. A few common misunderstandings can make these passages feel like a burden instead of a gift.
Nehemiah was “very sore afraid,” and Gideon hid in a winepress. Scripture never says that the faithful stop feeling fear. It shows them acting in obedience while fear is still present. David wrote, “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee” (Psalm 56:3), which assumes that fear will come.
When Satan urged Jesus to throw himself from the temple, quoting a psalm about angels, Jesus answered, “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God” (Matthew 4:7). Biblical courage obeys God’s call; it does not create dangerous tests to force his hand. Nehemiah posted guards while he prayed.
Hebrews 11 lists people who escaped the sword, and then others who were tortured, imprisoned and killed, all commended for their faith (Hebrews 11:35-39). Bible verses about faith and courage promise God’s presence, not a particular result. That is why the three young men in Daniel could say “but if not.”
It is easy to imagine that Bible verses about faith and courage are meant only for lions’ dens and battlefields. Yet most courage is quiet: telling the truth at work, admitting a wrong, keeping a promise when it costs something, or speaking of Christ to a friend. Luke 16:10 notes that whoever is faithful in the least is faithful also in much.
Start with those that speak honestly about weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:9 records Christ’s words to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Isaiah 41:10 adds, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee.” For a wider selection, the collection of Bible verses about faith in hard times gathers passages for difficult seasons.
These questions are designed for a Bible study group or for personal reflection over several days. Read Judges 6-7 and Nehemiah 4-6 first, then work through the questions slowly.
Groups studying Bible verses about faith and courage often find it helpful to end by praying for one specific step of obedience each person is facing. Keep the steps small and concrete, such as a conversation, an apology, or a decision that has been postponed. Checking in the following week turns study into practice. Members might also choose one of the verses to memorize together before the next meeting.
Courage in Scripture is always relational. It grows as people come to know the God who goes with them. To continue exploring how trust matures over time, see the related study of Bible verses about faith and trust.
Esther had every reason to keep quiet. The Persian king had not called for her in thirty days, and the law was blunt: anyone who walked into the inner court uninvited could be put to death unless he held out the golden scepter. Meanwhile her cousin Mordecai was sending word that a decree had been signed to wipe out her people, and he asked her to do something about it.
Her first answer was a fair one. She reminded him of the law. His reply is one of the sharpest lines in the Hebrew Scriptures: “who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” He did not threaten her. He pointed out that silence would not actually keep her safe, and that she might be standing in that exact spot for a reason.
What Esther does next is easy to skim past. Before she goes anywhere, she asks the community to fast with her for three days. She does not summon courage alone in her room. Then she says the line that has echoed ever since: “and if I perish, I perish.” It is not bravado. It is a woman who has weighed the cost, prayed, and decided that some outcomes are worse than risk. Her story gives permission to be afraid and to move anyway, with other people holding the rope.
In Daniel 3 three young Jewish officials stand in front of a furnace heated seven times hotter than usual. The king’s order is simple: bow to the golden statue or be thrown in. Their answer is calm and a little startling. They say God is able to deliver them, and that He will deliver them out of the king’s hand. And then they add the part most people forget: “But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods.”
That small phrase, “but if not,” is where the adult kind of faith lives. It is easy to trust God when you are sure how the story ends. These men trusted Him without a guarantee about the ending. Their courage did not depend on a rescue they could demand. It depended on who God was.
Parents sometimes feel this in a quiet way. You teach your child to tell the truth even when it costs something, and you cannot promise that it will always turn out well for them. You can only say that it is right, and that you will be standing next to them. The three men in Babylon show that sort of courage in its grown-up form. They were not careless with their lives. They simply had something they valued above them.
Matthew 14 is a favorite story for people who fear failure, because Peter fails in front of everyone and is still the hero of the scene. The disciples are rowing against the wind in the dark when Jesus comes toward them on the lake. Peter calls out, “Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.” Jesus says one word: “Come.”
Peter climbs over the side and walks. That part rarely gets enough credit. A fisherman who had spent his life on that lake knew exactly what water does to a man’s weight, and he stepped out anyway. Then the text says, “when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.” His prayer was three words long, and it was enough.
“And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him.” Not eventually. Immediately. Notice that nobody scolded him from a distance. The hand was already near. If you tried something brave and it wobbled, the story does not say you were foolish to step out. It says the person you were stepping toward is close enough to reach you when the wind picks up.
Peter and John had no formal training. Acts 4:13 says the religious leaders “perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men,” meaning they lacked the schooling of the scribes. Only weeks earlier, Peter had warmed his hands at a courtyard fire and sworn three times that he did not know Jesus. Now he was standing before the same high priest’s family, and he did not flinch.
What changed? The council themselves supplied the answer: “they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.” Courage in this passage is a kind of residue. It is what a person carries out of a long time spent near someone braver than themselves. The apostles did not suddenly become hardened public speakers. They had watched Jesus, been forgiven by Him, and received the Spirit.
Afterward the believers gathered and prayed, and what they asked for is revealing. They did not ask for the threats to stop. They asked for boldness to keep speaking. Take that into an office where the pressure is to stay silent about something true, or into a family dinner where you are the only one who believes. The request that fit them still fits: not an easier room, only a steadier voice.
Picture Joshua at the start of his book. Moses, who had led Israel for forty years, is dead. The river Jordan is running high and wide in front of the camp, and on the far side are walled cities and armed people. Everybody is watching the new leader to see what he will do. Into that moment God speaks, and the first thing He does is repeat Himself.
Three times in the opening chapter the command comes: be strong, be of good courage. Verse 9 puts it as a question: “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” A good teacher repeats what a nervous student has trouble absorbing. God repeated it because Joshua needed to hear it more than once.
The courage described is not a feeling of fearlessness. It is tied to what Joshua is told to keep doing, which is to meditate on the book of the law and act on it. In other words, the strength comes from steady habits, like reading, remembering, and obeying, and not from a burst of adrenaline at the riverbank. If you are standing at your own flooded Jordan this week, the command still points the same direction. Keep your feet moving in the direction God has already shown you.
Nearby topics worth a look: Bible Verses For Courage and Faith, Bible Verses For Faith and Courage, Bible Verses About Courage and Faith, Bible Verses About Faith Over Fear and Bible Verses For Faith During Trials.
If you want to dig further, Blue Letter Bible, Bible Gateway and Bible Hub are good places to start.
Scripture rarely tells people to be brave without giving a reason. When God commands Joshua to be strong and of good courage in Joshua 1:9, the reason follows immediately: the Lord is with him wherever he goes.
This page brings together 22 King James Version references about faith and Courage, drawn from 11 different books of the Bible.
These faith and Courage verses are drawn from books including Joshua, Acts, Judges, Hebrews, Nehemiah, among others.
Yes. The verses about faith and Courage gathered here include passages from both the Old Testament and the New Testament, such as Joshua 1:9 and Acts 4:29.
Joshua 1:9 is one of the verses about faith and Courage referenced in this collection, alongside Acts 4:29.
