Bible Verses For Prayer
Prayer is simply honest conversation with God. These verses offer language for whatever you need to bring to him today.
Prayer is where much of Scripture’s faith gets put into words — honest, ordinary conversation with God rather than a performance. Below is a collection of verified King James Version verses about prayer, for whatever you need to bring to God today.
Bible Verses For Prayer
Every verse below is drawn from a verified King James Version text.
And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher.
Genesis 24:17
And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth,
Acts 9:11
And he said, I seek my brethren: tell me, I pray thee, where they feed their flocks.
Genesis 37:16
Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.
Acts 3:1
And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:
Acts 16:16
And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
Mark 11:25
Which devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.
Mark 12:40
But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer.
Psalms 66:19
Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this man of Belial, even Nabal: for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him: but I thine handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send.
1 Samuel 25:25
And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering.
Luke 9:29
He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the LORD.
2 Kings 4:33
And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.
Acts 16:25
Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
Daniel 6:10
And they said unto him, Why do the disciples of John fast often, and make prayers, and likewise the disciples of the Pharisees; but thine eat and drink?
Luke 5:33
O LORD God of hosts, how long wilt thou be angry against the prayer of thy people?
Psalms 80:4
Ask thy young men, and they will shew thee. Wherefore let the young men find favour in thine eyes: for we come in a good day: give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thine hand unto thy servants, and to thy son David.
1 Samuel 25:8
And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.
Mark 11:17
Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry;
Psalms 88:2
LORD, in trouble have they visited thee, they poured out a prayer when thy chastening was upon them.
Isaiah 26:16
If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.
1 John 5:16
Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.
Psalms 66:20
And said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father’s house for us to lodge in?
Genesis 24:23
Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.
Mark 13:33
And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flocks; and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.
Genesis 37:14
And when he had sent them away, he departed into a mountain to pray.
Mark 6:46
And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.
Luke 9:28
And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
Luke 18:1
Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.
Psalms 55:17
I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thine handmaid: for the LORD will certainly make my lord a sure house; because my lord fighteth the battles of the LORD, and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days.
1 Samuel 25:28
And Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren.
Genesis 13:8
And when he was come into the ship, he that had been possessed with the devil prayed him that he might be with him.
Mark 5:18
Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer: preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
Psalms 64:1
And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.
Luke 11:2
So he took him, and brought him to the chief captain, and said, Paul the prisoner called me unto him, and prayed me to bring this young man unto thee, who hath something to say unto thee.
Acts 23:18
Give ear to my prayer, O God; and hide not thyself from my supplication.
Psalms 55:1
Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
Luke 18:10
And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.
Luke 11:1
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
Matthew 23:14
Yet the LORD will command his lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life.
Psalms 42:8
For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
1 Peter 3:12
But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.
Psalms 88:13
And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt.
Genesis 45:4
Hear my prayer, O God; give ear to the words of my mouth.
Psalms 54:2
And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous.
Judges 18:5
And Balak said unto him, Come, I pray thee, with me unto another place, from whence thou mayest see them: thou shalt see but the utmost part of them, and shalt not see them all: and curse me them from thence.
Numbers 23:13
O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.
Psalms 84:8
Hear my prayer, O LORD, and give ear unto my cry; hold not thy peace at my tears: for I am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as all my fathers were.
Psalms 39:12
And before I had done speaking in mine heart, behold, Rebekah came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the well, and drew water: and I said unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee.
Genesis 24:45
And he said unto her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bottle of milk, and gave him drink, and covered him.
Judges 4:19
The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
Luke 18:11
And Balak said unto Balaam, Come, I pray thee, I will bring thee unto another place; peradventure it will please God that thou mayest curse me them from thence.
Numbers 23:27
And when the days of his mourning were past, Joseph spake unto the house of Pharaoh, saying, If now I have found grace in your eyes, speak, I pray you, in the ears of Pharaoh, saying,
Genesis 50:4
So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him.
Genesis 50:17
And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter.
Mark 13:18
And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed.
Luke 5:16
Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.
Genesis 20:7
Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither.
2 Kings 4:10
Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.
1 Peter 3:7
Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee.
Genesis 12:13
Notwithstanding, that I be not further tedious unto thee, I pray thee that thou wouldest hear us of thy clemency a few words.
Acts 24:4
For enquire, I pray thee, of the former age, and prepare thyself to the search of their fathers:
Job 8:8
My father made me swear, saying, Lo, I die: in my grave which I have digged for me in the land of Canaan, there shalt thou bury me. Now therefore let me go up, I pray thee, and bury my father, and I will come again.
Genesis 50:5
And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.
Luke 5:3
Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God.
Daniel 6:11
Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well.
2 Kings 4:26
And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.
Luke 6:12
So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children.
Genesis 20:17
When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.
Jonah 2:7
And fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be: and let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine audience, and hear the words of thine handmaid.
1 Samuel 25:24
Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall havethem.
Mark 11:24
And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.
2 Kings 4:22
I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day;
2 Timothy 1:3
And it came to pass, as he was alone praying, his disciples were with him: and he asked them, saying, Whom say the people that I am?
Luke 9:18
For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him.
Psalms 32:6
Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;
Romans 12:12
And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh:
Genesis 24:2
Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant.
Psalms 119:76
And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us.
Acts 16:9
Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,
Luke 3:21
And on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither.
Acts 16:13
Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish’s belly,
Jonah 2:1
And they began to pray him to depart out of their coasts.
Mark 5:17
Behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass, that when the virgin cometh forth to draw water, and I say to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher to drink;
Genesis 24:43
And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed:
Genesis 37:6
And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
Acts 2:42
Ye also helping together by prayer for us, that for the gift bestowed upon us by the means of many persons thanks may be given by many on our behalf.
2 Corinthians 1:11
Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.
Romans 10:1
But Peter put them all forth, and kneeled down, and prayed; and turning him to the body said, Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes: and when she saw Peter, she sat up.
Acts 9:40
And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.
Mark 9:29
But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
Matthew 24:20
For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.
1 Timothy 4:5
A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet upon Shigionoth.
Habakkuk 3:1
And he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us; for it is a stiffnecked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thine inheritance.
Exodus 34:9
And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.
Mark 5:23
But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
1 Peter 4:7
And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed.
Acts 14:23
And he said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham.
Genesis 24:12
But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into mine own bosom.
Psalms 35:13
Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.
Luke 6:28
And it came to pass, that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and of a bloody flux: to whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laid his hands on him, and healed him.
Acts 28:8
All verses are quoted from the King James Version (KJV), a public-domain translation.
Understanding Prayer Through Scripture
Prayer in the Bible looks less like formula and more like honest conversation. Philippians 4:6 encourages believers to bring everything to God “by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving” — a fairly practical instruction: name what is happening, ask for what is needed, include gratitude even in difficulty.
The Psalms model this range vividly, moving between praise, complaint, confession, and request often within the same chapter.
This range matters for anyone who feels their own prayers are too messy or repetitive to count as “real” prayer. The Psalms include complaint (“How long, O LORD?”), confession, desperate pleading, and quiet trust, often within a few verses of each other. If anything, Scripture’s own prayers are the least polished writing in the Bible — which is part of what makes them usable as a model.
What the Bible Teaches About Prayer
Prayer in Hard Seasons
Praying Scripture Back to God
One simple, sustainable practice is praying a verse back to God in your own words rather than composing an original prayer from nothing each time. Taking Philippians 4:6-7 and turning it into “Lord, I am anxious about this specific thing — help me bring it to you honestly, and let your peace guard my heart” gives prayer both structure and specificity.
This is especially useful on days when finding words feels hard. Scripture already has the words; the task becomes making them personal rather than generating them from scratch.
Building a Prayer Life
Prayer and Listening to God
In practice, this might look like sitting quietly for a minute after praying, rather than moving immediately to the next task — not necessarily expecting an audible answer, but leaving room for one to register if it comes as a thought, a verse that comes to mind, or a sense of peace settling in.
The Lord's Prayer as a Pattern
When the disciples asked Jesus how to pray, in Matthew 6, he did not describe a feeling to aim for — he gave them an actual structure: praise, submission to God’s will, a request for daily provision, a request for forgiveness paired with forgiving others, and a request for protection. Used as a pattern rather than a script, it offers a simple shape for prayer on days when nothing else comes to mind: praise, surrender, provision, forgiveness, protection.
Praying for Others
James 5:16’s instruction to “pray one for another” places intercession — praying on someone else’s behalf — at the center of a healthy prayer life, not at its edges. 1 Timothy 2:1 goes further, urging prayer for “all men,” including those in authority, regardless of whether they are personally admired.
Practically, keeping a short list of people to pray for regularly — even five or six names — tends to keep prayer outward-facing rather than limited entirely to personal requests.
A Few More Verses Worth Knowing
Jeremiah 33:3’s invitation — “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things” — pairs prayer directly with revelation. Mark 11:24’s teaching on believing prayer, and Colossians 4:2’s call to “continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving,” round out a picture of prayer as persistent, expectant, and grounded in gratitude rather than only in need.
Prayer Without Words
Romans 8:26 offers real comfort for seasons when words genuinely will not come: “the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” Prayer, in this framing, does not require eloquence or even complete sentences to count as real. Sitting in silence, or simply groaning honestly before God, is included in what Scripture calls prayer.
Persistent Prayer
Luke 18’s parable of the persistent widow, who keeps returning to an unjust judge until her request is granted, is offered specifically to teach that “men ought always to pray, and not to faint.” This is not a suggestion that God needs convincing the way the judge does — it is an argument from lesser to greater: if persistence works with someone reluctant, how much more can it be trusted with a God described as already willing.
Prayer and Fasting
Scripture occasionally pairs prayer with fasting for especially significant requests — Esther before approaching the king, the early church before major decisions in Acts. This is not presented as a requirement for ordinary prayer, but as an option for seasons that call for unusual focus, a way of physically underscoring how seriously a request is being brought.
A Few More Verses Worth Knowing
Psalm 5:3’s commitment — “my voice shalt thou hear in the morning… will I direct my prayer unto thee” — models a consistent daily rhythm. Ephesians 6:18’s instruction to pray “with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit” and Acts 4:31’s account of a room shaking after believers prayed together both point to prayer as something with real, sometimes visible, effect.
Prayer as Relationship, Not Transaction
It is easy to slide into treating prayer as a request system — ask, receive, repeat. Scripture’s picture is wider than that. The Psalms include prayers that simply express delight in God, with no request attached at all. Praying only when something is needed tends to flatten prayer into a transaction; praying even when nothing is urgently needed keeps it closer to an actual relationship.
Prayer in Community
Matthew 18:20’s promise — “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I” — speaks directly to praying with others, not only alone. Acts records the early church praying together repeatedly, often at pivotal moments. Praying with even one other person regularly tends to sustain a prayer life longer than praying entirely in isolation.
Jesus' Own Prayer Life
The Gospels note repeatedly that Jesus withdrew to pray alone, often early in the morning or through the night, even during his busiest seasons of ministry. Luke 5:16’s simple observation — “he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed” — suggests that a demanding schedule was, if anything, a reason to prioritize prayer more, not less. His example argues against the common instinct to let prayer be the first thing cut when life gets full.
Prayer That Changes the One Praying
Prayer is sometimes framed only as a tool for changing circumstances, but Scripture also treats it as something that changes the person praying. Philippians 4:6-7’s sequence — prayer leading to a peace that guards the heart — describes an internal shift that happens through the act of praying itself, regardless of whether the external circumstance has changed yet.
Prayer Across the Whole Bible
Prayer appears in nearly every book of the Bible, in nearly every possible circumstance — before battles, during exile, at bedsides, in prison cells, at weddings, in gardens the night before death. This range matters: there is no situation you could bring to God today that Scripture does not already show someone else bringing to him first, in some form, somewhere in its pages.
Praying Through Uncertainty
Not every prayer needs to end with confident clarity about the outcome. Praying “I don’t know what to ask for here, but I trust you with it” is a legitimate form of prayer, consistent with Romans 8:26’s picture of the Spirit interceding exactly when words and certainty both run out. Uncertainty is not a barrier to prayer; it can simply be part of what is honestly brought into it.
Prayer as the Simplest Starting Point
Prayer as an Act of Trust
Every prayer, however small, carries an implicit assumption: that someone is actually listening and capable of responding. Praying, even when it feels difficult or unfamiliar, is itself a quiet act of trust — choosing to speak as though you are heard, even before you feel entirely certain of it.
Prayer Written Down
Many of Scripture’s most enduring prayers survive because someone wrote them down — the Psalms chief among them. Keeping a simple written record of your own prayers, even briefly, creates something to look back on later: a record of what you were carrying, and often, evidence of how it was carried.
A Final Word on Prayer
These one hundred verses were gathered as a starting place, not a finished formula. Prayer, across all of Scripture, remains available to anyone willing to speak honestly — polished or not, certain or not, confident or not. Whatever you need to bring to God today, bring it, and trust that you are heard.
Prayer Across a Lifetime
The way a person prays tends to change across a lifetime — more formal and rehearsed early on, often simpler and more direct with age and experience. Both stages are legitimate. Scripture does not prize eloquent prayer over plain prayer; it consistently prizes honest prayer over either.
Prayer in the Smallest Moments
Nehemiah’s brief, silent prayer before answering the king in Nehemiah 2 — offered in the space of a few seconds, mid-conversation — shows prayer does not always require withdrawal or ceremony. A quick, silent request in the middle of an ordinary moment counts fully as prayer, available anywhere, at any time.
One Last Word on Prayer
Start Right Now
This collection draws on the King James Version, a public-domain translation available in full at Blue Letter Bible, for anyone who wants to study the wider context of any verse above.
If this speaks to your current situation, you may also want to read Bible Verses About God's Love or Bible Verses For Purpose, both of which touch on related ground.
Every verse on this page is drawn from the King James Version, a public-domain translation available in full at Blue Letter Bible for anyone who wants to study the wider context.
For related reading, you may also find Bible Verses About Protection and Safety and Bible Verses About Repentance helpful.
Some readers also return to Bible Verses About Walking by Faith or Bible Verses About Relationships and Love alongside this page.
If you are exploring related themes, Bible Verses About Healing and Faith and Bible Verses About God's Promises are worth a look.
If you want to compare these verses across other translations, Bible Gateway offers a free side-by-side reading tool.
Final Thoughts
Across these verses, prayer reads less like a technique to master and more like a relationship to keep returning to — imperfect, ongoing, and open to both speaking honestly and listening. Whatever you are bringing to God today, we hope these verses give you words to start with.
If this resonates, you may also want to read Bible Verses For Healing or Bible Verses For Difficult Times, both of which touch on similar ground from a different angle.