7 Bible Verses about Anxiety for Overcoming Worry

For many people, anxiety creeps up frequently with its familiar tactics – rapid heartbeat, shallow breathing, frantic thoughts, and a state of panic. For others, anxiety isn’t a daily or weekly battle, but it is a frequent visitor that steals your peace, keeps you in a state of stress and fear, and causes your mind to race.

Whether anxiety interferes with the performance of your daily activities or is triggered on occasion by circumstantial factors, if you battle anxiety to any degree, you understand how paralyzing it can be. At the root of most anxiety is fear – fear of the unknown, fear of failure, fear of punishment, or fear of [fill in the blank].

When fear is calmed, anxiety begins to dissipate.

As Christian counselors, we have clinical tools in our arsenal to help people overcome fear and anxiety and we also possess a faith-based perspective that enables us to point sufferers to helpful scripture for anxiety. The wonderful news is that you can find comfort from anxiety in the Bible and hopefully begin to calm your fears the moment they arise with some of these go-to Bible verses about anxiety.

The Bible speaks a lot about fear. Phrases like “do not be afraid” and “fear not” are mentioned over 300 times in the Bible, which assures us that even historically (in the absence of the many difficult things we have going on in our world today) people had a propensity towards fear and worry.

While there are a number of Bible verses about anxiety and not worrying, here are seven very effective and useful Scriptures to help you find comfort and live free from anxiety.

What Does the Bible Say About Anxiety?

Your God Will Come

Say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear, your God will come, He will come with vengeance, with divine retribution He will come to save you. – Isaiah 35:4

Have you ever felt like there was no way out of your situation? Like you are doomed or there is no possible way you can overcome? Isaiah 35:4 reminds us that God will come and that He will come to save you.

It can be easy to look at your circumstances or at injustice and fear that you are helpless. Remember, vengeance is of the Lord and His word promises that He will come to save you.

Do Not Worry About Your Life

Then Jesus said to His disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn, yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! – Luke 12:22-24

Do you suffer from anxiety due to your financial circumstances or a lack of provision in your life? Take a moment to consider if your anxiety is due to a fear that you will be unable to pay rent, buy your daugther shoes for school, or have grocery money this week.

The Bible clearly tells us not to worry and that when we trust in God, He will provide for our lives. Let this scripture be an encouragement. Take a moment to look outside and see how the Lord provides for the birds of the earth and remind yourself that you are more valuable than they are!

God Delivers You From All of Your Fears

I sought the Lord, and he answered me; He delivered me from all of my fears. – Psalm 34:4

Psalm 34 is attributed to King David and in this verse, David recounts how the Lord answered and delivered him from all his fears. This verse speaks not to David’s faithfulness, but to the character of God and to His faithfulness, which means that you can be assured that He will answer you and deliver you from your fears, too.

Take some time over the coming days, weeks, and months to truly seek the Lord around the areas of anxiety in your life. Ask Him for insight, wisdom, and guidance. Ask Him to help you pinpoint your specific fears and deliver you from them. Remember, as you are delivered from your fears, anxiety loses its grip on your heart and mind.

God’s Consolation Brings Joy

When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy. – Psalm 94:19

Anxiety and joy cannot coexist, can they? If you battle anxiety, there is a big chance that in those moments you also experience very little joy. This bible verse about anxiety points to the Lord’s consolation as being the source of joy.

To be consoled is to receive comfort to the degree that it alleviates your suffering. Imagine the Lord coming to you, talking to you, embracing you, and encouraging you to the point that it alleviates your anxiety and brings joy. This very scripture is a form of comfort from the Lord, reminding us all that when we’re fearful or anxious, He will bring comfort which in turn brings joy.

Cast Your Cares on the Lord

Cast Your Cares on the Lord and He will sustain you. He will never let the righteous be shaken. – Psalm 55:22

Anyone who battles anxiety often feels shaken. It is easy to feel up and down and like you are being tossed to and fro by the waves. Your nerves might be a wreck and a number of perceived threats might cause jolts and nervousness to pulse through your body.

When you cast your cares on the Lord, He promises to sustain you. Give him your uncertainty, your doubt, and your fear. As a son or daughter of the Most High made righteous by Christ He promises that the righteous (you!) will not be shaken.

You Will Find Rest for Your Souls

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. – Matthew 11: 28-30

Anxiety sufferers we have worked with in our practice are not experiencing rest within their souls. In fact, many of them are not experiencing rest within their bodies as they’re unable to sleep at night or quiet their minds.

In the Bible, God promises that He is gentle. You can learn from Him and be discipled by Him and in so doing cast off the burden that life or others may place on you.

When you are exhausted from demands placed upon you, God says to come to Him. He intimately invites you to turn towards Him and find rest. As you are discipled by God through the scriptures, the result is that you become more equipped to live out your life in the way God designed and be free from anxiety.

He Gives You Peace Unlike the World Gives

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. – John 14:27

The opposite of anxiety is peace. Merriam-Webster defines peace as “a state of tranquility or quiet” or “freedom from disquieting or oppressive thoughts or emotions.”

For an anxious person, disquieting or oppressive thoughts or emotions rule the heart and mind.  If you’re reading this and you battle anxiety, pause for a moment and take stock of the thoughts or emotions running through your mind right now.

Imagine how it would feel to be free from those? Now, you do not just have to imagine it, you can live in freedom from those thoughts and emotions.

Scripture promises that God delivers peace in greater measure than the world does. It encourages the troubled and fearful heart not to live in slavery to those emotions, but to receive the gift of peace that He gives.

Christian Counseling for Anxiety

As you make it a practice to read the Bible on a daily basis, you will likely encounter many more bible verses about anxiety to help you calm your fears.

If you would like additional support and guidance in addressing your fears and getting to the root of your anxiety, a Christian Counselor can help you find freedom from the disrupting fears, thoughts, and emotions you face on a daily basis or due to a situation that has come up in your life. Learn more about our Christian Counseling for anxiety by clicking here.