Bible verses about strength: 16 passages for when you have nothing left

He gives power to the faint and increases the strength of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall. But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.

Written to exiles who felt God had forgotten them. Even the young and fit run out, the prophet admits. Strength is renewed by waiting on God, and it comes in three speeds: soaring, running and walking.

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Asaph wrote this after nearly losing his footing in faith (Psalm 73:2). He does not deny that his body and heart may fail. He simply names what will not.

And David was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of every man grieved for his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God.

Ziklag had been burned, families taken, and his own men were talking of stoning him. With no one to encourage him, David found strength in the LORD his God.

Then Nehemiah told them, “Go and eat what is rich, drink what is sweet, and send out portions to those who have nothing prepared, since today is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

The people were weeping as they heard the law read after years of exile. Nehemiah tells them to feast and share food instead. Joy in God, not their own record, would hold them up.

But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me. That is why, for the sake of Christ, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Paul asked three times for his weakness to be removed. The answer changed what he boasted about. Weakness became the place where the power of Christ rested on him.

I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

Often quoted before games and exams, but Paul wrote it from prison about being content hungry or full (Philippians 4:11-12). It is strength to endure any circumstance, not a promise to win.

So he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of Hosts.

Spoken to Zerubbabel, leading a small, discouraged group rebuilding the temple after exile. The work would not be finished by their muscle or resources, but by the Spirit of God.

Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My right hand of righteousness.

The promise ends with God holding you up by his right hand. You do not have to be strong enough to hold on; you are the one being held.

Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Be strong and courageous appears four times in this one chapter. Joshua was taking over from Moses, and the reason for courage is always the same: God goes with him.

May the bolts of your gate be iron and bronze, and may your strength match your days.”

Part of the blessing of Moses on the tribe of Asher. The King James says as thy days, so shall thy strength be. Strength is given for each day as it comes, not stored up in advance.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

This opens the passage on the armour of God. The strength is in the Lord and in his power. Paul describes armour you put on, not muscle you grow.

Be on the alert. Stand firm in the faith. Be men of courage. Be strong.

Four short commands to a church under strain. The very next verse adds: let all that you do be done in love (1 Corinthians 16:14). Biblical strength is never harshness.

The LORD is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will exalt Him.

Sung on the far shore of the Red Sea, one of the oldest songs in Scripture. The same line returns in Psalm 118:14 and Isaiah 12:2, as if every generation needed to sing it again.

The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and I give thanks to Him with my song.

Strength and shield: one for going forward, one for being protected. The psalm starts as a desperate plea and ends here, with a heart that has been helped.

GOD the Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like those of a deer; He makes me walk upon the heights! For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments.

Just before this, Habakkuk imagines failed crops and empty stalls and decides to rejoice anyway (Habakkuk 3:17-18). A deer is sure-footed on steep, rocky heights.

It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way clear.

David sang this after God rescued him from Saul, and the whole song appears again in 2 Samuel 22. God does not only give strength; he makes the way clear.