19 Bible Verses About Nervousness

Psalm 56:3

“When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.”

Reflection: The heading places this psalm “when the Philistines had seized him in Gath,” and 1 Samuel 21:12 says David “was very much afraid of Achish king of Gath,” so much that he pretended to be insane. The line admits the fear before it states the trust. The next verse goes a step further, “in God I trust and am not afraid,” and the psalm repeats that line in verse 11.

Psalm 34:4

“I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.”

Reflection: Its heading ties Psalm 34 to the same episode, when David “pretended to be insane before Abimelek”; 1 Samuel 21 calls the king Achish. Where Psalm 56 prays in the middle of the danger, Psalm 34 looks back on it: David sought the Lord, was answered, and was delivered “from all my fears.” Verse 6 says it again in the third person: “This poor man called, and the Lord heard him.”

Psalm 55:22

“Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.”

Reflection: Before this verse, Psalm 55 describes the fear in detail: “Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me” (55:5), and David wishes for the wings of a dove to fly away (55:6). One cause is a close friend turned against him (55:12-14); the psalm also names the threats of the wicked (55:3) and violence and strife in the city (55:9-11). Verse 22 turns from David’s own prayer to the hearer and tells him to cast his cares on the Lord.

Psalm 94:19

“When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.”

Reflection: The psalmist asks who will stand up for him against evildoers (94:16) and says that without the Lord’s help he would soon have “dwelt in the silence of death” (94:17). Verse 18 reads, “When I said, ‘My foot is slipping,’ your unfailing love, Lord, supported me.” Verse 19 is addressed to God and places the consolation in the moment “when anxiety was great.”

Psalm 27:1

“The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?”

Reflection: The heading gives this psalm to David. Verse 3 names what he might have feared, an army besieging him and war breaking out, and says, “even then I will be confident.”

Psalm 23:4

“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

Reflection: A psalm of David, by its heading. In verses 1 to 3 David speaks about the Lord as “he”; in this verse, in the darkest valley, he begins to speak to him as “you.” The rod and staff belong to the shepherd of verse 1, and the psalm goes on to a table prepared “in the presence of my enemies” (23:5).

Philippians 4:6-7

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Reflection: Paul writes these lines while “in chains for Christ” (1:13), and they follow the words “The Lord is near” (4:5). The verb for anxious is merimnao, and the alternative Paul gives is prayer and petition with thanksgiving. The promised result is the peace of God guarding hearts and minds, and verse 8 goes on to direct the mind to “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right.”

1 Peter 5:7

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

Reflection: The verse follows the command in verse 6: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.” Thayer’s lexicon traces the wording to Psalm 55:22. The next verse adds a warning: “Be alert and of sober mind,” because the devil “prowls around like a roaring lion.”

Matthew 6:34

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

Reflection: This verse closes the section of the Sermon on the Mount in which Jesus tells his hearers not to worry about food, drink or clothes (6:25-34). He has already asked, “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” (6:27), and pointed to the birds and the flowers of the field. Verse 33 gives the positive command, “seek first his kingdom,” and verse 34 limits the day’s concern to the day’s own trouble.

John 14:27

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

Reflection: Jesus speaks to his disciples before leaving them: “I am going away and I am coming back to you” (14:28). He opened the chapter with the same command, “Do not let your hearts be troubled” (14:1), and here adds “do not be afraid.” The peace he leaves is his own, and he contrasts it with what the world gives.

Isaiah 26:3

“You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.”

Reflection: The verse belongs to a song that “will be sung in the land of Judah” (26:1) about a strong city whose walls are salvation. The peace is promised to the steadfast mind, and the reason given is trust. Verse 4 names the one trusted: “the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.”

Psalm 46:1

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”

Reflection: The heading calls this psalm a song of the Sons of Korah. The next verses draw the conclusion from God being a refuge: “Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea” (46:2). Later in the psalm God speaks: “Be still, and know that I am God” (46:10).

Isaiah 41:10

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Reflection: God addresses Israel as “my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen,” and says, “I have chosen you and have not rejected you” (41:8-9). Just before this, verse 5 reports, “The islands have seen it and fear”, and in verse 7 a worker nails down an idol “so it will not topple”. Verse 13 repeats the command with a picture of the Lord taking hold of Israel’s right hand: “Do not fear; I will help you.”

Deuteronomy 31:6

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Reflection: Moses speaks to all Israel at a hundred and twenty years old, having been told he will not cross the Jordan (31:2). The people are told not to be afraid of the nations in the land because the Lord goes with them. Two verses later Moses gives Joshua the same charge in front of all Israel: “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged” (31:8).

Joshua 1:9

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Reflection: The Lord speaks to Joshua, and the command to be strong and courageous comes three times in four verses (1:6, 7 and 9), in verse 7 as “Be strong and very courageous”. Verse 9 repeats the words Moses had used in Deuteronomy 31:8, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,” and grounds them in the same promise, that the Lord will be with Joshua wherever he goes.

Jeremiah 1:8

“Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord.

Reflection: When the Lord appoints him a prophet to the nations, Jeremiah answers, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young” (1:6). The Lord tells him not to say that, to go wherever he is sent and say whatever he is commanded (1:7), and then gives this verse. The reason for not being afraid is the same one given to Joshua: “I am with you.”

Exodus 4:12

“Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”

Reflection: Moses objects to his call, “I am slow of speech and tongue” (4:10), and the Lord answers with a question: “Who gave human beings their mouths?” (4:11). This verse is the promise that follows, help to speak and teaching about what to say. Moses still replies, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else” (4:13).

Luke 12:6-7

“Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

Reflection: Jesus speaks first to his disciples, whom he calls “my friends,” while a crowd of many thousands has gathered (12:1, 4). He tells them not to be afraid of those “who kill the body and after that can do no more” (12:4), and to fear instead the one who “has authority to throw you into hell” (12:5). The sparrows come directly after: not one of them is forgotten by God, and the disciples are worth more. A few verses on he speaks of being brought “before synagogues, rulers and authorities”: “do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say” (12:11-12).

2 Timothy 1:7

“For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.”

Reflection: Paul reminds Timothy of the faith of his grandmother Lois and mother Eunice and tells him to “fan into flame the gift of God” given through the laying on of Paul’s hands (1:5-6). The word for timid is deilia, timidity or cowardice. The next verse draws a consequence from it: “So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner.”