This list gives you Scripture for encouraging others, whether you are trying to lift up a friend who is struggling, a family member who feels overlooked, or a coworker who is ready to quit. Each verse points you outward, toward the people around you rather than inward toward your own feelings.
These passages share a common thread: they treat encouragement as a practical act of love. The Bible describes words, presence and daily faithfulness as ways we help one another stand firm, and it presents them as work God invites us to do.
Verses for Friends Who Are Going Through Hard Seasons
When a friend is in grief, illness or a long stretch of disappointment, you may not know what to say. These verses remind you that your job is often simpler than fixing the problem. Your steady presence and honest words can carry more weight than you expect.
Romans 12:15
Rejoice with those who rejoice. Weep with those who weep.
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Encouragement often begins with paying attention. Today, text the friend who is grieving, or sit with them without rushing to advice. Let your presence say what you cannot always put into words.
Galatians 6:2
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
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Burdens are heavy when carried alone. Look for one specific task you can take off someone’s plate this week, such as bringing a meal, running an errand, or watching their children for an afternoon.
1 Thessalonians 5:11
Therefore exhort one another, and build each other up, even as you also do.
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Paul asks believers to build each other up, which means choosing words that strengthen rather than criticize. Before you speak to a struggling friend, ask yourself whether your words will give them more courage to keep going.
Hebrews 10:24-25
24 Let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good works, 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as the custom of some is, but exhorting one another; and so much the more, as you see the Day approaching.
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The writer links encouragement with gathering together. If someone has drifted from church or community, invite them to coffee or to a service this weekend, and tell them plainly that you are glad they are there.
Verses for Encouraging Someone Who Feels Discouraged
Discouragement can settle over a person quietly, making ordinary tasks feel impossible. The passages in this section speak to people who feel tired, forgotten or unsure of their worth. They show you how to offer hope without minimizing what someone is feeling.
Proverbs 12:25
Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs it down, but a kind word makes it glad.
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Anxiety weighs on the heart, and a kind word can lift it. Notice the next time a friend seems weighed down, and offer a genuine word of hope that names something good about them or their situation.
Isaiah 40:29
He gives power to the weak. He increases the strength of him who has no might.
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This verse speaks of God giving strength to the weary. You can pass that truth along by reminding a tired friend that their strength is not the final measure of their worth, and by praying with them for renewal.
Ephesians 4:29
Let no corrupt speech proceed out of your mouth, but only what is good for building others up as the need may be, that it may give grace to those who hear.
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Paul asks that our speech build others up according to their need. Before you send a message to someone who is struggling, read it over and ask whether it gives them something useful and kind.
Psalm 34:18
The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves those who have a crushed spirit.
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God is near to the brokenhearted, and you can be near too. Sit with a discouraged person for a few minutes longer than feels comfortable, and let them know you are not in a hurry to leave.
Verses for Building Up Family and Children
At home, encouragement shapes how people see themselves for years. Parents, grandparents, siblings and spouses have daily chances to speak life into one another. These verses help you think about the words and habits that make home a place of strength.
Deuteronomy 6:6-7
6 These words, which I command you today, shall be on your heart; 7 and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up.
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Moses describes faith passed on through ordinary conversation at home, on the road and at bedtime. Tonight, choose one small moment, such as dinner or the drive to school, to tell a child or spouse something you truly admire about them.
Proverbs 16:24
Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.
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Pleasant words are described as honey, sweet to the soul and good for the body. Make a habit of naming what you appreciate in family members, and avoid letting critical comments become your default.
Colossians 3:21
Fathers, don’t provoke your children, so that they won’t be discouraged.
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Paul warns parents not to provoke their children so they lose heart. Look for a moment this week when you can correct a child gently and then affirm the effort or character you see in them.
Philippians 1:3-4
3 I thank my God whenever I remember you, 4 always in every request of mine on behalf of you all, making my requests with joy…
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Paul writes to the Philippians with gratitude and joy for them. Consider writing a note to a family member that names specific reasons you thank God for them, and keep it somewhere they will find it.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
4 Love is patient and is kind; love doesn’t envy. Love doesn’t brag, is not proud, 5 doesn’t behave itself inappropriately, doesn’t seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil; 6 doesn’t rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
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This passage describes patient, kind love that keeps hoping and enduring. When a family member has let you down, practice choosing patience first, and let your reply show the same hope you would want for yourself.
Verses for Encouraging Others in Work and Community
Encouragement does not stop at the front door. Coworkers, neighbors, classmates and fellow church members all face pressure and self-doubt. These verses guide you in encouraging people in the places where you spend most of your week.
Hebrews 3:13
But exhort one another day by day, so long as it is called “today”; lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
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The writer urges believers to encourage one another every day, so that no one is hardened by deception. Choose one coworker this week and offer a sincere word of thanks for something they did well.
Acts 4:36
Joses, who by the apostles was also called Barnabas (which is, being interpreted, Son of Encouragement), a Levite, a man of Cyprus by race…
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Barnabas, whose name means son of encouragement, earned his nickname through generous acts. Think about someone in your circle who needs a sponsor or advocate, and look for a practical way to speak up for them.
Romans 15:2
Let each one of us please his neighbor for that which is good, to be building him up.
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Paul asks believers to please their neighbors for their good, to build them up. Pick one neighbor or classmate whose day could be brightened by a simple kindness, such as a shared meal or a note of welcome.
Titus 2:3-5
3 And that older women likewise be reverent in behavior, not slanderers nor enslaved to much wine, teachers of that which is good; 4 that they may train the young wives to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 to be sober minded, chaste, workers at home, kind, being in subjection to their own husbands, that God’s word may not be blasphemed.
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Older believers are called to teach younger ones through example and wise counsel. If you have experience a younger person lacks, offer to meet with them over coffee and share what helped you through a similar season.
1 Peter 4:10
As each has received a gift, employ it in serving one another, as good managers of the grace of God in its various forms.
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Peter reminds us that each person has received a gift to use for others. Ask yourself what gift you have that could encourage someone else, and name one way you will put it to use this week.
How to Use These Verses
Write a few of these verses on a card or in a notes app, and keep them where you will see them before a difficult conversation or a hard day. Reading one verse aloud before you text or call a struggling person can help you speak with patience and warmth.
Pray these verses over the people you love, using their names as you read. Over time, you will notice that encouraging others becomes a steady habit, shaped by Scripture and by the people God places around you.
A Short Prayer for Encouraging Others
Lord, you are the God who comforts and strengthens. Help me notice the people around me who are weary, discouraged or quietly carrying heavy burdens. Give me words that build up rather than tear down, and make my presence a gentle reminder of your care.
Show me where I can serve, listen, or offer a kind word today. Let my encouragement point others toward your faithfulness, and let my life reflect the love you have shown me. Amen.
