Hope feels like a luxury you can’t afford when you’re barely surviving. You’re running on empty, stretched beyond capacity, and the future looks more threatening than promising. The strength you had is gone, depleted by relentless challenges that won’t let up. You’re tired of people telling you to stay strong or keep hoping when they have no idea what you’re actually dealing with or how long you’ve already been fighting. Their encouragement feels hollow when you’re at the end of your rope with nothing left to give.
What makes this season particularly crushing is the combination of weakness and hopelessness. You can handle being weak if there’s hope things will improve, and you can endure hopelessness temporarily if you have strength to push through. But when both are gone simultaneously, when you’re too exhausted to keep going and can’t see any reason to try, survival itself becomes questionable. You need more than motivational speeches. You need supernatural intervention, divine strength that doesn’t depend on your reserves, and hope anchored in something more reliable than your circumstances.
These verses speak to God as the source of hope and strength when yours is completely depleted, offering resources that don’t run out when you’re running on empty.
Bible Verses About Hope and Strength
1. Isaiah 40:31 – But Those Who Hope in the Lord
But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
New International Version (NIV)
2. Psalm 46:1 – God Is Our Refuge and Strength
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
New King James Version (NKJV)
3. Romans 15:13 – May the God of Hope Fill You
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
New Living Translation (NLT)
4. Jeremiah 29:11 – For I Know the Plans
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
New International Version (NIV)
5. Philippians 4:13 – I Can Do All Things
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
New King James Version (NKJV)
6. Psalm 31:24 – Be Strong and Take Heart
So be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the Lord!
New Living Translation (NLT)
7. Romans 5:3-5 – Not Only So, but We Also Glory
Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
New International Version (NIV)
8. Nehemiah 8:10 – Do Not Sorrow
Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.
New King James Version (NKJV)
9. Psalm 147:11 – The Lord Delights
The Lord’s delight is in those who fear him, those who put their hope in his unfailing love.
New Living Translation (NLT)
10. Lamentations 3:21-23 – Yet This I Call to Mind
Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
New International Version (NIV)
11. 2 Corinthians 12:9 – And He Said to Me
And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”
New King James Version (NKJV)
12. Psalm 62:5 – Let All That I Am Wait Quietly
Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him.
New Living Translation (NLT)
13. Hebrews 6:19 – We Have This Hope
We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
New International Version (NIV)
14. Psalm 73:26 – My Flesh and My Heart Fail
My flesh and my heart fail; but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
New King James Version (NKJV)
15. Romans 12:12 – Be Joyful in Hope
Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.
New Living Translation (NLT)
16. Psalm 33:20 – We Wait in Hope for the Lord
We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.
New International Version (NIV)
17. Ephesians 6:10 – Finally, My Brethren
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
New King James Version (NKJV)
18. Psalm 39:7 – And So, Lord, Where Do I Put My Hope?
And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you.
New Living Translation (NLT)
19. 1 Peter 1:3 – Praise Be to the God
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
New International Version (NIV)
20. Isaiah 41:10 – Fear Not, for I Am with You
Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.
New King James Version (NKJV)
21. Psalm 42:11 – Why Am I Discouraged?
Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again—my Savior and my God!
New Living Translation (NLT)
22. Romans 8:24-25 – For in This Hope We Were Saved
For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
New International Version (NIV)
23. Psalm 18:2 – The Lord Is My Rock
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust.
New King James Version (NKJV)
24. Colossians 1:27 – Christ in You, the Hope of Glory
For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.
New Living Translation (NLT)
25. Psalm 27:14 – Wait for the Lord
Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.
New International Version (NIV)
26. 2 Samuel 22:33 – God Is My Strength
God is my strength and power, and He makes my way perfect.
New King James Version (NKJV)
27. Titus 2:13 – While We Wait for the Blessed Hope
While we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed.
New Living Translation (NLT)
28. Psalm 130:5 – I Wait for the Lord
I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.
New International Version (NIV)
29. Habakkuk 3:19 – The Lord God Is My Strength
The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills.
New King James Version (NKJV)
30. Romans 5:5 – And Hope Does Not Disappoint
And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
New Living Translation (NLT)
31. Proverbs 18:10 – The Name of the Lord
The name of the Lord is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.
New International Version (NIV)
32. Psalm 28:7 – The Lord Is My Strength
The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him.
New King James Version (NKJV)
33. Hebrews 10:23 – Let Us Hold Unswervingly
Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.
New Living Translation (NLT)
34. Psalm 71:5 – For You Have Been My Hope
For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth.
New International Version (NIV)
35. Joel 3:16 – The Lord Will Be a Refuge
The Lord also will roar from Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem; the heavens and earth will shake; but the Lord will be a shelter for His people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
New King James Version (NKJV)
Our Thoughts On What the Bible Says About Hope and Strength
Biblical hope isn’t wishful thinking or optimistic feelings but confident expectation based on God’s character and promises. It’s hope that doesn’t disappoint because it’s anchored in Someone who is faithful, not in circumstances cooperating. When Scripture says those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, it’s connecting hope to supernatural empowerment that comes from outside yourself. You’re not generating strength through positive thinking but receiving it from God as you wait on Him with expectant trust.
What’s crucial to understand is that God’s strength is made perfect in weakness. When you’re depleted, when you have nothing left, you’re positioned to experience His power in ways you never could when you were relying on your own resources. The call to be strong in the Lord and the power of His might acknowledges that strength for the Christian life doesn’t come from willpower or determination but from divine enablement. You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you, not through your natural abilities.
Hope and strength in Scripture are consistently future-oriented and present-focused simultaneously. You have hope for what’s coming (God’s plans for your future, the return of Christ, eternal glory) that gives you strength to endure now. The joy of the Lord becomes your strength. Hope produces perseverance which develops character. These aren’t abstract concepts but practical resources for surviving and thriving through difficulty.
Say This Prayer
Father, I’m out of hope and completely depleted of strength. I’ve been running on empty for so long that I don’t know how to keep going. I need You to be my source of both because I have nothing left in myself. Renew my strength as I wait on You. Fill me completely with hope through the power of Your Spirit.
Help me to understand that my weakness isn’t disqualifying but the precise place where Your strength is made perfect. Teach me to stop trying to generate strength through my own effort and instead to draw from Your unlimited resources. When I’m discouraged and my heart is sad, help me to put my hope in You and praise You again.
Be my refuge and my fortress, my help and my shield. Uphold me with Your righteous right hand. Give me hope anchored in Your character and promises, hope that doesn’t disappoint because it’s based on who You are rather than on my circumstances. Sustain me through this season that feels impossible. Let Your joy be my strength and Your faithfulness be my confidence.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.