Debt feels like chains you can’t see but carry everywhere. Every paycheck already belongs to someone else before you even touch it. Credit card interest compounds while you’re trying to pay down the principal. Student loans follow you for decades. Car payments, medical bills, mortgage debt, it all adds up until you’re working just to service obligations rather than actually building anything. The freedom everyone talks about feels like a distant fantasy.
Getting into debt happened gradually, sometimes through poor choices and sometimes through circumstances you couldn’t control. Medical emergencies don’t ask permission. Job losses don’t care about your budget. Life happens, and debt becomes the band-aid that turns into a permanent fixture. Now you’re stuck in a cycle where minimum payments keep you treading water but never actually make progress, and the shame of it all makes you avoid looking at the numbers.
The Bible speaks directly to debt, not with judgment but with wisdom and a clear path toward freedom. Scripture doesn’t shame you for being in debt, but it does warn about staying there and offers principles that have helped people break free for thousands of years. These verses won’t magically erase your balance, but they’ll give you hope and strategy for the journey out.
Bible Verses About Getting Out of Debt
1. Proverbs 22:7 – The Borrower Is Slave to the Lender
The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.
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2. Romans 13:8 – Let No Debt Remain Outstanding
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.
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3. Psalm 37:21 – The Wicked Borrow and Do Not Repay
The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously.
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4. Proverbs 21:5 – The Plans of the Diligent Lead to Profit
The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.
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5. Luke 14:28 – Count the Cost
Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?
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6. Proverbs 6:1-5 – Free Yourself Like a Gazelle
My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor, if you have shaken hands in pledge for a stranger, you have been trapped by what you said, ensnared by the words of your mouth. So do this, my son, to free yourself, since you have fallen into your neighbor’s hands: Go—to the point of exhaustion—and give your neighbor no rest! Allow no sleep to your eyes, no slumber to your eyelids. Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the snare of the fowler.
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7. Philippians 4:19 – My God Will Meet All Your Needs
And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.
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8. Proverbs 13:11 – Dishonest Money Dwindles Away
Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.
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9. Matthew 6:24 – You Cannot Serve Both God and Money
No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
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10. Proverbs 11:15 – Whoever Puts Up Security Suffers
Whoever puts up security for a stranger will surely suffer, but whoever refuses to shake hands in pledge is safe.
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11. 2 Kings 4:1-7 – The Widow’s Oil
The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.” Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?” “Your servant has nothing there at all,” she said, “except a small jar of olive oil.”
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12. Proverbs 3:9-10 – Honor the Lord with Your Wealth
Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.
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13. Psalm 50:14-15 – Call on Me in the Day of Trouble
Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.
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14. Proverbs 22:26-27 – Do Not Be One Who Shakes Hands in Pledge
Do not be one who shakes hands in pledge or puts up security for debts; if you lack the means to pay, your very bed will be snatched from under you.
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15. Hebrews 13:5 – Keep Your Lives Free from the Love of Money
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
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16. Proverbs 28:8 – Whoever Increases Wealth by Interest
Whoever increases wealth by taking interest or profit from the poor amasses it for another, who will be kind to the poor.
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17. Matthew 6:33 – Seek First His Kingdom
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
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18. Proverbs 21:20 – The Wise Store Up Choice Food
The wise store up choice food and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down.
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19. Luke 16:10 – Whoever Can Be Trusted with Very Little
Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.
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20. Proverbs 14:23 – All Hard Work Brings a Profit
All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty.
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21. James 1:5 – If Any of You Lacks Wisdom
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.
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22. Deuteronomy 28:12 – You Will Lend to Many Nations
The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none.
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23. Proverbs 27:23 – Know the Condition of Your Flocks
Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds.
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24. 1 Timothy 6:6-8 – Godliness with Contentment
But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.
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25. Proverbs 15:22 – Plans Fail for Lack of Counsel
Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.
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26. Psalm 37:4-5 – Delight Yourself in the Lord
Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this.
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27. Proverbs 10:22 – The Blessing of the Lord Brings Wealth
The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, without painful toil for it.
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28. Malachi 3:10 – Bring the Whole Tithe
Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.
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29. Proverbs 28:20 – A Faithful Person Will Be Richly Blessed
A faithful person will be richly blessed, but one eager to get rich will not go unpunished.
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30. Nehemiah 5:11 – Give Back to Them Immediately
Give back to them immediately their fields, vineyards, olive groves and houses, and also the interest you are charging them—one percent of the money, grain, new wine and olive oil.
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31. Proverbs 16:3 – Commit to the Lord Whatever You Do
Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.
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32. 2 Corinthians 9:8 – God Is Able to Bless You Abundantly
And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
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33. Proverbs 12:24 – Diligent Hands Will Rule
Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in forced labor.
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34. Psalm 112:5 – Good Will Come to Those Who Are Generous
Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely, who conduct their affairs with justice.
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35. Proverbs 13:22 – A Good Person Leaves an Inheritance
A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children, but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous.
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Our Thoughts On What the Bible Says About Getting Out of Debt
Proverbs describes debt as slavery for good reason. When you owe money, your choices aren’t fully your own. You can’t quit a toxic job because you need the income. You can’t pursue opportunities because you’re locked into payments. You can’t be as generous as you’d like because creditors have first claim. The Bible’s opposition to debt isn’t moralistic finger-wagging but protective wisdom about maintaining your freedom to follow God’s leading without financial chains holding you back.
Getting out of debt requires both supernatural help and practical action. The widow in 2 Kings had nothing but oil, yet God multiplied it miraculously to pay her debts. But notice she still had to gather jars, pour the oil, and sell it. Divine provision and human responsibility worked together. Scripture consistently emphasizes diligence, planning, and living below your means as the practical side of debt freedom. Miracles happen, but usually alongside wise stewardship and hard work.
Contentment is also crucial. Debt often starts because you want things now that you can’t yet afford. Breaking free means learning to delay gratification, distinguish needs from wants, and find satisfaction in what you have rather than constantly reaching for more. That’s countercultural in a society built on credit and consumption, but it’s the only way to stop the cycle. Financial freedom isn’t just about the math. It’s about changed priorities and a transformed relationship with money.
Say This Prayer
Father, this debt feels overwhelming, and I’m asking for Your help to get free from it. I know I made some poor choices that contributed to this situation, but I also know that circumstances beyond my control played a role. Either way, I’m here now, and I need Your wisdom, provision, and strength to find my way out.
Show me a clear path forward. Give me the discipline to stop creating new debt while I’m paying off the old. Help me to make a realistic plan and stick to it even when it’s uncomfortable. If there are expenses I need to cut, jobs I should pursue, or help I need to ask for, make those things clear to me.
Provide in ways I can’t predict or orchestrate. Multiply my resources like You did for the widow with the oil. Open doors for extra income, unexpected refunds, or opportunities I haven’t thought of. Keep me from discouragement when progress feels slow, and remind me that every payment moves me closer to freedom.
Most importantly, change my heart about money so that once I’m free from debt, I don’t end up back in the same place. Teach me contentment, generosity, and wisdom.
In Jesus’ liberating name, Amen.
Evang. Anabelle Thompson is the founder of Believers Refuge, a Scripture-based resource that helps Christians to find biblical guidance for life’s challenges.
With over 15 years of ministry experience and a decade of dedicated Bible study, she creates content that connects believers with relevant Scripture for their daily struggles.
Her work has reached over 76,000 monthly readers (which is projected to reach 100,000 readers by the end of 2025) seeking practical faith applications, biblical encouragement, and spiritual guidance rooted in God’s Word.
She writes from personal experience, having walked through seasons of waiting, breakthrough, and spiritual growth that inform her teaching.
Evang. Thompson brings 12 years of active ministry and evangelism experience, along with over 10 years of systematic Bible study and theological research.
As a former small group leader and Sunday school teacher, she has published over 200 biblical resources and devotional studies.
She specializes in applying Scripture to everyday life challenges and regularly studies the original Hebrew and Greek texts for a deeper biblical understanding.