The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
God is not far from a broken heart. He comes close to it.
Bible Verses About Depression
Bible verses that many people with depression hold on to are Psalm 34:18, Matthew 11:28-30 and Psalm 42:11. If you are living with depression, the Bible does not ask you to pretend you are fine. It is full of people who prayed from the dark, and it says, “The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart.”
A verse for you
Psalm 34:18
The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
God is not far from a broken heart. He comes close to it.
KJV17 Bible verses about depression
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Jesus calls the tired and overloaded to come to Him: His yoke is easy and His burden is light.
From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
A prayer for when your heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.
Even the darkness is not dark to God. Where you feel most hidden, He still sees you.
He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.
God heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.
The Lord goes ahead of you and stays with you. You are not walking alone.
Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.
An honest question to your own soul, answered with hope in God.
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
God promises His presence, His strength and His help when fear is loud.
And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat. And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee.
Elijah, exhausted and wishing he could die, is not scolded: God lets him sleep, gives him food and water, and says the journey ahead is too great for him.
I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.
David remembers a long, dark wait: God heard him and lifted him out of the pit. The waiting is part of the story too.
When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.
Not a promise that you will avoid the waters, but that God will be with you in them.
For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.
Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes in the morning. Sorrow is real, and it is not the last word.
It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
Written after disaster: God’s mercies have not run out. They are new every morning.
We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;
Troubled on every side, yet not distressed; cast down, but not destroyed. The pressure is real, but it is not the end.
For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Nothing in life or death can separate you from the love of God in Christ.
O Lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee: Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry; For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.
A psalm prayed from deep darkness that ends with no happy turn. It is in the Bible, so you can pray your darkness too.
My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.
Written by someone whose body and heart were giving out: God remains the strength of the heart when everything else fails.
What the Bible says
Depression is a real illness, not a lack of faith and not a punishment for sin. It can follow grief or hardship or arrive with no clear reason, and it touches believers as much as anyone. The Bible does not use the word, but it knows the experience. “Why art thou cast down, O my soul?” the psalmist asks, and he asks it three times across Psalms 42 and 43, still waiting for the answer.
Some of Scripture’s most faithful people despaired. Elijah, right after his greatest victory, sat under a tree and asked to die (1 Kings 19:4). God did not lecture him. He let him sleep, sent food and water, and said, “Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee.” Only later did God speak, not in the wind, the earthquake or the fire, but in “a still small voice.” Job cursed the day he was born, and at the end God said Job had spoken rightly of Him, unlike the friends who blamed him (Job 42:7). Jeremiah asked why he had ever come out of the womb (Jeremiah 20:18). Psalm 88 ends in darkness with no happy turn, and it is still in the Bible as a prayer. In Gethsemane Jesus Himself said, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death.”
These stories are honest about what faith does and does not do. Faith does not switch depression off, and the Bible never promises that it will lift by a certain date. What it does promise is presence: “the darkness hideth not from thee” (Psalm 139:12), and nothing in life or death can separate you from God’s love (Romans 8:38-39). Be wary of anyone who tells you that depression means you are not praying or trusting enough. That was the mistake of Job’s friends.
Getting help is part of caring for the life God gave you, not a sign of weak faith. Doctors, counselors, therapy and medication are compatible with faith, and many Christians have been helped by them; Elijah’s first care was sleep and food. Talk to your doctor, tell someone you trust, and let your church carry some of the weight with you. If you ever feel unsafe or think about ending your life, reach out right away: in the US, call or text 988; elsewhere, call your local emergency number.
A prayer
Lord, You are near to the brokenhearted, and I need You near. Some days I cannot feel anything, and I do not know what to pray; hear me anyway. When my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Thank You that even the darkness is not dark to You, and that nothing can separate me from Your love. Give me rest, give me people who will sit with me, and give me the courage to ask for help. Amen.
Questions people ask
Does the Bible say depression is a sin or a lack of faith?
No. The Bible shows faithful people in deep despair, Elijah, Job, Jeremiah and the psalmists, and God meets them with care, not condemnation. When Job’s friends insisted his suffering must be his fault, God said they were wrong (Job 42:7). Depression is an illness, and having it says nothing about the strength of your faith.
Is it okay for a Christian to take antidepressants or see a therapist?
Yes. Luke was “the beloved physician” (Colossians 4:14), Paul advised Timothy on a remedy for his frequent illnesses (1 Timothy 5:23), and Scripture nowhere forbids medical care. Medication, therapy, prayer and the support of a church can all work together. Decisions about medicine are best made with your doctor.
Who in the Bible struggled with depression?
The word is modern, but the experience is there: Elijah asking to die under the juniper tree (1 Kings 19:4), Job cursing his birth (Job 3), Jeremiah lamenting the day he was born (Jeremiah 20:14-18), the writers of Psalms 42, 43 and 88, and Jesus in Gethsemane, “exceeding sorrowful, even unto death” (Matthew 26:38).
What verse can I send to someone who is depressed?
Choose presence over instruction: Psalm 34:18, Matthew 11:28 or Psalm 139:11-12, rather than verses that tell them to rejoice. Then do what Job’s friends did best before they spoke: be there (Job 2:13), and “weep with them that weep” (Romans 12:15). If you are worried about their safety, ask them directly and help them reach a crisis line.
Where can I get help right now if I am thinking about ending my life?
If you are in danger or thinking about ending your life, please reach out now. In the US, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, free and open day and night. Outside the US, call your local emergency number. Then tell someone you trust; you do not have to carry this alone.
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