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.
New Year Bible Verses
The Bible does not promise you a perfect year, but it does promise a faithful God for every day of it. His mercies “are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:23). Here are verses for looking back with gratitude, looking ahead with trust and making plans with open hands.
A verse for you
Lamentations 3:22-23
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.
KJV16 New year Bible verses
Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.
Do not cling even to God’s great deeds in the past. He is doing a new thing, even in the wilderness.
So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
A prayer for any milestone, a birthday or a new year: teach us to count our days, so that we grow wise.
Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
Everything else changes; Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and for ever.
Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
Forget what is behind and press on toward what is ahead.
Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.
A morning prayer for direction: let me hear Your kindness, and show me the way I should walk.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
In Christ you are a new creation. The old has passed away.
A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps.
You make the plans, and the Lord directs the steps.
Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
Make plans, but hold them humbly: if the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.
But I trusted in thee, O Lord: I said, Thou art my God. My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me.
In the middle of danger, a simple confession: You are my God, and my times are in Your hand.
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
There is a season for everything, and every season is in God’s hands.
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.
Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness.
A harvest psalm: God crowns the year with His goodness. A fitting line for a new year of life.
Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
God finishes what He starts. The good work in you will be completed.
And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
The One on the throne says: behold, I make all things new.
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Jesus invites you to carry only today. Tomorrow’s troubles can wait for tomorrow.
What the Bible says
New Year’s Day is a date on our calendar, not a feast in the Bible, but Scripture is full of new starts: mercies new every morning, a new thing springing up in the wilderness (Isaiah 43:19), a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). It invites you to bring both the year behind you and the year ahead to God.
Looking back. Isaiah says, “Remember ye not the former things,” not because the past does not matter, but because God is not limited by it. Paul, who had plenty to regret, describes “forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before.” Gratitude belongs here too: Psalm 65 praises the God who “crownest the year with thy goodness,” a harvest song for a year already received.
Looking ahead. Plans and resolutions are good. “A man’s heart deviseth his way,” says Proverbs, and adds, “but the Lord directeth his steps.” James is blunter: you do not know what tomorrow holds, so say “If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.” That is not fatalism; it is planning with open hands. And Psalm 90 asks for the wisdom to “number our days,” to spend the time we have on what matters.
None of these verses promises that the coming year will be easy or prosperous. If last year was hard and the new one already feels heavy, you are not behind. The promise is a Person: “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever,” who goes before you into whatever the year holds (Deuteronomy 31:8).
A prayer
Faithful God, thank You for carrying me through the year behind me, its joys and its losses. Your mercies are new this morning too. I lay my plans for this year before You; my heart devises my way, but You direct my steps. Teach me to number my days and to spend them well. Whatever this year holds, You are the same yesterday, today and forever, and You go before me. Amen.
Questions people ask
What is a good Bible verse for the New Year?
Lamentations 3:22-23 for God’s faithfulness each morning, Isaiah 43:18-19 for a fresh start, and Psalm 90:12 for using the year well: “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”
Does the Bible promise a good year?
Not in the sense of a year without trouble. Jesus said plainly that in the world we will have tribulation (John 16:33). What Scripture promises is God’s presence and faithfulness in every season. Jeremiah 29:11, often shared at New Year, was written to exiles facing seventy years away from home; see our page on it.
Is it biblical to make New Year’s resolutions?
Making plans is wise (Proverbs 16:3, Luke 14:28). The Bible adds humility: commit the plans to God, hold them loosely, and say “If the Lord will” (James 4:15). Resolutions work best as a response to grace, not a way to earn it.
What verse can I send in a New Year message?
Short ones work best: Lamentations 3:22-23, Hebrews 13:8 or the blessing of Numbers 6:24-26, “The Lord bless thee, and keep thee.” Use the Share button to send it as an image.
Keep exploring
Bible Verses for New BeginningsThe Bible verses for new beginnings people choose most are Isaiah 43:18-19, 2 Corinthians…Bible Verses for GuidanceThe Bible verses most often prayed for guidance are Proverbs 3:5-6, Psalm 32:8 and James…Bible Verses for HopeThe Bible verses for hope people hold on to most are Romans 15:13, Jeremiah 29:11 and…Jeremiah 29:11Jeremiah 29:11 is one of the most loved promises in the Bible.Bible Verses About WisdomThe Bible treats wisdom as something you can ask for.Christmas Bible VersesThe best-known Christmas Bible verses are Luke 2:10-11, Isaiah 9:6 and Matthew 1:23.