At the end of 2019, my uncle was diagnosed with cancer and had to undergo seven weeks of inpatient treatment at a cancer treatment center about three hours away. I didn’t know if I would see him while he was gone, but I wanted to do something meaningful to encourage him during that difficult, uncertain time. So, I came up with 49 Bible verses for cancer patients and created handmade Bible verse cards for him to take with him — one for each day he’d be away.

When my mom was diagnosed with cancer in 2002 and again in 2007, the Word of God carried me through her diagnosis and eventual death. I pray that the following list of Bible verses for cancer patients and their family members and loved ones will be an encouragement and blessing to you, too.

 

49 Bible Verses for Cancer Patients and Their Loved Ones

 

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?’” ~ John 11:25-26, NIV

 

“The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” ~ Exodus 14:14, NIV

 

+++

FEATURED RESOURCES

 

kate motaung

LETTERS TO GRIEF

Click here to purchase

101 PRAYERS FOR COMFORT IN DIFFICULT TIMES

Click here to purchase

Affiliate links used in this post

 

For a sneak peek inside the book, Letters to Grief,
here is a two-minute video of me reading the first letter from the book:

 

+++

 

“Be still, and know that I am God.” ~ Psalm 46:10a, ESV

 

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” ~ 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, NIV

 

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” ~ Ephesians 3:20-21

 

bible verses for cancer

 

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” ~ Psalm 46:1, NIV

 

“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.” ~ Lamentations 3:22-23, NIV

 

“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 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.” ~ Isaiah 40:28-31, NIV

 

“Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.” ~ Isaiah 55:6, NIV

 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” ~ Matthew 11:28-30, NIV

 

RELATED POST: When Cancer Comes

 

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” ~ Romans 5:8, NIV

 

PIN THIS:

bible verses for cancer

 

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” ~ Romans 15:13, NIV

 

“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.” ~ Romans 15:4, NIV

 

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” ~ 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, NIV

 

“Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” ~ 2 Corinthians 12:8-10, NIV

 

bible verses for cancer

 

“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” ~ Ephesians 3:16-19, NIV

 

“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” ~ Colossians 3:2, NIV

 

“Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer.
From the ends of the earth I call to you,
I call as my heart grows faint;
lead me to the rock that is higher than I.”

~ Psalm 61:1-2, NIV

 

 

“Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out hour hearts to him, for God is our refuge.” ~ Psalm 62:5-8, NIV

 

“On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night. Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.” ~ Psalm 64:6-8, NIV

 

“For God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.” ~ Psalm 48:19, NIV

 

prayers for comfort

101 Prayers for Comfort in Difficult Times

ORDER HERE

 

+++

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

~ Psalm 23:1-4, ESV

 

“When I am afraid, I will trust in you.” ~ Psalm 56:3, NIV

 

“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” ~ Psalm 73:26, NIV

 

“Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.” ~ Psalm 105:4, NIV

 

“The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The Lord protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, he saved me.” ~ Psalm 116:5-6, NIV

 

“I lift my eyes up to the hills—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” ~ Psalm 121:1-2, NIV

 

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” ~ Isaiah 41:10, NIV

 

do not fear

 

“The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” ~ Deuteronomy 31:8, NIV

 

“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.” ~ John 3:36, NIV

 

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” ~ John 3:16, NIV

 

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved . . . .” ~ Acts 16:31, NIV

 

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” ~ John 14:27, NIV

 

peace

 

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” ~ 1 Corinthians 10:31, NIV

 

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.”

~ Proverbs 3:5-6, NIV

 

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?  Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” ~ Matthew 6:25-27, NIV

 

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” ~ Matthew 6:34, NIV

 

“Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven.” ~ Psalm 107:28-30, NIV

 

“The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” ~ Isaiah 40:8, NIV

 

scriptures about hope

 

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” ~ 1 Peter 5:7, NIV

 

“And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” ~ Philippians 4:7, ESV

 

“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.” ~ 1 John 3:16a, NIV

 

“This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” ~ 1 John 4:9-10, NIV

 

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” ~ 1 Peter 4:18a, NIV

 

“In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me.” ~ Psalm 120:1, ESV

 

+++

My memoir, A Place to Land: A Story of Longing and Belonging,
includes an account of hope in the midst of a terminal cancer diagnosis:

A Place to Land

ORDER YOUR SIGNED COPY HERE

 

+++

 

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” ~ John 16:33, NIV

 

“In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me.” ~ Psalm 120:1, ESV

 

“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” ~ Romans 8:38-39, ESV

 

““But ask the animals, and they will teach you,
or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you;
or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,
or let the fish in the sea inform you.
Which of all these does not know
that the hand of the Lord has done this?
In his hand is the life of every creature
and the breath of all mankind.”

~ Job 12:7-10, NIV

 

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’” ~ Revelation 21:3-4, NIV

 

What other encouraging Bible verses for cancer patients would you add to this list?