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Bible verses for Thanksgiving
Grateful passages for Thanksgiving Day, harvest celebrations, and family gatherings — verses on gratitude, provision, and giving thanks in all circumstances.
What are the best Bible verses for Thanksgiving?
Thanksgiving runs deeper in the Bible than a single holiday. Scripture commands gratitude as a posture of the whole life — in plenty and in want, in joy and in suffering. The psalms alone contain more than fifty explicit calls to give thanks.
These verses are chosen for Thanksgiving services, dinner table readings, and social media posts. They connect the American tradition of giving thanks to the much older biblical tradition of gratitude as worship, remembrance, and trust.
Key passages
"Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name."
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving — the classic Thanksgiving psalm. This verse speaks in the wider setting of prayer and praise as Psalms unfolds its message.
"In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."
In every thing give thanks — Paul’s universal call to gratitude. We are to rejoice in creature-comforts, as if we rejoiced not, and must not expect to live many years, and rejoice in them all; but if we do rejoice in God, we may do that evermore.
"O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever."
O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good. In these verses there is reference to the deliverance from Egypt, and perhaps that from Babylon: but the circumstances of travellers in those countries are also noted.
"And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful."
Be ye thankful — gratitude as a basic command of community life. We must not only do no hurt to any, but do what good we can to all. Those who are the elect of God, holy and beloved, ought to be lowly and compassionate towards all.
"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."
With thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. Let believers be of one mind, and ready to help each other. As the apostle had found the benefit of their assistance, he knew how comfortable it would be to his fellow-labourers to have the help of others.
"O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever."
His mercy endureth for ever — the great refrain of thanksgiving. Forgetful as we are, things must be often repeated to us.
Main takeaways
- Biblical gratitude is a discipline and a command, not just a feeling.
- Giving thanks in Scripture is an act of worship that acknowledges God as the source of all good.
- The Bible calls for thanksgiving in all circumstances, not only comfortable ones.
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