Limitless Word
So we say with confidence: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”
Hebrews 13:6 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB So that with good courage we say, “The Lord is my helper. I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
  • KJV So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.
  • NKJV So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
  • NASB so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?”
  • NLT So we can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?”

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Because God is our helper, we can confidently say we will not fear what people can do to us. God's presence produces courage in the face of human threats.

Overview

Building directly on the promise of verse 5, the author quotes Psalm 118:6 to express the boldness that flows from trusting God. If the Lord is the believer's helper, then human opposition loses its power to terrify. This confidence sustained the persecuted readers and rests ultimately on the God who secured our salvation in Christ.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 27

  • Ps 118:6–9The LORD is on my side; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
  • Isa 41:10Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My right hand of righteousness.
  • Rom 8:31What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
  • Ps 27:1–3Of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—whom shall I dread?
  • Ps 124:8Our help is in the name of the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.
  • Heb 4:16Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
  • Ps 56:4In God, whose word I praise—in God I trust. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
  • Ps 56:11–12in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
  • Matt 10:28Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
  • Ps 54:4Surely God is my helper; the Lord is the sustainer of my soul.
  • Ps 33:20Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield.
  • Ps 63:7For You are my help; I will sing for joy in the shadow of Your wings.
  • Dan 3:16–18Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.
  • Ps 94:17Unless the LORD had been my helper, I would soon have dwelt in the abode of silence.
  • Luke 12:4–5I tell you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more.
  • Ps 40:17But I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my helper and deliverer; O my God, do not delay.
  • Gen 15:1After these events, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.”
  • Eph 3:12In Him and through faith in Him we may enter God’s presence with boldness and confidence.
  • Deut 33:29Blessed are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD? He is the shield that protects you, the sword in which you boast. Your enemies will cower before you, and you shall trample their high places.”
  • Isa 41:14Do not fear, O worm of Jacob, O few men of Israel. I will help you,” declares the LORD. “Your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
  • Ps 27:9Hide not Your face from me, nor turn away Your servant in anger. You have been my helper; do not leave me or forsake me, O God of my salvation.
  • Ps 115:9–11O Israel, trust in the LORD! He is their help and shield.
  • Exod 18:4The other son was named Eliezer, for Moses had said, “The God of my father was my helper and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.”
  • Ps 146:3Put not your trust in princes, in mortal man, who cannot save.
  • Deut 33:26“There is none like the God of Jeshurun, who rides the heavens to your aid, and the clouds in His majesty.
  • Heb 10:19Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus,
  • Ps 18:1–2For the choirmaster. Of David the servant of the LORD, who sang this song to the LORD on the day the LORD had delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said: I love You, O LORD, my strength.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Hebrews videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Hebrews 13:6YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on HebrewsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Hebrews is sustained worship of Christ: better than angels, Moses, and the priests; the great High Priest after Melchizedek who by one sacrifice perfects forever those he saves.

How Hebrews 13:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.