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hope in the Bible

“Be ready to give an answer for the Hope of Christ!” —I Peter 3:15

Hope is one of the 3 main elements of Christian character (1 Corinthians 13:13). Hope is joined to faith and love, and is opposed to seeing or possessing.

“For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees?” —Romans 8:24 NASB

“Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.” —1 John 3:2 NASB

“…He saves from the sword of their mouth,
And the poor from the hand of the mighty.
So the helpless has hope,
And unrighteousness must shut its mouth.” —Job 5:15-16 NASB

“Hope is an essential and fundamental element of Christian life, so essential indeed, that, like faith and love, it can itself designate the essence of Christianity. In it, the whole glory of the Christian vocation is centered (Ephesians 1:18; 4:4).” —Mathew G. Easton, Easton’s Bible Dictionary

“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful” —Hebrews 10:23 NASB

“…sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence…” —1 Peter 3:15 NASB

“Be strong and let your heart take courage, All you who hope in the Lord.” —Psalm 31:24 NASB

“…For I hope in You, O Lord… My hope is in You.” —Psalm 38:15; 39:7 NASB

Christ is the actual object of the believer’s hope, because it is in his second coming that the hope of glory will be fulfilled (1 Timothy 1:1; Col. 1:27; Titus 2:13).

It is spoken of as “lively,” i.e., a living, hope, a hope not frail and perishable, but having a perennial life (1 Peter 1:3). In Romans 5:2 the “hope” spoken of is probably objective, i.e., “the hope set before us,” namely, eternal life (compare 12:12).

In 1 John 3:3, the expression “hope in him” ought rather to be, as in the Revised King James Version, “hope on him,” i.e., a hope based on God.

“…everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.” —1 John 3:3 NASB

Without hope / hopeless

Unbelievers are without this hope in life or in death. All will find themselves desperate and consumed in fear, pain and eternal hopelessness. There is no release from the bottomless pit of Hell.

“…we do not want you [regenerate followers of Christ] to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope.” —1 Thessalonians 4:13 NASB

“…separate from Christ… having no hope and without God…” —Ephesians 2:12 NASB

“…what is the hope of the godless when he is cut off, when God requires his life?” —Job 27:8 NASB

“So are the paths of all who forget God… the hope of the godless will perish…” —Job 8:13 NASB

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Article Version: October 11, 2019