The Covid-19 virus pandemic is a serious global health problem and causes widespread fear among Christians. The Bible is not silent. God is speaking in the Holy Scriptures. Churches can respond and share God’s love even when the building is closed. Here are some key scriptures and prayers to share with your family, congregation, or friends during this public health crisis.
God’s Word is not silent!
What does the Bible say about Covid-19 virus?
Use these Bible Verses for encouragement and wisdom about COVID-19. Quotes from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
God can heals all your diseases (Psalm 103:2-4)
Bible Verse about COVID 19 Coronavirus:
Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion. (Psalm 103:2-4)
The Bible says wash your hands (James 4:8)
Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” (James 4:8)
This one is a stretch since the scripture is using a metaphor to describe repentance, but if you are look for “wash your hands” because of Covid-19 in the Bible this is the best quote.
Jesus asks: “Why do you worry?” (Luke 12:25-26)
Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? (Luke 12:25-26)
Many people are worried about Covid-19 virus, but this is a time to trust in GOD.
The Bible tells us to number our days (Psalm 90:12)
Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. (Psalm 90:12)
Times of crisis are used by God to give us wisdom about the value of each day
God says do not be anxious (Philippians 4:6)
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God (Philippians 4:6)
Fear is natural, faith is supernatural. Remember what God’s Word said
All who touched Jesus where healed (Mark 6:56)
And wherever He went–villages and towns and countrysides–they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged Him to let them just touch the fringe of His cloak. And all who touched Him were healed (Mark 6:56)
Touching is a dangerous act with the fear of Covid-19 virus, but a touch from Jesus would heal any disease
God says, “Do not fear — for I AM with you” (Isaiah 41:10)
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)
Even for those who become very sick — God promises to be present with them and uphold their live with his power.
Christians can pray “Guard my life” (Psalm 86:3)
Guard my life, for I am faithful to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God; have mercy on me, Lord, for I call to you all day long. (Psalm 86:3)
Guard my life from the Corona virus — Bible Verse
The Bible says wisdom is found in the house of morning (Ecclesiastes 7:2)
It is better to enter a house of mourning than a house of feasting, since death is the end of every man, and the living should take this to heart. (Ecclesiastes 7:2)
God’s Word always points to death as a source of wisdom
Where does the Bible mention COVID-19?
There are many un-named plagues in the Bible, but none of them are exact matches for this modern pandemic.
Revelation 6:8 I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.
Jeremiah 29:17 This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “I will send against them sword, famine, and plague, and I will make them like rotten figs, so bad that they cannot be eaten.
Ezekiel 5:12 A third of your people will die by plague or be consumed by famine within you, a third will fall by the sword outside your walls, and a third I will scatter to every wind and unleash a sword behind them.
It’s best to follow the principles God’s Word gives for any source of fear and disaster.
*Christians have a higher duty to the truth than our secular neighbors because of the ninth commandment (“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor,” Ex. 20:16). This commandment, reiterated in the New Testament (Matt. 15:19–20; Eph. 4:25), bars us from committing any act that might bring undeserved suffering on another person, especially through speech. As the Westminster Catechism says, “The duties required in the ninth commandment are, the preserving and promoting of truth between man and man, . . . ; appearing and standing for the truth; and from the heart, sincerely, freely, clearly, and fully, speaking the truth, and only the truth, in matters of judgment and justice, and in all other things whatsoever; . . . discouraging talebearers, flatterers, and slanderers; love and care of our own good name, and defending it when need requireth; . . . studying and practicing of whatsoever things are true, honest, lovely, and of good report.”
What else does the Bible say about Covid-19?
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34
Guard my life, for I am faithful to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God; have mercy on me, Lord, for I call to you all day long. Psalm 86:3
Compare these Bible verses in other translations like the KJV on BibleHub.
You can also read a list of KJV Bible Verses about Coronavirus
Is Coronavirus a Biblical Plague from in the Book of Revelation?
So, is COVID-19 one of the seven plagues mentioned in Revelation 16-17? While it might be tempting to try and identify this virus with one of those plagues, I believe there are a couple of reasons not to. The first reason is that these seven plagues are identified as the completion of God’s wrath, and the plagues seem directed solely towards those who belong to the kingdom of the Antichrist. But this virus is not as discriminating. There seems to be no one who is immune to it. Saint and skeptic alike are affected by it.
A second reason to doubt that it is one of the plagues of Revelation is that we know the source of this virus. As many of the coronaviruses do, it jumped from an animal to a human and spread from there. COVID-19 is simply more contagious than most, as well as generally more deadly.
To all appearances, COVID-19 seems to be just a natural event rather than a supernatural action of God. It is an event that is not unique in history but is, apart from its severity, rather common. It is even something that our infectious disease experts have been anticipating, and warning us about, for many years.
Do Christians and Pastors consider this an End Times prophecy?
You may have saw the news about Ralph Drollinger, but his opinions are not widely held in Christian circles.
MARCH 21, 2020 BY RALPH DROLLINGER Some leading evangelicals believe and teach that America is now experiencing God’s judgment. If that is the case, as a public servant who is sacrificing so much in your attempt to turn our nation around, it would stand to reason—if those Evangelical leaders are correct—that you are wasting your time. Are you laboring against a foregone conclusion? I think not. But let me qualify that: I do not believe America is experiencing the forsaking wrath of God, but yes, American is experiencing the consequential wrath of God.
But some who study religion and prophecies for a living say it’s time for these social media prophets and psychics to take a self-enforced quarantine. Doomsayers are harming peoples’ spiritual and psychological health, they say.They’re also claiming knowledge that even the most revered figures in religion didn’t dare assume. Whenever Ulrich Lehner, a Catholic theologian at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, comes across a social media preacher warning that Covid-19 means the end of the world is near, he’s tempted to tweet back this response: “Matthew 24:36.”
That’s the passage when Jesus says about the end of the world: “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.””Jesus himself said, ‘You don’t know the hour,’ yet some self-appointed prophets today seem to know more than the angels around God’s throne,” Lehner says.Lehner says some of the doomsday prophets may be driven by another sin: pride.Read more from John Blake:
“Perhaps in these guys who create mass panic there is also a certain pride, a bloated self-confidence that ‘I have some special insight,”’ says Lehner, author of “God is Not Nice: Rejecting Pop Culture Theology and Discovering the God Worth Living For.””If that’s not devilish, I don’t know what is.”
I thank God for those in the medical science field who are searching for a solution to COVID-19. I am also grateful for political leaders who are attempting to provide direction that will keep the general citizenry informed, calm and peaceful. But I realize that those of us who are in pastoral ministry have a great responsibility before God to provide the spiritual leadership necessary to guide America through this tragic circumstance.
Certainly, there is no lack of secular advice being given as to how to approach COVID-19. But I believe the ultimate approach should be from the biblical perspective that presents God’s way of dealing with this issue. Yes, we need to look at COVID-19 through the eyes of a biblical worldview.