Prayers for Healing: Scripture-Based Prayers for the Sick

How the Bible teaches us to pray for healing

The Bible never tells sick people to stay quiet. The psalms are full of honest cries from sickbeds, and the prophet Jeremiah prays one of the simplest healing prayers in Scripture: Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved, for you are my praise (Jeremiah 17:14).

James tells the church exactly what to do when someone is ill: ask for prayer, and do it together.

When a man with leprosy knelt before Jesus and said, "If you will, you can make me clean," Jesus was moved with pity, touched him and said, "I will; be clean" (Mark 1:40–41). You can bring your request to a God who cares.

“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up.”

— James 5:14–15

A prayer for your own healing

Lord, you made my body and you know it better than any doctor. You see what is wrong and what I am afraid of. I ask you to heal me. Restore what is broken, calm what is inflamed, strengthen what is weak. Give wisdom to the people treating me and help me to do my part. While I wait, keep my heart close to you; I do not want to lose you in the middle of this. I trust you with the outcome. In Jesus' name, amen.

Borrow the psalmist's confidence as you pray: Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases (Psalm 103:2–3).

A prayer for someone who is sick

Father, I bring you [name]. You love them more than I do. Please heal their body and bring them back to strength. Ease their pain tonight and give them sleep. Surround them with people who care and doctors who are wise and careful. Give their family peace that makes no sense in the circumstances. And whatever happens, let them know that you are with them. In Jesus' name, amen.

Then tell them you prayed, and ask what they need this week. A meal, a lift to an appointment or an hour of company is often how God answers the prayer.

“The LORD sustains him on his sickbed; in his illness you restore him to full health.”

— Psalm 41:3

A prayer before surgery or treatment

Lord, I am about to put my body in other people's hands. I put it in yours first. Guide the surgeon's hands and the team's decisions. Keep me safe while I am asleep and helpless. Let the treatment do what it is meant to do, and protect me from complications. Quiet my fear; you have said you will strengthen me and uphold me. Bring me through to recovery. Amen.

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

— Isaiah 41:10

A prayer for long or chronic illness

Some prayers for healing are prayed for years. Paul pleaded three times for his "thorn in the flesh" to be removed, and God's answer was not removal but grace:

Lord, I am tired of being ill, and tired of asking. I still ask you to heal me. Until you do, give me enough grace for today — enough strength for the next task, enough patience for the next appointment, enough joy to notice your goodness. Do not let this illness make me bitter. Let your power be seen in my weakness. Amen.

“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 of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

— 2 Corinthians 12:9

A prayer for emotional healing

Not every wound is physical. Grief, trauma, depression and betrayal hurt too, and God cares about them as much: He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds (Psalm 147:3).

God, part of me is broken and I cannot fix it. Bind up what is wounded. Bring light into the dark places, and send me people who will help carry this. Teach me to forgive where I need to, and give me rest. Amen.

If you are struggling with your mental health, prayer and professional help belong together. See What the Bible Says About Depression, which includes where to get urgent help.

When healing does not come

Honest Christians have to face this. God does heal — sometimes dramatically, often through medicine and the body's own remarkable repair. But not every prayer for healing is answered the way we ask, and Scripture never blames the sick for it. Paul left his co-worker Trophimus ill in Miletus (2 Timothy 4:20) and urged Timothy to take something for his frequent ailments (1 Timothy 5:23).

Unanswered prayer is not proof of weak faith. The final word on sickness is not this life but the next:

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

— Revelation 21:4

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