You might have thought the word “hope” would appear in the Bible all over the place. Hundreds of times. But if you’re looking to find hope, the word itself is mentioned just over 80 in the 39 books of the Hebrew Scriptures, and just under 80 in the 27 books of the New Testament. A massive number of those are in the most bleak books, especially Job, the Psalms, Isaiah and Jeremiah. In fact, Job and the Psalms take more than half of all the “hopes” in the whole Hebrew Scriptures. Those books need all the hope they can get! Bleak times call for more hope than usual. These may be hard times we’re living in, but there’s a vast ocean of hope to be found with Jesus.

Hard times call for strong hope

One of the most well-known passages about finding hope in the Bible is found in Jeremiah. Jeremiah is known as the Weeping Prophet, and for good reason. He had a tough, tough message to bring. But even in the darkest prophecies, even in the most severe warnings, there is always hope:

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11)

People often say that this verse is taken liberally out of context and slapped onto everyone’s circumstances, willy nilly, with no reference for the original meaning of the text. However I say that the Bible is God breathed and useful for everyone. Yes, it comes as part of a story, and the story is about Israel. It’s worth knowing the whole story and reading the whole book. But this is a truth that remains true regardless.

God DOES know the plans He has for you, He DOES plan good and not evil for you, and He DOES offer you a future and a hope.

So it is all true for you as well. Take it and run with it.

When we know where to find hope, we don’t need to be brought down by the tragic and terrible events in the world around us, even though they may be awful. We can be sad but maintain peace, faith, and a steadfast hope if we know where to look.

Hope is invisible

Finding hope isn’t always easy, because much like love and faith, it’s invisible. In fact, the Bible’s very definition says it’s about things not seen:

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1)

We often think of hoping a bit like wishing or dreaming, which is to say a bit ethereal, in the realms of imagination. Wishful thinking cannot be counted upon any more than an imaginary friend can. In this way of thinking, hope is elusive, and can evaporate as quickly as a dream in the morning. But here the Bible uses the word assurance. That’s solid. It’s a certain fact, even though you can’t see it with your eyes. Walking with God is like this oftentimes. It says that faith (which is also invisible) is the assurance of things hoped for, and being certain of things we cannot see… yet.

The thing with hope is that we can’t see it because it’s in the future. It’s in our destiny and we will see it all realized one day. Again, the author of Hebrews says it is sure and steadfast, not flimsy and imaginary:

We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain (Hebrews 6:19)

A lifeline

The Hebrew word for hope is “tikvah” (תקוה). In fact, the Israeli national anthem is called Ha Tikvah, the hope. However, the root of the Hebrew word (קוה) is also the root word for rope. It can mean rope, cord, or line. It’s a life line. In the story of Rahab the prostitute, the Hebrew word for rope takes some very interesting turns and has great meaning in the text. Ultimately, she believed God, trusted in His word, took hope and was saved. (You can read all about it here.)

And to stay with the watery theme of anchors and lifelines, the root word for hope is also the same as the root word for a pool of water. That’s why the Jewish ritual bath, the mikveh (where the tradition of baptism comes from), sounds like the Hebrew word for hope, tikvah. What on earth has hope got to do with water, you might reasonably ask? In Hebrew the word for water is plural, which might be surprising. It’s because it relates to “the waters above and the waters below” as they were created in Genesis, but there’s also the concept of a body of water which has gathered or pooled together. This is like the idea of a rope with different strands woven together, becoming one. And the reason hope is connected to these ideas is that we are binding ourselves to God’s spoken word, His promises, and reality as He describes it. We have faith to join with Him in agreement about things we can’t see yet, but He can. That which is yet to come. This is hope. Binding ourselves to God’s spoken word and promise.

The word for line is also from the same root word as hope: kavah (קוה). In Israel today when we talk about a bus line we use the word “kav” (קו) as it means line and also route. It’s a destined route, and so has this idea of destiny which goes to a particular place, but it hasn’t happened yet.

By putting our hope in God, we are waiting for His destiny to come to pass, joining Him in confident agreement that what He says is true.

The Psalms use this word a lot. Sometimes it’s translated as hope, other times as “waiting” on the Lord, but it’s almost like saying “I lined myself up with God”.

Hope involves waiting

If hope is anchored in the future, waiting will be involved. However, if what we’re hoping for is not in the Bible, if God hasn’t said it, then it’s really just wishful thinking. What we’re hoping and waiting for may not happen. That’s not to say that it won’t happen, but true hope—biblical hope—is based on guarantees given by God Himself.

What God promises will definitely happen. The people of Israel know a thing or two about this kind of hope, and what it means to wait for the fulfillment of biblical promises.

It’s written in the Bible that the people of Israel would return to the Land of Israel. That took 2000 years, from 70 AD when they were expelled by the Romans, all the way up to the return which started in the late 1800’s.  That was an awfully long wait. It was not until 1948 that Israel was officially declared a nation again in the land of their forefathers. Today more Jewish people are living in Israel than anywhere else in the world. God does fulfill His promises, and the Jewish people never gave up hope.

As well as returning to their homeland, the people of Israel are waiting for their Savior, the Messiah. The book of Isaiah is full of this message. He also shows clearly the link between hoping and waiting:

I will wait for the Lord, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in him. (Isaiah 8:17)

Several times Isaiah clarifies that this hope of a Savior to come was also for the Gentiles. This point was picked up in the New Testament, as Paul writes in the book of  Romans about the hope we have in Jesus, both Jews and Gentiles. He quotes the prophet Isaiah in chapter 15:

Isaiah says,

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Romans 15:12-13)

What are we waiting for?

We often wish life was different. We hope for a better future—we all want to see more peace, joy, love, and freedom. But according to the Bible this earth will ultimately pass away.

Is Biblical Prophecy Coming True?

We are encouraged to put our hope in the person of God, not in circumstances on earth becoming like paradise while we wait for the Messiah’s return. We pray for peace, we long to see God’s kingdom here on earth, but we need to align ourselves with God’s vision of the future and make sure we’re hoping for what He has promised. The New Testament book of Titus talks about hope in two different ways. He talks about the hope of Jesus returning again, a new heaven and a new earth, and of having eternal life with Him. Again, this issue of having to wait comes into the picture:

Waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus [the Messiah]. (Titus 2:13)

And here’s where our hope can firmly anchored, we can expect that Jesus will indeed appear in glory, just as the Bible says. We can count on God’s promise to forgive all our sins so that we have the right to be with Him in heaven forever, inheriting all the good things God has in store for us:

Being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:7)

This is no wishful thinking. True hope is anchored to what God has said is coming, and it can be counted on. God is fulfilling His promises to Israel in front of our eyes as living proof that His word is true. There is waiting involved, but this lifeline of hope stretches out way into eternity, and it is strong and secure. No one who puts their hope in God’s guarantees will be disappointed.

If you are looking for hope, try looking in the Bible and see all that He has promised you. Align yourself to those promises in agreement, and wait with joy and expectation. You can be sure what you hope for will happen.