Quotes that tell me I'm cared for?

October 20, 2007 1:31 PM

I'm looking for bible/quran/"insert holy book here" quotes that say something to the effect of "You will be taken care of" or "you are in my hands" or somesuch. Verses that say that no matter what happens, I will be looked after. I'm not looking for verses that say "You are loved".

The only example I can think of so far is Matthew 6:28-30 "So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?"

I'd prefer them to be religious in nature, but I'm open to quotes from any religion.

posted by Rabulah to grab bag (26 comments total)

John 10:27-29 reads (in the New King James)

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand."
posted by jedicus at 1:39 PM on October 20, 2007

Psalm 121 (again, in the NKJV)

I will lift up my eyes to the hills—
From whence comes my help?
My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.

He will not allow your foot to be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD is your keeper;
The LORD is your shade at your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night.

The LORD shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore.
posted by jedicus at 1:43 PM on October 20, 2007

Oh, and Psalm 91, of course.

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.”

Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler[a]
And from the perilous pestilence.
He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge;
His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

A thousand may fall at your side,
And ten thousand at your right hand;
But it shall not come near you.
Only with your eyes shall you look,
And see the reward of the wicked.

Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place,
No evil shall befall you,
Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;
For He shall give His angels charge over you,
To keep you in all your ways.
In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.
You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra,
The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.

“Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him;
I will set him on high, because he has known My name.
He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him,
And show him My salvation.”
posted by jedicus at 1:45 PM on October 20, 2007

Wouldn't the 23rd Psalm qualify?

The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul:
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name' sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: For thou art with me;
Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies;
Thou anointest my head with oil; My cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the House of the Lord forever.
posted by GrammarMoses at 1:49 PM on October 20, 2007

IANAC but I've always liked this one:

29 Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.

(Matthew 10:29-31)
posted by loiseau at 1:56 PM on October 20, 2007

The Psalms are full of this stuff (and also of the opposite where the author feels abandoned).

Psalm 23
"The LORD is my shepherd, I shall want..."

Psalm 37
Verse 3-4 for instance "trust in the LORD, and do good so you will dwell in the land, and enjoy security. Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart."

Psalm 104
Where all sorts of things are provided by God, but of course here again there's always the possibility of the other side of the coin, Psalm 104:29 "When though hidest thy face, they are dismayed; when thou takest away their breath they die and return to their dust."
posted by Jahaza at 1:56 PM on October 20, 2007

Arrrr... "*not* want"
posted by Jahaza at 1:58 PM on October 20, 2007

From John 14

‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling-places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also...
‘I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.

The very last verse of the Gospel of Matthew:

And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
posted by 4ster at 2:39 PM on October 20, 2007

Luke 12:27 (?)

You shall be fed as surely as I feed the ravens, and clothed as well as I clothe the lilies. You need not be anxious for these things. It is my business to provide them. Mark the lilies of the field; how they grow--they toil not--they spin not; yet Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. And if God so gloriously attires the grass which grows only for a day, and is burnt tomorrow, will he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?

(I was looking for a more euphonious translation "See how the ravens fed and lilies clothed are" but found only a vague reference to the book and chapter, which may be wrong. Non-christian, I don't have the book to look in.)
posted by anadem at 2:49 PM on October 20, 2007

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.
posted by shakespeherian at 2:50 PM on October 20, 2007

Psalm 36:7 "How excellent [is] thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings."

Romans 8:28 "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose."
posted by rdc at 2:57 PM on October 20, 2007

How about this quote by Goethe:

“At the moment of commitment, the entire universe conspires for your success.”
posted by hermitosis at 3:11 PM on October 20, 2007

Matthew 7:7-11

7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?
10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

I particularly like that last verse. It's a slightly humorous question. :)
posted by artifarce at 3:29 PM on October 20, 2007

Not sure if this is quite what you're after, but for variety's sake... the Tannish? isn't a holy book in the sense that (say) the Bible is, but it was a very influential text in Japan. One of the first statements it makes is (in this translation):

When the thought of saying the nembutsu erupts from deep within, having entrusted ourselves to the inconceivable power of Amida's vow which saves us, enabling us to be born in the Pure Land, we receive at that very moment the ultimate benefit of being grasped never to be abandoned.

Amida's Primal Vow does not discriminate between the young and old, good and evil - true entrusting alone is essential. The reason is that the Vow is directed to the person burdened with the weight of karmic evil and burning with the flames of blind passion.

Thus, in entrusting ourselves to the Primal Vow, no other form of good is necessary, for there is no good that surpasses the nembutsu. And evil need not be feared, for there is no evil which can obstruct the working of Amida's Primal Vow. [That's what Shinran said.]

No promise of protection in this life, of course, and it's not unconditional.
posted by No-sword at 3:37 PM on October 20, 2007

Some fantastic answers so far. Thanks guys!

No-sword, I'd never heard of the book, but it looks very interesting, thank you.
posted by Rabulah at 4:08 PM on October 20, 2007

What's wrong with "Foot Prints"?
posted by gesamtkunstwerk at 4:35 PM on October 20, 2007

Doctrine & Covenants 122 (This is a Mormon book of scripture)

1 The ends of the earth shall inquire after thy name, and fools shall have thee in derision, and hell shall rage against thee;

2 While the pure in heart, and the wise, and the noble, and the virtuous, shall seek counsel, and authority, and blessings constantly from under thy hand.

3 And thy people shall never be turned against thee by the testimony of traitors.

4 And although their influence shall cast thee into trouble, and into bars and walls, thou shalt be had in honor; and but for a small moment and thy voice shall be more terrible in the midst of thine enemies than the fierce lion, because of thy righteousness; and thy God shall stand by thee forever and ever.

5 If thou art called to pass through tribulation; if thou art in perils among false brethren; if thou art in perils among robbers; if thou art in perils by land or by sea;

6 If thou art accused with all manner of false accusations; if thine enemies fall upon thee; if they tear thee from the society of thy father and mother and brethren and sisters; and if with a drawn sword thine enemies tear thee from the bosom of thy wife, and of thine offspring, and thine elder son, although but six years of age, shall cling to thy garments, and shall say, My father, my father, why can’t you stay with us? O, my father, what are the men going to do with you? and if then he shall be thrust from thee by the sword, and thou be dragged to prison, and thine enemies prowl around thee like wolves for the blood of the lamb;

7 And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.

8 The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?

9 Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever.
posted by bove at 6:59 PM on October 20, 2007

Isaiah 54:10

For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, but My loving kindness will not be removed from you,
and My covenant of peace will not be shaken,"
says the Lord who has compassion on you.
posted by pril at 7:13 PM on October 20, 2007

From Augustine's Confessions (which I confess I am home reading on a Saturday night). Continence speaking to Augustine just before his conversion:

She smiled at me to give me courage, as though she were saying, 'Can you not do what these men and these women do? Do you think they find the strength to do it in themselves and not in the Lord their God? It was the Lord their God who gave me to them. Why do you try to stand in your own strength and fail? Cast yourself upon God and have no fear. He will not shrink away and let you fall. Cast yourself upon him without fear, for he will welcome you and cure you of your ills.'

That's Book VIII, section 11. R.S. Pine-Coffin translation, Penguin edition, p. 176.

I'm sure there are other instances in here, this is just the first one I came across after having glanced at this question during a study break.
posted by felix grundy at 7:39 PM on October 20, 2007

BeliefNet > Prayer of the Day > Prayers By Type > Protection and Fear might be of assistance. Especially fear.

Relevant samples I found while browsing them:

Psalm 27:1-3:
The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?
When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh,
when my enemies and my foes attack me,
they will stumble and fall.
Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me, even then will I be confident.

St. Columba:
Alone with none but thee, my God,
I journey on my way.
What need I fear when thou art near,
Oh king of night and day?
More safe am I within thy hand
Than if a host did round me stand.

Gyalwa Longchenpa (Buddhism):
Assailed by afflictions, we discover Dharma
And find the way to liberation. Thank you, evil forces!

When sorrows invade the mind, we discover Dharma
And find lasting happiness. Thank you, sorrows!

Through harm caused by spirits we discover Dharma
And find fearlessness. Thank you, ghosts and demons!

Through people's hate we discover Dharma
And find benefits and happiness. Thank you, those who hate us!

Through cruel adversity, we discover Dharma
And find the unchanging way. Thank you, adversity!

Through being impelled to by others, we discover Dharma
And find the essential meaning. Thank you, all who drive us on!

We dedicate our merit to you all, to repay your kindness.

Islam:
O God! O our Master! You are eternal life and everlasting peace by Your essence and attributes. The everlasting peace is from You and it returns to You. O our Sustainer! Grant us the life of true peace and usher us into the abode of peace. O Glorious and Bounteous One! You are blessed and sublime.

kfrindik (BeliefNet) (New Age):
I am one with Mother Earth,
I am strong.
The fertile soil is Her skin.
The hard rock is Her bone.
The sea is Her womb.
Of all these things I am.

James Dillet Freeman (Multifaith):
he Light of God surrounds me;
The Love of God enfolds me;
The Power of God protects me;
The Presence of God watches over me;
Wherever I am, God is,
And all is well.
posted by WCityMike at 9:43 PM on October 20, 2007

Rereading your original post, the last one doesn't meet your guidelines, as it mentions love — but omitting that one line would still render it useful.
posted by WCityMike at 9:45 PM on October 20, 2007

Besides the other great stuff people have mentioned, Proverbs 3 comes to mind -- not every verse in the chapter, but many of them. There are a few in the beginning, but I also like 23-26:

My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and discretion:
So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck.
Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble.
When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet.
Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh.
For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken.

You could do a lot than reading the whole book.

Matthew 7:9-11 is both good and common:

What man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?
Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

Also Luke 11:11-13 -- in case you need to be reminded you don't hand out scorpions instead of eggs.
posted by booksandlibretti at 11:28 PM on October 20, 2007

No love for the Qu'ran?

It is Allah Who hath created the heavens and the earth and sendeth down rain from the skies, and with it bringeth out fruits wherewith to feed you; it is He Who hath made the ships subject to you, that they may sail through the sea by His command; and the rivers (also) hath He made subject to you.
And He hath made subject to you the sun and the moon, both diligently pursuing their courses; and the night and the day hath he (also) made subject to you.
And He giveth you of all that ye ask for. But if ye count the favours of Allah, never will ye be able to number them.
(Ibrahim, 32-34)

Allah created the heavens and the earth for just ends, and in order that each soul may find the recompense of what it has earned, and none of them will be wronged.
(Al-Jathiya, 22)

See ye the water which ye drink?
Do ye bring it down (in rain) from the cloud or do We?
Were it Our Will, We could make it salt (and unpalatable): then why do ye not give thanks?
See ye the Fire which ye kindle?
Is it ye who grow the tree which feeds the fire, or do We grow it?
We have made it a memorial (of Our handiwork), and an article of comfort and convenience for the denizens of deserts.
Then celebrate with praises the name of thy Lord, the Supreme!
(Al-Waqia, 68-74; lots more in this surah)

But those who believe and do deeds of righteousness,- we shall soon admit them to gardens, with rivers flowing beneath,-to dwell therein for ever. Allah's promise is the truth, and whose word can be truer than Allah's?
(Al-Nisa, 122)

etc. etc.
posted by nasreddin at 12:54 AM on October 21, 2007 [1 favorite]

It's not from a holy text, but my favorite quotation ever is this, from Rainer Maria Rilke's Letters to a Young Poet:

"So you must not be frightened if a sadness rises up before you larger than any you have ever seen; if a restiveness, like light and cloud-shadows, passes over your hands and over all you do. You must think that something is happening with you, that life has not forgotten you, that it holds you in its hand; it will not let you fall."
posted by Metroid Baby at 5:02 PM on October 21, 2007

"I have heard that those who celebrate life
walk safely among the wild animals.
When they go into battle, they remain unharmed.
The animals find no place to attack them
and the weapons are unable to harm them.
Why? Because they can find no place for death in them."

-- Tao te Ching, ch. 50, tr. J. H. McDonald
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 10:10 AM on October 22, 2007

here are ten verses, alongside illustrative pictures
posted by takeyourmedicine at 5:41 AM on November 30, 2007