What are Consolation and Comfort in the Bible, and are They the Same?
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With so much trouble in the world, we all find ourselves in occasional need of comfort or consolation. If we’re not in need, then it’s likely our neighbor is hurting in some way. I’ve suffered many experiences—hardships, losses, disappointments, and failures when I’ve benefited from the consolations and comforts offered by God and by other believers. What does the Bible say about consolation? Is comfort the same as consolation? Does the Bible distinguish between the two?
Is Consolation the Same as Comfort in Scripture?
In the Bible, is comfort the same as consolation? The short answer is very often, yes. The long answer means we need to take a quick dip into Hebrew and Greek.
We don’t often hear the term consolation these days, although we do say that we console people following a death, the dissolution of a marriage or other romantic relationship, or a professional/political loss. In modern usage, consolation is most often associated with a loss or great disappointment, which is a form of loss. When distinguishing between comfort and consolation, it helps to consider that when people lose a contest or competition, they may be awarded a “consolation prize.”
Comfort, in modern usage, has a broader application than consolation. People seek comfort in a wide range of unhappy or difficult situations including sickness, distress, anxiety, fear, undesired change, extended periods of physical, mental, or emotional discomfort, impending loss, or for all the reasons people also merit consolation.
In the Old Testament, the word frequently used for comfort is nāḥam (Strong’s H5162). It is often associated with sorrow—either the sorrow of loss (Genesis 24:67), the sorrow of repentance (Job 42:6), or being sorry (Genesis 6:6).
Nāḥam is also associated with rest as we see in Genesis 5:29 NASB: “And he named him Noah, saying, ‘This one will give us comfort from our work and from the hard labor of our hands caused by the ground which the Lord has cursed.’” Noah means “rest.” In this context, we receive comfort or rest from all our troubles, including our sins and the weight of living in a sinful world.
One Hebrew word translated consolation is tanḥûmôṯ (Strong’s H8575), and it is always plural as in Job 15:11 NASB: “Are the consolations of God too little for you, Or the word spoken gently to you?” One exception is when tanḥûmôṯ is translated comfort in Psalm 94:19 NASB: “When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your comfort delights my soul.” But this verse from Psalms conveys the need for multiple (or plural) comforts.
What does the Bible say about comfort and consolation? It would seem in the Old Testament that the words are close synonyms. We can see that in this verse, Jeremiah 16:7 NASB, where comfort and consolation appear together: “People will not break bread in mourning for them, to comfort anyone for the dead, nor give them a cup of consolation to drink for anyone’s father or mother.”
One verse in the New Testament which the NKJV translates using both words is Philippians 2:1 “Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy,”. Other translations translate “consolation” here as encouragement.
In the New Testament Greek, paramythion (Strong’s G3890), connotes a persuasive tone and is translated either comfort, consolation, or encouragement (as in encouragement toward a change of either attitude or behavior). Paramythion will feel familiar to many readers as it comes from the same root word— paraklēsis (Strong’s G3874) used for the Holy Spirit who is our Comforter. Paramythion can be translated as comfort, entreaty, consolation, or exhortation.
Paul conveyed the multitude of comforts available for us in Christ in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NASB, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” All words translated comfort in this verse are either parakaleō or paraklēsis.
So, what does the Bible say about comfort and consolation? They appear closely related in meaning, often interchangeable, but differing in nuance. When reading passages that contain either word, it can be helpful to consider what the writer is trying to communicate through word choice, not only within each verse but in the whole of Scripture.
While consolation may be more closely associated with loss, comfort appears to come in the forms of humanity resting and repenting or God relenting and sending the Messiah who is “the consolation of Israel.” (Luke 2:25 NASB “And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him").
How Does God Provide Both Comfort and Consolation?
Handel’s Messiah includes a movement based on the comfort God offered Israel in Isaiah 40:1-3 NASB, “‘Comfort, comfort My people,’ says your God. ‘Speak kindly to Jerusalem; and call out to her, that her warfare has ended, that her guilt has been removed, that she has received of the Lord’s hand double for all her sins. The voice of one calling out, ‘Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.’” Jesus was the coming comfort.
Jesus is the ultimate comfort offered us by our merciful Heavenly Father. Following His resurrection and ascension to Heaven, Jesus sent us the Holy Spirit to continually comfort us until He comes. That comfort may feel like conviction of sin. God’s comfort and consolation are often delivered through the vehicle truth. His truth frees us from the sorrow of deception—sorrow that leads to repentance and forgiveness resulting in the comfort of His rest. God’s comfort also comes in the hope of eternal life we have in Christ. No matter what we endure on earth, it will pass. Pain, suffering, and evil will end.
What greater comfort is there than the knowledge that our sins can forgiven and the hope that one day, we will live forever with God in the place of no sorrow or tears!
How Can Christians Share God’s Consolation and Comfort with Others?
Share the gospel: As followers of Christ, one of the greatest comforts we can give anyone is the truth of Jesus. We can gently and lovingly present the gospel so that others may find forgiveness for their sins, life eternal, and rest for their souls.
Be present: God sent Jesus to be “God with Us” or Emmanuel. He knew it wasn’t good for us to be alone. When others experience loss or endure hardship, we can give them the comfort of our presence. Just sitting beside someone and listening can be a comfort. Sending a gift or note lets them know they are not alone. If they are sick, offering to read aloud or play a board game may keep them company. If they are sad, holding their hand or listening to memories of the one they’ve lost can also provide consolation.
Intercession: Always, we can pray for others and ask God to send exactly the comfort they need for their circumstance.
How are Consolation and Comfort Essential to Christian Life?
Jesus Christ: Our greatest loss, the first and pervasive death, was the loss of our relationship with God because of the entrance of sin into the world. Our greatest consolation, then, is Jesus Christ who made a way for us, by His death on the cross and resurrection to new life, to be reconciled to God. Accessing and availing ourselves of the consolation of Jesus Christ is our entrance into the Christian life.
The Ministry of the Holy Spirit: We have been given the gift of a Comforter, the Holy Spirit. So we do not grieve (Ephesians 4:29-31) the Holy Spirit and we avail ourselves of His ministry to us, within us, and through us until Jesus comes again.
The Church: When we follow Jesus, we are adopted as sons and daughters into the family of God and that means that on earth, we live in community. Within our smaller communities and even in the global community, we can comfort, console, and encourage one another as an essential ministry of the Body of Christ. We comfort others through physical ministries, preaching, counsel, and by example. We console with Scripture, words of truth, deeds of kindness, and physical presence. We encourage and exhort through preaching, teaching, counseling, and numerous other gifts and skills. And we pray in all circumstances, asking God to minister to people’s deepest wounds that our words, our presence, and our gifts cannot reach. Corporate worship reminds us we’re not alone and provides the comfort of other souls who also belong to God.
Nature: Many of us spend so much time indoors attached to technology and surrounded by artificial light and man-made items. God designed us to be rested and restored by nature—big skies, blue water, green fields, and wind in the trees. When we cannot get out to nature, we can bring flowers, plants, or even pictures indoors to provide comfort and consolation during our confinement.
God’s Word and Prayer: Daily time in God’s Word and prayer are powerful sources of comfort and consolation that can have a minute-by-minute ministry in our hearts and minds.
Salvation through Jesus, ministry of the Holy Spirit and the saints with whom we worship, nature, and communion with God through His Word and prayer are essential comforts to a flourishing life in Christ. Right now, we still live on this outpost of glory. Until we are home, His presence with us, accessed through these avenues, is His consolation to guide and keep us.
Further Reading
Comforting Bible Verses
The God of All Comfort
Prayer and Bible Verses for Comfort When You’re Hurting in Tough Times
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