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“Fear not, for I am with you.”
This is one of the most repeated commands in all of Scripture. It is not a suggestion. It is not an emotional wish. It is a divine command backed by divine provision.
Let us look at what the Word of God says:
> “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God:
> I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
> — Isaiah 41:10 (KJV)
The simple lyrics of the song:
> “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
> Fear not, for I am with you; I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
are nothing other than the direct echo of this verse. This is the Word of God, sung back to God. There is great power in that. When we sing Scripture, we align our mouths and hearts with what God has already spoken.
The central theme is this:
The presence of God is the answer to fear.
Not positive thinking. Not human courage. The presence of the Lord Himself.
If we understand this verse correctly, it will deal with three major areas in the life of every believer:
1. The root of fear.
2. The revelation of God.
3. The resources of grace available to us in Jesus Christ.
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Isaiah prophesied in a time of shaking. The northern kingdom (Israel) had already gone into Assyrian captivity. The southern kingdom (Judah) stood under the looming threat of judgment and exile. Empires rose and fell. Armies invaded. Political alliances shifted. Fear was everywhere.
Isaiah 40–48 forms a section often called the “Book of Consolation” or “Book of Comfort.” God speaks comfort to a people who would go into Babylonian exile, and yet He assures them that exile would not be the end of their story. In Isaiah 41, God is addressing His covenant people in contrast to the nations and their idols.
In Isaiah 41:1–7, the Lord challenges the nations:
But from verse 8 onward, God turns from the nations to His covenant people:
> “But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.
> Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof,
> and said unto thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.”
> — Isaiah 41:8–9
Then comes our verse:
> “Fear thou not; for I am with thee…”
The “thou” here is first of all Israel, the covenant people. But in the New Covenant, all who are in Christ are counted as Abraham’s seed (Galatians 3:29). This same God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, speaks the same words to all who are united to Christ by faith.
The situation is this:
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Two key expressions open this verse: “Fear not” and “be not dismayed.” And at the end, a powerful phrase: “the right hand of my righteousness.”
### 1) “Fear not” – *אַל־תִּירָא* (*al-tirah*)
The Hebrew verb here is יָרֵא (*yare’*). It can mean to fear, to be afraid, to stand in awe. It is used both in a positive sense (“the fear of the Lord”) and in a negative sense (terror, dread).
Here it is clearly negative fear: the kind that paralyzes, torments, and controls. God is not addressing a mere feeling. He is confronting a spiritual condition. Fear is more than an emotion; it can be a spirit.
Paul says:
> “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
> — 2 Timothy 1:7
Where there is a persistent, tormenting fear, there is often a spiritual force behind it. When God says “Fear not,” He is not merely saying, “Try to feel better.” He is breaking the authority of that fear over His people.
### 2) “Be not dismayed” – *אַל־תִּשְׁתָּע* (*al-tishta*)
The word here (from the root שָׁעָה *sha‘ah* in this form) carries the idea of looking around in anxiety, being shattered, confounded, or dismayed. It is fear that produces confusion, loss of orientation, and inner collapse.
This is important. There is fear. There is dismay. Fear affects the emotions; dismay affects stability, clarity, and direction.
God is saying:
### 3) “Right hand of my righteousness” – *בִּימִין צִדְקִי* (*b’yamin tzidqi*)
So when God says, “I will uphold you with the right hand of My righteousness,” He is saying:
> “I will sustain you by My powerful, sovereign, covenant-keeping hand.
> I support you not on the basis of your strength or your righteousness,
> but on the basis of My own faithfulness and righteousness.”
This deepens the lyrics. When we sing, “I will uphold you with my righteous right hand,” we are declaring that our security does not rest in our performance, but in God’s covenant faithfulness, finally revealed and fulfilled in Jesus Christ, who sits at the right hand of the Father (Hebrews 1:3).
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### “So do not fear, for I am with you”
Notice the divine logic. God does not say, “Do not fear, because the circumstances are not so bad.” He does not say, “Do not fear, because you are stronger than you think.” He says:
> “Do not fear, for I am with you.”
The antidote to fear is the presence of God.
This is consistent throughout Scripture:
Fear asks: “What if I am alone? What if I am abandoned?”
God answers: “You are not alone. I am with you.”
In spiritual warfare, the first objective of the enemy is to separate us in our consciousness from the presence of God, to isolate us in our thinking. But if you truly believe that the Lord of hosts is with you, fear loses its legal right.
### “Do not be dismayed, for I am your God”
Here the issue is no longer just presence but identity and ownership.
“I am your God.”
This answers another question of the fearful heart: “Whose am I? Who claims me? Who takes responsibility for me?”
To say “I am your God” is covenant language. In Scripture, the heart of the covenant formula is:
> “I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 8:10).
When fear and confusion come, often our deepest insecurity is: “Am I still His? Or has He cast me off?” The verse just before ours says:
> “I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.” (Isaiah 41:9)
Fear thrives on the lie of rejection. God answers the lie by affirming covenant: “I am your God.” Not temporarily. Not conditionally. On the basis of His choosing and His covenant.
In the New Covenant, this is sealed in the blood of Jesus (Luke 22:20). God is your God because He has bought you with a price (1 Corinthians 6:19–20). He has joined you to His Son. Therefore, you are His responsibility.
### “Fear not, for I am with you”
The lyrics repeat this line. That repetition is biblical. God repeats what we are slow to believe. Fear is stubborn; therefore, God’s Word must be persistent.
Here is a principle: What God repeats, we must repeat.
That is why singing this verse is powerful. You are training your own heart to align with divine reality.
Each time you repeat, “Fear not, for I am with you,” you are:
### “I will strengthen you and help you”
We have moved from presence (“I am with you”) and identity (“I am your God”) to divine enablement (“I will strengthen you and help you”).
Notice three “I wills” in the verse:
1. I will strengthen you.
2. I will help you.
3. I will uphold you.
God does not only promise to be with us; He promises to actively work in us and for us.
1. “I will strengthen you” – God imparts strength.
In Hebrew, the idea is to make firm, to give courage, to increase capacity. This is inner strengthening, not merely external support.
Paul echoes this in the New Testament:
> “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.” (Ephesians 6:10)
> “[I pray] that He would grant you… to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man.” (Ephesians 3:16)
> “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:13)
This strengthening comes through the Holy Spirit. It is supernatural. It enables you to endure, resist, and overcome.
2. “I will help you” – God comes alongside.
The word for “help” in Hebrew often carries the sense of support in battle, assistance in trouble. In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit is called the Paraklētos (John 14:16) – “the one called alongside to help.”
We are not fighting alone. In spiritual warfare, the Lord Himself is our Helper:
> “The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” (Hebrews 13:6)
Strength is what He works in you. Help is what He works around you.
### “I will uphold you with my righteous right hand”
Here we reach the climax. The word “uphold” carries the idea of sustaining, holding fast, keeping from falling.
There are two aspects:
1. Preservation – He keeps you from being overwhelmed.
2. Position – He holds you in the place He has assigned.
Link this with Jude 24:
> “Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy…”
And with Psalm 37:23–24:
> “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD…
> Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with His hand.”
The ground of this upholding is His “righteous right hand.” In New Covenant reality, that “righteous right hand” is perfectly expressed in Jesus Christ, who is now seated at the right hand of God (Hebrews 8:1).
So when the Father says, “I will uphold you with the right hand of My righteousness,” we may understand: “I will uphold you in and through My Son, who is at My right hand, as your righteousness and advocate.”
The song, therefore, is Christ-centered even when His name is not explicitly mentioned, because this verse finds its fulfillment in Christ.
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Now we move from doctrine to practice. The truths of Isaiah 41:10 must be applied if they are to free us from fear. I will outline four steps.
### 1) Identify and Renounce the Spirit of Fear
We must begin where Paul begins:
> “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
> — 2 Timothy 1:7
Persistent fear, tormenting fear, irrational fear often indicates a spiritual presence. You do not counsel a demon; you do not comfort a demon. You confront it in the name of Jesus.
First, recognize and admit: “This fear is not from God.”
Then renounce it:
Do not treat fear as your personality. Do not own it. Expose it as an intruder.
### 2) Align Your Mouth with God’s Word
Proverbs 18:21 says:
> “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.”
Fear speaks. It has a language:
“What if…?” “I can’t…” “I’m alone…” “God has left me…”
God’s answer is not only to give us a different thought but a different confession. Isaiah 41:10 is given to be spoken and sung.
Make this verse your personal declaration:
For example: “I will not fear, for God is with me…” (We will do this more fully in the proclamation below.)
When you sing the lyrics of this song, do not sing passively. Sing as a soldier declaring truth on the battlefield of your own mind.
### 3) Practice the Presence of God
The promise “I am with you” must become an experienced reality. God is always present in His omnipresence, but we are not always conscious of His presence.
How do we cultivate that consciousness?
Meditate regularly on Scriptures that emphasize His presence (Psalm 23; Psalm 46; Matthew 28:20; Hebrews 13:5–6). Let them saturate your thinking.
Simple songs like this one, sung often, direct your focus away from circumstances to the Person of God. Worship brings your heart into alignment with His nearness.
Philippians 4:6–7 tells us that as we present our requests with thanksgiving, the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds. Thanksgiving invites the manifest peace of His presence.
Fear thrives in mental and emotional environments where God is forgotten. Practicing His presence is spiritual warfare against fear.
### 4) Stand in the Righteousness of Christ, Not Your Own
Many believers are vulnerable to fear because their confidence is based, whether they know it or not, on their own performance. When they feel weak or guilty, they expect trouble. They lose assurance of God’s help.
But God does not say, “I will uphold you with your right hand of righteousness.” He says, “with the right hand of My righteousness.”
Apply this:
When the accuser whispers, “You have failed, you are not worthy of help,” answer:
> “Yes, in myself I have failed, but I am upheld not by my righteousness but by His.
> The Lord is my righteousness (Jeremiah 23:6). I stand in Christ.”
This cuts the legal ground from under fear and accusation. Fear loses its authority when you rest in the finished work of Christ.
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### Proclamation (Say this aloud, deliberately)
I base this on Isaiah 41:10 and its New Testament fulfillment in Christ.
> In the name of Jesus, I proclaim:
>
> God has said to me: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God.”
> Therefore, I refuse fear. I will not agree with it.
> God is with me. God is my God. I am His, and He has not cast me away.
>
> The Lord Himself strengthens me. He gives me power by His Holy Spirit in my inner man.
> The Lord helps me. I do not stand alone in any situation.
> The Lord upholds me with the right hand of His righteousness.
>
> My security is not in my own strength or goodness,
> but in God’s covenant faithfulness and the finished work of Jesus Christ,
> who sits at the right hand of the Father as my righteousness and my advocate.
>
> God has not given me a spirit of fear,
> but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
> I receive His power. I receive His love. I receive a sound, disciplined mind.
>
> Therefore, I will not fear what man or circumstances can do to me,
> for the Lord is with me, the Lord is my God,
> and He will never leave me nor forsake me.
> Amen.
### Prayer
Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
I come to You in the name of Jesus, my Savior and my righteousness.
I acknowledge that I have often allowed fear and dismay to rule my heart and my thoughts.
I confess that this fear is not from You.
Right now, in the authority of the name of Jesus,
I renounce the spirit of fear.
I refuse its lies. I reject its influence over my mind, emotions, and will.
I break agreement with fear and anxiety.
Lord, I choose to believe Your Word:
You are with me.
You are my God.
You will strengthen me.
You will help me.
You will uphold me with the right hand of Your righteousness.
Holy Spirit, strengthen me in my inner man.
Write this verse upon my heart.
Teach me to practice the presence of God
and to stand not in my own righteousness, but in Christ alone.
Let the peace of God, which passes all understanding,
guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus.
Bring me into a disciplined, sound mind, free from tormenting fear,
so that I may serve You, obey You, and glorify You without fear all the days of my life.
I thank You for doing it,
because You are faithful, and You cannot deny Yourself.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
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