79 Bible Verses on Honor

Who we give honor to and how we do it is of great concern to God. Throughout Scripture God outlines various things and people we are to give honor to: the LORD, one’s parents, the elderly, the Sabbath, those in governing authority, members of your church, the elders of your church, marriage, and widows. Proverbs specifically outlines that the foolish are dishonorable, while those who honor God and seek wisdom and righteousness are honorable people. These verses outline how we should honor God, how to obtain honor, and what is worth honoring or not.

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What Does the Bible Say About Honor?

Old Testament

Exodus 20:12
“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.

Leviticus 19:32
“You shall stand up before the gray head and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the LORD.

Judges 13:16–17
And the angel of the LORD said to Manoah, “If you detain me, I will not eat of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering, then offer it to the LORD.” (For Manoah did not know that he was the angel of the LORD.) And Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, “What is your name, so that, when your words come true, we may honor you?”

1 Samuel 2:8
He raises up the poor from the dust;
he lifts the needy from the ash heap
to make them sit with princes
and inherit a seat of honor.
For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s,
and on them he has set the world.

1 Samuel 2:29–30
Why then do you scorn my sacrifices and my offerings that I commanded for my dwelling, and honor your sons above me by fattening yourselves on the choicest parts of every offering of my people Israel?’ Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I promised that your house and the house of your father should go in and out before me forever,’ but now the LORD declares: ‘Far be it from me, for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

1 Samuel 15:30
Then he said, “I have sinned; yet honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, that I may bow before the LORD your God.”

1 Kings 3:13
I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days.

1 Chronicles 29:12
Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all.

1 Chronicles 29:28
Then he died at a good age, full of days, riches, and honor. And Solomon his son reigned in his place.

2 Chronicles 1:11–12
God answered Solomon, “Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked for possessions, wealth, honor, or the life of those who hate you, and have not even asked for long life, but have asked for wisdom and knowledge for yourself that you may govern my people over whom I have made you king, wisdom and knowledge are granted to you. I will also give you riches, possessions, and honor, such as none of the kings had who were before you, and none after you shall have the like.”

2 Chronicles 18:1
Now Jehoshaphat had great riches and honor, and he made a marriage alliance with Ahab.

2 Chronicles 21:19
In the course of time, at the end of two years, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he died in great agony. His people made no fire in his honor, like the fires made for his fathers.

2 Chronicles 26:18
and they withstood King Uzziah and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have done wrong, and it will bring you no honor from the LORD God.”

2 Chronicles 32:33
And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the upper part of the tombs of the sons of David, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem did him honor at his death. And Manasseh his son reigned in his place.

Esther 8:16
The Jews had light and gladness and joy and honor.

Job 30:15
Terrors are turned upon me;
my honor is pursued as by the wind,
and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud.

Psalm 4:2
O men, how long shall my honor be turned into shame?
How long will you love vain words and seek after lies? Selah

Psalm 8:5
Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.

Psalm 15:4
in whose eyes a vile person is despised,
but who honors those who fear the LORD;
who swears to his own hurt and does not change;

Psalm 84:11
For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
the LORD bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does he withhold
from those who walk uprightly.

Psalm 91:15
When he calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.

Psalm 112:9
He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever;
his horn is exalted in honor.

Psalm 149:9
to execute on them the judgment written!
This is honor for all his godly ones.
Praise the LORD!

Proverbs 3:9
Honor the LORD with your wealth
and with the firstfruits of all your produce;

Proverbs 3:35
The wise will inherit honor,
but fools get disgrace.

Proverbs 4:7–8
The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,
and whatever you get, get insight.
Prize her highly, and she will exalt you;
she will honor you if you embrace her.

Proverbs 13:18
Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction,
but whoever heeds reproof is honored.

Proverbs 14:31
Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker,
but he who is generous to the needy honors him.

Proverbs 15:33
The fear of the LORD is instruction in wisdom,
and humility comes before honor.

Proverbs 20:3
It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife
but every fool will be quarreling.

Proverbs 21:21
Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness
will find life, righteousness, and honor.

Proverbs 22:4
The reward for humility and fear of the LORD
is riches and honor and life.

Proverbs 26:1
Like snow in summer or rain in harvest,
so honor is not fitting for a fool.

Proverbs 29:23
One’s pride will bring him low,
but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.

Ecclesiastes 10:1
Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off a stench;
so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

Isaiah 4:2
In that day the branch of the LORD shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and honor of the survivors of Israel.

Isaiah 8:13
But the LORD of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.

Isaiah 29:13–14
And the Lord said:
“Because this people draw near with their mouth
and honor me with their lips,
while their hearts are far from me,
and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,
therefore, behold, I will again
do wonderful things with this people,
with wonder upon wonder;
and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,
and the discernment of their discerning men shall be hidden.”

Isaiah 43:4
Because you are precious in my eyes,
and honored, and I love you,
I give men in return for you,
peoples in exchange for your life.

Isaiah 58:13–14
“If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath,
from doing your pleasure on my holy day,
and call the Sabbath a delight
and the holy day of the LORD honorable;
if you honor it, not going your own ways,
or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly;
then you shall take delight in the LORD,
and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;
I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

Daniel 4:34
At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever,
for his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
and his kingdom endures from generation to generation;

Malachi 2:1–2
“And now, O priests, this command is for you. If you will not listen, if you will not take it to heart to give honor to my name, says the LORD of hosts, then I will send the curse upon you and I will curse your blessings. Indeed, I have already cursed them, because you do not lay it to heart.

New Testament

Mark 6:4
And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.”

Mark 7:6–8
And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,

“‘This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

John 5:22–23
“For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.”

John 8:49
Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me.”

Romans 1:21
For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

Romans 2:6–7
He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life;

Romans 12:10
Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.

Romans 13:7
Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.

1 Corinthians 12:26
If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

2 Corinthians 8:21
for we aim at what is honorable not only in the Lord’s sight but also in the sight of man.

Ephesians 6:2–4
“Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Philippians 1:20
as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.

Philippians 4:8
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

1 Thessalonians 4:4–5
that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God;

1 Timothy 5:3
Honor widows who are truly widows.

1 Timothy 6:1
Let all who are under a yoke as bondservants regard their own masters as worthy of all honor, so that the name of God and the teaching may not be reviled.

Hebrews 2:7–9
You made him for a little while lower than the angels;
you have crowned him with glory and honor,
putting everything in subjection under his feet.”

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

Hebrews 13:4
Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.

1 Peter 2:12
Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

1 Peter 2:17
Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

1 Peter 3:7
Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

1 Peter 3:15
but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,

Revelation 4:11
“Worthy are you, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will they existed and were created.”

Revelation 7:12
saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”