How many times does the Bible say "fear not"?

The popular claim

A widely shared statistic holds that the Bible says “fear not” 365 times — one for every day of the year. The claim circulates on social media, in sermons, and on inspirational merchandise. As a piece of folk arithmetic it is appealing. As a count it is not accurate.

The actual numbers

In the King James Version, the exact phrase “fear not” appears about 62 times. Modern translations render the same Hebrew and Greek imperatives variously as “do not be afraid,” “do not fear,” “be not afraid,” “have no fear,” and similar. Counting every form of the imperative not to fear yields different totals depending on what is included:

• Direct commands not to fear (Hebrew al-tira, Greek mē phobou and parallels): approximately 100–110 occurrences.
• Combined with declarative statements that include “fear not” framing: slightly higher.
• The 365 figure is not supported by any standard concordance count.

Where the commands cluster

The commands not to fear are not evenly distributed. They cluster around:

• Theophanies — encounters with God or with angels almost always begin with “Do not be afraid” (Genesis 15:1; Daniel 10:12; Luke 1:13, 1:30, 2:10).
• Prophetic salvation oracles — Isaiah and Jeremiah repeatedly address Israel with “Fear not” as a divine reassurance (Isaiah 41:10, 13, 14; 43:1, 5; Jeremiah 30:10).
• Jesus’ resurrection appearances — the women at the tomb and the disciples on the boat are told not to fear.

Why the 365 figure persists

The “365 times” claim has rhetorical appeal because it implies a daily portion of divine reassurance. It functions as a devotional saying rather than a statistical claim. The actual commands not to fear in the biblical text are still numerous and concentrated in moments of revelation, deliverance, and resurrection — but the exact-count figure of 365 is not where the texts themselves lead.