Need encouraging Bible verses on gratitude for Thanksgiving? Here are 25 inspiring scriptures from Psalms on praise & thanksgiving! I’ve also included 5 more Scriptures from the New Testament on being thankful. Free printable cards with all of these verses are available as well!
Praise and Thanksgiving Bible Verses to Generate a Heart of Worship
I’m not sure if there’s a better time to practice gratitude than Thanksgiving and the holiday season. God has done so many good things for us, and the month of November is the perfect time to remind ourselves of that.
The Bible has a lot to say about gratitude, giving thanks, and praise. Today I want to share some Thanksgiving Bible verses from the book of Psalms that remind us of the wonderful deeds that God has done. Without a doubt, He is worthy of our worship.
Many of these verses come the pen of King David as well as other psalmists. The Word of God is not just an inspiration for our hearts, but we are also built up spiritually when we use Scripture to pray and sing psalms of thanksgiving to God.
I also love displaying God’s Word around my home as well – these verse are perfect for signs, fall decorations, and even Thanksgiving Day table decor. Today, at the end of the post, I’d love to offer you free printable Thanksgiving cards with these thankful Bible verses.
What is the Difference Between Praise and Gratitude?
While discussing the difference between praise and gratitude may seem like technicalities – but it doesn’t hurt to offer clarity, right? Praise is typically focused on admiration, highlighting the character and esteemed quality of someone (in this case, God).
Gratitude is often an expression of thankfulness for things received and usually will flow down into a pay-it-forward type of action.
How is a Praise Psalm Different Than a Psalm of Thanksgiving?
As mentioned above, it may feel like a shade of difference here, but similar to the difference between praise and gratitude, there is a distinction between both types of psalms.
A psalm of thanksgiving has more has to do with what God has given as blessings.
A psalm of praise focuses on who God is and His character.
To be honest, we all could improve in both, I’m sure. The end result, however, should be focusing our eyes on God and not just on ourselves.
Bottom line: BOTH are important – to see who God truly is and bring glory to God for that – as well as having an attitude of gratitude for the wonderful deeds He has done for us.
What If You Don’t Feel Thankful?
If you are struggling with having a thankful heart, you aren’t alone. Sometimes, life doesn’t feel great, and let’s be honest – we all experience hard times. I love that the psalms don’t shy away from all of those human emotions: fear, discouragement, despair, loneliness.
However, when you look at many of the verses listed below, you’ll find that the first few verses are often about praise and thanksgiving BEFORE the psalmist unloads his emotions.
So even if you are having a hard time of feeling gratitude, look to God, His character and the blessings He’s given FIRST. You’ll realize it’s a safe place to pour out your heart emotionally – AND you’ll be filled with hope realizing the power of the God you are crying out to.
If we stop and think for a few minutes, we realize that, as dark as things might seems, there is always something to be thankful for. And sometimes we need to dig deep to offer our sacrifices of thanksgiving. Here are a few:
God’s unbreakable covenant with us
God’s faithful love
God’s goodness
The presence of the Holy Spirit
God’s limitless forgiveness
Eternal life and salvation
And probably one of my favorites… HOPE.
25 Praise and Thanksgiving Scriptures to Lift Your Soul
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Here are some of my favorite psalms of praise and thanksgiving, as well as other Bible verses that encourage us to see God’s great wonders.
I’ve done a mix of different translations – the New International Version (NIV), Contemporary English Version (CEV), English Standard Version (ESV), New Living Translation (NLT), and The Passion Translation (TPT) (my new favorite!).
Sometimes, hearing a familiar verse expressed in a new way can really recharge our hearts.
1| Psalm 9:1-2 | ESV
I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.
2| Psalm 17:7 | ESV
I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High.
3| Psalm 28:7 | NLT
The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.
4| Psalm 34:1 | ESV
I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
5| Psalm 44:8 | NIV
In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever.
6| Psalm 57:9-11 | NIV
I will praise you, Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.
7| Psalm 69:30 | TPT
Then my song will be a burst of praise to you. My glory-shouts will make your fame even more glorious to all who hear my praises!
8| Psalm 75:1 | TPT
God, our hearts spill over with praise to you! We overflow with thanks, for your name is the “Near One.” All we want to talk about is your wonderful works!
9| Psalm 86:12-13 | TPT
With all my heart and passion I will thank you, my God! I will give glory to your name, always and forever! You love me so much, and you have placed your greatness upon me. You rescued me from the deepest place of darkness, and you have delivered me from a certain death.
10| Psalm 89:1-2 NIV
I will sing of the steadfast love of the LORD, forever; with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.
11| Psalm 92:1-2 | CEV
It is wonderful to be grateful and to sing your praises, Lord Most High! It is wonderful each morning to tell about your love and at night to announce how faithful you are.
12| Psalm 95:1-2 | TPT
Come on, everyone! Let’s sing for joy to the Lord! Let’s shout our loudest praises to our God who saved us! Everyone come meet his face with a thankful heart. Don’t hold back your praises; make him great by your shouts of joy!
13| Psalm 100:1-5 | ESV
Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
14| Psalm 105:1-2 | ESV
Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wonderful works!
15| Psalm 106:1-2 | CEV
We will celebrate and praise you, Lord! You are good to us, and your love never fails. No one can praise you enough for all of the mighty things you have done.
16| Psalm 107:1 | ESV
Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!
17| Psalm 107:8-9 | NIV
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.
18| Psalm 107:15 | ESV
Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man!
19| Psalm 113:1-3 | CEV
Shout praises to the Lord! Everyone who serves him, come and praise his name. Let the name of the Lord be praised now and forever. From dawn until sunset the name of the Lord deserves to be praised.
20| Psalm 116:17 | NLT
I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD.
21| Psalm 117:1-2 | CEV
All of you nations, come praise the Lord! Let everyone praise him. His love for us is wonderful; his faithfulness never ends. Shout praises to the Lord!
22| Psalm 136:1-3 | CEV
Praise the Lord! He is good. God’s love never fails. Praise the God of all gods. God’s love never fails. Praise the Lord of lords. God’s love never fails.
23| Psalm 138:1-2 | ESV
I give you thanks, O LORD, with my whole heart; before the gods I sing your praise; I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word.
24| Psalm 146:2 | NLT
I will praise the LORD as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath. (NLT)
25| Psalm 150:1- 6 | NIV
Praise the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness. Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe, praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD.
Other Bible Verses about Praise and Thanksgiving
Ezra 3:11 | CEV
They praised the Lord and gave thanks as they took turns singing: “The Lord is good! His faithful love for Israel will last forever.”
2 Corinthians 9:15 | NIV
Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
Colossians 3:15-16 | CEV
And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 | ESV
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Hebrews 13:15 | NIV
Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise–the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.
Scriptures on Praise and Worship to Generate a Heart of Thanksgiving
This time of the year is always an ideal opportunity to reflect on the grace of God in our lives, on the many wonderful acts He has performed on our behalf. These thanksgiving psalms can cause us to remember, to declare with a loud voice the glory of God and His great power.
Certainly God is worthy of praise every single day, but I love that an entire season cause us to look up and around instead of down and in.
Sometimes it’s a complete sacrifice of praise that we are bringing him, but our songs of praise mean so much to Him. We know that every good gift comes from Him.
PS – If some of these Bible versions were new to you or you’d just like to explore them further, you can grab them here!
New International Version (NIV) (This is a beautiful floral-covered version!)
Contemporary English Version (CEV) (Sturdy hard cover)
English Standard Version (ESV) (Thin-line!)
New Living Translation (NLT) (Free access to Filament Bible Study app! I have this one and love it! And this version has comes with 365 devotionals for women!)
The Passion Translation (TPT) (Beautiful palm leaf cover)
Even More Bible Verse Inspiration
Free Printable Thanksgiving Scripture Cards
To help you get into the spirit of Thanksgiving, I’ve created cards with all 30 verses listed above as a free printable for a limited time! You can download it, choose a different card every day to read or memorize up until Thanksgiving – a whole month of verses to strengthen your heart.
These are also perfect to pass out and read around the Thanksgiving table!
Cards are 4×4″, in a downloadable PDF!
Just fill out the box at the end of the post!
Scripture Printable Wall Art
I also sell many Bible verse printables in my Etsy shop! I love displaying the Word of God around my home and they are super inexpensive gifts – I’d love for you to take a look! There are Bible verses for Thanksgiving, Christmas – and ones you can display all year long!
Digital Scripture Art
If you like to share Bible verses digitally – on social media, wallpaper, screen savers – this post has encouraging Scripture verses for you to share, in digital format!
More Thanksgiving Day Inspiration
If you need more Thanksgiving inspiration for the holiday itself, you can grab these free printable Thanksgiving table cards right here along with a simple tablescape design!
You can also look here for some Thanksgiving place setting inspiration – 30 beautiful ideas.
And if you need a free printable for wall art or to put on your Thanksgiving table, you can grab this ‘Thankful” printable sign here!~
Don’t forget to grab your free printable Scripture cards for Thanksgiving! Just fill out the box below!
And if you happen to love Scripture-based printable cards, check out these 31 prayers you can pray for your kids this school year – all Scripture based, praying God’s word! You can get the free printable cards here!
And if you love studying Scripture, be sure to check out The Spiral Bible – it’s amazing!
Thoughts? I’d love to hear them! Leave a comment below!
Hi! How can we get access to the Thanksgiving prayer cards again? The fillable box at the end of the page is for the Back to School cards, not the Thanksgiving prayer cards. Thank you!
Thank you so much for pointing that out, Katie! I’m not sure how that happened! I’ve updated the box and it will immediately redirect you to the correct download. Sorry about any inconvenience!
Hi Kate! Thank you so much for sharing these with us! I hope I am not coming off as critical of you here. It is not my intention at all..
I did not print your version as I noticed that some references to God are not capitalized (his instead of His). Raising my children as I was, references to God is always capitalized. I wrote the texts down and then printed my own cards.
I have placed these around my Home so I may look upon them as I’m going about my daily routines. Again, thank you for sharing!!
Hi Patricia! Thanks for commenting! I’m with you on using Him/His etc. when referring to God. However, I stayed true to how the version (CEV, NLT, etc.) wrote it. I didn’t feel comfortable editing in my own capital letters if the version I was quoting didn’t have it. But I agree – for my own self when I write it out for personal use, I always use capital letters! I’m glad you modified as you felt best! Thanks again!
Thank you, Kate! These are beautiful!!
I’m so happy you like them, Susanne! Thank you for letting me know! 🙂
The Bible has a lot to say about gratitude, giving thanks, and praise.
It certainly does! I need this reminder all the time!
Please send me the Thanksgiving printables.
Hi Christine!
There’s a box you can fill out at the very end of the post, where you’ll be immediately redirected to the download. Once you submit it, hang on a few seconds, and you’ll see the download link!