The Bible provides a valuable way to navigate paths of conflict and contention, promoting peace, understanding, and reconciliation as alternatives. The Bible asserts that everyone benefits from avoiding quarrels. Those who abstain from quarrelling and choose peace and understanding instead, often witness improvement in interpersonal relationships and experience inner peace and personal growth.
The Bible advises us to avoid quarrels at all times. Yet it holds a particular emphasis on refraining from quarrelling during periods of disagreement or conflict. It urges us to practice patience, humility, and understanding in these instances, de-escalating the situation. Furthermore, it encourages a peaceful dialogue aimed at resolution. Overall, the message the Bible conveys is the importance of maintaining peace and unity at all times, overriding the impulse for confrontation.
Below is our full list of bible verses on quarrelling.
Matthew 5:25
Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way, so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.
Proverbs 30:33
For the churning of milk produces butter,
And pressing the nose brings forth blood;
So the churning of anger produces strife.
Proverbs 18:6
A fool’s lips bring strife,
And his mouth calls for blows.
Psalm 120:7
I am for peace, but when I speak,
They are for war.
Psalm 140:2
Who devise evil things in their hearts;
They continually stir up wars.
Proverbs 15:18
A hot-tempered man stirs up strife,
But the slow to anger calms a dispute.
Genesis 21:10
Therefore she said to Abraham, “Drive out this maid and her son, for the son of this maid shall not be an heir with my son Isaac.”
Proverbs 18:19
A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city,
And contentions are like the bars of a citadel.
Proverbs 19:13
A foolish son is destruction to his father,
And the contentions of a wife are a constant dripping.
James 4:1-2
What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask.
Mark 6:18-19
For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death and could not do so;
Matthew 20:20-24
Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making a request of Him. And He said to her, “What do you wish?” She *said to Him, “Command that in Your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit one on Your right and one on Your left.” But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They *said to Him, “We are able.”
Acts 15:37-40
Barnabas wanted to take John, called Mark, along with them also. But Paul kept insisting that they should not take him along who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work. And there occurred such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus.
2 Timothy 2:24-26
The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.
Colossians 3:13
bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.
Philippians 2:3-4
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
Exodus 21:18-19
“If men have a quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist, and he does not die but remains in bed, if he gets up and walks around outside on his staff, then he who struck him shall go unpunished; he shall only pay for his loss of time, and shall take care of him until he is completely healed.
Proverbs 10:12
Hatred stirs up strife,
But love covers all transgressions.
Proverbs 13:10
Through insolence comes nothing but strife,
But wisdom is with those who receive counsel.
Proverbs 20:3
Keeping away from strife is an honor for a man,
But any fool will quarrel.
Proverbs 21:9
It is better to live in a corner of a roof
Than in a house shared with a contentious woman.
Proverbs 22:10
Drive out the scoffer, and contention will go out,
Even strife and dishonor will cease.
Proverbs 26:20-21
For lack of wood the fire goes out,
And where there is no whisperer, contention quiets down.
Like charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,
So is a contentious man to kindle strife.
Proverbs 27:15-16
A constant dripping on a day of steady rain
And a contentious woman are alike;
He who would restrain her restrains the wind,
And grasps oil with his right hand.
2 Timothy 2:23
But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels.
1 Corinthians 3:3
for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?
1 Timothy 3:2-3
An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but gentle, peaceable, free from the love of money.
Proverbs 17:19
He who loves transgression loves strife;
He who raises his door seeks destruction.
Isaiah 58:4
“Behold, you fast for contention and strife and to strike with a wicked fist.
You do not fast like you do today to make your voice heard on high.