Sabr — patience — is mentioned in the Quran more than 90 times. It is the quality Allah asks of His prophets, praises in the believers, and promises to reward "without measure." This guide gathers the key Quran verses about patience, what they teach, and two du'as for patience from the Quran.
The key verses
Verse | Meaning (simplified) | Reference |
|---|---|---|
Seek help through patience and prayer | "O you who believe, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allah is with the patient." | |
Tests will come | "We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger, and loss of wealth, lives and fruits — but give good news to the patient." | |
What the patient say | "Those who, when disaster strikes them, say: 'Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return.'" | |
Reward without measure | "Only the patient will be given their reward without measure." | |
Ease with hardship | "So surely with hardship comes ease. Surely with hardship comes ease." | |
Beautiful patience | Prophet Ya'qub, on losing Yusuf: "So patience is most fitting (sabrun jamil)." | |
No burden too heavy | "Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear." | |
Patience comes from Allah | "Be patient, and your patience is only through Allah." | |
Encourage each other | "…and they advise each other to truth, and advise each other to patience." |
What these verses teach
- Patience and prayer go together. In 2:153 they are named side by side as the two great helps.
- Tests are certain. The Quran tells us in advance that fear, hunger and loss will come, so they don't take us by surprise.
- Words matter in hard moments. Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un reminds us that everything belongs to Allah and returns to Him.
- Ease is closer than it looks. In 94:5–6, "hardship" is mentioned twice with "the", and "ease" twice without it. Many scholars explained that one hardship is surrounded by two eases.
- Patience is a shared effort. In Surah Al-'Asr, the people saved from loss advise each other to patience. See Surah Al-Asr explained.
Three kinds of patience
Scholars often describe patience in three areas:
Kind | Example |
|---|---|
Patience in obeying Allah | Waking for Fajr, keeping up a daily Quran habit, revising memorisation |
Patience away from sins | Holding your tongue, lowering your gaze, avoiding what is haram |
Patience with what Allah decrees | Illness, loss, and things that don't go your way |
Learning the Quran needs the first kind every day. Progress in recitation and memorisation is slow at first — patience is what turns a few minutes a day into real results.
Du'as for patience from the Quran
رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَنَا وَانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ — "Our Lord, pour patience upon us, make our feet firm, and help us against the disbelieving people" (Al-Baqarah 2:250)
رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَتَوَفَّنَا مُسْلِمِينَ — "Our Lord, pour patience upon us and let us die as Muslims" (Al-A'raf 7:126)
Read more in 12 Rabbana du'as from the Quran.
From the hadith
- The Prophet ﷺ said: "Patience is at the first strike" — the real test of patience is the moment the hardship first hits (reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim).
- He also said: "How wonderful is the affair of the believer… if something good happens to him, he is thankful, and that is good for him; and if something bad happens to him, he is patient, and that is good for him" (reported by Muslim).
Patience with your Quran journey
Many adults give up on learning to read or memorise because progress feels slow. Remember:
- Small daily steps beat long sessions once a week. See a 10-minute daily Quran habit.
- Mistakes are normal. A teacher's job is to correct them kindly. See overcoming the fear of mispronouncing the Quran.
- The Prophet ﷺ said that the one who reads the Quran with difficulty, stumbling over it, has a double reward (reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim).
To learn with a patient, one-to-one teacher, see our Quran classes for adults and for kids.
FAQ
What does the Quran say about patience?
That Allah is with the patient (2:153), that the patient will be rewarded without measure (39:10), and that with hardship comes ease (94:5–6).
What is the du'a for patience in the Quran?
*Rabbana afrigh 'alayna sabran wa thabbit aqdamana* — "Our Lord, pour patience upon us and make our feet firm" (2:250).
How many times is patience mentioned in the Quran?
Sabr and words from the same root appear more than 90 times in the Quran.
What is "sabrun jamil"?
"Beautiful patience" — the words of Prophet Ya'qub when he lost Yusuf (12:18). Scholars describe it as patience without complaining to people.
What are the three types of patience?
Patience in obeying Allah, patience in staying away from sins, and patience with what Allah has decreed.
Sources
- Surah Al-Baqarah 2:153–157 — Quran.com
- Surah Az-Zumar 39:10 — Quran.com
- Surah Ash-Sharh 94:5–6 — Quran.com
- Sahih al-Bukhari 1283 — patience at the first strike — Sunnah.com
- Sahih Muslim 2999 — the affair of the believer — Sunnah.com
- Sahih al-Bukhari 4937 — the one who reads with difficulty — Sunnah.com