The Battle Cry of Tharseo
“In this world you will have trouble.”
— John 16:33
Given the past eighteen months, I’d say Jesus’s words in John 16 are clearly an understatement. In fact, if I focus only on the first part of verse 33, I can feel smug indignation brewing in my soul. To counter such sentiments, I decided to spend more time with what immediately follows the declaration of trouble: “But take heart! I have overcome the world” (v. 33b).
What especially piqued my interest was the Greek word tharseo, which is often translated as “take heart.” For a bit of context, this is the last statement Jesus makes before looking toward heaven and praying, “Father, the hour has come . . .” In fact, the entire next chapter of John’s gospel is Jesus praying for himself, his disciples, and all believers. When he finishes praying, he is betrayed by one of the people he just prayed for and arrested.
You may recall that leading up to this the disciples have been trying to understand what Jesus is telling them about the days ahead. When Jesus tells them he is speaking plainly—no longer in parables—they are relieved, saying, “Finally . . . this makes us believe you came from God.”
And then we get Jesus’s response. The Message paraphrase reads like this: “Do you finally believe? . . . I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart [tharseo]! I’ve conquered the world.”
“This ‘take heart’ dares us to boldly trust in someone—in this case, Jesus—persisting even when we are tempted, again and again, to give up.”
Take heart! In Greek, this word tharseo means to have courage and be of good cheer. On their own the words seem banal, but coupled with the preceding comments about trouble, they take on a sense of defiance against the status quo. This tharseo is an action requiring perseverance and passion. It’s daring us to boldly trust in someone—in this case, Jesus—persisting even when we are tempted, again and again, to give up.
I was fascinated to find this word is only used a few times in the New Testament, where it is spoken by Jesus in all but one instance. In every case, tharseo is a command directed to his fellow heirs, as follows.
When Jesus hears the blind man shouting, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” he stops and instructs the people to call him. Mark 10:49 says they call to the blind man, using this same phrase: “Tharseo! He’s calling you!”
When Jesus is walking on the water and the disciples are terrified, he tells them, “Tharseo! It is I! Don’t be afraid.” (Matt. 14:27; Mark 6:50)
When Jesus is healing the paralyzed man, he says, “Tharseo, son; your sins are forgiven.” (Matt. 9:2)
When Jesus is healing the woman who has been bleeding for twelve years, he says, “Tharseo, daughter, your faith has healed you.” (Matt. 9:22)
Then, when Paul is in prison, Jesus appears to him and says, “Tharseo! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.” (Acts 23:11)
So in the New Testament, this phrase—tharseo—marks five pretty important points:
First, Jesus is calling us.
Second, don’t be afraid.
Third, our faith heals us.
Fourth, our sins are forgiven.
And fifth, press on.
Take heart!
Have courage!
Be bold!
Don’t give up!
Trust him!
Consider all of the people to whom these words were spoken: a man who literally couldn’t see the road ahead of him, a very diverse group of twelve who didn’t always see eye-to-eye (remember that group also included the guy who would later betray him), someone who was dependent on others for pretty much everything, a woman who felt cursed and exhausted for more than a decade, and a man who was in captivity. Can you identify with any of these people? I can.
And consider what was going on in Paul’s life when he heard the same word. He’s given up everything to follow Jesus, the guy he previously hated. He’s changed his ways and has gone all-in for Christ. He feels compelled to go tell others in Jerusalem about his conversion, but then it seems like God might be telling him not to go. Paul goes anyway and ends up getting thrown in jail. It’s a disaster. Can you imagine how discouraged he might have felt?
And when Peter had been in jail the church held prayer meetings, but no one held prayer meetings for Paul! If I were Paul sitting in that jail cell, I’d be rehashing it all over and over again in my head. What did I do wrong? Why did this happen? Where’s the purpose in all of this? Clearly I’m not good enough. Let’s be honest, I have been in this situation more than I might like to admit—trying to make decisions while balancing the desires of my heart against the Spirit’s leading—and then struggling to make sense of it all when failure stares me in the face.
But look at what happens. In The Message paraphrase, again, we read it like this, “That night the Master appeared to Paul: ‘It’s going to be all right. Tharseo. Everything is going to turn out for the best. You’ve been a good witness for me here in Jerusalem. Now you’re going to be my witness in Rome’” (Acts 23:11).
“Perhaps even more important to note is what he didn’t say. Jesus didn’t come at him with “Why did you screw up, Paul?” ”
Perhaps even more important to note is what he didn’t say. Jesus didn’t come at him with “Why did you screw up, Paul?” Paul already knew his failures, and Jesus did not condemn him. Instead he praised him! It didn’t matter that the people had rejected Paul’s teaching. Jesus said, “Just as you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.” In other words, what you did back there? The thing you thought you did wrong because of how this trouble-filled world responded? You didn’t. Go do it again in the next place I’m sending you. Tharseo.
I like to think of the key verses that use this word as a battle cry for us in this trouble-filled season: He’s calling us. We don’t have to worry or be afraid. Keep the faith—it heals us. Our sins are erased. He’s with us and will help us keep going. Take heart!
He’s known what we’re up against and is equipping us. We may not always particularly like the way that plays out . . . it often hurts. But we must remember the end result. Trusting Christ means this pressure is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, an abundance of joy, and a wealth of generosity.
Wendy Willard has spent the past two decades deep in the trenches of child welfare, initially as a mom to two daughters, then also as a foster parent and adoption advocate across three US states and Nicaragua. Wendy is a team-building consultant serving mission-driven organizations and families throughout the US. Her previous literary works include glimpses into her design and technical background (including HTML: A Beginner’s Guide and Web Design: A Beginner’s Guide, both from McGraw-Hill) as well as her passion for serving families, such as Adopted for Daily Life: A Devotional for Adopting Moms and pieces included in Daily Guideposts, Faith, Hope, & Connection: A 30-Day Devotional for Adoptive and Foster Parents, Mom’s Devotional Bible (Zondervan), and (in)courage. You can follow her on Instagram.