Another section of Scripture where merimnao appears and that might come to mind when someone tells us they’re feeling anxious or worried is in Matthew’s Gospel account:

Matthew 6:25–34
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t there more to life than food and more to the body than clothing? Look at the birds in the sky: They do not sow, or reap, or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you more valuable than they are? And which of you by worrying can add even one hour to his life? Why do you worry about clothing? Think about how the flowers of the field grow; they do not work or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was clothed like one of these! And if this is how God clothes the wild grass, which is here today and tomorrow is tossed into the fire to heat the oven, won’t he clothe you even more, you people of little faith? So then, don’t worry saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For the unconverted pursue these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But above all pursue his kingdom and righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So then, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.”

In 1 Corinthians 7, the congregation seems to have been under serious outside threat, either persecution or the perceived imminence of the end times.

Accordingly, the apostle Paul used merimnao and amerimnos (translated in the NET Bible as “concerned” and “free from concern”) to suggest that entering into marriage may not always be an ideal option, noting its potential to distract men and women from God in such circumstances. He wanted them to be as free as possible to serve God:

1 Corinthians 7:32–35
“I want you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the things of the world, how to please his wife, and he is divided. An unmarried woman or a virgin is concerned about the things of the Lord, to be holy both in body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the things of the world, how to please her husband. I am saying this for your benefit, not to place a limitation on you, but so that without distraction you may give notable and constant service to the Lord.”

The sense here is “to care for in a way that can distract.” It’s not that the care itself is bad, but that it could be dividing one’s attention, drawing someone away from God.

Paul later uses merimnao to describe the care that Timothy had for the Philippian brethren:

Philippians 2:19–20
“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be encouraged by hearing news about you. For there is no one here like him who will readily demonstrate his deep concern for you.”

So here, the word describes the sincere desire for another’s well-being.

In the context of Matthew 6 and Philippians 4, merimnao refers to a lack or absence of faith in God to provide our everyday necessities. The solution for this kind of worry or concern is to present our troubles to God and trust Him to resolve them in accordance with His will.

This is obviously not the case in Philippians 2, where the connotation is positive—a model for how followers of Christ should care for one another.

Additionally, it would be a mistake to confuse merimnao in our day with clinical anxiety, or anxiety disorders, which are bona fide mental-health challenges. The Bible does not directly address clinical anxiety, and attaching medical definitions or implications to any instance of merimnao would be inaccurate. Likewise, citing the passages in Matthew 6 and Philippians 4 to suggest that someone with clinical anxiety should simply not feel anxious would be a misapplication.