What is a comforting Bible verse for the loss of a loved one?

Psalms 34:18 is where many people start, because it describes God staying near those whose hearts are broken. Revelation 21:4 looks ahead to a day with no more death or tears, and 1 Thessalonians 4:13 speaks directly to grieving believers. There is no single right verse. Read a few slowly and stay with the one that steadies you.

Is it wrong for a Christian to grieve deeply?

Not at all. Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus in John 11:35 even though he knew what came next, and 1 Thessalonians 4:13 assumes believers will grieve. The difference faith makes is not less sorrow but sorrow with hope underneath it. Deep grief usually reflects deep love, and Scripture never treats that as a fault.

What Bible verses are good to read at a funeral or memorial?

Psalm 23 is read at more funerals than any other passage, and Psalms 23:4 is its heart. John 14:27, Revelation 21:4, and Lamentations 3:22 are also common choices. Pick one or two rather than many, and ask someone to read them slowly. A short verse given room to breathe carries more weight than a long reading.

Bible Verses About Grief

A random verse drawn from 27 passages chosen for this topic.

The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.

Psalms 34:18KJV

TranslationFrom

Drawing from 27 verses

Grief is the heaviest reason anyone comes looking for a Bible verse. If that is why you are here, take your time with this page. There is no hurry.

The first thing worth knowing is that the Bible never rushes grief. A large share of the psalms are laments, raw prayers from people in real pain. Job's friends sat with him in silence for seven days before anyone said a word. And in John 11:35, one of the shortest verses in the Bible, Jesus stood at the tomb of a friend he was about to raise and wept anyway.

Sorrow, in other words, is not a lack of faith. Scripture treats mourning as an honest and even sacred response to loss. Matthew 5:4 goes further and attaches a blessing to it, along with a promise of comfort.

The verses in the tool above hold two truths at once. God stays close to people whose hearts are broken, which is the promise of Psalms 34:18. And the story is not over. Passages like 1 Thessalonians 4:13 and Revelation 21:4 point to a day when death itself is undone and every tear is answered.

People reach for these verses after losing a parent, a spouse, a child, a friend. They read them at funerals and on anniversaries no one else remembers. Some carry a grief that has no funeral, the loss of a marriage, of health, of a future they had counted on. These words are for all of it.

Use this page gently. Draw one verse and let it be enough for today. In deep grief, a single sentence of Scripture held all day does more than a chapter skimmed. If the words feel far away right now, that is normal. Keep them near and let them do their slow work.

Many people also pray these verses when their own words have run out. The psalms in particular give grief a vocabulary, and borrowing it is exactly what they are for.

However long your sorrow lasts, it does not get the last word. That is the settled promise underneath every verse on this page.

All 27 verses about grief, in the King James Version

The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
Psalms 34:18
He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.
Psalms 147:3
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Psalms 23:4
For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.
Psalms 30:5
Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;
Psalms 30:11
Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?
Psalms 56:8
My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.
Psalms 73:26
This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me.
Psalms 119:50
Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.
Psalms 116:15
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
Ecclesiastes 3:4
He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it.
Isaiah 25:8
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
Isaiah 53:4
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
Isaiah 61:1
To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.
Isaiah 61:3
It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
Lamentations 3:22
They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:23
But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies.
Lamentations 3:32
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Matthew 5:4
Jesus wept.
John 11:35
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
John 14:27
And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.
John 16:22
But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
1 Thessalonians 4:13
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
1 Thessalonians 4:14
Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;
2 Corinthians 1:3
Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
2 Corinthians 1:4
But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.
1 Peter 5:10
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
Revelation 21:4

Frequently asked questions

What is a comforting Bible verse for the loss of a loved one?: Psalms 34:18 is where many people start, because it describes God staying near those whose hearts are broken. Revelation 21:4 looks ahead to a day with no more death or tears, and 1 Thessalonians 4:13 speaks directly to grieving believers. There is no single right verse. Read a few slowly and stay with the one that steadies you.
Is it wrong for a Christian to grieve deeply?: Not at all. Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus in John 11:35 even though he knew what came next, and 1 Thessalonians 4:13 assumes believers will grieve. The difference faith makes is not less sorrow but sorrow with hope underneath it. Deep grief usually reflects deep love, and Scripture never treats that as a fault.
What Bible verses are good to read at a funeral or memorial?: Psalm 23 is read at more funerals than any other passage, and Psalms 23:4 is its heart. John 14:27, Revelation 21:4, and Lamentations 3:22 are also common choices. Pick one or two rather than many, and ask someone to read them slowly. A short verse given room to breathe carries more weight than a long reading.