--- title: "Bible Verses for a Funeral: What the Service Books List, and How to Choose" description: "Choosing a Bible reading for a funeral? Ten often chosen, each with its setting, what Catholic and Anglican service books list, and how to get through reading aloud." url: "https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-a-funeral" lang: "en" published: "2025-12-25" modified: "2025-12-25" author: "Cal Hewitt" tags: ["funeral readings","bible verses for a funeral","grief","reading aloud","order of service","psalm 23"] image: "https://biblenudge.com/og/blog-bible-verses-for-a-funeral.jpg" alternates: es: "https://biblenudge.com/es/blog/versiculos-para-un-funeral.md" --- # Bible Verses for a Funeral: What the Service Books List, and How to Choose [Cal Hewitt](https://biblenudge.com/about/cal-hewitt)Published December 25, 2025 - funeral readings - bible verses for a funeral - grief - reading aloud - order of service - psalm 23 ![Bible Verses for a Funeral: What the Service Books List, and How to Choose](https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-a-funeral/featured.jpg) Most people looking for a funeral reading have a job to do and not much time to do it in. One person wrote on Reddit that their grandmother had died that afternoon and ["I've been asked to find and read a Bible verse/scripture at the service"](https://www.reddit.com/r/Catholicism/comments/neth1v/). Another, after a memorial, said ["I was afraid I wouldn't be able to finish reading it without breaking down"](https://www.reddit.com/r/GriefSupport/comments/sdvdm6/). And some families there are asking a harder question: ["What is a not super religious bible reading for an agnostic man's funeral?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/12omtnf/) Below are ten readings people choose most often, each with a line on where it comes from and what it suits, then what church service books list, and how to read aloud when you are grieving. ## If you only have a minute ### Short and steady Psalm 23, Psalm 121 and [Revelation 21:4](https://biblenudge.com/context/revelation-21-4) read aloud in under a minute. ### For a mixed family Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 and Psalm 121 are often chosen when not everyone shares a faith. ### What the churches list Catholic and Church of England service books each print their own readings, with none ranked best. ### Reading aloud Practice it several times and give a copy to the minister, who can finish it for you. ### A passage for grief [Psalm 34:18](https://biblenudge.com/context/psalm-34-18), "Yahweh is near to those who have a broken heart." ## Ten readings, and what each suits Every reading here is from the World English Bible. Each is followed by who is speaking and the kind of service it tends to suit. **Psalm 23.** "Yahweh is my shepherd: I shall lack nothing." A psalm of David spoken to God, including "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me." Six verses, familiar to many people who rarely go to church, which is part of why it is chosen so often. **Psalm 121.** "I will lift up my eyes to the hills. Where does my help come from?" One of the Songs of Ascents, sung by pilgrims, it ends with Yahweh keeping "your going out and your coming in, from this time forward, and forever more." Eight short verses that read well aloud. **Ecclesiastes 3:1-8.** "For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die." The Teacher of Ecclesiastes observing the pattern of a human life, with no one addressed directly. It is often chosen for a long life, and for a family of mixed belief. **Lamentations 3:22-23.** "It is because of Yahweh's loving kindnesses that we are not consumed, because his compassion doesn't fail. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness." A voice in the ruins of Jerusalem, a few lines after "Remember my affliction and my misery." It suits a death that came hard. You can [read the verses around it](https://biblenudge.com/context/lamentations-3-19-24). **John 11:25-26.** "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies." Jesus speaks to Martha four days after her brother Lazarus has died, while mourners are still at the house. It is a promise made to a grieving sister. **John 14:1-6.** "Don't let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me. In my Father's house are many homes." Jesus speaks to his disciples at their last meal before his arrest. It appears in both the Catholic and the Church of England lists. **Romans 8:38-39.** "For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from God's love." Paul writing to the church in Rome. **1 Corinthians 15:54-57.** "Death is swallowed up in victory. Death, where is your sting?" Paul's argument for the resurrection of the dead, and the heart of the lesson appointed in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. **1 Thessalonians 4:13-14.** Paul writes that he does not want the church to grieve "like the rest, who have no hope." It answers a church worried about members who had died. Note that it does not tell anyone not to grieve. **Revelation 21:4.** "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more." Part of [John's vision of a new heaven and a new earth](https://biblenudge.com/context/revelation-21-4). At one verse, it is the shortest here. ## Psalm 34:18, when the room needs comfort first The passage this site offers for grief is a single verse: > Yahweh is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves those who have a crushed spirit. It says where God is, and it asks nothing of the people listening. At a service where grief is raw, it can sit before a longer reading or stand on its own. [The verses around it](https://biblenudge.com/context/psalm-34-18) speak of Yahweh rescuing the righteous from their troubles. ![An open Bible on a lectern at the front of a quiet church](https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-a-funeral/the-lectern.jpg) *A short reading is easier to get through on the day.* ## How to choose There are three honest ways people choose, and most families use more than one. A reading can reflect the person who died: a psalm they loved, a verse from their mother's Bible, something that sounds like them. It can fit the people who will be listening. Or it can follow the church's own rite. The Church of England tells families simply to [talk it through with the minister](https://www.churchofengland.org/life-events/funerals/funeral-faqs), and the Catholic Liturgy Office says [members of the family may be invited to read](https://www.liturgyoffice.org.uk/Resources/OCF/ChoosingReadings.html). The celebrant Rosie Anstey puts the case for the well known ones: ["Familiar pieces can be deeply moving for a reason."](https://celebrantrosieanstey.com/how-to-choose-funeral-readings/) If you are stuck, Psalm 23 is among the most familiar readings there is, and it is a sound choice. ## What the service books list If the funeral is in a church, the church's own book sets the options. Knowing them makes the conversation with the minister or priest much shorter. **Catholic.** The Order of Christian Funerals draws its readings from the Lectionary's Masses for the Dead, which the United States bishops set out in four lists: readings from the Hebrew Scriptures, [responsorial psalms](https://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/sacraments-and-sacramentals/bereavement-and-funerals/responsorial-psalms), readings from the letters, and [Gospels](https://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/sacraments-and-sacramentals/bereavement-and-funerals/gospels). John 11, John 14:1-6, Romans 8 and 1 Thessalonians 4 are all among them. **Church of England.** [Common Worship](https://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-worship/worship-texts-and-resources/common-worship/death-and-dying/funeral) says "There must always be one reading from the Bible." In its full form a Gospel reading is preceded by one or two others, and it prints its own list, including Psalms 23, 121 and 139, Lamentations 3, [John 14](https://biblenudge.com/context/john-14-27) and Revelation 21. **The 1662 Book of Common Prayer.** The older [Order for the Burial of the Dead](https://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-worship/worship-texts-and-resources/book-common-prayer/order-burial-dead) appoints Psalms 39 and 90 and a single lesson, 1 Corinthians 15 from verse 20 to the end. ## Reading aloud when you are grieving The fear of not getting to the end comes up again and again, and the advice from people who run funerals is practical. The funeral directors' association NAFD, writing about eulogies, suggests you [practice aloud at least three or four times before the day](https://www.funeral-directory.co.uk/guides/how-to-write-a-eulogy/), and ask a trusted friend to be ready to finish if you cannot, or give a copy to the celebrant. Fitting Farewell says the same about readings and adds something worth hearing: ["It is very rare for someone to be unable to finish."](https://www.fittingfarewell.uk.com/advice-funeral-readings/) A shorter reading helps. Psalm 121 or Revelation 21:4 can be read steadily in well under a minute. Print it in large type, and if your voice goes, stop, breathe, and carry on from where you were. The room is on your side. ![A printed reading in large type folded in someone's hands](https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-a-funeral/large-type.jpg) *Large type and a copy for the minister make the reading easier to finish.* ## When the family's beliefs are mixed Sometimes only the person who died was religious, or only some of the family are. The Church of England says [you do not have to be a churchgoer](https://www.churchofengland.org/life-events/funerals/my-funeral-plans/choices-your-funeral) to have one of its funerals. Rosie Anstey suggests that where there is doubt, a reading "can be shared between two people or read by the celebrant on the family's behalf." In a Catholic Funeral Liturgy the Scripture readings stay, and a poem can come after the homily or in the words of remembrance. People disagree about this in good faith. In the thread about the agnostic grandfather, one reply said "If they were agnostic, don't read from a bible," and another family member elsewhere worried that a reading would not honor someone who was not religious. Others choose a passage that fits the person rather than a creed. Ecclesiastes 3 and Psalm 121 are often chosen for rooms like that, because they speak about a human life and about help without asking the listeners to agree to much. ## For a child's funeral Common Worship prints a short list of its own for the funeral of a child, including Psalm 84:1-4, Isaiah 49:15-16, [Jeremiah 31:15](https://biblenudge.com/context/jeremiah-31-15)\-17 and Matthew 18:1-5,10. The [page on the loss of a child](https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-the-loss-of-a-child) stays with the parents. ## Questions people ask **How many readings are there at a funeral?** It depends on the church. Common Worship requires at least one Bible reading and, in its full form, has a Gospel preceded by one or two others. Many families have one or two. **Can I choose any reading I like?** In many services, yes, with the minister. A Catholic Funeral Mass draws its Scripture from the approved lists, and a poem can be placed after the homily. **What is a short Bible verse for a funeral card or order of service?** Psalm 34:18 and Revelation 21:4 are single verses, and both read well on their own. ## Where to go next For readings chosen for a parent, see the pages on the [death of a father](https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-death-of-a-father) and the [death of a mother](https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-death-of-a-mother). If you are also writing a card, the page on [what to say to someone who lost a loved one](https://biblenudge.com/blog/what-to-say-to-someone-who-lost-a-loved-one) has words you can send. And [Bible Nudge](https://biblenudge.com/) can take a line about what you are carrying in your own words and come back with one passage and what surrounds it. [Find a passage](https://biblenudge.com/nudge). Grief often gets heavier after the funeral, when the people go home, as [Marie Curie](https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/professionals/palliative-care-knowledge-zone/bereaved-learning-disability) notes: some people seem fine at first and feel it later. If it turns into thoughts of ending your life, please reach a person tonight. In the United States, call or text 988 for the [988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline](https://988lifeline.org/contact-us/). In Canada, call or text 9-8-8. In the UK and Republic of Ireland, [Samaritans](https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/talk-us-phone/) is on 116 123. In Australia, [Lifeline](https://www.lifeline.org.au/get-help/national-services/lifeline-crisis-support) is 13 11 14. Anywhere else, [Find A Helpline](https://findahelpline.com/) and [Befrienders Worldwide](https://www.befrienders.org/) list services by country. ## Words that come up here Tap a term to see what it means. **Lectionary.** The book of Bible readings a church uses through the year, including readings set for funerals. **Order of Christian Funerals.** The Catholic Church's rite for funerals, with its own readings and prayers. **Common Worship.** The Church of England's modern service book, which includes its funeral service. **Songs of Ascents.** Psalms 120 to 134, sung by pilgrims going up to Jerusalem. Psalm 121 is one of them. **Celebrant.** The person who leads a funeral, whether a minister, a priest or a civil celebrant. ## Share this page If somebody you know is carrying this, the link goes straight to the passage and what surrounds it. Nothing here asks them to sign up for anything. [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fbiblenudge.com%2Fblog%2Fbible-verses-for-a-funeral)[Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbiblenudge.com%2Fblog%2Fbible-verses-for-a-funeral&media=https%3A%2F%2Fbiblenudge.com%2Fblog%2Fbible-verses-for-a-funeral%2Ffeatured.jpg&description=Bible%20Verses%20for%20a%20Funeral%3A%20What%20the%20Service%20Books%20List%2C%20and%20How%20to%20Choose) ## Related Articles - [Bible Verses for the Loss of a Sister: Miriam, Martha and Mary, and the Person Who Shared Your Childhood](https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-the-loss-of-a-sister): Your sister has died. Psalm 34:18 for tonight, Miriam and the sisters of Bethany, words for twins and younger siblings, and readings for her funeral. - [Bible Verses for the Loss of a Brother: What Martha and Mary Said](https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-the-loss-of-a-brother): Your brother has died. John 11 gives two sisters grieving their brother Lazarus, with Psalm 34:18 for tonight, readings for his funeral, and help for siblings. - [Bible Verses for the Death of a Mother: Comforted After His Mother's Death](https://biblenudge.com/blog/bible-verses-for-death-of-a-mother): Your mother has died. Genesis records Isaac still needing comfort for his mother, with Psalm 34:18, John 19, Proverbs 31 in its setting, and readings for her funeral.