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Bible Verses About Death

“For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:”

— Job 19:25

The Bible talks about death with unusual directness — it never euphemizes it away, and it never pretends it is natural. Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 puts it on the calendar ("a time to be born, and a time to die") and Psalm 90:12 asks God to teach us to number our days because of it. But the verses that get read at bedsides are the ones that speak past it: Jesus at a tomb saying "I am the resurrection, and the life" before he empties it, Paul calling death a departure with cargo waiting (2 Timothy 4:7), and Revelation's end-state where death itself is a named casualty: "there shall be no more death." Fifteen of those verses follow in full KJV text — for the dying, the bereaved, and anyone doing the arithmetic of mortality honestly.

Quick answer: The most-read verse about death is Psalm 23:4: "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me." Jesus' own words are John 11:25 — "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live" — and Paul's great comfort verse for the bereaved is 1 Thessalonians 4:13, which tells believers they grieve, but "even as others which have no hope."

The 15 verses, in full text

01 · King James Version

For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:

Job 19:25

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02 · King James Version

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

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03 · King James Version

So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

Psalms 90:12

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04 · King James Version

Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.

Psalms 116:15

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05 · King James Version

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

Ecclesiastes 3:1

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06 · King James Version

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

Ecclesiastes 3:2

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07 · King James Version

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

Ecclesiastes 12:7

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08 · King James Version

Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

John 11:25

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09 · King James Version

For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.

Romans 14:8

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10 · King James Version

O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

1 Corinthians 15:55

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11 · King James Version

We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.

2 Corinthians 5:8

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12 · King James Version

For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

Philippians 1:21

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13 · King James Version

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

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14 · King James Version

And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

Hebrews 9:27

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15 · King James Version

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

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When to read these verses

These verses are read at funerals (Psalm 23, John 11:25, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 are the traditional core), at hospital bedsides, and in the months after a loss when the cards have stopped coming and the grief has not. Ecclesiastes 7:2 — "it is better to go to the house of mourning" — is the hardest one on this page and the most worth sitting with: it argues that death teaches the living something the house of feasting cannot. This page is about death itself; its companion page on grief collects the verses for the ache that follows, and the two lists are often used together.

How to use this list

Copy the verse that fits the hour — Psalm 23:4 and John 11:25 are the two most often read aloud at a bedside; Psalm 116:15 ("Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints") reframes the moment for the family as much as for the dying. Each card toggles between the King James Version and the World English Bible — "the valley of the shadow of death" reads identically in both, but "though he were dead, yet shall he live" gains clarity in modern grammar. A note on use: these verses comfort; they do not erase. If someone asks the harder questions, the verses about heaven on the related list take the next step.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most comforting Bible verse about death?
Psalm 23:4 — "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me" — is the most read, and its comfort is a presence, not an explanation. John 11:25 is the most definite: "I am the resurrection, and the life." And 1 Thessalonians 4:13 is the most pastoral: it permits grief while forbidding hopelessness, which is the exact posture most mourners need.
What does the Bible say happens after death?
The New Testament's consistent picture is conscious continuity with Christ for the believer: "absent from the body... present with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:8), "to die is gain" and "to depart, and to be with Christ" (Philippians 1:21-23), and the resurrection to come (1 Corinthians 15). Hebrews 9:27 fixes the sequence — "it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." The verses on this page and the heaven list cover both stops.
What does "precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints" mean?
Psalm 116:15. The psalm is a thanksgiving for rescue from death, and the verse sits oddly in it until the Hebrew sense of "precious" is seen: costly, weighty, of great price. The death of God's people is not trivial to him — it is an event he attends. The verse is often read at funerals precisely because it dignifies the moment without explaining it away.
What psalm is read at funerals?
Psalm 23 above all — its four verses carry shepherd, valley, table and house in a shape that fits a funeral service almost without editing. Psalm 121 ("I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills") and Psalm 46 ("God is our refuge and strength") are the common alternates. All are shown in full text on this site — Psalm 23:4 on this page, the complete psalms via the verse search on the home page.

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