This list gives you Bible verses that speak of resurrection, hope and new life, arranged so you can find the right passage for your own Easter reading, a family devotion, or a card or message to someone you love. Each group below answers a different need you may bring to the season. The verses share a single thread: the empty tomb changes what death, fear and failure mean, and God’s faithfulness holds from Good Friday through Easter morning.
Verses for the Quiet Morning of Easter
Easter sunrise often comes before the day’s noise begins. These passages are for the first minutes awake, when you want to remember what happened at the tomb before anything else asks for your attention.
Matthew 28:6
He is not here, for he has risen, just like he said. Come, see the place where the Lord was lying.
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The angel’s announcement is short and certain. Before you check your phone, say the words “He is risen” aloud, slowly, as a way of setting the tone for the whole day.
Luke 24:5-6
5 Becoming terrified, they bowed their faces down to the earth. They said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He isn’t here, but is risen. Remember what he told you when he was still in Galilee…
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The women went to the tomb looking for the dead and were met with a question. When your first thoughts drift toward what is lost, ask yourself where you are looking, and then look toward the living God instead.
Mark 16:6
He said to them, “Don’t be amazed. You seek Jesus, the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen. He is not here. Behold, the place where they laid him!
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Mark’s account is spare and urgent. Read it on a notecard at breakfast and let it set your pace: no need to rush, because the stone has already been rolled away.
John 20:1
Now on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene went early, while it was still dark, to the tomb, and saw the stone taken away from the tomb.
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Mary Magdalene came while it was still dark. If you are reading before sunrise in a season of grief or waiting, this verse meets you in the dark and assures you that dawn is coming.
Verses for When Easter Feels Like a Long Way Off
Some people come to Easter weighed down by loss, illness or a faith that feels thin. These verses speak to that heaviness without pretending it is not there.
Psalm 30:5
For his anger is but for a moment. His favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may stay for the night, but joy comes in the morning.
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The psalmist knew that weeping and joy can share one night. If your nights are long right now, hold on to the promise that morning is part of God’s design, even when you cannot yet see it.
Romans 8:11
But if the Spirit of him who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised up Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
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Paul connects the resurrection of Jesus with the life of the believer. Write this verse on a card for your wallet and read it when you feel spiritually flat, reminding yourself that the same Spirit who raised Jesus is at work in you.
1 Corinthians 15:55-57
55 “Death, where is your sting? Hades, where is your victory?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
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Paul mocks death’s sting directly, because the victory has been won. Speak this passage over a fear you carry this week, naming the fear and then naming the victory.
Isaiah 53:5
But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought our peace was on him; and by his wounds we are healed.
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Isaiah describes a suffering that brings peace to others. On Good Friday or in the days before Easter, read this slowly and let it sit with you, since the resurrection grows out of this costly love.
Verses for Sharing the Good News This Easter
Easter is a natural time to talk about faith with family, friends or neighbors. These verses give you clear words to share, and they are short enough to remember in conversation.
1 Corinthians 15:3-4
3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…
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This is one of the earliest summaries of the gospel in the New Testament. When you want to explain Easter simply to a child or a skeptical friend, start here and walk through the events in order.
Acts 2:24
Whom God raised up, having freed him from the agony of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it.
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Peter preached this at Pentecost, declaring that death could not hold Jesus. Use this verse as a conversation opener by asking someone what they think about the tomb and whether it could be empty.
John 11:25
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies.
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Jesus speaks these words at a grave, not at a celebration. Share this verse with someone who has recently lost a person they love, and let the words of Jesus speak for themselves.
Revelation 1:18
And the Living one. I was dead, and behold, I am alive forever and ever. Amen. I have the keys of Death and of Hades.
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The risen Christ tells John he holds the keys of death and Hades. Print this on an Easter card for someone who has spoken of fear about dying, and keep your own note brief and sincere.
Verses for Living in the Light of Resurrection
Easter is more than a single Sunday. These verses help you carry the resurrection into ordinary weeks, when work, relationships and habits need steady faithfulness.
Colossians 3:1
If then you were raised together with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated on the right hand of God.
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Paul asks believers to set their hearts on what is above, since they have been raised with Christ. Choose one daily habit, such as checking email, and let it remind you to look up before you start.
2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new.
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Paul says the old has gone and the new has come. If there is an old pattern you want to leave behind this spring, name it in prayer on Easter and write this verse beside it.
Philippians 3:10
That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, becoming conformed to his death…
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Paul longs to know Christ and the power of his resurrection. Make this your prayer for the coming month, asking God to deepen your knowledge of him through everyday obedience.
Lamentations 3:22-23
22 It is because of the LORD’s loving kindnesses that we are not consumed, because his compassion doesn’t fail. 23 They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness.
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Written from the ruins of Jerusalem, these words insist on God’s mercy each morning. Read them at the start of a difficult week and let the new mercies of the day shape your expectations.
How to Use These Verses
Choose two or three passages that fit your current season rather than trying to memorize the whole list at once. Write them on index cards, put them on the bathroom mirror, or save them as a note on your phone so they are with you when the Easter celebration is over. Many people find it helpful to read one passage at breakfast, one at midday and one before sleep, letting each reading lead into a short time of prayer.
For families, read a verse aloud at the table, then ask each person what it made them think of. Children often respond well to a single picture, such as an empty tomb with a folded cloth, and adults can share how the verse connects to a recent experience. Keep the time short and genuine, returning to the same verses over several weeks so the words become familiar.
A Short Prayer for Easter
Lord Jesus, thank you that the tomb is empty and that you are alive. Thank you for the women who went early in the morning, for the disciples who first doubted, and for every person who has come to faith through their witness. Meet me in the places where I feel tired, grieving or unsure, and let your resurrection life reach the parts of me that still need to hear that death does not have the final word. Help me carry this good news into my home, my work and my conversations this week. Amen.
