If you are searching for Bible verses for Easter, this list gives you passages that speak to the resurrection of Jesus and what it means for the way you live and hope. It is written for anyone who wants to read Scripture slowly during Holy Week or the days after, whether you attend church every Sunday or are only beginning to explore what Easter means. Each verse here points to the same good news: death did not have the final word, and the empty tomb is the start of something new.
Verses for the Empty Tomb and the Risen Lord
These passages go straight to the event itself. They describe what the disciples found, what the angels said, and what Jesus claimed about his own life and death. Reading them on Easter morning can help you picture the moment and recover the wonder that made the first witnesses run.
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. Read it aloud before you leave for church, then notice where in your own day you still expect to find only sorrow. Let the words remind you to look for the living Christ in ordinary places.
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 they were gently corrected. If you have been searching among old disappointments for something that might still be alive, pause and reread this passage. Ask God to help you stop looking backward and start looking up.
John 20:25-28
25 The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” 26 After eight days again his disciples were inside, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, the doors being locked, and stood in the middle, and said, “Peace be to you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Reach here your finger, and see my hands. Reach here your hand, and put it into my side. Don’t be unbelieving, but believing.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
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Thomas needed to see before he would believe, and Jesus met him where he was. Carry this passage into any season of doubt. Write down one question you have been afraid to bring to God, and offer it to him honestly.
1 Corinthians 15:20
But now Christ has been raised from the dead. He became the first fruits of those who are asleep.
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Paul calls Christ the firstfruits, the first of a harvest that will follow. Think about someone you have lost or something you have grieved. Let this verse remind you that resurrection is not an isolated event but the first sign of what God promises for all who belong to him.
Verses for Hope When Life Feels Heavy
Easter is not only for people who feel joyful. These verses speak to weariness, grief, and the long wait between sorrow and restoration. They show that God’s faithfulness holds steady even when your feelings do not.
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 night of weeping is real, but it is not permanent. Keep this verse where you will see it during a hard week. When you feel the weight returning, repeat the promise slowly and let it steady your breathing.
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 Spirit who raised Jesus with the life God gives to believers now. If you feel spiritually flat, ask the Spirit to breathe fresh life into your prayers today. Begin one conversation with God by naming the part of you that feels dead and asking him to revive it.
2 Corinthians 4:8-9
8 We are pressed on every side, yet not crushed; perplexed, yet not to despair; 9 pursued, yet not forsaken; struck down, yet not destroyed…
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Paul lists the pressures he faced and then the reasons he was not crushed. Make your own short list of current pressures, then read this passage over it. Thank God for one way he has kept you from being overwhelmed.
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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This passage was written in the middle of ruin, yet it speaks of mercies that are new each morning. Try reading it when you wake up tomorrow, before you check your phone. Let God’s faithfulness be the first thing you name.
Verses for Joy and Thanksgiving
Once the tomb is empty, the proper response is gladness. These passages invite praise, gratitude, and a settled confidence that the story is still being written. They suit a family meal, a quiet walk, or a moment of celebration.
Psalm 118:24
This is the day that the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it!
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This verse names a day as something the Lord has made. Use it as a morning prayer on Easter Sunday, and then look for one small reason to rejoice before you go to bed. Gratitude often grows from specific noticing.
Philippians 4:4
Rejoice in the Lord always! Again I will say, “Rejoice!”
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Paul writes this from prison, which makes his command to rejoice all the more striking. Consider sharing this verse at your Easter table and asking each person to name one thing they are glad God has done this year.
1 Peter 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…
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Peter describes a living hope that comes through Christ’s resurrection. Spend a few minutes thinking about what it would mean for your hope to be living rather than merely wishful. Then thank God for the security of that hope.
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. The first things have passed away.”
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The Easter story looks ahead to a day when every tear is wiped away. Let this verse lift your eyes toward the future God is preparing. Consider writing it on a card and placing it where you will find it on the hardest day of the year.
How to Use These Verses
You do not need to read all fifteen passages in one sitting. Choose two or three that match your current season, and return to them over the week of Easter and beyond. Writing them by hand on index cards, a notebook page, or the inside cover of your Bible can help them stay with you when your schedule gets busy.
Pair each verse with a short prayer. Read the passage, then answer it in your own words, asking God to make its truth real in one specific situation. Many people find it helpful to read the Easter Gospel accounts together as a household, letting each person choose a verse to speak aloud and explain why it stood out.
A Short Prayer for Easter
Lord Jesus, you were dead and now you are alive, and because you live, I can hope again. Thank you that the empty tomb is not a story that ended long ago but a promise that still holds today. Where I have been afraid, steady me. Where I have been tired, renew me. Where I have doubted, meet me with the same patience you showed Thomas. Help me carry this good news into my ordinary days, so that others might see the living hope I have found in you. Amen.
