These scriptures for Easter give you passages about the resurrection of Jesus and the new life it opens for believers, arranged so you can find the right one for a sunrise service, a quiet morning or a family table. They suit anyone who wants to read the Easter story for themselves and let its meaning settle into daily life.
Each passage points to the same event: an empty tomb, a risen Lord, and a promise that death does not have the last word. Read them slowly and you will notice how the early Christians kept returning to that morning when they tried to explain who Jesus was.
Verses for the Empty Tomb Morning
These passages describe what happened at the tomb in the first hours after the crucifixion. They are useful to read early on Easter morning, before the day gets busy.
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 start your Easter errands, say the words aloud in your own voice, letting the news that Jesus is not in the grave shape the first hour of your 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 came looking for a body and were asked why they searched among the dead. Think about one place in your life where you keep looking for life among things that cannot give it, and let this question redirect your attention.
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 went to the tomb while it was still dark. If you wake before dawn this Easter, use that quiet to read this verse and wait for the light, the way she did.
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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The young man in white tells the women to see the place where Jesus was laid. Walk through your own Easter morning as though you were invited to look for yourself rather than take someone else’s word for it.
Verses on Hope After Loss
Easter comes to people carrying grief as well as joy. These passages speak to the ache of losing someone and the hope that the resurrection brings into that ache.
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 larger harvest. When you think of someone you have lost, let this verse remind you that the resurrection is the pattern for what God intends for all who belong to him.
John 11:25-26
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies. 26 Whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
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Jesus speaks these words to Martha at her brother’s grave. Read them aloud at a memorial or in a quiet moment, and pray them back to God as your own statement of trust.
1 Thessalonians 4:14
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.
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Paul writes to comfort people who were grieving the dead. Consider writing this verse on a card and placing it where you will see it on the anniversary of a loss.
Romans 6:4
We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.
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Paul connects baptism with walking in new life, just as Christ was raised. Use this verse to reflect on the ways God is bringing new life to something that once felt finished in you.
Verses for New Beginnings and Renewal
The resurrection is not only about what happens after death. It also describes a fresh start that God makes possible in the here and now, and these passages focus on that renewal.
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 describes the person in Christ as a new creation. Think of one habit or old pattern you want to leave behind this season and speak this verse over it as an act of faith.
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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The Spirit who raised Jesus is described as living in believers. When you feel tired or depleted, remember that the same power is available to you through prayer and attention to God.
Colossians 3:1-2
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. 2 Set your mind on the things that are above, not on the things that are on the earth.
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Paul asks readers to set their minds on what is above because they have been raised with Christ. Choose one task or worry you can hand to God today, and set your attention on him as you do it.
Isaiah 43:19
Behold, I will do a new thing. It springs out now. Don’t you know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.
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God says he is doing a new thing and making a way in the wilderness. Look for one small sign of newness in your week and thank God for it, even if it is only a single unexpected kindness.
Revelation 21:5
He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” He said, “Write, for these words of God are faithful and true.”
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The One seated on the throne says he makes all things new. Let this verse close your Easter reading with a glimpse of the final renewal that the resurrection points toward.
How to Use These Verses
Write two or three of these verses on cards or in a notebook so you can carry them through the day. Many people keep one on the kitchen table, one in a car or bag, and one by the bed, so that the words are present in ordinary moments as well as special services.
Read a passage slowly, then pause and pray it back to God in your own words. You might read the empty tomb passages on Easter morning, the grief passages at a memorial or on a difficult anniversary, and the renewal passages in the weeks after Easter when the excitement fades but the new life remains.
A Short Prayer for Easter
Lord Jesus, you rose from the grave and showed that death does not have the final word. Thank you for the empty tomb and for the hope it brings into every corner of my life. Help me to live as someone who belongs to you, raised with you to walk in newness each day.
Be near to anyone who grieves this Easter, and let your presence be a comfort in the hard places. Fill my heart with gratitude and my hands with work that reflects your love. Amen.
