We could say many things about the Bible verses for grieving widows, but the word “grieving” should be self-explanatory. When you lose a loved one, the first days and weeks can be so hard that there is no other word to describe it. After that, you will feel like your life has come full circle and that nothing matters anymore once you lose someone special in your life.
Losing a loved one can sometimes seem unbearable and may even cause you to feel as though death is easier than continuing to live with grief.
Bible verse for grieving widow
Widows are a part of life, but their grief shouldn’t have to be. With the right Bible Verse, there’s no reason a widow can’t survive her loss and move on with life. Here are 25 helpful Bible verses to help those who have lost someone close.
Isaiah 41:10 – Trust and believe
Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10 ESV
God encourages and reassures us not to be scared of whatsoever difficulties we find ourselves in but to believe in Him, and He will give us the power to overcome.
God has made this promise to His children because He is more than sufficient. All God asks of us is that we trust Him and believe what He says.
Matthew 5:4 – There is hope for you.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
Matthew 5:4 ESV
Jesus wants His disciples to understand that those who are bereaved are not without hope. People who in Christ are the most blessed of all those who mourn because they will be comforted by God in the here and now (2 Corinthians 1:3-7) and will be free from grief for all eternity (Revelation 21:4). God sees our anguish and consoles us with the awareness that it will not always be this way.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 – The mercies of God.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 ESV
Paul recognizes that in the midst of our pain and affliction, believers must remember that God has and will continue to show mercy to us.
He is also known as the God of all comfort. Christians do not flee from God in order to find solace; rather, they flee to Him in order to find solace. Comfort in this context entails more than just temporary pain relief; it also entails encouragement and strengthening.
God’s comfort enables us to stop fighting sorrow and misery in our own strength and instead rest, be strong, in His strength.
Psalm 23:1-6 – No need to fear.
A Psalm of David. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. …
Psalm 23:1-6 ESV
When we confront difficult fights or life overwhelms us, we never have to flee in terror because “the Lord is my shepherd” and “I shall fear no evil” (Psalm 23:1, 4).
– “The Lord is my shepherd.” These words encourage us to express joy in the care of the Redeemer and Preserver of men. It is a green pasture for a virtuous widow who, by faith, enjoys the goodness of God in all her enjoyments, even if she has little of the world.
Whatever the situation, the Lord provides mental peace and contentment. The Holy Spirit’s comfort is the calm rivers that lead the saints; the streams that pour from the Fountain of Living Waters. The valley of the shadow of death may refer to the most severe and awful affliction, or dark dispensation, that the psalmist has ever experienced.
However, valleys are often profitable, as is death itself in terms of comforting God’s people. It’s a walk through it: we won’t get lost in this valley and will make it safely to the peak on the other side.
By the anointing of His Spirit and the delights of His salvation, the Lord can make any situation delightful. Those who are content with the blessings of His house, however, must stay close to its obligations, that is, never lose hope.
Isaiah 41:13 – Walk by faith.
For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.”
Isaiah 41:13 ESV
The Lord holds his people’s right hands, instructing us to walk by faith, guiding us into his presence and communion with himself, and keeping us from falling: Alternatively, He “will strengthen our right hand” to accomplish His job and duty, and to overcome anguish and grief; also He will ease our desires, and fill our hands with His excellent goods.
Psalm 147:3 – God will see you through.
He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
Psalm 147:3 ESV
When dealing with a shattered heart, it can feel as if there is nothing that can be done. Regardless of the cause, one thing is certain about those feelings: God’s word and His love can help you get through them.
Suffering from a broken heart might make you feel isolated and as if no one understands what you’re going through, but the Bible reminds you that no matter how shattered you feel, God is always present to see you through.
Psalm 116:15 – Your life is important to Him.
Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.
Psalm 116:15 ESV
Just as our “lives are important to him” (Psalm 72:14, NIV), so is our death. God takes the death of one of His beloved children very seriously. God is deeply concerned about our lives and deaths. The Lord knows when, how, and where we will die.
He is deeply concerned about every condition we confront, especially the critical moment of our death. Therefore, we must never think we are alone, because, in grief and in sorrow, he’ll never leave us alone.
Psalm 68:5 – Protection and defense assured.
Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.
Psalm 68:5 ESV
God extends his kindness and mercy, as well as his defense and protection, to all those who particularly need them from his throne in the highest heaven. He will ensure that they receive justice and protect them from wrongdoing and persecution.
James 1:27
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
James 1:27 ESV
John 14:1-3 – There is a restoration in the end.
“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
John 14:1-3 ESV
This instruction is to practice sincere belief and recognize the Father’s presence, which is shown in the person of the son, Jesus Christ.
In this passage, our Lord teaches us the truth of the Fatherhood of God as a living force that is constantly present in and around us. He also teaches us that “the Word became flesh” is the ultimate manifestation of God’s love. There is restoration at the end of a believer’s life journey, and this destiny is the product of Christ’s work.
Proverbs 15:25 – God will never abandon you.
The Lord tears down the house of the proud but maintains the widow’s boundaries.
Proverbs 15:25 ESV
In this verse, God promises to protect the widow and ensure that her landmark is not destroyed and that her small part is preserved to her. This is complete restoration, demonstrating that God never abandons His people.
Revelation 21:4 – The sorrow shall pass away.
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
Revelation 21:4 ESV
Pain and suffering are unavoidable in our world. Christians, too, look beyond grief and sorrow to an everlasting day when “what is mortal may be swallowed up by life” (2 Corinthians 5:4). Pain, sadness, mourning, the death of friends and loved ones, and dying are all unpleasant truths of this life, but they will be over once and for all when we take up our place in the New Jerusalem.
Isaiah 54:5 – The love of God.
For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called.
Isaiah 54:5 ESV
The Almighty God has promised widows that they will not be embarrassed or eventually cast off since He is their husband; that is, because He has committed Himself to them by blood, He has made them ultimately His own.
He will undoubtedly replace the vacuum left by the death of their earthly husbands and thoroughly love and care for them like a husband would for his bride.
1 Thessalonians 4:13 – Ascension in the last days.
But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.
1 Thessalonians 4:13 ESV
We do not grieve in the same manner that unbelievers do, according to Paul. We may cry because death is still an enemy, but our sadness is mingled with hope because we know that we will all live again in vastly better conditions.
People who die, Paul, assure us, will not miss out on the big event. As the saints ascend to meet the returning King, they will be given places of honor.
John 14:27 – God’s peace above all.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
John 14:27 ESV
Christ’s “peace” here refers to hope and certainty that is greater than what a fallen world can provide (Philippians 4:7). It is unbreakable, certain, and eternal (Hebrews 6:18–19).
He does not want Christians to be stone-faced and heartless. Rather, it is to recognize the reality of suffering and rely on God to keep His promises.
Bible verse to comfort a widow
Psalm 34:18
The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
Psalm 34:18 ESV
When we are brokenhearted, God is there for us. It doesn’t always feel like that, does it? Sometimes we believe God is not present.
The Bible admits that this is sometimes our human experience: we believe God is far away.
However, Psalm 34:18 contrasts this with a depiction of where God truly is: God is close to the brokenhearted. The anguish is severe, but there is this sensation that pain cannot separate us from God. It is precisely when our hearts are broken that we encounter God and grow the most.
Psalm 146:9
The Lord watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
Psalm 146:9 ESV
The psalmist encourages us to have faith in God. We must hope in God’s providence for what we need in this life, and in God’s grace for what is to come.
The God of heaven became a man in order to be our salvation. Though Jesus died on the cross for our sins and was buried, his thoughts of love for us did not die; he rose again to fulfill them.
1 Chronicles 16:11
Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!
1 Chronicles 16:11 ESV
As life proves to be more than we can bear in various ways, we all come to the end of ourselves. The Good News is that we never have to make our way through life only on our own strength.
There is a Heavenly Father who adores us. He promises to be with us by His Spirit. We can call on Him and have faith that He will be with us as we submit to His Lordship and believe in His love.
Revelation 14:13
And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”
Revelation 14:13 ESV
This promise is only available for the saints who died for the cause of Christ. They are free of all sin, temptation, sorrow, and persecution; for evil will no longer have access to them, and the weary are at rest.
Their works follow them: not as a title or a purchase, but as shreds of evidence of their having lived and died in the Lord: their remembrance will be pleasant, and the final reward incomparably greater than all their sacrifices and sufferings. This is confirmed by the Spirit’s testimony, witnessing with their spirits, and the written word.
Psalm 56:8
You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?
Psalm 56:8 ESV
The text’s meaning is that God would remember our hardships and sorrows, which had produced so many tears, and free us from them because there is no comparison or balance between the saints’ sufferings and the glory that will be revealed in them.
Our tears will be turned into gladness, and God will wipe them all away from the eyes of his people.
Exodus 22:22
You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child.
Exodus 22:22 ESV
God’s wrath will be kindled against anybody who afflicts or wrongs a widow or a fatherless kid in any way, and we may be confident that anyone who helps widows accomplishes a duty that is extremely pleasing in God’s eyes.
Ecclesiastes 3:4
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
Ecclesiastes 3:4 ESV
Weeping endures during a night of darkness and desertion, but joy follows when the morning arrives, the day breaks, and the sun of righteousness rises.
Now is the time for Christians to mourn; in the future, they will laugh and even be filled with overflowing happiness and glory.
Philippians 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7 ESV
Because the Lord is near or about to return (Philippians 4:5), believers should live and think in specific ways. Believers should not be afraid, paranoid, or unsettled. This is because, believers can communicate directly with God, the creator of heaven and earth, who has complete power and authority over the problem.
Instead of being anxious, believers are to approach God humbly and graciously with whatever is on their hearts.
Jeremiah 49:11
Leave your fatherless children; I will keep them alive; and let your widows trust in me.
Jeremiah 49:11 ESV
Because God is the only one who can bring about a total change in our life, we believers have a responsibility to entrust orphans and widows to His care; He has promised to provide for them; they will have food and raiment, and will not need anything that would make them comfortable.
Isaiah 40:31
But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40:31 ESV
Time seems to stand still in the “waiting room” of life. It’s a location where life is prolonged. When we are stuck in the waiting room of life, it feels as though time has stopped entirely.
When we wait on the Lord, it sometimes feels like this. By focusing our thoughts and our faith in God, we can overcome life’s storms when they hit. We don’t have to be overtaken by the storms because God will give us strength while we wait.
We must continually keep in mind that God is not sleeping off and is not only watching from the sidelines. He is right there fighting alongside you, helping you to rise above your storm.
