Bible Verses About How to Deal with Death

Death is a weighty subject.

While we grieve over the loss of a loved one like anyone else, we also are secure in the knowledge that Jesus Christ achieved a complete victory over death.

Death, where is thy victory? Oh death where is thy sting?

For the Christian, it’s different than those who have no hope, because we have plenty of comforting Bible verses about how to deal with death.

Jesus Christ’s tomb has been empty for 2000 years. His Disciples, who were cowards on Good Friday, became bold by Pentecost only a few weeks later.

What did they know that changed them so quickly?

These same disciples –most of whom were Jewish- abandoned Sabbath meetings in the synagogues for Sunday meetings at church.

Many of the wealthy and powerful –like Joseph of Arimathea –and Nicodemus- came to believe in Jesus after seeing him alive, dead and then alive again.

And the most powerful of all –the Romans- failed to produce a dead body from Jesus’ grave.

These alone are extremely powerful facts that back up the claim of the risen Savior who conquered sin and death.

But they aren’t the only ones.

What Does God Say About the Time of Death?

Before God, the time of death is a precious moment because another saint is coming back home.

Death is not a loss to God, rather it is gain. Anyone that dies in the Lord has gained eternal life, and God does not need to watch or labor over such anymore. He or she has been saved forever.

Revelation 14:13 (ESV): 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!”

It is a time of rest for the believers. Rest from sorrows, pains, lack, and all battles of life.

Whatever troubles you are going through on earth terminate at the point of death, and there begins a new life of indescribable joy and peace.

That is also the time you will have the opportunity to get full reward for all your labors and all the sacrifices you made to please God while you were alive.

What does Psalms Say About the Time of Death?

Psalm 23:4 (ESV): 4 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.

The time of death is a time of separation. To many, they see it as permanent separation, but the Psalmist sees it differently.

No one can follow you to the grave, not your wife, husband, children, friends, etc.

No matter the love your close family members have for you, they will all leave at the graveside, and you will be left alone to continue your journey to where you will spend eternity.

That can be very scary, but not when you are a child of God. At the point of death, men may leave you but God will be with you to make your journey a translation to greater glory.

That was what Stephen the first martyr in the Bible experienced when the Jews stoned him to death in Acts 7:54-8:3. His eyes were opened as he looked towards heaven and saw Jesus glorified, in a standing ovation beside the throne of God.

Instead of fear of death, he embraced it praying that God will not count the sin on his killers.

How Do You Deal with Death in the Bible?

Death is a physical permanent separation. It is a state where life ceases to exist in a living organism. The Bible calls it the end of all living.

The Bible calls the death of children of God “sleep.” This is because, for them, death is just a translation from this present world to their heavenly abode.

It is the vehicle through which they are conveyed to the final resting place that God had prepared for them.

1 Corinthians 15:54-56

54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”

55 “O death, where is your victory?

O death, where is your sting?”

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.

Death and grave lost their power after the resurrection of Christ.

In those three days He spent in the grave, Jesus Christ secured the victory for our total redemption from death. He seized the keys of hell and death from Satan who up till that time had held the whole world in the bondage to fear and death.

He rose the third day to prove to the whole world that He is the resurrection and life. That victory belongs to everyone who believes in Him.

That is the reason why death has no power over the children of God.

What is a Scripture for Comfort?

One of the things we fear most about life is what happens after death. Many people are so scared of this topic that they always avoid it.

For such people, Jesus Christ says they need not fear.

John 14:1-3 (ESV): 14 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 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? 3 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.

The hope of the children of God is not for this world alone. God has made adequate preparations for them in His kingdom where they will be with Him for eternity.

One of the reasons why Jesus has to go back to heaven after He was resurrected was to go ahead and prepare for those that are coming to heaven. He wanted us to be where He is and that is God’s desire too.

If you belong to Christ, if you have fully surrendered to Him, then cheer up, great things are awaiting you after death. If you have not, it is time for you to repent of your sin, wash in the blood of Jesus so that you can qualify to have a mansion in the kingdom of God.

What is a Good, Encouraging Bible Verse About Death?

There are plenty of Bible verses that give us a full understanding of what we stand to gain through death.

A good example is Revelation 21:4.

Revelation 21:4 (ESV): 4 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.”

This is the lot of the saints who can make it to heaven through death and rapture. This kind of joy, peace, security, abundance, etc. cannot be described with words because such never exist on earth.

Imagine a city with the streets paved with gold. What will the houses, and the mansions look like?

Most causes of death bring pain, but the Bible says God will wipe away their tears, and there will be no more pain.

Angels and the saints in heaven rejoice greatly whenever a child of God dies because such an individual can never suffer again.

100 Bible verses about Christ’s Victory Over Death

Revelation 21:4

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.”

Romans 14:8

For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.

Ecclesiastes 12:7

And the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

Luke 23:43

And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

John 3:16 ESV

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

1 Thessalonians 4:14

For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.

John 11:26

And everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Psalm 23:4

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.

Matthew 10:28

And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

John 11:25-26

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

1 Corinthians 15:51-57

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” …

John 14:1-4

“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. And you know the way to where I am going.”

Ecclesiastes 9:5

For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten.

Psalm 146:4

When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish.

1 Corinthians 15:26

The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

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!”

2 Corinthians 5:6-8

So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.

Ezekiel 18:32

For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live.”

Hebrews 9:27

And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

Psalm 116:15

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

Psalm 73:26

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Matthew 5:4

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Ecclesiastes 7:1

A good name is better than precious ointment, and the day of death than the day of birth.

Philippians 1:21

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

Romans 8:38-39

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Psalm 115:17

The dead do not praise the Lord, nor do any who go down into silence.

1 Corinthians 15:51

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

Job 14:14

If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my service I would wait, till my renewal should come.

Romans 5:12

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—

2 Corinthians 5:8

Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.

Luke 2:29

“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word;

1 Thessalonians 4:13

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.

Romans 8:13

For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

1 Corinthians 15:22

For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

Isaiah 25:8

He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken.

Ecclesiastes 3:2

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

John 11:25

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,

Isaiah 41:10

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.

Genesis 3:19

By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Psalm 23:1-6

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. …

John 14:1-3

John 5:24

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.

Psalm 34:18

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.

1 Corinthians 15:55

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

1 Timothy 6:7

For we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.

Psalm 39:4

“O Lord, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am!

Isaiah 57:1-2

The righteous man perishes, and no one lays it to heart; devout men are taken away, while no one understands. For the righteous man is taken away from calamity; he enters into peace; they rest in their beds who walk in their uprightness.

Matthew 11:28

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14

Romans 8:18

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

John 5:24-26

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.

Ecclesiastes 9:10

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.

1 Corinthians 15:42-44

So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

John 5:28-29

Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

Revelation 21:8

But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

Hebrews 13:14

For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.

Proverbs 14:32

The wicked is overthrown through his evildoing, but the righteous finds refuge in his death.

Hebrews 2:14

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,

John 14:6

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

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. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. …

John 11:11-14

After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died,

1 Corinthians 15:21

For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.

Revelation 20:14

Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.

Romans 8:6

For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.

Revelation 1:18

And the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.

Daniel 12:2

And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

John 14:27

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.

Hosea 13:14

Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol? Shall I redeem them from Death? O Death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your sting? Compassion is hidden from my eyes.

2 Samuel 12:23

But now he is dead. Why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me.”

Philippians 3:20-21

But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

Psalm 30:5

For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.

John 3:16-17

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

Genesis 2:7

Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.

1 John 5:12

Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

2 Corinthians 4:17-18

For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Romans 8:28

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Romans 6:16

Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?

Luke 20:36

For they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.

Matthew 25:46

And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Revelation 9:6

And in those days people will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them.

Ezekiel 33:8

If I say to the wicked, O wicked one, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked person shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.

Hebrews 2:14-15

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.

1 Thessalonians 4:15

For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.

Acts 7:60

And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

Ezekiel 18:21

“But if a wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does what is just and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die.

Ecclesiastes 8:8

No man has power to retain the spirit, or power over the day of death. There is no discharge from war, nor will wickedness deliver those who are given to it.

Revelation 12:11

And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.

Psalm 55:22

Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

Psalm 48:14

That this is God, our God forever and ever. He will guide us forever.

Revelation 20:6

Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.

Philippians 1:23-24

I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.

1 John 3:2

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

John 10:10

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

1 Corinthians 15:55-57

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:24

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

John 11:1-57

Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. …

Ecclesiastes 5:15

As he came from his mother’s womb he shall go again, naked as he came, and shall take nothing for his toil that he may carry away in his hand.

Psalm 104:29

When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.

Job 16:22

For when a few years have come I shall go the way from which I shall not return.

Final Thoughts

We cannot understand the world we are living in nor what comes after more than God. He is the Beginning and the Ending. The First and the Last.

From the beginning, God did not ordain death for man. Through the disobedience of Adam, sin came into the world which results in death, but the coming of Jesus has turned death into life for us.

If you are a child of God you have nothing to lose, whatever you fail to get on earth, never lose any sleep over it, more blessings are waiting for you in heaven than you can ever imagine.

Remember the story of Lazarus and the rich man, it was after they died that we learned who was truly rich between them.

Is your Faith Founded on Fact? Have you committed to follow Jesus?