Bible Verses About Death and Resurrection
The Catholic faith is, at its core, a resurrection faith. The entire edifice of Christian life and hope stands or falls with the historical resurrection of Jesus Christ, as Paul states plainly in 1 Corinthians 15: if Christ has not been raised, our faith is in vain. But because he has been raised, death no longer has the final word — not for Christ, and not for those who die in him.
Scripture addresses death with remarkable realism: the Psalms lament it, Job wrestles with it, the Book of Wisdom offers consolation about it, and the Gospel accounts of Jesus's own death spare none of its horror. But the same Scripture that holds death's reality also announces its defeat. The Catholic tradition adds the doctrine of Purgatory, supported by the deuterocanonical 2 Maccabees 12, and the prayers for the dead that flow from it.
Note: 2 verses on this page are from the deuterocanonical books — books included in the Catholic Bible but absent from most Protestant translations (Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, 1–2 Maccabees).
9 verses — Douay-Rheims Bible (1899 Challoner revision) — Public domain
Jesus said to her: I am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in me, although he be dead, shall live: and every one that liveth, and believeth in me, shall not die for ever. Believest thou this?John 11:25-26 — Douay-Rheims
Jesus speaks to Martha before raising Lazarus — the most direct statement in the Gospels of his identity as the source of resurrection life.
O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting? Now the sting of death is sin: and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who hath given us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.1 Corinthians 15:55-57 — Douay-Rheims
Paul's triumphant hymn at the close of the great resurrection chapter — death itself mocked as a defeated enemy.
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes: and death shall be no more, nor mourning, nor crying, nor sorrow shall be any more, for the former things are passed away.Revelation 21:4 — Douay-Rheims
John's vision of the New Jerusalem — the definitive eschatological abolition of death and all its companions.
It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sins.2 Maccabees 12:46Deuterocanonical — Douay-Rheims
The deuterocanonical foundation for Catholic prayer for the dead and the doctrine of Purgatory — absent from Protestant Bibles.
But the souls of the just are in the hand of God, and the torment of death shall not touch them. In the sight of the unwise they seemed to die: and their departure was taken for misery: and their going away from us, for utter destruction: but they are in peace.Wisdom 3:1-3Deuterocanonical — Douay-Rheims
The opening of Wisdom 3 — the great Catholic consolation text for bereavement, absent from Protestant Bibles.
For the wages of sin is death. But the grace of God, life everlasting, in Christ Jesus our Lord.Romans 6:23 — Douay-Rheims
Paul's crisp summary of the entire human problem and its solution — death as sin's consequence; eternal life as God's gift in Christ.
Yea, though I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will fear no evils, for thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff, they have comforted me.Psalm 23:4 — Douay-Rheims
The most beloved of the Psalms — God's presence transforming the passage through death into a moment of comfort.
For to me, to live is Christ; and to die is gain.Philippians 1:21 — Douay-Rheims
Paul, facing possible execution, captures the Christian transformation of death — it is gain because it means being with Christ.
And we will not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning them that are asleep, that you be not sorrowful, even as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died, and rose again; even so them who have slept through Jesus, will God bring with him.1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 — Douay-Rheims
Paul's earliest extended teaching on the resurrection of the dead, written to comfort those grieving departed Christians.
Related Topics
Related Catholic Prayers
Source
All verse texts from the Douay-Rheims Bible (1899 Challoner revision), public domain. The Douay-Rheims is the traditional Catholic English Bible, translated from the Latin Vulgate.