Short Bible verses
Some of the strongest words in the Bible are also the shortest. A single line can hold a whole promise, a command or a picture of who God is. Short verses are easy to learn by heart, write on a card or send to a friend, and they stay with us through the day.
Still, a short verse is part of a larger story. It means most when we know who said it, to whom and why. A verse about being still, for example, sounds different once we know it was first spoken over nations at war.
Here are short Bible verses gathered by theme, each with a brief note on its context. They are a good place to start memorizing Scripture, alone or with your family.
Short verses about God and His love
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:16 · King James Version (1769)
William MacDonald calls this one of the best-known verses in the Bible, because it sums up the whole gospel simply and clearly. God loves the world, gave His Son, and promises eternal life to everyone who believes.
Jesus wept.
John 11:35 · King James Version (1769)
This is often called the shortest verse in the English Bible. The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown commentary notes that the word means silent tears, unlike the loud mourning around Him. Jesus wept at the tomb of His friend Lazarus, though He was about to raise him.
Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever.
Heb 13:8 · King James Version (1769)
The writer had just reminded his readers of their leaders who had died. Human teachers come and go, the New Geneva Study Bible notes, but Jesus Christ stays the same. MacDonald sees the verse as a summary of what those leaders taught and believed.
The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand forever.
Isa 40:8 · King James Version (1769)
Isaiah compares human life to grass that soon dries up. John MacArthur explains that the unchanging Word of God guarantees that His promises will come true.
For with God nothing shall be impossible.
Luke 1:37 · King James Version (1769)
The angel Gabriel spoke these words to Mary, pointing to her relative Elizabeth, who was expecting a child in her old age. Albert Barnes notes that Elizabeth’s case was given to strengthen Mary’s confidence in God’s promise.
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
John 14:6 · King James Version (1769)
Jesus answered Thomas, who asked how they could know the way. MacArthur explains that Jesus is not one of many ways to God but the only way, because He is God’s truth and God’s life.
Short verses for trust and courage
Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
Ps 46:10 · King James Version (1769)
This psalm celebrates God’s protection of His city among raging nations. MacArthur reads the command as a double call: stop panicking and acknowledge that God rules, a comfort to His people and a warning to His enemies.
The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.
Exod 14:14 · King James Version (1769)
Moses said this to Israel, trapped between the Red Sea and Pharaoh’s army. That same night God opened a way through the sea and saved them.
What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
Rom 8:31 · King James Version (1769)
Paul draws a conclusion from everything God has done to save us. MacArthur notes that Paul is not expressing doubt here: God really is for us. Opposition will come, but it cannot defeat those whom God has made His own.
O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
Ps 34:8 · King James Version (1769)
David invites others to try God’s goodness for themselves. Peter later uses this verse to describe those who have come to know the Lord’s kindness through Christ (1 Peter 2:3).
Short verses for every day
Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing.
1 Thess 5:16–17 · King James Version (1769)
MacDonald notes that the first of these is the shortest verse in the Greek New Testament. A Christian can rejoice even in hard times, because the source of that joy is Christ, who rules over every circumstance.
Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.
Phil 4:4 · King James Version (1769)
Paul wrote this from prison. The key words are in the Lord: joy here does not depend on circumstances but on Christ.
Let all your things be done with charity.
1 Cor 16:14 · King James Version (1769)
Barnes calls this a summary of the whole letter, recalling the chapter on love (1 Corinthians 13). It is a simple rule: if love guides what we do, everything will be done well.
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.
John 15:12 · King James Version (1769)
Jesus gave this command on the night before He died. Barnes explains that loving as He loved means a love willing to endure hardship and even to lay down one’s life for others.
Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
Rom 12:21 · King James Version (1769)
Paul has just told believers not to take revenge. The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown commentary puts it simply: if evil makes us repay evil, we have lost; if we answer with good, the victory is ours.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Matt 5:8 · King James Version (1769)
One of the Beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount. Barnes explains that the pure in heart care not only about right actions but about pure motives, since God looks at the heart.
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
John 8:32 · King James Version (1769)
Jesus said this to people who had just believed in Him, calling them to keep following His word. The truth He brings, MacDonald writes, sets people free from slavery to sin.
Choose one of these verses this week, write it down and carry it with you: short words from God can do a lot of good.