Best Bible Verses About Family
God loves families. We can see His intended design in Bible verses about family. The Lord calls Himself our Father (Isaiah 64:8), sees us as His children (John 1:12-13), and sees us as brothers and sisters in Christ (Matthew 12:48-50). When He created Adam and Eve, He commanded them to be fruitful and multiply (Genesis 1:28) so that with one husband and wife relationship, there would be millions of descendants. Those descendants could then emulate the first parents and go on to marry and have children of their own, creating a world full of families that love and serve one another, just as God loves and serves us.
Unfortunately, when sin entered the world, the family was subjected to brokenness. Cain murdered Abel, his brother, and divided Adam and Eve’s children forevermore. Because of this, and many other family problems since, humanity needed to be redirected toward God’s original plan for the family unit. That’s why God provided plenty of scriptures to show us the way.
Bible verses about family abound and can be powerful tools for strengthening your household. Whether you want to love your spouse better or learn how to raise children who love the Lord, these family scriptures provide ample instruction for creating homes that reflect God’s heart.
Bible Verses About Family
Genesis 1:28
God blessed them. God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Genesis 2:24
Therefore a man will leave his father and his mother, and will join with his wife, and they will be one flesh.
Genesis 18:19
For I have known him, to the end that he may command his children and his household after him, that they may keep the way of Yahweh, to do righteousness and justice; to the end that Yahweh may bring on Abraham that which he has spoken of him.
Exodus 20:12
Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which Yahweh your God gives you.
Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Hear, Israel: Yahweh is our God. Yahweh is one. You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. These words, which I command you today, shall be on your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them for a sign on your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the door posts of your house and on your gates.
Joshua 24:15
If it seems evil to you to serve Yahweh, choose today whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh.
Psalm 68:6
God sets the lonely in families. He brings out the prisoners with singing, but the rebellious dwell in a sun-scorched land.
Psalm 103:17
But Yahweh’s loving kindness is from everlasting to everlasting with those who fear him, his righteousness to children’s children…
Psalm 127:3-5
Behold, children are a heritage of Yahweh. The fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows in the hand of a mighty man, so are the children of youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them. They won’t be disappointed when they speak with their enemies in the gate.
Psalm 133:1
See how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to live together in unity!
Proverbs 1:8-9
My son, listen to your father’s instruction, and don’t forsake your mother’s teaching: for they will be a garland to grace your head, and chains around your neck.
Proverbs 6:20
My son, keep your father’s commandment, and don’t forsake your mother’s teaching.
Proverbs 11:29
He who troubles his own house shall inherit the wind. The foolish shall be servant to the wise of heart.
Proverbs 12:4
A worthy woman is the crown of her husband, but a disgraceful wife is as rottenness in his bones.
Proverbs 15:20
A wise son makes a father glad, but a foolish man despises his mother.
Proverbs 17:17
A friend loves at all times; and a brother is born for adversity
Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.
Proverbs 23:15
My son, if your heart is wise, then my heart will be glad, even mine.
Proverbs 29:17
Correct your son, and he will give you peace; yes, he will bring delight to your soul.
Isaiah 54:13
All your children will be taught by Yahweh; and your children’s peace will be great.
Malachi 4:6
He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.
Matthew 7:11
If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
Mark 3:25
If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
Mark 10:13-16
They were bringing to him little children, that he should touch them, but the disciples rebuked those who were bringing them. But when Jesus saw it, he was moved with indignation, and said to them, “Allow the little children to come to me! Don’t forbid them, for God’s Kingdom belongs to such as these. Most certainly I tell you, whoever will not receive God’s Kingdom like a little child, he will in no way enter into it.” He took them in his arms, and blessed them, laying his hands on them.
John 13:34-35
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
John 15:12-13
This is my commandment, that you love one another, even as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
Acts 10:2 (NIV)
He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly.
Romans 8:15
For you didn’t receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”
1 Corinthians 7:14
For the unbelieving husband is sanctified in the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified in the husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.
Colossians 3:18-21
Wives, be in subjection to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, and don’t be bitter against them. Children, obey your parents in all things, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, don’t provoke your children, so that they won’t be discouraged.
Ephesians 5:25-30
Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the assembly, and gave himself up for it; that he might sanctify it, having cleansed it by the washing of water with the word, that he might present the assembly to himself gloriously, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without defect. Even so husbands also ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself. For no man ever hated his own flesh; but nourishes and cherishes it, even as the Lord also does the assembly; because we are members of his body, of his flesh and bones.
Ephesians 5:33
Nevertheless each of you must also love his own wife even as himself; and let the wife see that she respects her husband.
Ephesians 6:1-4
Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother,” which is the first commandment with a promise: “that it may be well with you, and you may live long on the earth.” You fathers, don’t provoke your children to wrath, but nurture them in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
1 Timothy 3:2-5
The overseer therefore must be without reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible, modest, hospitable, good at teaching; not a drinker, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; one who rules his own house well, having children in subjection with all reverence; (but how could someone who doesn’t know how to rule one’s own house take care of God’s assembly?).
1 Timothy 5:8
But if anyone doesn’t provide for his own, and especially his own household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever.
Titus 2:3-5
…Older women likewise be reverent in behavior, not slanderers nor enslaved to much wine, teachers of that which is good, that they may train the young wives to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sober minded, chaste, workers at home, kind, being in subjection to their own husbands, that God’s word may not be blasphemed.
Hebrews 12:7
It is for discipline that you endure. God deals with you as with children, for what son is there whom his father doesn’t discipline?
1 Peter 3:1-7
In the same way, wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; so that, even if any don’t obey the Word, they may be won by the behavior of their wives without a word, seeing your pure behavior in fear. Let your beauty be not just the outward adorning of braiding the hair, and of wearing jewels of gold, or of putting on fine clothing; but in the hidden person of the heart, in the incorruptible adornment of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. For this is how in the past, the holy women who hoped in God also adorned themselves, being in subjection to their own husbands. So Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose children you now are, if you do well, and are not put in fear by any terror. You husbands, in the same way, live with your wives according to knowledge, giving honor to the woman, as to the weaker vessel, as also being joint heirs of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.
1 John 4:20
If a man says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who doesn’t love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?
3 John 1:4
I have no greater joy than this: to hear about my children walking in truth.
How to Use Bible Verses About Family at Home
Reading Bible verses for love and family is important, but if you don’t incorporate them into your everyday life, they aren’t worth much. To make the most of God’s instructions, you need to “bind them around your neck. Write them on the tablet of your heart” (Proverbs 3:3). Here are some ideas for making these scriptures on family a part of your everyday life.
Highlight Family Bible Verses
Find a highlighter, pen, or colored pencil and mark your favorite verses in your personal or family Bible. If you happen to use a journaling Bible, write a note or two about what those verses mean to you in the provided margins. You might even want to date them to remind yourself when you chose to commit to making those Bible quotes about family a part of your lifestyle.
Hang a Scripture Sign
Hanging scripture in the home dates to ancient times when Israelites started affixing mezuzahs to their doorposts. This is still practiced in Judaism, the custom originating from Deuteronomy 6:9, one of the verses listed above: “You shall write them on the door posts of your house and on your gates.” Do this for your household by choosing one of your favorite scriptures about family and hanging it somewhere prominent in your house.
A common favorite is taken from Joshua 24:15 (NIV): “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
If you can’t find the verse you’re looking for, make it into an art project. Commission an artistic member of the family to create one or work on it all together and bond over this new family keepsake.
Use a Bible Verse About Family as a Prayer
Using scriptures for prayer is a time-honored tradition in the church. Choose one or a few family Bible verses and use them as a basis for prayer at dinnertime. Use a verse to write personal prayers (or incorporate them into one of these prayers). Assign a day of the week to seven verses or focus on one verse for a week or month at a time. Repeating the same verse day after day can be a powerful way to keep it at the forefront of everyone’s mind.
Try a Memorization Challenge
Challenge your family members to memorize their favorite verses and then host a contest or recital. At dinner or during a game night, invite family members to recite the verses to demonstrate their memory prowess. You can even offer prizes for the longest verse memorized or a reward for their hard work. Memorizing scripture is an invaluable practice for children and can keep the Bible at the center of their lives.
Involve Other Families
Community is a crucial and Biblical form of support. Involving other families to help with accountability can be a great way to foster friendship and closeness with others, too. Try a memorization challenge with another family, invite them to pray a specific verse for you, and return the favor to them. Find another spouse duo to pray for and lean on as you raise your children. You’d be amazed at how other people can support you and your walk with the Lord.
A Prayer for Your Family
Father in Heaven,
Thank you for our family. We love each other so much and are so glad we get to be parents and raise these children. Lord, we want our family to be a light to the world so that when people look at us, they see You. Sometimes, it’s hard to love the way you want. It’s hard to do what’s right and to put You and others first. But that’s why we need you.
Teach us to listen, be kind, be obedient, be respectful, ask good questions, and give good answers. Show us the way to be the best family we can be. Make us more like You in each and every way.
