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Bible verses for Mother's Day

Proverbs 31 is the passage everyone reaches for, and almost nobody mentions the first verse: it is a mother's teaching, written down by her son. Below are fifteen passages quoted in full in both translations, with how long each takes to read aloud — for a card, a service, or a day that is harder than the shops admit.

15 passages · World English Bible & King James · public domain

Before you choose one

Mother's Day is not a straightforwardly happy day for a great many people, and a verse chosen without thinking can land badly. Worth holding in mind:

  • Someone reading this has lost their mother. Isaiah 66:13 and Psalm 139:13-16 both work when the relationship was good and the person is gone. Our verses for grief page is the better starting point if that is the day you are having.
  • Someone reading this wanted children and does not have them. Psalm 113:9 is often given as comfort and can read as a promise it does not make. Handle it carefully, or choose something else.
  • Not every mother was kind. The commandment in Exodus 20:12 says honour, which is not the same word as feel warmly towards. That distinction matters to more people than usually admit it in a card.
  • For a card, short is better. Proverbs 31:10 is five seconds. Isaiah 66:13 is seven. Nobody has ever wished a card verse were longer.

Everything quoted here is public domain — the World English Bible and the King James — so you can print any of it on a card, an order of service or a church newsletter without a licence, a fee, or an email to a permissions department.

  1. Strength and dignity are her clothing. She laughs at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom. Kind instruction is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household, and doesn’t eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed. Her husband also praises her: “Many women do noble things, but you excel them all.” Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain; but a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands! Let her works praise her in the gates!Proverbs 31:25-31 · World English Bible

    The famous one. Thirty-nine seconds. “Her children rise up and call her blessed” is verse 28, and it sits at the end of a 22-verse acrostic that was taught to a king by his mother. See below — the authorship is the interesting part.

    King James

    Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come. She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness. She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her. Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all. Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.

  2. Who can find a worthy woman? For her value is far above rubies.Proverbs 31:10 · World English Bible

    “Who can find a worthy woman? For her value is far above rubies.” Five seconds, the shortest here, and the line that opens the acrostic. Fits on a card without crowding it.

    King James

    Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.

  3. As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you. You will be comforted in Jerusalem.”Isaiah 66:13 · World English Bible

    “As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you.” Seven seconds. God describing himself by comparison to a mother, which is rarer in Scripture than you might expect and more tender than most of what gets printed. Related verses →

    King James

    As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

  4. “Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes, these may forget, yet I will not forget you!Isaiah 49:15 · World English Bible

    “Can a woman forget her nursing child?” Twelve seconds. The same image pushed further: even that bond might fail, and God's will not. Good for someone whose own mother did fail them. Related verses →

    King James

    Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.

  5. having been reminded of the sincere faith that is in you, which lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, in you also.2 Timothy 1:5 · World English Bible

    Lois and Eunice, named. Twelve seconds. One of very few places in the New Testament where a mother and grandmother are credited by name for someone else's faith.

    King James

    When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.

  6. Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord. My spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour, for he has looked at the humble state of his servant. For behold, from now on, all generations will call me blessed. For he who is mighty has done great things for me. Holy is his name.Luke 1:46-49 · World English Bible

    The Magnificat, opening lines. Twenty-one seconds. Mary is a teenager describing what is happening to her, and it is not a gentle poem — it is closer to a protest song.

    King James

    And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.

  7. I prayed for this child, and the LORD has given me my petition which I asked of him. Therefore I have also given him to the LORD. As long as he lives he is given to the LORD.” He worshipped the LORD there.1 Samuel 1:27-28 · World English Bible

    Hannah, after years of wanting a child, handing him back. Seventeen seconds. One of the most complicated passages here and worth reading before you use it, because it is not straightforwardly celebratory.

    King James

    For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him: Therefore also I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he liveth he shall be lent to the LORD. And he worshipped the LORD there.

  8. For you formed my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful. My soul knows that very well. My frame wasn’t hidden from you, when I was made in secret, woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my body. In your book they were all written, the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there were none of them.Psalms 139:13-16 · World English Bible

    “You knit me together in my mother's womb.” Thirty-four seconds. Usually read as being about the child; it is also a description of the place that work happened.

    King James

    For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.

  9. “Honour your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which the LORD your God gives you.Exodus 20:12 · World English Bible

    “Honour your father and your mother.” Nine seconds. Note the verb. It is an instruction about conduct, not an instruction about feelings, which makes it usable by people for whom the feelings are complicated.

    King James

    Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

  10. Therefore when Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing there, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” From that hour, the disciple took her to his own home.John 19:26-27 · World English Bible

    “Behold, your mother.” Seventeen seconds. Jesus, dying, arranging who will look after his mother. The least sentimental passage on this page and possibly the most moving. Related verses →

    King James

    When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.

  11. He settles the barren woman in her home as a joyful mother of children. Praise the LORD!Psalms 113:9 · World English Bible

    “He settles the barren woman in her home as a joyful mother of children.” Seven seconds. Read the note above before using this one; it is often given to people for whom it has not happened.

    King James

    He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the LORD.

  12. 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 1:8-9 · World English Bible

    “Don't forsake your mother's teaching.” Eleven seconds. Short, and it treats what a mother taught you as something worth keeping rather than something to grow out of.

    King James

    My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

  13. 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.Deuteronomy 6:6-7 · World English Bible

    Teaching children when you sit, when you walk, when you lie down. Twenty seconds. A description of parenting as constant and unglamorous, which is accurate.

    King James

    And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

  14. But we were gentle amongst you, like a nursing mother cherishes her own children. Even so, affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not the Good News of God only, but also our own souls, because you had become very dear to us.1 Thessalonians 2:7-8 · World English Bible

    “Like a nursing mother cherishes her own children.” Nineteen seconds. Paul reaching for the most tender comparison he can find to describe how he treated a church.

    King James

    But we were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children: So being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own souls, because ye were dear unto us.

  15. and that older women likewise be reverent in behaviour, 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.Titus 2:3-5 · World English Bible

    Twenty-four seconds. Older women teaching younger ones. Included because it is on most lists; read the whole thing before choosing it, as its instructions are firmly of their time and land differently now.

    King James

    The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.

Proverbs 31 was taught to a king by his mother

The passage read at more Mother's Day services than any other opens like this:

The words of King Lemuel—the revelation which his mother taught him:Proverbs 31:1 · World English Bible

So the description of the capable woman — the one on the mugs, the cross-stitch and the cards — is not a man's portrait of an ideal wife. It is a mother's instruction to her son about the kind of person to value, written down and kept.

Which makes the usual Mother's Day framing slightly backwards. It is often read to mothers as a standard to admire. Verse 1 says it came from one.

The section is also more crafted than it looks: verses 10 to 31 form an alphabetic acrostic, twenty-two verses for the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet, each beginning with the next letter in turn. It is not a list of chores. It is a formal poem, built to be memorised.

“Virtuous” is the word for an army

The King James’s virtuous woman at Proverbs 31:10 is eshet chayil, and chayil (Strong’s 2428) is not a word about delicacy. It occurs 224 times, and the King James renders it army, forces, might, riches, strength, valour and worthy as well as virtuous. It is the ordinary Hebrew word for strength and substance.

The whole phrase turns up twice more. Marg Mowczko, who has written on it at length, counts three occurrences in all:

A worthy woman is the crown of her husband, but a disgraceful wife is as rottenness in his bones.Proverbs 12:4 · World English Bible

Eight seconds aloud. The first half — a worthy woman is the crown of her husband — is card material; the second half is not.

Now, my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do to you all that you say; for all the city of my people knows that you are a worthy woman.Ruth 3:11 · World English Bible

Twelve seconds aloud. The King James says virtuous woman at all three, and the modern rendering says worthy woman at all three, so the two translations are consistent for once. And Ruth is the only real person the phrase is ever used of — a foreign widow, not a wife running a household. The same book introduces Boaz with the same noun: Ruth 2:1 calls him a gibbor chayil, which both our translations render a mighty man of wealth (interlinear). The man and the woman at the center of the story are described with one word.

She has a job

She considers a field, and buys it. With the fruit of her hands, she plants a vineyard.Proverbs 31:16 · World English Bible

She surveys land, buys it with her own money, and plants a business on it. Elsewhere in the chapter she trades, manufactures and sells. This is not a description of someone whose world ends at the front door, and it is worth noticing before the passage gets used to argue that it should.

The tenderest images of God are maternal

Two of the passages above are not about human mothers at all. They are God describing himself, and reaching for a mother to do it:

As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you. You will be comforted in Jerusalem.”Isaiah 66:13 · World English Bible
“Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes, these may forget, yet I will not forget you!Isaiah 49:15 · World English Bible

The second one is doing something careful. It picks the strongest bond it can name, concedes that even that one sometimes breaks — yes, these may forget — and only then makes its claim. For anyone whose own mother did forget them, that concession is the part that matters.

If today is a hard one

A large number of people read a page like this in the days around Mother's Day for reasons that have nothing to do with buying a card: a mother who died, a child who died, a pregnancy that did not happen, or a relationship that was never what it should have been.

Nothing here fixes that, and passages that promise it will are best avoided on the day. What the better ones do is stay in the room: Isaiah 49:15 admits that bonds fail. John 19:26-27 is a dying man making practical arrangements for his mother's housing. Neither pretends.

Our verses for grief page is written for exactly that week, and the passages there are chosen on the same principle.

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Questions

What is the best Bible verse for Mother's Day?

Proverbs 31:25-31 is the most-used, and Proverbs 31:10 is the short version that fits on a card. Both are quoted in full on this page. Worth knowing before you use them: Proverbs 31 opens by saying it is a teaching King Lemuel received from his own mother.

What is a short Bible verse about mothers?

Proverbs 31:10 at about five seconds, then Isaiah 66:13 and Psalm 113:9 at seven. Every passage on this page has its read-aloud time next to it, so you can match the verse to the space you have.

Who wrote Proverbs 31?

Proverbs 31:1 credits it to King Lemuel, and says it is the revelation his mother taught him. Verses 10 to 31 are an alphabetic acrostic — twenty-two verses for the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet, each starting with the next letter in sequence.

Can we print these verses on a card or in a church newsletter?

Yes, with no permission needed. The World English Bible and the King James Version are both public domain, so you can reproduce them on a card, an order of service or a newsletter without a licence or a fee. Modern translations such as the NIV and ESV are copyrighted and limit how much you may reprint.

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