35 Powerful Good Friday Bible Verses to Remember the Cross
- Hope Bolinger Author
- Published Mar 28, 2024
Good Friday marks a pivotal moment in the Christian faith, observed with deep solemnity and reverence on the church calendar. It's a day that invites us to pause and reflect, a day of profound gratitude and somber remembrance. While we regularly give thanks for the myriad blessings and the unwavering love God showers upon us, Good Friday specifically calls us to contemplate the immense sacrifice it took for God to offer us salvation from our sins. It's a time to recognize the depth of God's love for humanity, a love so profound that it embraced suffering and death on a cross.
In this article we have compiled a selection of Good Friday Bible verses that span from the Old Testament's foreshadowing to the New Testament's vivid accounts of Christ's passion. These passages not only highlight the scriptural foundation of Good Friday but also invite us to meditate on the magnitude of Christ's sacrifice. As we read and reflect on these Good Friday Bible verses, let us draw near to the heart of God, understanding more deeply the cost of our freedom and the boundless love that motivated such a sacrifice. This Good Friday, let us dwell in the shadow of the cross, allowing the story of Jesus's death to challenge, comfort, and ultimately transform us.
The Bible tells us that a sacrifice was needed to fix the relationship between a perfect God and sinful people. The Old Testament predicted a Messiah would come to make the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. This Messiah, Jesus Christ, fulfilled these predictions by dying on the cross, showing His great love and securing our salvation.
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Top 10 Bible Verses for Good Friday
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 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.
Mark 9:31 - For he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.”
Isaiah 53:5 - But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.
Mark 10:34 - And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.
Romans 5:6-10 - For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
Mark 8:31 - And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.
Matthew 12:40 - For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Luke 23:54 - It was the day of Preparation, and the Sabbath was beginning.
John 19:30 - When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
7 Prophecies about Good Friday
From man’s first sin through the last prophets, we see many prophecies through Scripture that point to Jesus’ death on the cross. Most prominently, Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 have shown striking similarities to what took place centuries later.
Genesis 3:15: “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Psalm 22:1: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Psalm 22:16: “Dogs surround me, a pack of villains encircles me; they pierce my hands and my feet.”
Psalm 41:9: “Even my close friend, someone I trusted, one who shared my bread, has turned against me.”
Isaiah 53:5: “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.”
Zechariah 11:12-13: “I told them, “If you think it best, give me my pay; but if not, keep it.” So they paid me thirty pieces of silver. And the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—the handsome price at which they valued me! So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them to the potter at the house of the Lord.”
Zechariah 13:7: “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn my hand against the little ones.”
The Last Words of Jesus Verses
Jesus technically has more last words than what we see below (see the article linked). On the cross, he fulfilled the Old Testament prophecy by literally speaking it (I thirst; my God why have you forsaken me?). Even in his last moments, he forgives the crowd who jeers at him below and offers a thief who flanks his side the hope that they will see each other in paradise.
Luke 23:34, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”
Luke 23:43, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
Mark 15:34; Matthew 27:46, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
John 19:26-27, “Woman, here is your son… Here is your mother.”
John 19:28, “I am thirsty."
John 19:30, “It is finished.”
Luke 23:46, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”
Read more about the Last Words of Christ.
Good Friday in the Four Gospels
All of the Gospels contain an account of what happened on Good Friday. Jesus, arrested and put on trial, was found guilty of blasphemy. Although Pilate, the Roman regional leader, can find nothing wrong with him, he gives in to the crowd’s demands for Jesus’ crucifixion. Not before Jesus endures the torturous pain of whips and beatings.
Matthew 26:64-68: “You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” “He is worthy of death,” they answered. Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him and said, “Prophesy to us, Messiah. Who hit you?”
Mark 15:21-24: “A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.”
Luke 23:38-43: “There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
John 19:25-27: “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman,[b]here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.”
Bible Verses about the Cross
The cross changed meaning after Jesus died and rose again from the grave. The Israelite people would’ve originally viewed the cross as a cursed thing (Deuteronomy 21:23). But after Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday, the object changed in meaning. It represented dying to oneself to live with Christ. It also reminded Christians of Christ’s sacrifice so that they could experience eternity with him.
Beyond the Gospels, the apostle Paul, and other writers, talked about the importance of the cross and what it means for Christians. We cannot have Christianity without the cross.
Matthew 16:24: “Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”
1 Corinthians 1:18: “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”
Galatians 2:20: “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Philippians 2:8: “And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
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.”
A Prayer for Good Friday
Lord Jesus, on this day, I reflect upon the events of Good Friday. Even though they tried you unlawfully and sentenced you to death, you did not open your mouth in protest. I stand amazed at all you have done for me. That my God in heaven cared so much about my salvation that he lived the life I should have lived and died a brutal death. Jesus, I can often forget everything you have done for me as I go about my days. I can never say thank you enough for your sacrifice on the cross. I surrender to you daily and am at a loss for words. Amen.
Christians can often get uncomfortable about Good Friday. Jesus had died in a cruel way, and to think he had done so for us can often seem unfathomable at times.
But we must remember and think on this day just as much as we do on Easter Sunday. Good Friday reminds us of the gravity of our sins and how much God was willing to sacrifice to be reunited in a relationship with us. Even though we do recognize the solemn nature of Good Friday, we wait in anticipation for the Resurrection Sunday, where we can, at last, declare, “He is risen!” — Hope Bolinger
Further Reading
Why Is it Called 'Good Friday'?
What’s So Good about Good Friday?
Photo credit: ©Unsplash/Alicia Quan
Hope Bolinger is an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, book editor for hire, and the author of almost 30 books. More than 1500 of her works have been featured in various publications. Check out her books at hopebolinger.com for clean books in most genres, great for adults and kids. Check out her editing profile at Reedsy.com to find out about hiring her for your next book project.
This article is part of our larger Holy Week and Easter resource library centered around the events leading up to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We hope these articles help you understand the meaning and story behind important Christian holidays and dates and encourage you as you take time to reflect on all that God has done for us through his son Jesus Christ!
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