Comforting Verses and Prayers for When a Loved One Commits Suicide
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One of the hardest challenges in life is overcoming the loss of a loved one. They leave a hole that cannot be replaced, and even the strongest believers struggle to find light in times of sorrow.
It weighs particularly heavy when the person who is gone ended their own life. Suicide is always a confusing, painful loss that cuts deeper than an ordinary loss. The people left behind have to find a way to move through life without someone, while also grappling with understanding why someone would choose to commit suicide.
While the Bible does not provide answers as to why, it does speak words of goodness into our season of suffering. God also promises to be with people when they pray to Him. Through prayer and taking refuge in God’s Word, people can find the strength to go on after the loss of someone special to suicide.
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Verses and Prayers for Grief
Suicide is such a difficult loss to experience. Those left behind are not prepared, they want to know why it happened, and are often left with questions they will never have answered. It leads to profound grief, which can lead people to struggle in their walk with the Lord. However, He is always there for people grieving.
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest” (Psalm 22:1-2).
“Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I, for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy” (Psalm 61:1-2).
“There is no remembrance of former things, nor will there be any remembrance of later things yet to be among those who come after” (Ecclesiastes 1:11).
“Jesus wept” (John 11:35).
A Prayer for Coping with Grief
Holy Father,
In the face of this unexpected loss, I cannot see a way forward through my pain. Every day I wake and see nothing but my own grief, and a reminder of the absence of my loved one. Lord, I do not understand how they came to the point in their life where they felt compelled to end everything.
I feel guilty, hurt, betrayed, and confused. I need You to help me as I mourn, to give me the strength to get up every day and keep going. Lord, help me to process my grief. You were with David in his dark hour when his son died, so please be with me, as well as everyone else who is dealing with this loss.
In Jesus Name, I pray,
Amen.
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Verses and Prayers for When You Need Comfort
The pain friends and family feel after a suicide is intense and confusing. People struggle with guilt, sometimes with shame, and often go over and over everything in their minds, trying to think about how they could have stopped it. The Lord wants people who are suffering and grieving to reach out to Him and take comfort in His presence.
“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18).
“Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted” (Isaiah 53:4).
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:4).
“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4).
A Prayer for Comfort
Holy Father,
Thank you for being with me, even though it doesn’t feel like it right now. Lord, I can’t see the purpose of this pain, or why my loved one ended their life. Right now the pain is so hard, and I just need Your comforting presence.
Lord, lift my spirits from the depths of sorrow, and help me not to fall into despair. I need to hear the quiet whisper of the Holy Spirit telling me there is hope and there will be a tomorrow. Help me to have peace in my heart even though there are tears in my eyes. I know I will miss my loved one, but send me a peace that passes understanding.
In Jesus Name, I pray,
Amen.
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Verses and Prayers to Help You Remember That God Is Constant and Loving
Whenever someone takes their own life, it can feel like God isn’t present, that He forgot about the people involved in the situation, that He doesn’t care. Despair – the complete loss or absence of hope – can take over if the believer doesn’t remind themselves that God said He is always present, and that nothing escapes His notice.
“For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him” (2 Chronicles 16:9a).
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4).
“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:29-31).
“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer” (Romans 12:12).
“So that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us” (Hebrews 6:8).
A Prayer for Reminders of God’s Constancy and Presence
Holy Father,
Thank you that even when I falter and fail in my faith, You are always faithful, present, and loving. Lord, this person I cared about took their own life, and I am struggling to see the purpose in it. Why wouldn’t they talk to me? Why wouldn’t they talk to You? Where were You for them? I don’t understand this Lord.
Help me to remember that Jacob wrestled with You, and that while I wrestle with this moment in my life, You are still present with me. Help me to remember that You love me and the person who is gone. Help me to remember that suffering and hardship does not negate Your love and Your presence. I am weak, but You are strong. Help me to feel Your presence so I do not forget You.
In Jesus Name I pray,
Amen.
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Verses and Prayers about God’s Redemptive Power
No matter how dark the situation may be, God has it in His power to transform it into something good. While He does not bring the lost loved one back, the Lord can take sadness and pain and use them for good both in this life, and in eternity. In the moment, that can seem impossible, but nothing is impossible for God. Loss of a loved one will always be there, but God can use our trials and tribulations in a redemptive manner, just like He used Jesus’ suffering on the cross to redeem anyone who put their faith in Him.
“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20a).
“For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth” (Job 19:25).
“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:6).
“O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption” (Psalm 130:7).
“Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant” (Hebrews 9:15).
A Prayer for God’s Redeeming Power
Holy Father,
I thank you that You alone have the power to fix what was broken, bring back what was lost, and to even raise up the dead back to life! Lord, right now it seems impossible that You can work through this suicide to make something good, and I even feel a little silly asking for it, but I ask, no I beg You Lord, to redeem this pain and this suffering and turn it into something good. I don’t believe that person’s life was in vain, and I know You had a plan and a purpose for them.
Please take this hardship and fulfill Your great purposes. It is hard to say right now, but I know that You can work through this situation. Your love never fails, nor do Your plans. Be with those of us left behind, and work to redeem.
In Jesus’ Name I pray,
Amen.
God loves each of His children, and grieves with people who are grieving, not just for their sake, but because He also loves the person who took their own life. Coping with the loss of a loved one after suicide is an on-going battle, and the hurt never fully goes away. But the Lord is with people in their suffering, and offers a hand of comfort. He also conquered sin and death, and there is a promise of a greater eternity for those who put their faith in Him to wash away their sins.
“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-16).
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Bethany Verrett is a freelance writer who uses her passion for God, reading, and writing to glorify God. She and her husband have lived all over the country serving their Lord and Savior in ministry. She has a blog on graceandgrowing.com.