A short poem or scripture passage gives the back page of a funeral program its voice — something for guests to read in the quiet moments, and to keep afterward. Everything on this page is public domain: classic poems by authors long passed (excerpted where the full poem is long) and scripture from the King James Version. You can print any of them freely — in a program, on a memorial card, or in a eulogy — with no permission needed.
Every selection below is also built into the free program builder, which sets your choice on the back page automatically. Copy buttons are provided if you are making your program elsewhere.
Bible verses for funerals (KJV)
The King James Version is quoted because its text is public domain in the United States and its cadence is the one most mourners know.
Psalm 23:1–4King James Version
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths
of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me;
thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Numbers 6:24–26King James Version
The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
The LORD make his face shine upon thee,
and be gracious unto thee:
The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee,
and give thee peace.
John 14:1–2King James Version
Let not your heart be troubled:
ye believe in God, believe also in me.
In my Father's house are many mansions:
if it were not so, I would have told you.
I go to prepare a place for you.
Ecclesiastes 3:1–4 (abridged)King James Version
To every thing there is a season,
and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance.
Revelation 21:4King James Version
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes;
and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying,
neither shall there be any more pain:
for the former things are passed away.
Psalm 121:1–2King James Version
I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from whence cometh my help.
My help cometh from the LORD,
which made heaven and earth.
2 Timothy 4:7King James Version
I have fought a good fight,
I have finished my course,
I have kept the faith.
Matthew 5:4King James Version
Blessed are they that mourn:
for they shall be comforted.
John 11:25–26King James Version
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life:
he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.
Romans 8:38–39King James Version
For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers,
nor things present, nor things to come,
nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature,
shall be able to separate us from the love of God,
which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Isaiah 41:10King James Version
Fear thou not; for I am with thee:
be not dismayed; for I am thy God:
I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee;
yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand
of my righteousness.
Psalm 46:1King James Version
God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Classic funeral poems (public domain)
Each poem is labeled with its author and whether it is complete or excerpted — excerpts are the traditional choice for a program panel.
RequiemRobert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) · Complete poem, public domain.
Under the wide and starry sky,
Dig the grave and let me lie.
Glad did I live and gladly die,
And I laid me down with a will.
This be the verse you grave for me:
Here he lies where he longed to be;
Home is the sailor, home from sea,
And the hunter home from the hill.
Crossing the BarAlfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892) · First and final stanzas, public domain.
Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea.
For tho' from out our bourne of Time and Place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crost the bar.
RememberChristina Rossetti (1830–1894) · Excerpt, public domain.
Remember me when I am gone away,
Gone far away into the silent land;
When you can no more hold me by the hand,
Nor I half turn to go yet turning stay.
Better by far you should forget and smile
Than that you should remember and be sad.
Song (When I am dead, my dearest)Christina Rossetti (1830–1894) · First stanza, public domain.
When I am dead, my dearest,
Sing no sad songs for me;
Plant thou no roses at my head,
Nor shady cypress tree:
Be the green grass above me
With showers and dewdrops wet;
And if thou wilt, remember,
And if thou wilt, forget.
Death Is Nothing at AllHenry Scott Holland (1847–1918) · Excerpt from a 1910 sermon, public domain.
Death is nothing at all.
I have only slipped away into the next room.
I am I and you are you.
Whatever we were to each other,
that we are still.
Call me by my old familiar name,
speak to me in the easy way
you always used.
Gone from My SightAttributed to Luther F. Beecher (1813–1903) · Excerpt, published 1904, public domain.
I am standing upon the seashore.
A ship at my side spreads her white sails
to the morning breeze and starts for the blue ocean.
I stand and watch her until she hangs
like a speck of white cloud
just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other.
Then someone at my side says, "There, she is gone."
Gone where? Gone from my sight. That is all.
FarewellAnne Brontë (1820–1849) · First stanza, public domain.
Farewell to thee! but not farewell
To all my fondest thoughts of thee:
Within my heart they still shall dwell;
And they shall cheer and comfort me.
Choosing between them
For a traditional funeral: Psalm 23 remains the most chosen text in American funeral programs — familiar, brief, and comforting.
For a sailor, traveler, or veteran: Tennyson’s “Crossing the Bar” or Stevenson’s “Requiem.”
For a celebration of life: “Death Is Nothing at All” or Rossetti’s “Song,” which asks gently not to be mourned.
For a benediction feel: Numbers 6:24–26 — the blessing many congregations already say aloud together.
A modern poem you love (published after roughly 1930) is likely still under copyright — for a printed program it is safest to choose from public-domain works like these, or use the builder’s “write my own” option for family words.
When you have chosen, the program builder will set it on the back page in your theme’s typography, with the author credit placed correctly.