Guide
How to find a Bible verse
Last reviewed
There are three different problems hiding behind “how do I find that verse”, and they need different approaches.
When you know the reference
Type it into the search box. “John 3:16”, “john 3.16”, “Ps 23”, “1 Cor 13:4-7” and “2 Tim 1:7” all work, in any capitalisation.
A reference with a chapter but no verse — “Psalm 23” — opens the whole chapter. That is usually what you want, because it lets you see the passage in place.
When you half-remember the wording
Search a distinctive phrase rather than a whole sentence, and choose the least common words in it. “Be still” will find what you want; “the Lord is with you” appears many times.
One thing to be aware of: you are searching the wording of one particular translation. If the phrase you remember comes from a different translation, an exact search may find nothing even though the passage is there. Try a shorter fragment, or a single unusual word.
It is also worth considering that the line you are looking for may not be in the Bible at all. “God helps those who help themselves”, “cleanliness is next to godliness” and “this too shall pass” are all commonly assumed to be biblical and none of them is.
When you only know the subject
This is what the topic pages are for. They are lists put together by hand, each with an explanation of how the passages were chosen and a note on the setting of the ones that are easy to misread.
Start from the moods, needs or life situations, or search a subject word directly and use the topic filter on the results.
Checking that a quotation is accurate
If someone shows you a verse on an image or a card, three checks will catch almost every problem.
First, is there a reference at all? A quotation without one cannot be verified and should be treated with caution. Second, does the reference actually contain those words — look it up rather than assuming. Third, is a translation named? Wording varies legitimately between translations, and knowing which one you are reading explains most apparent discrepancies.
A fourth check is worth doing for anything you plan to pass on: read the verses either side. A surprising number of widely shared quotations say something noticeably different in place.