Jesus arrived at Lazarus’ tomb four days too late, according to everyone standing around it. Mary fell at his feet in tears. He didn’t launch into an explanation or rush to the miracle. He wept. The shortest verse in the Bible captures something enormous, that grief was allowed to sit there, unhurried, even in the presence of the one who was about to raise the dead.
These thirty verses are for the friend in front of you who is grieving right now, and if the loss is specifically a parent, the prayer of comfort for loss of mother covers that particular grief more directly.
Pray these on their behalf, and consider sending one or two to them directly rather than only praying silently, so they know they’re being held in prayer by name.
Condolence Prayer for a Friend
1. John 11:35 (NIV)
“Jesus wept.”
Prayer: Let my friend know that grief is not something to rush past.
Weep with them the way you wept at Lazarus’ tomb.
Let this shared sorrow be its own kind of comfort.
2. Psalm 34:18 (NIV)
“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
Prayer: Draw close to my friend’s broken heart today.
Meet them in the crushed places words can’t reach.
Let them feel your nearness, not your distance.
3. Matthew 5:4 (NIV)
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”
Prayer: Comfort my friend the way this promise describes.
Bless their mourning instead of rushing them out of it.
Let comfort arrive in whatever form they need most.
4. Revelation 21:4 (NIV)
“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Prayer: Give my friend a glimpse of that future hope today.
Wipe the tears that keep coming, however many there are.
Let this promise steady them even in present pain.
5. Psalm 147:3 (NIV)
“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”
Prayer: Heal what’s broken in my friend’s heart right now.
Bind up the wound this loss has left behind.
Do it gently, at whatever pace they need.
6. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV)
“The God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort others.”
Prayer: Comfort my friend directly, however that needs to look today.
Let me be part of that comfort, not just a bystander.
Turn this pain, eventually, into something that helps someone else.
7. Psalm 30:5 (NIV)
“Weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.”
Prayer: Let my friend know their weeping tonight is not the end of the story.
Bring a morning, even if it feels far off right now.
Be present through the whole of this long night.
8. John 14:1-3 (NIV)
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. I am going there to prepare a place for you.”
Prayer: Untangle my friend’s troubled heart with this promise.
Let the hope of a prepared place settle something in them.
Give them something to hold onto beyond the immediate loss.
9. Psalm 116:15 (NIV)
“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants.”
Prayer: Let my friend know their loved one was precious to you.
Comfort them with the truth that this death was not overlooked by heaven.
Hold that person now the way you held them in life.
10. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 (NIV)
“Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.”
Prayer: Give my friend a grief that carries hope inside it.
Let them mourn honestly, without pretending it doesn’t hurt.
Anchor them in something more solid than despair.
11. Psalm 23:4 (NIV)
“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.”
Prayer: Walk with my friend through this valley right now.
Take away the fear that grief can bring with it.
Let your presence be more real than the darkness.
12. Isaiah 61:1-3 (NIV)
“To bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning.”
Prayer: Trade my friend’s ashes for something beautiful, in your timing.
Give them oil of joy again, even if it feels distant now.
Don’t rush the process, but don’t abandon it either.
13. Psalm 73:26 (NIV)
“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
Prayer: Be my friend’s strength when their own feels gone.
Let you be their portion, even in the emptiness of loss.
Hold them up when they can’t hold themselves.
14. John 11:25-26 (NIV)
“Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.'”
Prayer: Let this truth settle deep in my friend’s heart today.
Give them hope that death is not the final word.
Anchor their grief in resurrection, not just loss.
15. Psalm 46:1 (NIV)
“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”
Prayer: Be my friend’s refuge in this specific trouble.
Show up as ever-present, not distant or delayed.
Let them feel your strength when theirs runs out.
16. Lamentations 3:22-23 (NIV)
“Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning.”
Prayer: Let your compassion meet my friend fresh again tomorrow.
Keep them from being consumed by grief.
Renew them daily, not just once.
17. Psalm 61:2 (NIV)
“From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.”
Prayer: Lead my friend to a rock higher than their own strength.
Meet their fainting heart with something steady.
Answer even when they feel too far away to be heard.
18. Isaiah 43:2 (NIV)
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.”
Prayer: Walk with my friend through these deep waters of grief.
Don’t let this loss sweep them under.
Bring them through to the other side, changed but not broken.
19. 2 Samuel 12:23 (NIV)
“But now that he is dead, why should I go on fasting? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”
Prayer: Give my friend the same steadying honesty David found.
Let them grieve fully, without needing to pretend otherwise.
Comfort them with the hope of reunion someday.
20. Psalm 34:17 (NIV)
“The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.”
Prayer: Hear my friend’s cries, spoken or unspoken.
Deliver them from the weight of this trouble in your timing.
Let them know they haven’t been crying into silence.
21. Romans 14:8 (NIV)
“If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”
Prayer: Remind my friend that their loved one belonged to you, in life and death.
Let that truth bring some peace to the loss.
Anchor them in belonging, not abandonment.
22. Psalm 119:50 (NIV)
“My comfort in my suffering is this: your promise preserves my life.”
Prayer: Let your promises be my friend’s comfort right now.
Preserve them through this suffering, day by day.
Give them something solid to hold onto.
23. John 16:22 (NIV)
“So with you, now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.”
Prayer: Meet my friend in this specific time of grief.
Promise them, the way you promised the disciples, that joy will return.
Don’t let anything take away what comfort you give.
24. Psalm 30:11 (NIV)
“You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.”
Prayer: Turn my friend’s wailing into something lighter, in your timing.
Remove the heaviness they’re wearing right now.
Clothe them with joy again someday.
25. Philippians 1:21 (NIV)
“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
Prayer: Let this truth bring some peace about where their loved one is now.
Comfort my friend with the hope of what death means for a believer.
Steady them in that confidence, even through tears.
26. Psalm 143:7 (NIV)
“Answer me quickly, Lord; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit.”
Prayer: Answer my friend quickly, their spirit is failing right now.
Don’t hide from them in this moment.
Keep them from sinking further than they can bear.
27. Isaiah 25:8 (NIV)
“He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces.”
Prayer: Remind my friend that death does not have the final say.
Wipe their tears, even the ones that keep returning.
Let this hope be more than a distant promise.
28. Psalm 6:9 (NIV)
“The Lord has heard my cry for mercy; the Lord accepts my prayer.”
Prayer: Hear my friend’s cry, however it’s expressed.
Accept the prayers they can barely form right now.
Let them know their grief has been received, not ignored.
29. 1 Corinthians 15:55 (NIV)
“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”
Prayer: Take the sting out of this loss, however you choose to.
Remind my friend that death does not ultimately win.
Give them the confidence this verse points to.
30. Psalm 121:1-2 (NIV)
“I lift up my eyes to the mountains, where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.”
Prayer: Lift my friend’s eyes up when grief keeps them looking down.
Remind them where real help actually comes from.
Be their help today, in whatever way they need.
Conclusion
Jesus wept before he did anything else at that tomb, and only afterward called Lazarus out of it. There’s an order worth remembering, sorrow first, without rushing toward the fix. Sometimes the most faithful thing you can offer a grieving friend is simply presence, the way Jesus offered his tears before his miracle.
Consider sitting with your friend in silence as much as in words this week, and if they’re the type who finds comfort in reading, sending them the prayer for grieving alongside a message could mean more than a phone call right now.
If their loss was recent and specific, the prayer for the loss of a loved one and the prayer for those who have lost a loved one both go further into that particular ache.