Funeral First Reading Options
Below are a selected list of first readings (Old Testament), however feel free to use one supplied by your church (different reading choices can certainly be printed in the booklet ).
*If your loved one dies during the Easter Season, the 50 days from Easter Sunday to Pentecost Sunday,
you may select from a different list of New Testament first readings (see Easter section below)*
#1. A Reading from the book of Wisdom 3:1-9
The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,
and no torment shall touch them. They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction.
But they are in peace.
For if to others, indeed, they seem punished, yet is their hope full of immortality;
Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed,
because God tried them and found them worthy of himself.
As gold in the furnace, he proved them, and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.
In the time of their judgment they shall shine and dart about as sparks through stubble;
They shall judge nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord shall be their King forever.
Those who trust in him shall understand truth, and the faithful shall abide with him in love:
Because grace and mercy are with his holy ones, and his care is with the elect.
The Word of the Lord
#2. A Reading from the book of Sirach 44:10-15
Now will I praise those godly people, our ancestors, each in their own time.
These were godly people whose virtues have not been forgotten;
Their wealth remains in their families, their heritage with their descendants;
Through God’s covenant with them their family endures, their posterity, for their sake.
And for all time their family will endure, their glory will never be blotted out;
Their bodies are peacefully laid away, but their name lives on and on.
At gatherings their wisdom is retold, and the assembly proclaims their praise
The Word of the Lord
#3. A Reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah 25:6a, 7-9
On this mountain the Lord of hosts
will provide for all peoples.
On this mountain He will destroy
the veil that veils all peoples,
The web that is woven over all nations;
he will destroy death forever.
The Lord God will wipe away
the tears from all faces;
The reproach of his people He will remove
from the whole earth; for the Lord has spoken.
On that day it will be said:
“Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us!
This is the Lord for whom we looked;
let us rejoice and be glad that He has saved us!”
The Word of the Lord
#4. A reading from the Book of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8,11
There is an appointed time for everything,
and a time for every affair under the heavens.
A time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.
A time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to tear down, and a time to build.
A time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance.
A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather them;
a time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.
A time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away.
A time to rend, and a time to sew;
a time to be silent, and a time to speak.
A time to love, and a time to hate;
a time of war, and a time of peace.
God has made everything suitable to it’s time.
The Word of the Lord
#5. A Reading from the Book of Sirach 6:14-17
Faithful friends are a sturdy shelter;
whoever finds one finds a treasure.
Faithful friends are beyond price,
no amount can balance their worth.
Faithful friends are life-saving medicine;
those who fear God will find them.
Let your acquaintances be many,
but one in a thousand your faithful friend.
For he who loves his friends behaves accordingly,
and his friends will be like himself.
The Word of the Lord
#6a (short version). A reading from the Book of Lamentations 3:21-26
I will call this to mind,
as my reason to have hope:
The favors of the Lord are not exhausted,
His mercies are not spent;
They are renewed each morning,
so great is your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul;
“therefore will I hope in Him.”
Good is the Lord to one who trusts in Him,
to the soul that seeks Him;
It is good to hope in silence
for the saving help of the Lord.
The word of the Lord.
#6b (full version). A reading from the Book of Lamentations 3:17-26
My soul is deprived of peace,
I have forgotten what happiness is;
I tell myself my future is lost,
all that I hoped for from the Lord.
The thought of my homeless poverty
is wormwood and gall;
Remembering it over and over
leaves my soul downcast within me.
But I will call this to mind,
as my reason to have hope:
The favors of the Lord are not exhausted,
his mercies are not spent;
They are renewed each morning,
so great is your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul;
“therefore will I hope in Him.”
Good is the Lord to one who trusts in Him,
to the soul that seeks Him;
It is good to hope in silence
for the saving help of the Lord.
The word of the Lord.
#7. A reading from the book of Proverbs 31
When one finds a truly good woman,
she is worth more than precious gems.
She is energetic, a hard worker, works far into the night.
She extends her hands to the poor and generously gives to the needy.
She is a woman of strength and dignity and has no fear of old age.
When she speaks, her words are wise and
kindness is the rule for everything she says.
She watches carefully all that goes on in her household.
Her family and friends stand and bless her.
The Word of the Lord
#8. A reading from the book of Wisdom 4:7-15
The just man, though he die early, shall be at rest.
For the age that is honorable comes not with the passing of time,
nor can it be measured in terms of years.
Rather, understanding is the hoary crown for men,
and an unsullied life, the attainment of old age.
He who pleased God was loved;
He who lived among sinners, was transported —
Snatched away, lest wickedness pervert his mind or deceit beguile his soul;
For the witchery of paltry things obscures what is right
and the whirl of desire transforms the innocent mind.
Having become perfect in a short while, he reached the fullness of a long career;
for his soul was pleasing to the LORD,
therefore he sped him out of the midst of wickedness.
But the people saw and did not understand,
nor did they take this into account.
The Word of the Lord
#9. A reading from the book of Sirach 2: 1-11
My child, when you come to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for trials.
Be sincere of heart and steadfast, and do not be impetuous in time of adversity.
Cling to Him, do not leave Him, that you may prosper in your last days.
Accept whatever happens to you; in periods of humiliation be patient.
For in fire gold is tested, and the chosen, in the crucible of humiliation.
Trust in God, and He will help you; make your ways straight and hope in Him.
You that fear the Lord, wait for His mercy, do not stray lest you fall.
You that fear the Lord, trust in Him, and your reward will not be lost.
You that fear the LORD, hope for good things, for lasting joy and mercy.
Consider the generations long past and see:
has anyone trusted in the Lord and been disappointed?
Has anyone persevered in His fear and been forsaken?
Has anyone called upon Him and been ignored?
For the Lord is compassionate and merciful;
forgives sins and saves in time of trouble.
The Word of the Lord
#10. A reading from the book of Ruth 1:16-17
Ruth said, “Do not ask me to abandon or forsake you! for wherever
you go I will go, wherever you lodge I will lodge, your people
shall be my people, and your God my God.
Wherever you die I will die, and there be buried. May the LORD
do thus to me, and more besides, if anything but death
separates me from you!”
The Word of the Lord
#11. A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah 43:1-3a, 5-7 NIV
But now, this is what the LORD says- He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. “When you pass through waters, I will be with you;
through rivers, you shall not be swept away.
When you walk through fire, you shall not be burned, nor will flames consume you. For I am the LORD , your God, the Holy One of Israel, your
Savior; Do not be afraid, for I am with you;
I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the
west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth-
everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory,
whom I formed and made.”
The Word of the Lord
For EASTER Season only :
*If your loved one dies during the Easter Season, the 50 days from Easter Sunday to Pentecost Sunday, you may select from a different list of New Testament first readings (see below)*
E#1. A reading from the Book of Revelation 14:13
I, John, heard a voice from heaven say,
“Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”
”Yes,” said the Spirit,
“let them find rest from their labors, for their works accompany them.”
The Word of the Lord
E#2. A reading from the book of Revelation 21:1-5a, 6b-7
I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth.
The former heaven and the former earth had passed away,
and the sea was no more,
I also saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
“Behold, God’s dwelling is with the human race.
He will dwell with them and they will be his people
and God himself will always be with them as their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes,
and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain,
for the old order has passed away.”
The One who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.
I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.
To the thirsty I will give a gift from the spring of life-giving water.
The victor will inherit these gifts, and I shall be his God,
and he will be my son.”
The Word of the Lord
E#3a. A reading from the Acts of the Apostles 10:34-43
Peter proceeded to speak, saying; “In truth, I see that God shows no partiality.
Rather, in every nation whoever fears Him and acts uprightly is acceptable to Him.
You know the word that He sent to the children of Israel as He proclaimed peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all,
what has happened all over Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism
that John preached, how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth
with the Holy Spirit and power.
He went about doing good and healing all those oppressed by the Devil,
for God was with him. We are witnesses of all that He did
both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem.
They put Him to death by hanging Him on a tree.
This man God raised on the third day and granted that He be visible,
not to all the people, but to us, the witnesses chosen by God in advance,
who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead.
He commissioned us to preach to the people and testify that He is the one appointed by God
as judge of the living and the dead.
To Him all the prophets bear witness, that everyone who believes in Him
will receive forgiveness of sins through His name.”
E#3b. A reading from the Acts of the Apostles 10:34-36,42-43 (Short version)
Peter proceeded to speak, saying:
“In truth, I see that God shows no partiality.
Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly
is acceptable to him.
You know the word that he sent to the children of Israel
as he proclaimed peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.
He commissioned us to preach to the people
and testify that he is the one appointed by God
as judge of the living and the dead.
To him all the prophets bear witness,
that everyone who believes in him
will receive forgiveness of sins through his name.”
The Word of the Lord
E#4. A reading from the Book of Revelation 20:11-21:1
I, John, saw a large white throne and the one who was sitting on it.
The earth and the sky fled from his presence and there was no place for them.
I saw the dead, the great and the lowly, standing before the throne,
and scrolls were opened. Then another scroll was opened, the book of life.
The dead were judged according to their deeds, by what was written in the scrolls.
The sea gave up its dead; then Death and Hades gave up their dead.
All the dead were judged according to their deeds.
Then Death and Hades were thrown into the pool of fire.
Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life
was thrown into the pool of fire.
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth.
The former heaven and the former earth had passed away,
and the sea was no more.
The Word of the Lord