Bible Verses About the Beloved: 12

"And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.'"

— Matthew 3:17 (NIV)

People who search bible verses about the beloved want Scripture on agapētos — the Father's Beloved Son and beloved people — not only the love virtue list or God's love alone. This page is a numbered list of twelve passages with the NIV text and a short note on each. Related lists: Bible verses about love, Bible verses about God's love, Bible verses about the Son of God, Bible verses about Jesus, Bible verses about faith, Bible verses about salvation, Bible verses about hope, and Bible verse of the day. Beloved here means the Beloved Son named from heaven and believers called beloved — distinct from a general love-verse inventory.

Word study (lead theme). In Greek, "beloved" is ἀγαπητός agapētos (Strong's G27; Bible Hub G27) — beloved, dearly loved. The baptism and transfiguration voices name the Son as beloved; epistles call the church beloved. This list centers agapētos, not only a love-virtue page.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Matthew 3 treats the voice from heaven naming the Son with pleasure (Bible Hub MHC Matthew 3; Blue Letter Bible, Matthew Henry on Matthew 3). Matthew Henry on Matthew 17 returns to the same Beloved voice at the transfiguration (Bible Hub MHC Matthew 17; Blue Letter Bible, Matthew Henry on Matthew 17). (Love and God's-love inventories live on those pages; this list centers agapētos / Beloved.)

12 Bible verses about the beloved

1. Matthew 3:17. "And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.'" This is my Son, whom I love. See Bible verses about the beloved Son and Bible verses about the Son of God.

2. Matthew 17:5. "While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!'" This is my Son, whom I love — listen. See Bible verses about Jesus.

3. Mark 1:11. "And a voice came from heaven: 'You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.'" You are my Son, whom I love. See Bible verses about the Son of God.

4. Mark 9:7. "Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: 'This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!'" This is my Son, whom I love. See Bible verses about faith.

5. Luke 3:22. "and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: 'You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.'" You are my Son, whom I love. See Bible verses about the holy spirit.

6. 2 Peter 1:17. "He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.'" This is my Son, whom I love — Majestic Glory. See Bible verses about God's glory.

7. Ephesians 1:6. "to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves." In the One he loves. See Bible verses about God's love.

8. Colossians 3:12. "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." Holy and dearly loved. See Bible verses about love.

9. Romans 1:7. "To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ." Loved by God and called. See Bible verses about faith.

10. Jude 1:1. "Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James, To those who have been called, who are loved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ:" Loved in God the Father. See Bible verses about hope.

11. Song of Songs 2:16. "My beloved is mine and I am his; he browses among the lilies." My beloved is mine. See Bible verses about love.

12. Isaiah 42:1. "'Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations." My chosen one in whom I delight. See Bible verses about Jesus.

How to use these verses

Pick one verse when you need the beloved — not twelve as a grind. If you need the baptism voice, start with Matthew 3:17 or Mark 1:11. If you need the transfiguration voice, open Matthew 17:5. If you need believers called beloved, open Colossians 3:12 or Romans 1:7. For love as virtue, open Bible verses about love. For God's love for the world, open Bible verses about God's love. For a daily verse, open Bible verse of the day.

Questions people ask

What is a good Bible verse about the beloved?

Matthew 3:17 (This is my Son, whom I love), Matthew 17:5 (Listen to him!), and Ephesians 1:6 (in the One he loves) are clear starting places.

How do Bible verses about the beloved differ from love or God's love?

Love pages inventory the virtue and command to love. God's love pages center his love for the world. This page centers agapētos — the Beloved Son named from heaven and people called beloved — then cross-links those companions. See Bible verses about love.

What does agapētos mean?

Greek agapētos (G27) means beloved or dearly loved. The Gospels use it for the Father's voice over the Son; the epistles use it for the church.

Is "whom I love" the same as "beloved Son"?

Yes in the baptism/transfiguration cluster — English Bibles vary the phrasing of the same Beloved-Son announcement. See Bible verses about the Son of God.

Where can I read more about the Father's delight in the Son?

Start with Bible verses about the Son of God, then Bible verses about God's love, Bible verses about Jesus, and Bible verses about God's glory.

Sources

• Blue Letter Bible lexicon G27 (agapētos): https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g27/kjv/tr/0-1/
• Bible Hub G27: https://biblehub.com/greek/27.htm
• Matthew Henry on Matthew 3: https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/mhc/Mat/Mat_003.cfm ; https://biblehub.com/commentaries/mhc/matthew/3.htm
• Matthew Henry on Matthew 17: https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/mhc/Mat/Mat_017.cfm ; https://biblehub.com/commentaries/mhc/matthew/17.htm