bible verses about parents

Bible Verses About Parents: 12 Scriptures

Bible verses about parents: 12 Scriptures on honoring father and mother, teaching the next generation, and parental care under God.

Illustrated portrait of Christopher McAllister

By Christopher McAllister

Founder of theBibleand.Love

Published September 29, 20265 min readExodus 20:12 (NIV)

An adult child steadies an elderly parent on a step at a household doorway.

"Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you."

— Exodus 20:12 (NIV)

People who search bible verses about parents want Scripture for honor, teaching, and the weight of raising the next generation. This page is a numbered list of twelve passages with the NIV text and a short note on each. The wider essay sits under Love and parents. Related lists: Bible verses about a father's love, Bible verses about a mother's love, Bible verses about family, and Bible verses about children. Parents here means father and mother together — the fifth-commandment pair and the teaching duty — distinct from the father-focused list in Bible verses about a father's love and the mother-focused list in Bible verses about a mother's love.

Word study (lead theme). In Greek, "father" is often πατήρ patēr (Strong's G3962) — father, parent, ancestor. See also Bible Hub G3962. In Hebrew, אָב ʾab (Strong's H1; Bible Hub H1) and אֵם ʾem (Strong's H517; Bible Hub H517) name father and mother as the parental pair.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Exodus 20 frames the fifth commandment: "Honour thy father and thy mother, includes esteem of them, shown in our conduct; obedience to their lawful commands" (Bible Hub commentaries on Exodus 20:12; fuller MHC at Bible Hub MHC Exodus 20). On Ephesians 6 he pairs duties both ways: "The great duty of children is, to obey their parents… The duty of parents. Be not impatient; use no unreasonable severities… Bring them up well" (Bible Hub commentaries on Ephesians 6:4; Bible Hub MHC Ephesians 6).

12 Bible verses about parents

  1. Exodus 20:12. "Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you." Honor is the first word of the second table — esteem shown in conduct. See Love and parents.

  2. Proverbs 23:22. "Listen to your father, who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old." Listening and not despising cover both parents across a lifetime.

  3. Proverbs 6:20-22. "My son, keep your father's command and do not forsake your mother's teaching. Bind them always on your heart; fasten them around your neck. When you walk, they will guide you; when you sleep, they will watch over you; when you awake, they will speak to you." Father's command and mother's teaching travel with the child.

  4. Leviticus 19:3. "'Each of you must respect your mother and father, and you must observe my Sabbaths. I am the Lord your God.'" Respect for mother and father sits beside Sabbath observance — holy life at home.

  5. 2 Corinthians 12:14. "…After all, children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children." Parents store up for children — care that looks ahead.

  6. 1 Timothy 5:4. "But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God." Honoring parents includes care when they are older.

  7. Psalm 78:5-7. "He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which he commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God…" Parents teach so grandchildren can trust God.

  8. Deuteronomy 4:9. "Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them." Memory becomes teaching across generations.

  9. Proverbs 15:20. "A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish man despises his mother." Wisdom and folly show up in how children treat both parents.

  10. Titus 2:4. "Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children…" Older believers train younger parents in love for the household.

  11. Proverbs 4:1-4. "Listen, my sons, to a father's instruction; pay attention and gain understanding. I give you sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching. For I too was a son to my father, still tender, and cherished by my mother. Then he taught me, and he said to me, 'Take hold of my words with all your heart; keep my commands, and you will live.'" A father teaches what he once received as a cherished son.

  12. Matthew 15:4. "For God said, 'Honor your father and mother' and 'Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.'" Jesus restates the honor command against loopholes that neglect parents. See Love and parents and Bible verses about family.

How to use these verses

Pick one verse for a hard conversation with a parent, a night of parenting fatigue, or a decision about care for aging parents — not twelve. Read it out loud. If you need the honor command, start with Exodus 20:12. If you need teaching across generations, start with Psalm 78:5-7. If you need the essay that frames love and parents, read Love and parents. For father-only or mother-only lists, see Bible verses about a father's love and Bible verses about a mother's love. For a daily verse, open Bible verse of the day.

Questions people ask

What is a good Bible verse about parents?

Exodus 20:12 (honor father and mother), Proverbs 23:22 (listen; do not despise), and Psalm 78:5-7 (teach the next generation) are strong starting places.

What does the Bible mean by honoring parents?

Henry: honor includes esteem shown in conduct and obedience to lawful commands. Greek patēr (G3962) and Hebrew ʾab / ʾem (H1 / H517) name the parental pair the command addresses.

How is this page different from father's love or mother's love?

This page treats parents together — honor, teaching, and care. Bible verses about a father's love and Bible verses about a mother's love go deeper on each role. Link both; do not merge the searches.

What if my parents were harsh or absent?

The honor command does not erase harm. Pair Exodus 20:12 with wisdom and, where needed, Bible verses about healing and Bible verses about hope. God fathers the fatherless (Psalm 68:5 on the father's-love page).

Start with Love and parents, then Bible verses about family, Bible verses about children, and the father/mother love lists. For a daily verse, open Bible verse of the day.

Sources

A son steadies his mother on a step at a doorway.

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