15 Short Bible Verses for Dads, Sorted by the Card You Are Writing

Father's Day began with a sermon. According to the usual account, Sonora Smart Dodd was sitting in Central Methodist Episcopal Church in Spokane, listening to a sermon about the new Mother's Day. She decided fathers deserved a day too. Her own father, William Jackson Smart, had raised six children alone after her mother died. The first Father's Day was held in Spokane on 19 June 1910. It became a permanent national observance in the United States in 1972.

It fits, then, that so many Father's Day cards still carry a line of scripture. The hard part is picking one. A verse that suits a proud grandfather can sound like a lecture on a card to a tired new dad. This guide groups fifteen short verses by the card you are actually writing, gives a few lines of background for each, and adds an example message you can adapt. All verses are quoted from the English Standard Version (ESV).

Pick by occasion: a quick table

For a Father's Day or birthday card

These four suit cards where you are thanking a father who is still with you. They praise what he did without making the card sound like a sermon.

The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him!

— Proverbs 20:7, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

This one comes from the long middle of Proverbs, a collection the book heads "The proverbs of Solomon" (10:1). The children's blessing follows from the father's walk, which is the Hebrew picture for how a person lives day to day. That makes it a good line for a dad who never gave speeches but simply kept his word.

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Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers.

— Proverbs 17:6, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

The line works in both directions: the old are honoured by the young, and the young are honoured by their fathers. That makes it the natural pick for a grandfather's card, especially one signed by the grandchildren as well. In the King James Version it reads "Children's children are the crown of old men", which some families prefer for its older sound.

The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him.

— Proverbs 23:24, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

This verse sits in a section the book calls "the words of the wise" (22:17). Here the joy belongs to the father, not the child. Use it when you want to say "I hope I made you proud", or on a card from a grown son or daughter who has just reached a milestone of their own.

For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.

— 1 Thessalonians 2:11–12, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

Paul is describing his own time with the young church in Thessalonica, in what is usually dated as one of his earliest letters, around AD 50. He uses the father image for a mentor, not a parent. That makes these verses useful for a stepdad, a coach, a youth leader or an uncle who stood in. For a short card, the first half ("like a father with his children, we… encouraged you") is enough.

Example message (written by our editors, adapt freely): "Dad, Proverbs 20:7 says the children of a man who walks in integrity are blessed after him. I didn't understand that verse until I had to keep my own promises. Thank you for showing me how. Happy Father's Day."

For a new or expecting dad

A first Father's Day, a baby shower card, a note tucked into a hospital bag. These verses are about the long, ordinary work ahead, and they don't pretend it will be easy.

And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.

— Deuteronomy 6:6–7, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

These lines follow straight after the Shema ("Hear, O Israel", Deuteronomy 6:4), the best-known statement of faith in the Hebrew Bible. The teaching they describe happens at the table, on walks and at bedtime, not in a classroom. For a new father, the encouraging part is that the ordinary hours count.

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Hear, O sons, a father's instruction, and be attentive, that you may gain insight.

— Proverbs 4:1, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

Read a few lines further and the speaker remembers his own father: "When I was a son with my father… he taught me" (4:3–4). So the chapter passes advice down through three generations. That makes it a thoughtful pick when a grandfather is writing to his son, who has just become a father himself.

Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

— Proverbs 22:6, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

Probably the most quoted verse on dads' cards. Most commentators read it the way they read the rest of Proverbs: as a general truth about how habits form, not a guarantee. Keep that in mind if you write to a father whose grown child has drifted. Choose a different verse there.

But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

— Joshua 24:15, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

Joshua says this to the gathered tribes at Shechem near the end of his life (24:1), after challenging them to "choose this day whom you will serve". You will see it over a lot of front doors. On a new dad's card it works as a family motto. The full verse is a challenge to a whole nation, so the short half is the one to quote.

Example message: "To a brand-new dad: Deuteronomy says the teaching happens 'when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way.' So the 3 a.m. feeds and the stroller laps count too. We're proud of you."

For a dad in a hard season

Job loss, illness, a teenager who has stopped talking, or a dad who just looks worn out. These verses are gentler, and two of them are a reminder to fathers as much as a comfort.

As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.

— Psalm 103:13, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

Psalm 103 is headed "Of David" and is a long hymn of thanks. Notice what the psalmist does: he explains God's mercy by pointing to an ordinary father's tenderness, so the father in this verse is the familiar, gentle one. It is a kind thing to send a dad who feels he has been too hard on himself.

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Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

— 1 Corinthians 16:13, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

These are Paul's closing instructions to the whole church in Corinth, women included. "Act like men" translates a single Greek verb meaning roughly "be brave", which is why the NIV has "be courageous". Four short commands make it easy to letter on a card. Just know that it is a call to courage, not a description of masculinity.

Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

— Ephesians 6:4, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

This comes from a passage about how a household should live together. Unusually for its time, it addresses fathers directly and limits what they may do. Roman law gave the head of a household sweeping power over his children. This verse asks him to hold back.

Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.

— Colossians 3:21, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

This is the shorter twin of Ephesians 6:4. It gives a reason: harshness discourages. It is better shared between fathers, for example in a men's group or from one dad to another, than written by a child on a card, where it can sound like a complaint.

For the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.

— Proverbs 3:12, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

The Letter to the Hebrews quotes this verse (Hebrews 12:5–6) to people going through hardship. Here, correcting a child is a sign that the father delights in him, not that he is angry. It can reassure a dad who is worried that setting limits will cost him his child's love.

Example message: "Dad, I know this year has been heavy. Psalm 103 compares God's kindness to a father's. When I read it, I think of the way you've always been with us. You don't have to carry it alone."

When you are making peace, or remembering

Not every father's card is easy to write. For a reconciliation, or for a memorial card or a eulogy, two verses do more than most.

In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge.

— Proverbs 14:26, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

"Fear" here means reverence, not terror. The verse ties a father's faith to his children's sense of safety. Families often choose it for a funeral programme or a memorial card, because "refuge" says what the father was without overstating it.

And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers.

— Malachi 4:6, The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2001)

In English Bibles this is the last verse of the Old Testament. Hebrew Bibles number it Malachi 3:24 and do not end their canon with it. Luke 1:17 picks the line up again for John the Baptist. Quote only this half: the verse goes on with a warning ("lest I come and strike the land…") that does not belong on a card. For someone reaching out after years of distance, it puts the hope gently and doesn't assign blame.

Example message: "I've been thinking about Malachi's line about hearts turning toward each other. I'd like that for us. Coffee next week?"

How to write the message around the verse

1. Put the verse second, not first. Start with his name and one specific thing he did, like teaching you to drive or always showing up. Then the verse explains why it mattered.
2. Quote a phrase, not the whole passage. Six to twelve words fits a card. Give the full reference so he can look it up: "(Deuteronomy 6:7)".
3. Use one translation throughout. If he grew up with the King James Version, its wording will feel like home. Do not mix versions on one card.
4. Match the verse to the relationship. Verses that tell fathers what to do (Ephesians 6:4, Colossians 3:21) come across as advice when a child writes them. Use them between dads, or not at all.
5. Close in your own voice. "Love you, Dad" after a verse lands better than a second verse.

ESV or King James? The same verses side by side

If you want to write more than a line, our guide on how to write a love letter works just as well for a long letter to your dad.

Questions people ask

What is a good short Bible verse for a dad?

For most cards, Proverbs 20:7 ("The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him!") is the safest choice. It praises how he lived and works for any age. For a grandfather, use Proverbs 17:6.

Which Bible verse is about a father's love?

Psalm 103:13 is the clearest short one. For a story rather than a single line, read the parable of the prodigal son: the father sees his son "a long way off", "felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him" (Luke 15:20). We collect more of these in Bible verses about a father's love.

Is "Train up a child" a promise?

Proverbs states general truths, and most readers take Proverbs 22:6 that way: early habits usually last, but grown children make their own choices. Do not send it to a father whose child has walked away.

For a longer list built around Father's Day itself, see our Bible verses for Father's Day. If your dad would rather have a line from a novelist than a prophet, try these father love quotes.

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. King James Version quotations are in the public domain.