24 helpful Bible verses about grandparents you need to read.

My third grandchild was on the way! Surely by now, I had this whole grandma thing down. I can rock a baby to sleep, my living room is childproof, and I can sing any number of nursery songs on demand. 

BUT,  I was missing one vital ingredient.

Fortunately, my morning Bible reading landed on 2 Timothy 1, where it talks about Timothy’s grandma, Lois. Paul praises the sincere faith of Timothy’s grandmother, Lois—a faith that was passed down through the generations. It made me wonder if there were other Bible verses about grandparents, and there are!

24 verses to be exact.

Bible Verses About Grandparents at a Glance

The Blessings of Grandchildren
Job 42:16 • Genesis 45:10 • Genesis 50:22–23 • Psalm 128:5–6 • Proverbs 17:6 • Ruth 4:16

The Work of Grandparents
Psalm 71:18 • Psalm 145:4 • Proverbs 22:6 • 2 Timothy 1:5 • Psalm 78:4-6 • Exodus 10:1-2 • Deuteronomy 4:9 • Deuteronomy 32:7

Generational Consequences
Exodus 20:5-6 • Exodus 34:6–7  

Generational Blessings
Psalm 37:25 • Psalm 100:5 • Psalm 103:17-18 • Genesis 48:15–16

Grandparenting Best Practices
Proverbs 13:22 • Titus 2:2-4  

Verses About Finishing Well
Psalm 92:12-15 • Deuteronomy 6:1-2

Turns out, the Lord has quite a bit to say to us about the role of grandparents in the family. And, He has some important work for us to do. But first, let’s look at the blessings.

Bible Verses About the Blessings of Grandchildren

In the Old Testament, living to see your grandchildren is portrayed as a special blessing. Just like today, it is a gift from God to live long enough to know and love your “grands.”

1.  Job 42:16 NKJV

After this Job lived one hundred and forty years,

and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations. 

One way God rewarded Job for succeeding in his time of trial was that he got to see his grandchildren.  

2.  Genesis 45:10 NIV

You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me – you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have.

Joseph, who was a ruler in Egypt, brought his whole family there to escape the famine. And I’m guessing he didn’t mind having everyone close! As a grandma, I like having my grandchildren just a short drive away.

3.  Genesis 50:22-23 NIV

Joseph stayed in Egypt, along with all his father’s family. He lived a hundred and ten years and saw the third generation of Ephraim’s children. Also, the children of Makir son of Manasseh were placed at birth on Joseph’s knees.

4.  Psalm 128:5-6 NKJV

The LORD bless you out of Zion,
And may you see the good of Jerusalem
All the days of your life.

Yes, may you see your children’s children.

Peace be upon Israel!

5.  Proverbs 17:6 ESV

Children’s children are the crown of old men,
And the glory of children is their father. 

This next passage definitely touches my grandma’s heart from the book of Ruth. After their trial in Moab, Naomi and her daughter-in-law, Ruth, move to Bethlehem. Ruth marries Boaz – they have a son – and guess who becomes the number-one babysitter?

6. Ruth 4:16 ESV

Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became a nurse to him. 

Obviously, I’ve never had an ordeal like Naomi and Ruth, but I know the satisfaction of holding a newborn as he or she snuggles up under my chin, and I am grateful every day for this experience.

For those of us whose phones are FULL of pictures of our grandchildren (just ask!) we know the joy they bring to our lives. Even so, we aren’t meant to stand on the sidelines and cheer. There is work we are given to do to kindle faith in the minds and hearts of our grandkids. Work I don’t intend to leave undone.

What do you mean? Grandparents have to work?

Yes! Part of our role is to help nurture our grandchildren’s faith, and that takes both intention and courage. Story by story and example by example, we can share the truth we’ve learned from the Bible—and from walking with God ourselves.

Of course, you may not want to expose every wart, but our grandkids need to hear some of the real stories. Tell them about a time you got in trouble or wrestled with doubt. Tell them what happened when God met you in a weak spot or helped you through something you couldn’t handle on your own.

And don’t forget the good stories. Tell them about the time Jesus led you to a church, a friendship, or a job that you never could have planned for yourself. Let them see that God hasn’t just worked in the lives of people in the Bible. He has worked in yours.

God is all about redemption—whether we’re reading about it in the Old Testament or seeing it unfold in our own lives this week.

We are not called to be bystanders in the spiritual education of our grandchildren. As the next 10 Bible verses show, grandparents play an important role in passing faith from one generation to the next.

Bible Verses About the Role of Grandparents.

7.  Psalm 71:18 ESV

So even to old age and gray hairs,
O God, do not forsake me,
until I proclaim your might to another generation,
your power to all those to come. 

The author of Psalm 71 is unknown but was apparently on in years, and look what he’s asking of God. He wants time to pass on the stories of his faith.

In contrast to the anonymous author of Psalm 71, the author of Psalm 145 is well known, none other than King David.

8.  Psalm 145:4 ESV

One generation shall commend your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.

There it is again. One generation intentionally telling the next about what God has done. Our grandchildren need to hear those stories, and who better to tell them than us?

Here’s a verse I bet you’ve heard before:

9.  Proverbs 22:6 ESV

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

Obviously, this applies to parents first – these same parents who are trying to work full time, keep the house clean and wrestle the kids into the car to go to Target. You can forgive them for being distracted. However, we can be the calm in the chaos, staying alert for teachable moments.

Skipping ahead to the New Testament, Paul gives us a wonderful picture of faith being passed through a family. He commends Timothy’s mother and grandmother for the sincere faith that now lives in Timothy.

10.  2 Timothy 1:5 ESV

I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. 

Well done, ladies.

Keep These Bible Verses Handy
Download the free quick-reference list of all 24 Bible verses about grandparents to save, print, or tuck inside your Bible.  Click here.

Grandparents’ work, personally.

The Bible doesn’t just tell us to pass our faith to the next generation. It gives us examples of what that looks like—telling our families the stories of what God has done.

Psalm 78, written by Asaph, recounts the history of the Israelites in the wilderness. It includes times when the people trusted God and times when they rebelled against Him. Why preserve those stories? So future generations would know God, remember His works, and learn from the mistakes of those who came before them.

11.  Psalm 78:4-6 ESV

We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might,
and the wonders that he has done.

He established a testimony in Jacob
and appointed a law in Israel,
which he commanded our fathers
to teach to their children,

that the next generation might know them,
the children yet unborn,
and arise and tell them to their children. 

Without a doubt, Moses was a guy with some great stories to tell. I can just hear his grandchildren begging to hear the story about the plagues, one more time.

12.  Exodus 10:1-2 NIV

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his officials so that I may perform these signs of mine among them that you may tell your children and grandchildren how I dealt harshly with the Egyptians and how I performed my signs among them, and that you may know that I am the LORD.” 

Moses also had a firsthand account of receiving the Ten Commandments and encountering God at Mount Sinai. In Deuteronomy 4:9, he warns the Israelites not to forget what they had seen but to teach these things to their children and their children’s children.

13. Deuteronomy 4:9 ESV

Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children.

And Moses even has a song that speaks to our work.

Hidden in our list of Bible verses about grandparents is a song with the catchy title “Deuteronomy 32.” Today we have Amazing Grace and Mighty to Save. Back then, they had Deuteronomy 32.

In this song, Moses warns his generation about the danger of forgetting God. He tells them to look back and ask their elders what God had done in the past.

It’s an ancient song with a very relevant message for grandparents today: Tell the stories. Tell your grandchildren what God has done, how He has provided, and how He has been faithful. Make God’s goodness part of your family’s story.

14.  Deuteronomy 32:7 ESV

Remember the days of old;

consider the years of many generations;

ask your father, and he will show you,

your elders, and they will tell you.

Bible Verses About Grandparents: Generational Consequences.

The Bible also gives us a sobering reminder that what happens in one generation can affect those that follow.

In Exodus 20, as part of the Ten Commandments, God warns the Israelites against worshiping idols.

15.  Exodus 20:5-6 ESV

You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. 

Notice the contrast in this passage. The consequences of rebellion can reach the third and fourth generation, but God describes His steadfast love as extending to thousands of those who love Him and keep His commandments.

Later, after Moses broke the first tablets containing the Ten Commandments, God called him back up Mount Sinai for another set. (No copy-and-paste command back then. Ha ha.)

As God passed before Moses, He described His own character:

16. Exodus 34:6–7 ESV

The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”

These are difficult verses. They remind us that sin rarely affects just one person. We can see that principle in families today. Patterns of anger, addiction, dishonesty, or other destructive behaviors can affect children and grandchildren long after they begin.

But these passages don’t leave us without hope. In fact, God’s mercy and steadfast love receive far more emphasis than the consequences of sin.

And that brings us to something much more encouraging: blessings can be passed from one generation to the next, too.

Bible verses about grandparents: generational blessings.

Thankfully, the influence of one generation on another isn’t limited to the consequences of sin. The Bible also gives us a beautiful picture of God’s goodness and faithfulness reaching from one generation to the next.

17.  Psalm 37:25 ESV

I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread. 

18.  Psalm 100:5 ESV

For the LORD is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.

19.  Psalm 103:17-18 ESV

But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
and his righteousness to children’s children,

to those who keep his covenant
and remember to do his commandments.

God’s faithfulness isn’t limited to our lifetime. We can pray for His blessing on our grandchildren, speak words of blessing over them, and live in a way that points them toward the God who has been faithful to us.

If you would like to make speaking blessings a regular part of your relationship with your grandchildren, discover the details in this post How to Speak Blessings: Biblical Practices for Modern Life.
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Generational blessing in action.

20.  Genesis 48:15–16 NIV

Then he blessed Joseph and said,

“May the God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked faithfully, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, the Angel who has delivered me from all harm—may he bless these boys.”

What a beautiful picture of a grandfather blessing his grandchildren. Jacob called upon the God who had shepherded and protected him throughout his own life and asked that same God to bless the generations coming after him.

The blessing didn’t go quite as Joseph expected. Jacob crossed his hands, placing his right hand on Ephraim, the younger grandson. Joseph tried to correct him, but Jacob knew exactly what he was doing. He went on to pronounce a blessing over both boys.

Somewhere along the way, many of us got away from the practice of intentionally speaking blessings over our children and grandchildren. I think it’s a tradition worth reviving.

You don’t need to wait for a formal occasion, either. Birthdays, baptisms, graduations, holidays—or an ordinary Tuesday—can all be opportunities to speak words of faith, hope, and encouragement over a grandchild.

If you’d like some ideas for getting started, check out my post Blessing Words for Happy Birthdays, Beautiful Baptisms, and Everyday Events

Bible verses about grandparenting “best practices”.

So far, we’ve looked at what grandparents can pass down to future generations. But the Bible also has something to say about how we live our own lives. These next two verses give us some practical guidance.

21.  Proverbs 13:22 ESV

A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
but the sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous. 

An inheritance can certainly include money or possessions, but what we leave our grandchildren goes far beyond what is written in a will. Our example, our wisdom, our family stories, and most importantly, our faith can become part of the legacy we leave behind.

22.  Titus 2:2-4 ESV

Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness.

Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, 

There’s quite a list for us! We are called to keep growing in faith, love, self-control, and steadfastness as we get older. We also have wisdom and experience that younger generations need. Apparently, retirement from the workforce doesn’t mean retirement from God’s work.

Bible verses about grandparents finishing well.

These final two verses may be my favorites. Getting older doesn’t mean that our most useful years are behind us. God can continue to use us to influence our families and declare His faithfulness.

23.  Psalm 92:12-15 NKJV

The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree,
He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.

Those who are planted in the house of the LORD
Shall flourish in the courts of our God.

They shall still bear fruit in old age;
They shall be fresh and flourishing,

To declare that the LORD is upright;
He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.

I love that phrase: “They shall still bear fruit in old age.” Our age doesn’t disqualify us from God’s work. In fact, the years we’ve spent walking with Him give us something valuable to share with the generations coming behind us.

24.  Deuteronomy 6:1-2 ESV

Now this is the commandment—the statutes and the rules—that the LORD your God commanded me to teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you are going over, to possess it, that you may fear the LORD your God, you and your son and your son’s son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be long. 

What a fitting verse to end our list. Moses is preparing the Israelites to enter the Promised Land, and he describes a faith that reaches across three generations: “you and your son and your son’s son.”

That’s what I want for my family, too. I don’t simply want my grandchildren to know that Grandma believed in God. I want them to know Him for themselves—and someday pass that faith on to another generation.

I’m so glad I found these Bible verses about grandparents because there’s obviously more to grandparenting than just taking the kids to the park. There is important work for us to do. Passing on our faith, praying for blessings, being a good example. Work that must not be left undone. I guess I better get busy.

Find support for your grandparenting journey. Join the PrayerRaising community – grandparents praying for their grandchildren.

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