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Let’s talk about Bible reading resources! As a Christian, knowing the Bible is important to me. It sets out the parameters of our faith and contains a lot of wisdom. I also believe that the more people read the Bible for themselves, the harder it is for those texts to be abused and misinterpreted.
Further, the God chose to reveal himself and his plans through the Bible. I get to know him, his character and am encouraged by the grace and love he shows to humanity over and over when I open this wondrous book.
However, it is also a very old book. Written in a time and culture very different from ours. Many texts are confusing, bewildering and strange. I have found it tremendously helpful to employ a number of tools to learn about the historical and cultural context and literary stiles in order to make sense of these ancient stories. Other Bible reading resources help to reflect and apply the text to one’s own life.
Some Bible reading resources I use and love
People often ask me about getting started with Bible reading or how I go about studying Scripture. Also, in my reader survey a number of people indicated they would like a post about my favourite Bible reading resources. (I am still very excited when someone fills out said survey! You can do so here.) So. here are a few tools I have used and found helpful.
The Bible Project
This is by far one of my favourite Bible reading resources. It’s so so good and I would highly recommend checking it out.
If you have done any Bible studying before you likely have come across the Bible Project. They are a non-profit organisation that creates Bible reading resources with the aim to help people experience the Bible as a unified story that leads to Jesus.
They have many YouTube videos, podcasts, Blog posts, classes and even an app. And all of it is free. Quite a lot of their content is also available in other languages, for example in German.
I really love their app, where (so far) they go through the first five books of the Old Testament. They show different themes and links and explain a lot of the historical and cultural context. Reading their explanations and especially listening to the podcast episodes has fundamentally transformed how I think about the Bible and has resolved a lot of questions and confusion I have had.
The Daily Grace Co. Bible Studies
I recently started using a Bible Study book by the Daily Grace Co. and am enjoying it a lot! I know that one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover but I do find it helps that the studies are so visually appealing.
For each day, there are some Bible texts to read. Then the book provides some content with thoughts and ideas of how to apply the principles from the portions of Scripture. Each day also has a few questions that help you think a bit deeper about your own life and how Scripture relates to it.
So far, I am about half way through the “Growing in Grace” study which investigates spiritual disciplines, what they are and how they can be useful.
This Bible reading resources provides less information on what specific words might be in the original language etc. but focuses more on personal application.
The Bible Recap by Tara-Leigh Cobble
The Bible Recap is a book and a podcast that accompanies a year-long chronlogical Bible reading plan. It gives you some impulses, background knowledge and explanation for the texts you read each day.
I have the book but also greatly enjoy the podcast. If you have ambitions of reading through the whole Bible I would highly recommend using a chronological plan. I have found it so interesting to read some psalms alongside stories detailed in Chronics or Kings for example. It really helps giving a big picture overview of some of the Biblical stories.
Preaching Through The Bible by Michael Eaton
Michael Eaton was a preacher and writer who grew up in inner-city London but lived for many years in Nairobi, Kenya. He is also an excellent Bible teacher. He has written a series of books that sadly is difficult to come by these days. However, a lot of the resources from the books are available for free online.
In short chunks he goes through Biblical books verse by verse. His language is easy to understand and he shows connections between the verse and the rest of the Bible and sometimes expands on various ways something could be translated.
I don’t necessarily agree with everything he says, as he leans fairly conservative. However, I have learned a lot through his writing and would definitely recommend checking out this Bible reading resource.
There are many more Bible reading resources to discover
I have been reading the Bible for many years and still find it so valuable to engage with this text. These four resources are just some that I personally have tried and found useful. There are many many more!
If you are just getting started, it’s definitely worth checking out the Bible App from YouVersion. It contains a lot of different Bible reading plans on various books and topics.
Do let me know if there are any Bible reading resources you love, I am always on the lookout for fresh inspiration.
This is Day 72 of my 100 Day Project. You can learn more about my 100 day project by reading this post. If you want to do your own 100 day Project, I would recommend checking out the 100 Day Project website.
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