Willmington's Bible Handbook  Harold L. Willmington  Tyndale House Publlishers, Inc. Wheaton, Illinois

What order should you read the Bible in? 

Would you read sentences at random out of different chapters of biology book and expect to understand the whole book? No, of course not. Neither can the Bible be properly understood by randomly picking out verses here and there without knowing the context from which they come. This is why reading the Bible in order makes sense. 

However, even after saying that, may I suggest you start by reading the book of John, and then Matthew, Mark and Luke? These four books are known as the Gospels. This will give you a clearer understanding of Yeshua, G-d’s son. Once finished, go back to Genesis, the first of the five books of the Bible and start from where G-d gives us His instructions (sometimes called the Torah or the Law or Pentateuch). You may also want to be reading from the beginning of the New Covenant at the same time as the Old.

Initially you may feel like “who cares about some of this stuff, and what does it have to do with my 21^st century life? Well if you didn’t first read about how cells divide in that biology book, then how would you ever be expected to understand the more complex sciences if you didn’t start reading from the beginning.

The Bible needs to be understood as it applies to YOUR life. It is not a story book that can be read like a novel. If you set a goal to read so many chapters a day or week, then make SURE to leave enough time to meditate (that means chew-on, savor the flavor, get the full meaning) on what G-d is saying to YOU personally and definitely leave at LEAST equal time to pray too. 

Joshua 1:8 Study this Book of the Law continually. Meditate on it day and night so you may be sure to obey all that is written in it. Only then will you succeed.

As you meditate on His Word here are just a few questions to ask yourself. Write down the answers:

What is the main topic of the particular passage?

Who is being addressed and who is doing the talking?

How does this passage relate to others I have read?

What is G-d trying to teach me about Himself in this passage?

What is G-d trying to teach me about myself in this passage?

Is there anything spoken of that illuminates a sin in my life, or a direction I am going that needs to be examined?

Take your time. You will never finish learning from the Bible because the depths of knowledge are from a mind infinitely greater and wiser than ours.

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