Written By Eva Smidt
 

Bible Reading Plans & Commentaries

The Bible is a gift God gave through the church to the church, and was intended to be read in a community that preserves the memory of what God has been doing and saying for generations. Bible commentaries are a way for us to read how other Christians before us have understood the Bible, allowing us to be in community even when reading Scripture on our own. Here are some resources that we have found valuable for both Small Group and personal Bible study.

If you don’t have your own Bible, we would love to give you one as a gift! Just shoot us an email!

Commentaries

Bible Reading Plans

If you are looking for a place to start reading the Bible, we recommend that you begin with the Gospel of John. Some of the stories will repeat, others will refer to things you don't know about yet, but keep going! The commentaries will help. But more than that, ask God to read with you and listen for the Holy Spirit to speak. Ultimately, the goal is not just to get to know the Bible, but to get to know the Lord.

  • There are many books that break up the New Testament or the entire Bible into daily readings, like the One Year Bible (NLT).

  • Our denomination offers its own Bible Reading Plan called Immerse.

  • The Youversion Bible app also offers dozens of great reading plans on every subject or section of the Bible for free

  • Zondervan created a Bible paraphrase (The Story) that essentially presents the Bible as a coherent single story. It is a great way to discover the Bible! In addition, there are multiple versions for different levels of readers (adults, teens, children, etc.).

  • Bible Project’s Online Bible Studies offer great (and fun!) guidance on how to read the Bible in context.

Bibles for Kids & Youth by Age

Check out our list of Bibles for ages and stages

Devotionals

Devotionals may guide us into the Bible more deeply and personally, and are a good way to spend a few minutes with God and God's word daily.

Listen

  • Pray-as-you-go.org offers daily Bible readings (read aloud) along with reflection questions and time for prayer

  • Abide Meditations offers meditations on Scripture for listening, sleep, anxiety, and reflection 

Read

There are many good written devotionals. Here are some good ones to start with:

Bible Helps

Concordance: 

Alphabetical index of every word in the Bible
Uses: If you can’t remember where a verse in the Bible is but you can remember a word from the verse you can look it up and find the verse location. It’s also helpful for comparing the use in scripture of a particular word. Try: BibleStudyTools.com Concordance

Word Studies: 

Provide background and meaning, and examine use and context of the words in the Bible.
Uses: Helpful in understanding key words in a passage of scripture. Try: BibleGateway.com Keywords

Bible Dictionary: 

Offers definition and description of people, places, and key words in the bible.
Uses: Helpful for expanding understanding of biblical words. Especially those not used today (e.g., “ephod” a sleeveless vest worn over a priest’s robe made with red, blue, and purple cloth, woven with gold). Uses: Helpful for expanding understanding of biblical words. Especially those not used today (e.g., “ephod” a sleeveless vest worn over a priest’s robe made with red, blue, and purple cloth, woven with gold). Try: Bible Dictionaries Online

Bible Maps and Charts:

Maps are helpful in showing geographically where a biblical event takes place, distance between events, and for mapping out the journey of a person in the Bible. Charts may include timelines, family trees, lists of judges, kings, prophets, teachings of Jesus, miracles, the apostles, etc. They are often helpful for understanding order, remembering persons and stories, or for finding passages that include a particular person or story. Try: Bible-History.com Maps or NTGateway.com Maps

 
Eva Smidt
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