How to Study the Bible
Short answer
Read one short passage a day and ask three questions in order: what does it say, what did it mean to its first readers, and what is one thing to do today. Plan for ten to fifteen minutes a day with a translation you can read easily, and keep to the same three questions for all seven days.
At Find A Prayer, we wrote this method ourselves from the Bible passages quoted below, as our own synthesis. The method suits a beginner or a returning reader with no method yet, and it assumes a readable translation and ten to fifteen minutes a day. The first question asks you to read slowly and write the passage in your own words.
The second asks who wrote it, to whom, and what the verses before and after it say. The third asks you to choose one small action for the day.
A Three-Question Method You Can Start Today
Question one asks what the passage says. Read it slowly and write its meaning in your own words. Do not look at the verses around it until this step is done.
Question two asks what the passage meant to its first readers. Ask who wrote it, to whom it was written, and what the verses before and after it say. Those three answers give the passage its setting.
Question three asks what one thing you will do today. Keep the action small enough to finish today. The example below applies the method to Philippians 4:6-7 in the King James Version.
The passage reads: "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Philippians is a letter from the apostle Paul to the Christians at Philippi. For question one, a sample of your own words might be: bring every request to God in prayer and thanks, and his peace will keep your heart and mind through Christ Jesus.
For question two, read the verses before and after verse 6 yourself. They belong to the same letter, so read them before you decide what 4:6-7 means. For question three, the small action might be to name one request, bring it to God today, and add one sentence of thanks.
Pray Before You Open the Text
The opening prayer for Bible study is a separate prayer on this site, and you can pray it before any session with this method. We also wrote the short prayer below for the start of a reading. Lord, open the Scriptures to me this morning.
Slow my reading so I notice what the passage says before I decide what it means for me. Let the one thing I do today come from what I have read, in Jesus' name. Amen.
A Seven-Day Plan
Use one short passage a day for seven days. Each day you still answer all three questions, and the question named for that day gets the most time. Day 1 uses Psalm 119:105, which compares God's word to a lamp for the feet and a light for the path.
Spend most of your time on question one and write what the verse says in your own words. Day 2 uses Nehemiah 8:8, which describes readers who gave the sense of the law so the people could understand it. Spend most of your time on question two, since this verse is about understanding what was read.
Day 3 uses Acts 17:11, which describes people who searched the scriptures daily. Spend most of your time on question two, and ask what the verses around the passage add to its meaning. Day 4 uses 2 Timothy 3:16-17, which says all scripture is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness.
Spend most of your time on question three, asking what that instruction asks you to change. Day 5 uses James 1:22, which calls readers to be doers of the word. Spend most of your time on question three and choose one action you will take that day.
Day 6 uses Psalm 119:11, which speaks of hiding God's word in the heart so as not to sin against God. Spend most of your time on question one, writing the verse in your own words, and then decide whether you want to memorize it. Day 7 is a review.
Reread the six passages from days one to six, spend most of your time on question three, and choose the next book of the Bible to read. At ten to fifteen minutes a day, the seven days come to 70 to 105 minutes in total.
Tools to Keep Nearby
A readable translation is the first tool, and this method assumes you have one. The site has an answer titled Most Accurate Bible Translation, which is a separate question from how to study. A Bible concordance is a reference tool that lists the places where a word appears in the Bible. When a word in the passage matters to you, look it up in a concordance to see where else it appears.
The site has an answer titled How Do I Use a Bible Concordance?. A lexicon is a dictionary of Greek and Hebrew words. The seven-day plan does not depend on one.
Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them
The first mistake is reading one verse without the verses around it. The fix is to read the verses before and after your passage, as question two asks. The site has an answer titled Is It Ever OK to Take a Bible Verse Out of Context? The second mistake is reading only to find comfort.
The fix is to answer questions one and two before you ask what the passage means for you. The method does not decide how to read a passage literally. The site has an answer titled Should Christians Interpret the Bible Literally?
Keeping the Method Going
Pair the method with the 30-day Bible reading plan with daily prayers, which is a separate resource on this site. Ten to fifteen minutes a day across thirty days comes to 300 to 450 minutes in total.
Day 6 of the seven-day plan uses Psalm 119:11, which says "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee." The site has an answer titled How to Memorize Bible Verses. Open each session with the opening prayer for Bible study and close it with the closing prayer for Bible study, both of which are on this site.
Who This Method Is Not For
This method is not for a reader who wants academic Greek and Hebrew study. That reader should start with the Bible concordance answer on this site and a lexicon, which is a dictionary of Greek and Hebrew words.
A reader who already follows a church or small-group study guide should follow that guide. The method is a starting point for a reader who does not yet have a method.
Your Next Step in Learning How to Study the Bible
Keep to the same three questions for all seven days before you change anything about the method. Tomorrow, read Psalm 119:105 slowly and write what it says in your own words, the first step in learning how to study the Bible with this method.
Key Bible verses
- Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. — Philippians 4:6-7
- Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. — Psalm 119:105
- So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading. — Nehemiah 8:8
- These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. — Acts 17:11
- All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. — 2 Timothy 3:16-17
- But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. — James 1:22
- Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. — Psalm 119:11
Frequently asked questions
What is the best way to study the Bible?
The method above asks three questions in order: what does the passage say, what did it mean to its first readers, and what is one thing to do today. It is one place for a beginner to start.
How can a beginner study the Bible effectively?
Read one short passage a day for ten to fifteen minutes, and answer the three questions in order. Start with the seven-day plan and keep to the same method for all seven days.
How do you study the Bible for spiritual growth?
Question three asks for one small action each day, which echoes the point of James 1:22 that readers should be doers of the word.
How long should a daily Bible study take?
Our suggested pace is ten to fifteen minutes a day with a translation you can read easily. Across the seven-day plan, that comes to 70 to 105 minutes in total. The pace is our suggestion. It is not a requirement.
Do I need Greek and Hebrew to study the Bible?
No. The seven-day plan assumes a readable translation and does not depend on Greek or Hebrew. A reader who wants word-level study in those languages needs a lexicon, which is a dictionary of Greek and Hebrew words.