What Is a Good Place to Start Reading a Bible
If you are a new Christian, which book of the Bible should you read first? Exercise you get-go reading the whole thing from cover to cover starting with Genesis and working your manner to Revelation?
Or perchance you've fifty-fifty been a Christian for years. You tried reading the Bible before but gave upwardly after a while. At present, you'd like to get dorsum into reading again more diligently and are determined to get to grips with at least ane book.
You lot might find the whole affair intimidating. After all, at that place are 66 books of the Bible containing various types of literature from about forty different authors.
Whatever your situation, here are some suggestions I would personally recommend. While people'due south opinions may vary, these are my superlative v easiest places to start reading the Bible going from easiest to hardest.
Which book of the Bible should you read first?
i. The gospels
Ane good place to start is in the New Testament with one of the gospels. Past starting in a gospel, you can get to know Jesus and his graphic symbol and run across what he is similar as a person.
The whole of the Bible is centred around Jesus. Therefore kickoff with a gospel helps us focus on the main bespeak of the scriptures. If you lot are working through the Old Attestation, information technology may take you lot a while before you get to the gospels and y'all might miss the primary point. Everything must be seen in the calorie-free of Jesus.
Some people would suggest John's gospel gives you a good insight into who Jesus is equally a person. While John is a adept showtime, some readers might prefer more of an overview of the whole of Jesus' life from birth to decease to resurrection. Both the gospels of John and Mark just introduce usa to Jesus as an adult already and equally he is most to brainstorm his ministry.
Personally, I would indicate people to Luke's gospel. That is a comprehensive book which contains all of the key elements of Jesus' life. It as well sometimes feels more than down to earth than John's more spiritual gospel and may therefore feel more attainable and an easier read.
ii. Paul's letter to the Romans
Some other good identify is St Paul's letter of the alphabet to the Romans. Here Paul explains the man status and our inability by our own efforts or past observing the constabulary to live up to God's perfect standard that is Jesus Christ.
He explains how Jesus' expiry and resurrection brought nearly our liberty from sin and death, as well as emphasising that conservancy comes only through religion in Jesus Christ alone and not our works.
For a new Christian wanting to proceeds a better understanding of the basics of the Christian faith, Romans is an excellent place to start. It cuts directly to the point and explains everything systematically. If you didn't fully sympathise the significance of sure events in the gospel, Romans sheds light on that.
From there on, you tin can progress to the other letters such every bit 1 and 2 Corinthians, or spring well-nigh to Galatians, Ephesians or Phlippians.
I would definitely recommend reading through all the New Testament letters to get started, but beginning with Romans to empathise the cardinal message of the gospel.
iii. The book of Psalms
This book is full of songs written by the likes of Male monarch David, Asaph, the sons of Korah, Heman the Ezrahite and many others. The Psalms offer a lot of promise and encouragement. There are songs for different occasions, whether yous're total of praise and commemoration, or in anguish, sadness, fright or despair.
The Psalms are designed to be read aloud rather than silently to yourself. When you read them aloud, the words need a response on your part. There is something about the words that yous only can't ignore without it feeling that they are stirring something up in your soul.
The reason for that is because the Psalms are spoken communication acts which I've written near in more detail here.
Starting off with the Psalms can aid y'all to fix your eyes on God. Information technology can shift your eyes off your ain situation, especially if you are speaking the words aloud.
4. The volume of Proverbs
Proverbs is a good identify to start if you want to read an Old Testament book. Information technology contains the wisdom of Solomon, with enough of practical advice that is like shooting fish in a barrel to read. Many of the proverbs are cleaved down into short sayings which make it more than digestible and byte-sized.
In that location are also 31 chapters of proverbs, which tin be used for a daily Bible devotion for a whole month.
I would only recommend Proverbs for more of a calorie-free read rather than equally a manner to really get into the Bible. Information technology'southward easy to stop up seeing it as a bunch of quotations or pithy sayings and end up missing the cardinal message of how the Bible should exist pointing to Jesus.
5. The book of Genesis
Genesis is 1 place I would suggest. But I wouldn't recommend information technology if it's the commencement time y'all're always reading the Bible. It'due south more for if you lot've read through the Bible before and want to approach it in a unlike way.
Genesis sets up the entire scene. Information technology's like Act ane or the ready of a movie. It shows u.s. the creation of the world and the fall of humans due to sin, and already points to a prophecy about Jesus' crucifixion in Chapter 3:15 which says:
15And I will put enmity
betwixt you and the woman,
and between your offspring[a] and hers;
he volition crush[b] your head,
and y'all volition strike his heel."
It's important to see the overall large flick of the Bible and how it all fits together. The Bible is all about Jesus and God'southward saving plan for humanity. While all the Onetime Testament stories tin be interesting by themselves, it'southward of import to recognise that all of these characters are pointing towards Jesus in some way. They are types foreshadowing Jesus.
While it's skillful to kickoff in Genesis, I wouldn't advise just going through the rest of the Old Testament in book order. Yous'll probably discover that by the time y'all come up to Leviticus, Numbers or Deuteronomy that you lot're getting bogged down by hundreds of laws and rituals. You might question the relevance of these laws for your life today, or wonder why there are all these genealogies of people you lot've never heard about.
However, if y'all do decide you want to start with Genesis, after that I would skip ahead to one of the gospels – possibly even the gospel of John. The first chapter of John also echoes the opening words of Genesis but shows information technology in a new calorie-free.
If yous go through the Old Testament in volume club, yous may soon detect y'all've become discouraged and eventually give up and not end up reading your Bible at all. That'south why I'd recommend starting with the New Testament first and picking one of the other choices higher up.
Conclusion
I've given my meridian v recommended places for which book of the Bible you should read first. But at that place isn't a right or wrong reply to this question. Information technology all depends on where you are at in your Christian journey and what y'all're trying to reach. Withal there are some entry points which are more accessible than others.
Wherever yous start though, it's a good idea to have a modernistic translation written in contemporary English language. Even if you begin reading in the most accessible identify but are wrestling with a version written in erstwhile English, y'all're going to struggle with the language. You don't want to put an extra obstruction in the way.
>> If you want to read about artistic ways to brand your Bible reading more interesting, I've written an commodity about it here.
Now one way of getting into a book of the Bible hands is past reading a graphic novel version of the gospel of Luke. I've created and illustrated ane which includes every single verse. That will allow you to follow information technology each step of the way from kickoff to stop while viewing the images at the same time. Y'all can read more about information technology here.
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Finally, where exercise you find the easiest place to start reading the Bible and which book would you recommend to a new reader? Go out me a annotate below.
Robert is the founder of Drawing on the Word. He has a Bachelor's degree in Theology and a Master's degree in Systematic Theology. He also has a caste in Police and was called to the Bar. Robert previously taught religious studies and was a theology lecturer. He is an artist, musician and writer, and has created a graphic novel version of Luke's gospel. You tin follow him below.
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