Bible Study Methods and Resources for the Average Person

I think reading and studying the Bible can be intimidating and overwhelming for a lot of people. I’ve come to a place where I genuinely love reading and studying the Bible. However, by no means am I a theologian or Biblical expert. I’m just your everyday, average person who’s found some Bible study methods that work to help me read, learn and study the Bible effectively. Therefore, if I can do it, anyone can!

Several years ago we took a family vacation to Colorado. While we were there, we also had an opportunity to attend a church Bible study with some family. (I wrote about it in this post.) I really loved the way they studied and discussed the Bible because it was a similar method to how I like to study and learn. Prior to the meeting, they read a certain chapter or passage out of scripture. Then they came to the meeting discussing any insights they gathered and any things they felt like God spoke or revealed to them.

It was a very engaging and interactive discussion from which everyone in the room learned and received some type of benefit and wisdom. It seemed as though each person picked up something different from the passage, but as they shared others were able to learn from their observations and revelations too. In my women’s small group we’ve been doing a similar independent Bible study method of various books of the Bible. It’s been some of our favorite small group content, preferring it over doing book studies or an organized/guided Bible study written by someone else.

I’ll share with you some of my strategies and methods that help me, personally, to comprehend what I’m reading and be able to hear from God a little better.

Getting context

I recently read a great analogy that N.T. Wright used to describe getting a larger context for some of the well-known Bible stories and how they fit into the whole scope of scripture and plan of redemption through Jesus Christ (from the Old Testament all the way through the New Testament). He talked about how he knows certain areas of London very well but isn’t extremely familiar with how they all join up because he’s used to traveling on the Underground with no mental picture of what was above him. He mentioned that if he tried walking between the different points that he would get lost.

N.T. Wright said that many people are like that with the stories in the Bible. They know the parables, miracles, and major stories, but they often have little to no idea of the context of how they all join up and are linked and weaved together. People tend to get “carried”, as on a transit system, from one story to the next, like a spiritual Underground, without really ever thinking about how things actually moved together from one thing to another in the real world. Therefore, people sometimes miss the full force of the messages because they miss out on some of the context and the connections.^[1]

This analogy is a great way to describe getting context as we study scripture. That’s why some of the following Bible study methods are so helpful because they really aid in finding and creating context for a better understanding and application of scripture.

Start by reading book introductions

When reading a book out of the Bible, sometimes it’s helpful to start by reading the introductions at the start of the book. In most Bibles, there is a page at the start of the book that will give some introductory information and background of that particular book. It typically contains things like the author(s) of that book, when it was written, where it was written, to whom it was written, an overview of the main points or major themes, the purpose or intent of the author, and maybe some cultural context.

These types of information can be helpful to learn before you start reading to give you a foundational context from which to start. Knowing some of these bits of information can create a “big picture” that will help you piece together the parts of the reading as you go along, making it a little easier to understand and follow along. This might be comparable to looking at a picture of what a puzzle is supposed to look like before you start putting it together.

Watch introductory videos

Much like the written book introductions, there are often introductory videos that can give some overview information and background of that particular book. These videos are similar to the written overviews in that they often give information about the author, the intended audience, the timeframe, the geography, some cultural context, and even key themes and purposes. Occasionally these videos will provide somewhat of a “trailer” of the text serving as a brief synopsis.

Bible Project

The Bible Project videos are some of my favorites for this use because they use hand-illustrated videos to explain concepts and themes. Their mission is to help people experience the Bible as a unified story that leads to Jesus. I use their videos frequently, and they have provided me some invaluable context and understanding prior to my reading and study. The Bible Project overview videos are definitely included as one of my preferred supplemental Bible study methods.

You can access the Bible project overview videos within the YouVersion Bible app (in the “Related Videos” section of each book), via YouTube on their Bible Project channel, via the Bible Project website, or via their Read Scripture app.

Eyewitness Bible Series

Another set of videos I’ve recently discovered are the Eyewitness Bible Series. I’ve found them to be an insightful supplement to my Bible studies (more for cultural context and some background information than for scripturally accurate content). According to their website, “Eyewitness video narratives are Bible-based and are designed to spark your imagination and provoke your curiosity, while not being controversial. Each video is 12-18 minutes long and addresses a portion of the Bible from the viewpoint of a Bible character. The videos and study guides provide a significant amount of historical, cultural, and chronological information that the original writers and hearers of the Bible knew, but are not well-known by most people today. The videos are not recitations of Scripture.^[2]” Their hope and intent are to entice people to read and study the scriptures deeper and further.

You can access the Eyewitness Bible Series videos within the YouVersion Bible app (in the “Related Videos” section of each book), via YouTube on their Eyewitness Bible Series channel, or via the Eyewitness Bible Series website.

BibleX

One more set of videos that I’ve found to be very helpful and educational are the BibleX videos on the YouVersion Bible app. BibleX is a free resource published by Life.Church to help expand your knowledge of the Bible. Their videos focus on key themes, characters, and stories in the Bible. Their study videos and reading plans were created for anyone who wants to become more familiar with the Bible and understand it in a more complete way. I’ve gained some incredible insight from their studies, reading plans, and videos.

You can access the BibleX resources within the YouVersion Bible app or via YouTube on their BibleX channel.

 

Pray for understanding and for God to reveal things to you

Before I start reading the text or passage, I first like to pray that God will help me to understand what I’m reading and to show me things that he wants me to see. I ask for God to open my eyes and mind to understand and see truth and to enlighten the eyes of my understanding. There are a few verses that I turn into prayers that I have written in the front of my quiet time journal:

“Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.” Luke 24:45 (NIV)

“The revelation of Your words brings light and gives understanding to the inexperienced.” Psalm 119:130 (HCSB)

“Open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your instructions.” Psalm 119:18 (NLT)

“The eyes of your understanding being enlightened…” Ephesians 1:18a (KJV)

I also like to take this time before I start reading to position my mind and heart to hear from God and to purpose to pay attention to what I read and what I hear God saying to me as I read. Additionally, I expect to hear God speak, and I tell him so, praying like Samuel did, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.”

“Then he added, “Pay close attention to what you hear. The closer you listen, the more understanding you will be given–and you will receive even more.” Mark 4:24 (NLT)

“So he said to Samuel, “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, LORD, your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed.” 1 Samuel 3:9 (NLT)

Read the text…BEFORE reading any supplemental material

After reading and/or watching some general introductory material to provide a general, summarized foundation, and after praying for understanding and positioning my spirit to listen, then I like to independently read the text or passage. As I read, I look for what stands out, questions that arise, characteristics of God in the passage, what the idea or the message of the passage is, what God might be saying through that passage, and so on. It’s a good idea to write these things down and/or journal about them too. It always seems like more insight and revelation come when you have a pen in your hand!

I personally believe that it is important to read independently FIRST, before reading any supplemental commentary or explanations of that particular text (we’ll add these as another one of the Bible study methods later in the process). I think this is important for a couple of reasons.

Listening to God speak to me directly about a passage gives it a personal touch. He may show me things that relate to me and my individual situation, and I can see things from a perspective that others may not see at that moment. Additionally, this will give me an unbiased, neutral starting point from which God, via the Holy Spirit, can speak to me. I like to read to see what God tells me directly, without being persuaded or influenced by the insight of others first.

The problem with relying solely on outside sources

People who solely use outside sources are relying on others to feed them instead of learning how to feed themselves. They are dependent on others to do their thinking for them instead of learning how to think for themselves. This reminds me of Paul talking to some of the believers who were spiritually immature comparing them to infants who still needed milk instead of solid food (1 Corinthians 3:1-2, 1 Corinthians 14:20, Hebrews 5:11-14).

Too many times we tend to depend solely on being spiritually spoon-fed by others (the church, leaders/pastors, podcasts/videos, devotions, commentary, books, etc.). While these things most definitely ARE very, very good and extremely beneficial, they should be SUPPLEMENTS and not the primary source of your spiritual food. Think of it like “vitamins” versus “regular, healthy meals”—the supplemental material should be your vitamins, not your primary source of spiritual nutrition. Your “meals” should come from your own individual, daily study, and time with God (quiet times, Bible reading, Bible study, prayer, praise, etc.).

I will add a caveat here and say that sometimes, especially as a new believer, these things might be helpful to get started because you may not even know how or where to start. Also, God WILL meet you where you are. He can and will still use these things to help you grow. However, the goal should be to get to the point where you learn how to feed yourself and learn how to think on your own without requiring or relying on others to do the feeding and the thinking for you. God WANTS to talk to you directly! He WILL talk to you directly—you just need to give him the opportunity to do so. (More on this page about hearing from God)

Read in other translations or versions

Another one of my Bible study methods is to read the passage or verse(s) in a different translation to get a better understanding or see a different perspective. Many translations and resources are available through technology now (most free of charge) via the internet and/or smartphone apps. Typically there will be a place to click to select a translation to view or a way you can view and compare several translations at a time or see a parallel Bible. Many websites and apps also offer audio Bibles to which you can listen in different translations.

Some helpful websites include Bible.com, BibleGateway.com, Biblehub.com, and BlueLetterBible.org. Most of these websites also have their own smartphone apps too. The apps I personally use on a frequent basis are the YouVersion Bible app, the Blue Letter Bible app, and the Bible Hub app.

Refer to outside supplemental resources

Next, one of the Bible study methods you can use to study and learn even further is to look at some supplemental resources and seeing what others have to say about certain scriptures, passages, or books of the Bible. As stated above, this is better to do AFTER you have read and studied the passage independently first.

Some additional resources you could use are…

• Biblical commentary within your Bible, to give you an enhanced explanation of a particular verse or passage
• Outside Biblical commentaries, such as Matthew Henry, Charles Spurgeon, David Guzik, Warren Wiersbe, Moody Bible, etc.
• Devotions and reading plans (books, online, or via apps like the Bible app)
• Bible study books for a specific book of the Bible
• Resources to study further and more in-depth, such as a Biblical atlas, Bible almanac, Bible encyclopedia, Bible Dictionary, or books about Biblical customs and culture
• Cross-references (within your Bible, online, or via apps), to see other related or relevant scriptures to supplement or enhance your study
• Concordance, again, to see other related or relevant scriptures to supplement or enhance your study
• Sermons and podcasts, to hear additional and in-depth teaching on Bible passages

You can find or access commentaries in some Bibles—these are typically located at the bottom of the page. You can also find commentaries online, via smartphone apps, as an e-book, or in physical book formats. I have a Matthew Henry Commentary app on my phone, but I also regularly use the free commentaries available on BibleGateway.com, Biblehub.com, and BlueLetterBible.org. Most of these websites also have their own smartphone apps with commentaries accessible there too.

There are countless commentary resources. You can find one that suits you that you understand. I do, however, recommend that you make sure you find a commentary that is like-minded in faith, true to God’s Word–without contradiction, and credible (ask a trusted spiritual mentor or spiritually mature friend if you’re not sure).

Research the original language (Hebrew and Greek)

Now, if you REALLY want to go in-depth, you can research the text’s or passage’s original language. The original languages of scripture are Hebrew (in the Old Testament) and Greek (in the New Testament), with some Aramaic sprinkled in here and there. When researching the original language used, you can get a deeper understanding of the Bible by gaining knowledge about the origins and root meanings of the ancient languages. Furthermore, you can get some context and some of the cultural meanings that the authors intended. By looking these up you can get a more detailed and accurate meaning of the words used in scripture.

I have gained some amazing insight and had some really cool revelations when I’ve looked up the definitions and grammatical information in the original language. It has made certain verses become even more meaningful and alive to me, and I tend to understand them in a whole new light. I have a few different ways that I like to research and study the original languages: interlinear Bible, a Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible, and in-depth word studies (done by others).

Interlinear Bible for original language study

I typically use an interlinear Bible when researching the original languages. (You can learn more about an interlinear Bible here and here.) In the Blue Letter Bible, you can select the verse containing the words you wish to look up, then click on “Interlinear/Concordance”. Here you can see the corresponding Strong’s Concordance reference numbers and the Hebrew or Greek versions of the text you selected. You can listen to pronunciations of the original language, see definitions of the original word used, view the grammatical information and lexicon study, and see other usages of that word throughout scripture. (Find a Blue Letter Bible Interlinear tutorial here.) You can also access an interlinear Bible on Bible Hub here.

In-depth word studies for original language study

Some of my favorite resources for in-depth word studies are from Rick Renner. He has written 2 books, Sparkling Gems from the Greek Volume 1 and Sparkling Gems from the Greek Volume 2, each having over 1000 in-depth Greek word studies contained in them. You can actually read these “Sparkling Gems” for free as daily devotionals online, or you can sign up to receive them directly via email (which is what I’ve done).

Another resource that I love for in-depth word studies is Dave Adamson. Dave loves to research the first-century cultural context of Jesus and Hebrew words. His devotions and posts offer a different perspective and cultural insight into scripture. Dave is a favorite of mine, often giving Hebrew and Biblical background and insight in his daily Instagram devotions and on his YouTube channel.

Talk it over with a friend, mentor, or study group

Discussing what you’ve learned can help you to gain insight and a different perspective from others. Consider joining a Bible study group. You can also just talk it over with a friend or spiritual mentor to tell them about what you’re learning, any insight you’ve gained, any questions that arose, and what God has been showing or speaking to you. One of the benefits of talking about what you’re studying is that by speaking what you’ve learned, you will remember it better, transferring it to your long-term memory. (This is actually a strategy that I teach in my college classes as well.) Speaking it will also increase your faith.

I mentioned at the beginning that talking over what I’ve learned with others has helped me, and others, to get even more benefit and wisdom out of what we’re learning. I seem to understand the Bible at a much deeper and even more practical level when I can discuss it with others.

You don’t have to be a Pro—You don’t have to do it all!

By no means are ALL of these mandatory Bible study methods. You can use as much or as little as you like and study as in-depth as you want. If you’re just a beginner at Bible study, it may be overwhelming to attempt to utilize every single method and resource listed here all at once. However, these are options that you can use that WILL enhance and supplement your study to the extent that best fits you.

I did not start out using all of these resources and Bible study methods. However, I love to do so now as I’ve developed a passion for Bible study. Again, I have not received formal, professional, or theological training in studying the Bible. These are just things that I have picked up and learned along the way in my walk and relationship with God. I do believe that these are things that the average person can use and/or do, even without formal or theological training.

“And He said to them, Be careful what you are hearing. The measure [of thought and study] you give [to the truth you hear] will be the measure [of virtue and knowledge] that comes back to you–and more [besides] will be given to you who hear.” Mark 4:24 (AMPC)

Take Some Practical Steps to Try These Bible Study Methods for the Average Person:

So to recap…

• First, start with book introductions to give you a foundation, some background, and some context about what you are about to read.

• Secondly, watch introductory videos to give you overview information, some background, and again, some more context of the particular book you are about to read.

• Next, before you start reading, pray for understanding and for God to reveal things to you.

• Then, read the text BEFORE reading any supplemental material (so as not to skew or influence what you might gain independently), and take notes of insights, revelations, and questions.

• Try reading the passage in other translations or versions to get a better understanding or see a different perspective.

• After reading independently, refer to outside supplemental resources such as commentaries, devotions/reading plans, and other helpful study books or tools.

• Consider going even more in-depth by researching the original language (Hebrew and Greek) by looking up some of the keywords in the verses or passages you are studying.

• Talk it over with a friend, mentor, or study group to get additional insight and perspective, in addition to helping you remember what you’ve learned and build your faith even more.

• Finally, remember that you don’t have to do it all! Just pick the Bible study methods that work for you and grow and/or increase them at your own pace.

• Below are some other helpful posts for reading, understanding, and studying the Bible.

Tips for Spending Time With God

Tips to Start Reading the Bible on a Regular Basis

How to Meditate on Scripture

Tips for Understanding the Bible

Scriptures for Understanding the Bible Better

Prayer to Help Understand the Bible

Why Read the Bible?

A Different Approach to Bible Reading

What are some Bible study methods that have helped you? Share them with us by leaving a comment below!

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If you know anyone that could benefit from this, please pay it forward!  Share this post via the sharing links below.  “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV)

1. Wright, N.T. “Lent for Everyone-Day 43.” Bible.com, YouVersion, www.bible.com/reading-plans/83-lent-for-everyone/day/43. ↑
2. “About Us: Eyewitness Bible Series.” Eyewitness Bible Series, 6 Feb. 2020, eyewitnessbible.org/about/. ↑