Reading and Studying
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My Devotional Takeaway Chart
This chart is designed to help you take your devotions with you throughout the day. Choose a verse (or write a summary) and select a title for the Lord that goes with your devotions. Writing them down will help you remember them and enable you to review what the Lord has been teaching you. For more instructions see Keys for Delighting in God's Word chapter 6. |
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My Bible Study Journal
Journaling is an important part of meditating on God's Word. It evolves more of your senses, stimulates your mind, and enables you to review things the Lord has taught you. My Bible Study Journal helps you stay focused and organized. For more details hit "Print Instructions" below. |
More Bible Resources
Here is a list of Bible resources that I recommend for studying the Bible. These tools help to bridge the 2–3-thousand-year gap between us and when these Scriptures were written. Learning how to use these tools is also important. It’s important to study words, for example, in the context they were written and not jump to conclusions because of one definition found in the Strong’s Concordance. Words can have more than one meaning and studying the definition of words from several angles is important. An overall knowledge of the Scripters is also indispensable.
I plan to update this list from time to time as I encounter new tools. If you have a certain Bible tool that has been very useful to you and it isn’t listed here, I would love for you to share it with me. Simply send an e-mail to: [email protected].
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
When I was 19 years old our preacher challenged us that if we don’t have a Strong’s Concordance we should sell our work shoes and go by one. I bought one that very week and used it extensively. E-Sword, however, replaced my hardcover copy ten years later. If you have a laptop, check out the details about e-Sword below.
Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words
Great dictionary for studying Bible words. Available in hardcover and digital form under e-Sword. A must for any Bible student.
Theological Dictionary of the New Testament by Geoffrey W. Bromiley
This is a huge set! I have recently started using the abridged version that comes in one volume and have found it very useful. It’s a great upgrade and companion to the Vine’s Dictionary. I recommend getting the abridged version because the full set is very expensive and comes in multiple volumes.
NET Bible, full-notes Edition
This Bible tool gives insights to why translators chose to translate certain words and phrases the way they did. Get behind the translators’ desk and look over their notes! A great tool for digging into difficult passages and understanding the challenges translators faced in conveying the meaning from the original text to our modern English language.
Bible & Christian History Time Lines by Rose Publishing
A very detailed timeline from Genesis to modern times. Timelines help us put things into perspective and understand where in the Biblical narrative certain events or prophecies were made. What is neat about this timeline is that it incorporates world events into the Bible timeline as well. I have a couple other timeline tools that I hope to post here in the near future.
Satellite Bible Atlas by William Schlegel
Very detailed Bible maps with satellite imagery. This atlas helps to follow major events in the Bible and find names of villages that may not be in the maps at the back of your Bible.
For those who have laptops:
e-Sword (Free)
This Bible software is amazing! One unique feature it has is the KJV+ option where you can read the Bible and quickly access the Hebrew and Greek words and Strong’s definitions with just one click. Also, under the KJC option (under dictionaries) you can quickly examine how a specific Hebrew or Greek word is translated into English throughout the whole Bible. This software has many other tools as well. It comes with several Bible translations and a great search tool for finding Bible words. It also includes several commentaries such as:
A Note about Bible Commentaries
I’ve listed some commentaries above that I have found useful. This doesn’t mean that I agree with everything these commentaries say. It’s important to remember that reading from a commentary is gleaning from other serious Bible students that may have researched certain topics deeper than we are able to. But commentaries are not the Word of God and they are not infallible. We should always spend most of our time reading and meditating on the Word of God – not just reading what commentaries say. Sometimes I read what commentaries say to simply understand how other Christians view certain Scriptures. This helps me be acquainted with other interpretations and know how they arrived at their conclusions. But ultimately, we need to adhere to the Scriptures as the Word of God and humbly ask God to teach us to understand and practice His Word.
I plan to update this list from time to time as I encounter new tools. If you have a certain Bible tool that has been very useful to you and it isn’t listed here, I would love for you to share it with me. Simply send an e-mail to: [email protected].
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
When I was 19 years old our preacher challenged us that if we don’t have a Strong’s Concordance we should sell our work shoes and go by one. I bought one that very week and used it extensively. E-Sword, however, replaced my hardcover copy ten years later. If you have a laptop, check out the details about e-Sword below.
Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words
Great dictionary for studying Bible words. Available in hardcover and digital form under e-Sword. A must for any Bible student.
Theological Dictionary of the New Testament by Geoffrey W. Bromiley
This is a huge set! I have recently started using the abridged version that comes in one volume and have found it very useful. It’s a great upgrade and companion to the Vine’s Dictionary. I recommend getting the abridged version because the full set is very expensive and comes in multiple volumes.
NET Bible, full-notes Edition
This Bible tool gives insights to why translators chose to translate certain words and phrases the way they did. Get behind the translators’ desk and look over their notes! A great tool for digging into difficult passages and understanding the challenges translators faced in conveying the meaning from the original text to our modern English language.
Bible & Christian History Time Lines by Rose Publishing
A very detailed timeline from Genesis to modern times. Timelines help us put things into perspective and understand where in the Biblical narrative certain events or prophecies were made. What is neat about this timeline is that it incorporates world events into the Bible timeline as well. I have a couple other timeline tools that I hope to post here in the near future.
Satellite Bible Atlas by William Schlegel
Very detailed Bible maps with satellite imagery. This atlas helps to follow major events in the Bible and find names of villages that may not be in the maps at the back of your Bible.
For those who have laptops:
e-Sword (Free)
This Bible software is amazing! One unique feature it has is the KJV+ option where you can read the Bible and quickly access the Hebrew and Greek words and Strong’s definitions with just one click. Also, under the KJC option (under dictionaries) you can quickly examine how a specific Hebrew or Greek word is translated into English throughout the whole Bible. This software has many other tools as well. It comes with several Bible translations and a great search tool for finding Bible words. It also includes several commentaries such as:
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
- Bible Knowledge Commentary by Dalla Seminary
- John Wesley’s Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible
A Note about Bible Commentaries
I’ve listed some commentaries above that I have found useful. This doesn’t mean that I agree with everything these commentaries say. It’s important to remember that reading from a commentary is gleaning from other serious Bible students that may have researched certain topics deeper than we are able to. But commentaries are not the Word of God and they are not infallible. We should always spend most of our time reading and meditating on the Word of God – not just reading what commentaries say. Sometimes I read what commentaries say to simply understand how other Christians view certain Scriptures. This helps me be acquainted with other interpretations and know how they arrived at their conclusions. But ultimately, we need to adhere to the Scriptures as the Word of God and humbly ask God to teach us to understand and practice His Word.