Recipes for studying the Bible

Simple reading of the Bible:

This is a simple method of reading the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. You do not require any special tools other than a good translation or a study Bible. You can read the Bible two ways:

  1. Read a specific number of chapters
  2. Read a specific number of pages

It is my recommendation that you do this method of reading by combining one the below methods for a proper understanding.

Passage study:

This study method usually involves a verse-by-verse analysis of a selected portion of scriptures.

Tools required:
A good study Bible or a Greek and Hebrew interlinear / Bible software such as eSword.

Method:
Outline the chapter / portion of scripture that you intended to read.
Observe the guidelines given in handout 5

  1. What did the original author say? (Literary context)
  2. Why did the original author say so? (Historical setting)
  3. How did the original author say? (Genre)
  4. What did the original author mean? (Grammatical structures and word morphology) 

  5. What did the original author say elsewhere on the same subject in the same book? And what did the original author say elsewhere on the same subject in other books written by him? (Contemporary passages)
  6. What did the other biblical authors say on the same subject? (Parallel passages)
  7. How did the original hearers understand the message and respond to it? (Original 
application)
  8. How does the original message apply to my day? How does the original message apply to my life? (Personal application)

Topic / Thematic study:

Select a theme or topic that you would like to study. This study method is most helpful when you studying a particular doctrine.

Tools required:
A good study Bible or a Greek and Hebrew interlinear and concordance /
Bible software such as eSword with Strong’s concordance module installed.
Nave’s Topical Bible, any Hebrew or Greek Lexicon

Method:
Make a list of all references by doing a word search on the topic.
Check in dictionary / Thesaurus for similar & opposite words. Then do a word search on these as well.

Word study:

This method is in-depth study of a particular word and all its occurrences in the Bible.

Tools required:
A good study Bible or a Greek and Hebrew interlinear and concordance /
Bible software such as eSword with Strong’s concordance, A.T. Robertson’s word pictures, Vincents word studies, TSK modules installed.
Hebrew or Greek Lexicon

Method:
Make a list of all references by doing a word search. Best results would be by searching for the word in the original Bible language.

Do word morphology by finding out the root word
Check and compare the grammatical structures.

Note the first occurrence of the word in the Bible as they often define the usage of the word in the rest of the scriptures.

When studying this way always remember that the context of word used often changes it’s meaning.

Prophecy study:

Tools required:
A good study Bible or a cross-reference Bible with dictionaries, charts & maps.
Bible software such as eSword with TSK, Scofield reference Bible modules installed.

Method:
Select a passage in the Bible; list the entire cross-references to verify the full understanding and fulfillment of the prophecy. You must let the Bible interpret the prophecy by itself. Often the explanation & fulfillment of figures and symbols used in prophecy are written in the subsequent passages. Prophecy may have both an immediate fulfillment and also a future fulfillment.
Always remember the goal of prophecy is to bring a change in us by warning us about the future events.

Biographical study:

People in the Bible are very important. Many insights can be gained from studying the success and failures of their lives.

Tools required:
A good study Bible or a cross-reference Bible with dictionaries, charts & maps.
Bible software such as eSword with commentaries installed.

Method:
Gather as much verses possible about the person. Look into the historical & cultural background and key turning points in their life. Try to put your self in their shoes. You can study the meaning of their names, upbringing, how they fellowshipped with God and the outcome of it.