You CAN Read the Whole Bible!
Updated: Feb 4, 2021
Are you ready for something a blog post that will convict you, inspire you & challenge you?
Well, this is the one!
If you don’t have a plan, you will find your Bible reading sporadically, get overwhelmed or avoid it all together.
The idea of reading the entire Bible for many is too overwhelming! It is a book with many themes, concepts, ideas that many think are outdated or too metaphorical to understand. However, that is because you cannot read the Bible by picking and choosing scriptures and stories that suit you. Like any good book, it has a beginning, middle and an end. There is a logical train of thought, a climax and resolution, that is worth taking the time to follow through.
There is structure, purpose, and order because God designed it that way and that is His nature.
Now, if you’re like me, I have often picked up the Bible and noted that it is probably the thickest book that I own, apart from old college books. Since believing in Jesus and truly investing in my walk with God by attending ministry, reading the Bible, and developing a prayer life, I have read through several books within the Bible… but not all of it.
I don’t have an excuse, other than I have limited myself to thinking that anything in the Old Testament is probably too complicated to understand, and the book of Revelations is probably going to scare me and keep me up at night.
These are lies! All lies *majimbo voice*
However, I have reached a point in my relationship with God where I want more of Him! I want to learn more and grow in my understanding. I want and desire to go to another and new level.
What does that require?
Opening my bible and going deeper in the word.
Inspired by two of my friends who made it their 2020 goal to read through the entire Bible, I am challenging myself to commit to it for 2021. With that said, I have done a bit of research on how to accomplish this goal. One of the insights that I came across which completely demonished all of my excuses is how long different parts of the Bible take to actually read.
Check this out:
Average Reading Time
1. Genesis – 3.5h
2. Exodus – 3h
3. Leviticus – 2h
4. Numbers – 3h
5. Deuteronomy – 2.5h
6. Joshua – 1.75h
7. Judges – 1.75h
8. Ruth – 15m
9. 1 Samuel – 2.25h
10. 2 Samuel – 1.75h
11. 1 Kings – 2h
12. 2 Kings – 2.25h
13. 1 Chronicles – 2h
14. 2 Chronicles – 2.5h
15. Ezra – 40m
16. Nehemiah – 1h
17. Esther – 30m
18. Job – 1.75 h
19. Psalms – 5h
20. Proverbs – 1.75h
21. Ecclesiastes – 30m
22. Song of Solomon – 20m
23. Isaiah – 3.75h
24. Jeremiah – 4h
25. Lamentations – 20m
26. Ezekiel – 3.75h
27. Daniel – 1.25h
28. Hosea – 30m
29. Joel – 12m
30. Amos – 25m
31. Obadiah – 4m
32. Jonah – 8m
33. Micah – 20m
34. Nahum – 8m
35. Habakkuk – 9m
36. Zephaniah – 10m
37. Haggai – 7m
38. Zechariah – 40m
39. Malachi – 11m
40. Matthew – 2.5h
41. Mark – 1.5h
42. Luke – 2.5h
43. John – 2h
44. Acts – 2.25h
45. Romans – 1h
46. 1 Corinthians – 1h
47. 2 Corinthians – 40m
48. Galatians – 20m
49. Ephesians – 20m
50. Philippians – 14m
51. Colossians – 13m
52. 1 Thessalonians – 12m
53. 2 Thessalonians – 7m
54. 1 Timothy – 16m
55. 2 Timothy – 11m
56. Titus – 7m
57. Philemon – 3m
58. Hebrews – 45m
59. James – 16m
60. 1 Peter – 16m
61. 2 Peter – 10m
62. 1 John – 16m
63. 2 John – 2m
64. 3 John – 2m
65. Jude – 4m
66. Revelation – 1.25h
Are you shocked like I am? There are 66 books in the Bible.
Did you know that many of those books can be read in less than an hour? 40 out of the 66 books (61% of the books) can each be read in less than an hour? In fact, some of the books will take the average reader 2 minutes to read!
The average American watches TV for approximately 3 hours a day. That may or may not be your statistic, but if you took the time watching TV and applied it to reading the Bible, you could read through one of the books each night. In fact, 61 of the books (92%) could be read in one day’s television consumption. The only books you couldn’t read in an average television watching span would be Genesis, Psalms, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel (but it’s not that far from being able to read them).
What about binge watching series on Netflix? Ever done that? I have! The entire first season of Stranger Things would take you 6 hours and 40 minutes to watch. The Umbrella Academy is 9 hours and 7 minutes. If you have watched all of these seasons and episodes, then that just goes to show you how quickly you can spend your time in entertainment. I’m not saying you can’t watch all these shows, but I am saying be careful with your excuses.
While the Bible is a big book, you can read it in smaller chunks. The Bible Project, on Youtube and the Bible App, make it extremely helpful to understand books in their context and how the bigger picture applies.
Challenge yourself with these tools:
@YouVersion plan 'BibleProject | Biblical Storyline Reading Plan'. Check it out here: https://www.bible.com/en/reading-plans/15998
Bible in 90 Days: https://www.bible.com/en/reading-plans/13
Let me know if the comments if this was as surprising to you as it was for me! Will you be making reading through the Bible apart of your new year’s challenge?
Check out the SHOP for tools to help you journal and study through different books of the Bible!
Until next time,
