How to read the Bible, everything to understand it and more

how to read the bible

If you want to get closer to God, it is essential that you learn how to read the bible, since only then will you better understand their teachings and messages. It reflects the way to obtain eternal life, forgiveness for sins and other questions that arise when trying to walk the right path, so some of them will be answered below.

What is the Bible?

It is known as a Bible to a set of texts that act in the form of a sacred sustenance for the Jewish and Christian religion. In general, they are the best-selling books in the world, which have also been translated into 2000 languages.

The Bible is also probably the most influential library of books in human history, due to the importance of the Christian religion in the destiny of the West. In this, various stories, histories and doctrines are narrated that tell the creation of heaven and earth, as well as the appearance of Jesus of Nazareth, his presentation before the peoples, his death and even his resurrection.

Also, you can read the events of the Day of Judgment, including the stories of the ancient prophets and the teachings of life that God left to disciples.

how to read the bible

The term Bible comes from the Greek word βιβλίον, which means "roll". However, it is also associated with the expression ta bible ta hagia, that is to say ¨the sacred books¨, in Spanish. It was used by the Hebrews of the times before Jesus Christ to refer to the texts found in the Old Testament, just as the Christians did much later with the New Testament.

Importance of the Bible

For people who follow a certain religion, the Bible is the physical means to understand the teachings of God that were imparted thanks to the divine inspiration. Logically this was written by men, who wrote everything they heard and saw, in order to spread a message focused on spirituality, eternal life, love of neighbor and good deeds.

Through its pages you will be able to hear the voice of the Lord, who speaks to every human being who takes the time to read his holy book. Likewise, in each story he allows himself to be observed, shows his power, reveals his character and reveals his way of thinking to respond to the needs of his children.

Each of the commandments printed in these books reveals his will and mission for the lives of his disciples. Therefore, the ideal would be for you to follow his advice to learn about the word, to obtain intelligence, wisdom, knowledge and intellectual development.

In addition, it can be characterized with the following basic aspects:

  • The Bible is divine: it is nothing less than the holy revelation of the human race, as the apostle Paul affirms in his writings.
  • The Bible is human: it is a library of divine books, which in turn is a product of the human mind. Both facts can be a bit contradictory, although in the word of God it is described that the holy scriptures were created under divine inspiration but applying literature.
  • The Bible is historical: Unlike the sacred books of other religions, the Bible was written in a historical context and with a great background for humanity.

how to read the bible

If you are interested in reading more articles like this, we invite you to visit Who wrote the Bible.

How is it divided?

The Bible is divided into two parts: Old and New Testament, which have the meaning alliance. This refers to the covenants that God made with his people and with his son Jesus, which are part of the times of humanity BC and AD

When adding the books of both testaments, a total of 66 is reached, which are made up of 5 from the Pentateuch, 13 historical, 6 from major and 5 minor prophets, 5 poetics, 4 gospels, 13 Pauline letters and 8 generals. They gather a wide collection of important events, know some details below.

Old Testament

Through the Old Testament you can know all the events that occurred before the arrival of Christ, which is why it is considered by most religions the first part of the bible. The official version says that it has 39 sacred books, which are:

  1. Genesis.
  2. Exodus.
  3. Levitical.
  4. Numbers.
  5. Deuteronomy. 
  6. Josue.
  7. Judges
  8. Ruth.
  9. 1 Samuel.
  10. 2 Samuel.
  11. 1 Kings.
  12. 2 Kings.
  13. 1 Chronicles.
  14. 2 Chronicles.
  15. Ezra.
  16. Nehemiah.
  17. Ester.
  18. Job.
  19. Psalms
  20. Proverbs.
  21. Ecclesiastes.
  22. Songs.
  23. Isaiah.
  24. Jeremiah.
  25. Wailing.
  26. Ezekiel.
  27. Daniel.
  28.  Hosea.
  29. Joel.
  30. Amos.
  31. Obadiah.
  32. Jonah
  33. Micah.
  34. Nahum.
  35. Habakkuk.
  36. Zephaniah.
  37. Haggai.
  38. Zacharias.
  39. Malachi.

New Testament

The New Testament has 27 books, in which the history of salvation is recounted. In this way, you can appreciate the gospels that represent the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, as well as the events that led him to sacrifice himself for the world, showing his death and resurrection. These are:

  1. Mateo
  2. Mark
  3. Lucas
  4. Juan
  5. Acts
  6. Romanos
  7. 1 Corinthians
  8. 2 Corinthians
  9. Galatians
  10. Ephesians
  11. Philippians
  12. Colossians
  13. 1 Thessalonians
  14. 2 Thessalonians
  15. 1 Timothy
  16. 2 Timothy.
  17. Titus.
  18. Philemon.
  19. Hebrews.
  20. Santiago.
  21. 1 Peter.
  22. 2 Peter.
  23. 1 John.
  24. 2 John.
  25. 3 John.
  26. Judas
  27. Apocalypse. 

Who wrote the Bible?

The main author of the Bible was God, since through divine inspiration he managed to reach the minds of 40 men, who were prepared to put his teachings on paper. These were kings, princes, prophets, poets, shepherds, doctors, priests, and fishermen, who worked over 1600 years to complete the books.

The 3 languages ​​used were Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, although hundreds of translations were subsequently carried out thanks to the acceptance of believers and the popularity among religions. In general, the Old Testament books were written for the Jews while the New Testament books were prepared for the Gentiles.

Despite its different editors, occupations and languages, living in different cities and times, in all the texts of the Bible unity and love towards others are shown. It was written in the Asian, African and European continent, since the first books were completed in the Sinai Desert by Moses, others during the Babylonian captivity and the last ones in the journeys of the apprentice Lucas, the imprisonment of the apostle Paul in Rome and the exile of John.

In our blog you can read more interesting articles like this, for example What is the meaning of life.

Why read the Bible?

In addition to being an incredible library made up of several books, the Bible shows the instructions that God left on earth for human beings to follow the path of salvation and eternal life. In it you will find passages that show that men and women have sinned, so they cannot earn a place in heaven if they do not do good deeds.

The Bible teaches that salvation can only be obtained through Jesus, who was the man who was born to a virgin woman named Mary. According to the scriptures, he lived life carefree and with nothing to ask for other than the welfare of all. He sacrificed himself and died to follow his father, so he was resurrected before mortals.

Another reason why you should learn to how to read the bible it is that it will help you to know God, as well as to please him. He will instruct you with his wisdom and allow you to prosper along the path of good, correcting you and teaching you about divine justice.

Although many people reject the Bible without having read it, in it are the answers to the deepest questions. For this reason, the most sensible thing is to at least listen to what he has to say, just by reading a paragraph you will realize the truth that God wants to show you so that your life improves and you enjoy being a good follower of him.

How to read the Bible?

If you do not know how to read the bible, what is generally recommended is to start with the books that make up the New Testament. The word gospel means Good news, a term used to refer to the manifestation of salvation that was written through God.

The most appropriate Gospels to start reading are those of Matthew, Mark and Luke. These three books are known to be the synoptics, because they present in a simple, summarized and quick way the main ideas of the Bible as well as that of John, where spiritual messages addressed to Christians are found.

Other good books that you can read at the beginning are the Psalms and Proverbs, where it is observed how the man speaks to God, offers his heart in prayer and gives him praise. Also, the glorious manifestation and the moral precepts for parents, children, employees, employers, kings, rulers or any other type of person are described.

Fourth, read the Acts, where the history of the disciples is recorded and how they spoke with Jesus after his death. It is certainly very exciting, as are the letters of the apostles, who were new to the faith when they showed their feelings in the book of Romans. Click here and know What is healthcare?

As you read the Bible you will begin to understand it even more, to get the most out of your reading follow these steps:

  • Choose a quiet place where you feel comfortable to read.
  • Pray and ask God for understanding. He will help you grow in wisdom so that you begin to see life from his perspective.
  • If you do not know how to read the bibleDon't be afraid to ask for advice from others. You can attend Bible study groups.

How to understand it?

Once you learn to how to read the bible You will be able to create a closer bond with God, because by understanding his words you will know the secrets he left in writing. Although the interpretation of the texts depends on each person, in the sacred scriptures the divine desire is made very clear.

Although many teachings are taken out of context, just remember that God does not want to see any human being evil, on the contrary, He expects everyone to help, love and care for each other so that the world obtains salvation as presented in the Bible.

Another advice to understand the sacred scriptures is that you turn away from all evil and remove bad feelings from your heart. As presented in the Proverbs, the beginning of wisdom is humility, love and respect, because a selfish, resentful and bad person will never know the word of God.

Tips for studying the Bible

There are so many things to learn in the Bible, so it doesn't matter when, how, or where you choose to study. It will always be a good idea to start, because that way you will go to the path of good with God.

Start by asking God for help.

The first thing is that you ask God for an encounter, so that he grants you wisdom and understanding when reading. You can talk to him to help you with a specific aspect of your life, just keep in mind that when you finish you should say: In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

You don't have to start reading the first book

As you may have already learned, the Bible is a very extensive collection. Therefore, you have the option to start reading the text you want, regardless of the author, the subject or the character. If you want to know more about creation, the Old Testament is ideal, but if you prefer to know the life of Jesus, go to the texts focused on the AD time period.

Choose the topic that interests you the most

The Bible covers several topics, so you can choose the one that interests you the most. For example, grace, repentance, forgiveness, strength, among others.

Discover one or more characters

If you wish, you can choose a character from the Bible and read each verse that speaks about him. In this way, you will be able to better understand his story, his relationship with Jesus and his mission.

Take note of the things you learn

Do not forget what you learned from the Bible after reading it, because the holy spirit will always remain in you. You can use a journal to write down important aspects or thoughts that come to your head, in order to show more respect for the teachings of God, who is willing to show them to you.

Share with other people

Family members or friends can be good study partners, as people often relate to the Bible differently. Thus, you will meet other points of view and share your favorite verses.

Investigate details you don't know

It is common that when studying the Bible you find terms that are confusing or that you simply do not understand. For this reason you should not hesitate to ask others or investigate yourself the meaning of a word, expression, phrase, or even an entire parable. In case you love to read culture articles, in our category you will find several interesting options. In fact, we recommend the Sermon on the Mount.

Pause and listen

It is essential that you read carefully, silence your mind and listen to God in each passage. When you take time to meditate before and after studying the Bible, you will be enlightened by the Holy Spirit.

Don't be discouraged

Learning is a process that lasts a lifetime, so when you learn to read the Bible you must be constant with your effort to continue walking hand in hand with God.

You can learn other interesting facts about the holy scriptures in our article on what is the bible

Reasons to believe what the Bible shows

It is too easy to quote the Bible passages and trust them, which is why many wonder if there really is proof of their truth. So here are some reasons why you can believe what the books say:

  • The Bible has four books, known as the Gospels are Matthew, Luke and John. The authors knew a lot about the ministry of Jesus, as one of them was a tax collector who became his follower, another was a doctor who thoroughly investigated the life of Christ, and the third was part of the 12 disciples.
  • Between 2,000 and 30,000 handwritten copies of the Bible they survive today, as many churches say they contain differences in the text. However, they are minor variations such as the use of other words and ways of calling the Creator.
  • Many people believe that the Bible is not real because it was written by men, who sinned just like others. The difference is that God only used these writers, through visions and dreams, to transmit his teachings throughout the world. as it is said in Timothy 3: 16-17, each writing that is created by divine inspiration cannot be judged, independent of the process that is used to move the pen on a piece of paper.

If you have found this article on how to read the Bible interesting, you may be interested in going through our blog to learn more about God and his sacred writings.


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