3 Levels of Reading the Bible

This article, originally delivered as a charge to students at Trinity Classical School, invites readers into a lifelong habit of engaging God’s Word deeply—through reading, study, and meditation—for the sake of knowing Christ and living wisely.

A version of this article was originally given as a charge to the secondary students of Trinity Classical School on their last day of school before summer break. 

Dear student,

Of all the books you will ever read, only one reveals mysteries. Only one makes known to you the path of life. Only one reads you. 

Unlike the words in other books, the words in this book last forever. They make one wise for salvation. They cut to the very deepest part of your heart. They are words that last forever, for they are breathed out by God.  

I am talking, of course, about the Bible. It’s the book that has built western civilization—which, amazing as that is, is nothing compared to what else it has built: the church of the living God. The world will pass away, but God’s word will not, and neither will those who come into his kingdom by believing the gospel unfolded in that word.

And so I put before you this challenge: this summer, keep your Bible open. 

I want to suggest to you three levels at which to read God’s word. To do all three in the same day is challenging but not impossible; to do all three in the span of a year is easy and important. One is not more important than another. All three ought to be bathed in prayer, for without the Spirit there is no understanding (1 Cor 2:14–16). 

These are the three levels:

• Cursory reading

• Deep study

• Memory or meditation 

Let me tell you why each is important and how to go about each. 

Cursory reading

The Bible should be read as a book, cover to cover. Like other books, it tells one story. It is united in its theme and aim. It has a purpose and it accomplishes that purpose progressively. 

From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible tells the story of redemption in Jesus Christ. Jesus himself tells us to read the Bible as a book about him. In Luke 24, the resurrected Christ appears to two disciples on the road to Emmaus. As far as they knew, Jesus of Nazareth, the one who said he was the promised Messiah who was to redeem Israel, was a hoax. He had been crucified days earlier and laid in a tomb. It was over. 

But the resurrected Christ, concealing his identity, said to them: 

“O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

Jesus indicates that embedded in the writings of the Old Testament are mysteries he reveals and prophecies he fulfills—shadows of which he is the substance.

He appears to his disciples again soon after, and makes a similar claim:

“These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.

The Scriptures are understood in reference to Jesus. If you want to know how God has accomplished redemption in Christ and what that means for the world, you’ll need to read the whole Bible. 

Here are three pieces of practical advice for getting started:

• Don’t worry about not understanding things right away. The more you read, the more you’ll understand. You will die not understanding it all; that’s okay. 

• Set a timer for 10 minutes and read until it goes off. Mark with a pencil where you left off, and pick it back up the next day. You’ll get through the whole Bible in about a year and a half this way. 

• Feel free to mark up your Bible as you read, but try not to interfere too much with your flow of reading. 

This takes discipline, but there is a promise from God for those who read his word in faith: it is able to make you wise for salvation. For the Christian, reading the whole Bible is reading the story of your redemption, reminding you who you are and how to live as one set apart for God. 

Now let’s move on to a second level of reading: deep study. 

Deep study 

By deep study, I mean the examination of the parts that make up a whole. This varies by genre.

• In narrative portions of the Bible, such as Genesis and the Gospels, it means paying attention to settings, characters, dialogue, and movements in the plot. 

• In poetry and wisdom literature, such as Psalms, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes, it means examining the images and how one line of a stanza relates to another.

• In epistles, such as Romans or Ephesians, it means following the logic of an argument and how one idea relates to another. You deal in “Therefore,” “so that,” “but,” and the like.  

Whatever the genre, at this level you are analyzing the text, writing down observations, and pondering application. In deep study, you’re somewhat like a technician who takes apart an appliance and puts it back together. You truly understand how the machine works and why. Your familiarity skyrockets, because you’ve tinkered with the object of study.  

In my experience, this way of handling God’s word leads to the deepest level of understanding and is also the most gratifying, because there is so much to discover. 

But the purpose isn’t the thrill of discovery; rather, it’s to gain powers of discernment. God tells us in his word that he wants us to be trained in knowing and doing his will, which comes broadly through two means: renewing our minds through knowledge of the word (2 Tim 3:16–17; Rom. 12:1–2) and continually practicing obedience over the long haul (Heb 5:14). These two elements together allow us to grow in discerning right from wrong. Studying the Bible itself won’t make you discerning—you have to use what you’ve learned—but you cannot become discerning without studying the Bible. 

So, tinker with God’s word through deep study, thereby familiarizing yourself with his will—then go out and practice it. 

Again, some practical advice:

• Start with an epistle like Colossians or Ephesians. Epistles are typically the most accessible for this form of study. 

• Write down three observations for every verse you study. It could be something simple like, “I notice this word is repeated” or “This verse begins with the word ‘therefore,’” or, “The main verb in this verse is a command.” Keep doing that, and after a time, zoom out and ask, “Okay, now that I’m familiar with the parts, how is it all holding together? What’s the big idea?” Then prayerfully follow the train of thought toward application.  

• For further study, look up the COMA Bible reading method on the internet (presented by David Helm in his book One to One Bible Reading, although it may have its origins elsewhere). You could also look into a more in-depth method called Inductive Bible Study. Find resources about that method here, here, here, or here. 

Now, onto a third level of reading: meditation or memorization. 

Meditation/Memorization

Throughout the Bible, God’s people are commanded—and commended by example—to store his word in their hearts:

“You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul …” (Deut 11:18)

“I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” (Ps. 119:11)

“Blessed is the man [whose] delight is in the law of the Lord,
              and on his law he meditates day and night.” (Ps. 1:1–2)

In essence: memory and meditation. 

Although God’s word was written down, most of God’s people did not have access to those written words. They heard God’s word spoken by their leaders, and so there was a great need to commit those words to memory by way of meditation. Meditation is the mind’s equivalent to chewing a hearty piece of steak. You break it down not in one bite but over many bites. Similarly, to memorize and meditate on God’s word is to repeat it and ponder it over and over. We masticate God’s word in our minds—that is meditation.  

Why meditate? Well, the Scriptures indicate that there is a formative power to meditation. In the same way that our physical health is shaped strongly by our diet (“you are what you eat”), so our affections and behaviors are tied to our relationship with God’s word. The more we store God’s word in our hearts, the more it shapes our thinking, speaking, and living. “From the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks,” says the Scripture. What do you think someone with a lot of God’s word in their heart says? 

Memorizing and meditating Scripture is essential for our devotion to the Lord. It’s why the apostle Paul told the Colossian church, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” 

Now, how to go about memorizing? There is no one right way, but three disciplines—with repetition—have given me success: 

1.  Engage the senses. Read the verse. Speak the verse. Write the verse. Repeat. John Piper has a helpful article where he shares his process more in depth. Some version of that process will do you well. 

2.  Find patterns and connections. Memorization isn’t ultimately about saying the right words in the right order; it’s about understanding. So make sure you actually know what the verse is saying and how the words relate to each other. Synthesize before you memorize, and it will serve your memorization.

3.  Sing. The apostle Paul says to use singing to help the word dwell in us richly. Singing is an excellent memory tool. You can sing already written songs or make up your own. Imagine you are composing something a child can learn—you can even use a melody you already know but put your own words to it. (I recently set Galatians 5:22–23 to Sandra McCracken’s “Doxology,” and I sing it to my daughter.) Anyone can do it.

In closing, I commend you to grow in your aptitude at these three levels of reading the Bible. I should also mention that each level benefits the next. Familiarity with the whole Bible helps you make interpretive choices in deep study, since we use Scripture to interpret Scripture. Deep study leads to true understanding, so that you know the meaning of what you memorize. Together the three levels give you a comprehensive, in-depth, and devotional understanding of God’s word. And the point of all of this is having a mind renewed in knowledge after the image of your creator, that you might be able to know, discern, and do his will. 

Remember, the Bible is unlike any other book. There is no set of knowledge more important than what it contains. Keep this book open, no matter the season. May God grant you success as you seek to be a lifelong learner.