I need a better way to read the Bible this year. And if you know me, you know I believe in reading through whole books of the Bible in one sitting. So, the following is my Bible reading plan for the new year. It may seem a bit daunting at first, but think about it this way, following this plan makes it so that you only have to set aside a few hours each week to read. And if we stick to this plan, we’ll be done by the end of September.
The idea behind this reading schedule is to set aside a few hours on a particular day each week to read a book of the Bible in one sitting. This outline follows the Hebrew structure for the Old Testament, which means some of the books (like 1 and 2 Kings) are combined into one book. You could choose to read those on multiple days to make the readings more manageable.
I have not included the book of Pslams in this reading for two reasons: First, it would be very difficult to read it in one sitting Second, I plan to read from the Pslams daily throughout the year.
There is obviously a lot of “wiggle room” with this schedule. If you miss a week or two, it’s fine, you can catch up. There are lots of easy weeks which only require a few minutes of reading. You could easily combine weeks and be done sooner.
The Torah (January 1 – February 4)
Week 1 – Genesis (3.5 hours) Week 2 – Exodus (3 hours) Week 3 – Leviticus (2 hours) Week 4 – Numbers (3 hours) Week 5 – Deuteronomy (2.5 hours)
The Prophets (February 5 – April 1)
Week 6 – Joshua (1.75 hours) Week 7 – Judges (1.75 hours) Week 8 – Samuel (4 hours) Week 9 – Kings (4.25 hours) Week 10 – Isaiah (3.75 hours) Week 11 – Jeremiah (4 hours) Week 12 – Ezekiel (3.75 hours) Week 13 – The Book of the Twelve [Minor Prophets] (3.25 hours)
The Writings (April 2 – May 27)
Week 14 – Job (1.75 hours) Week 15 – Proverbs (1.75 hours) Week 16 – Ruth (15 min.) and Song of Songs (20 min.) Week 17 – Ecclesiastes (30 min.) Week 18 – Lamentations (20 min.) and Esther (30 min.) Week 19 – Daniel (1.25 hours) Week 20 – Ezra/Nehemiah (1.75 hours) Week 21 – Chronicles (4.5 hours)
The Gospel Accounts and Acts (May 28 – July 1)
Week 22 – Matthew (2.5 hours) Week 23 – Mark (1.5 hours) Week 24 – Luke (2.5 hours) Week 25 – John (2 hours) Week 26 – Acts (2.25 hours) Paul’s Epistles (July 2 – August 26)
Week 27 – Romans (60 min.) Week 28 – 1 Corinthians (60 min.) Week 29 – 2 Corinthians (40 min.) Week 30 – Galatians (20 min.) Week 31 – Ephesians and Philippians (34 min.) Week 32 – Colossians and Philemon (16 min.) Week 33 – 1 and 2 Thessalonians (19 min.) Week 34 – 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus (34 min.)
General Epistles (August 27 – September 23)
Week 35 – Hebrews (45 min.) Week 36 – James (16 min.) Week 37 – 1 and 2 Peter (26 min.) Week 38 – 1, 2, and 3 John and Jude (25 min.)
Revelation (September 24 – September 30)
Week 39 – Revelation (1.25 hours)
Hope you have a wonderfully blessed new year. Here is a link to the source for estimated reading times.
We love you and God loves you, AMEN.