How to Study The Bible
Part 2
Let’s talk about one of the best and easiest methods for how to study your Bible. It’s called the INDUCTIVE METHOD. The inductive method follows 3 basic steps:
—Observation,
—Interpretation, and
—Application
Or simply Observe, Interpret, and Apply.
You can follow these Observe, Interpret, and Apply steps to study any passage in the Bible.
But first, as you prepare to study you will need TOOLS FOR YOUR TOOLKIT, and that will be most of our focus this time.
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FIRST, have some Pens and Highlighters
If you’re going to write in a journal or mark verses, or make notes directly in your Bible, you need something to write with.
Sharpie or Micron pens for the delicate pages of your Bible are good because they tend to bleed through less, but in the final analysis just use the pens you’re most at home with.
You can pick up highlighters in just about any grocery store or office supply, or in our own TPC bookstore. I myself use yellow Sharpie accent highlighters.
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Study Bible
The next helpful tool for your toolbox is a good study Bible. For example, an ESV Study Bible or a Life Application Study Bible are both good choices.
Study Bibles provide helpful notes right on the pages and also offer outlines of each book at the beginning (very helpful in understanding the book).
They also include maps, character notes, language notes, and cross-references, making Bible study much more efficient when you would otherwise have to search for this information on your own.
For instance, the ESV Study Bible is at the very top of the list. Here are some of the things it offers:
Key Features
• Two million words of Bible text and insightful teaching
• 20,000 notes focusing especially on understanding the Bible text and providing answers to frequently raised issues
• Over fifty articles including ones on the Bible’s authority and reliability; on biblical archaeology, theology, ethics, and personal application
• 200-plus charts offering key insights and in-depth analysis in clear, concise outline form; located throughout the Bible
• Over 200 full-color maps created with the latest digital technology, satellite images, and archaeological research; printed in full color throughout the Bible
• 80,000 cross-references to encourage easy location of important words, passages, and biblical themes
• Forty all-new illustrations including full-color renderings and architectural diagrams of the Tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant, Solomon’s temple, Herod’s temple, the city of Jerusalem in Jesus’ time and throughout the history of Israel, and many more.
*Some brief examples of commentaries found in the ESV Study Bible:
“Sodom was the epitome of a ‘city of sin.’ Yet, Jesus says, even Sodom would have repented if it had witnessed” (Page 1843)
Parable of the talents: “his (the unfruitful servant’s) apparent misperception of his master, which manifests itself in laziness and bad stewardship” (Page 1876)
How Rome began: “Internal strife led Jewish leaders to ask the Roman general Pompey to come and restore order. Pompey did so, but he also brought Roman rule, which began in 63 b.c. and lasted into the fourth century a.d.” (Page 1784)
Summation of Mark: “The ultimate purpose and theme of Mark is to present and defend Jesus’ universal call to discipleship.” (Page 1890)
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An example of some of the Key Themes of Genesis found in the ESV:
1. The Lord God, being both transcendent and immanent, having created the earth to be his dwelling place, commissions human beings as his priestly vice-regents or representatives so that they might fill the earth and caringly govern the other creatures (1:1–2:25).
2. Abandoning their priestly and royal duties, the human couple rebel against God and betray him by acting on the serpent’s suggestions; their willful disobedience radically affects human nature and the harmonious order of creation (3:1–24; 6:5–6).
3. God graciously announces that the woman’s offspring will redeem humanity from the serpent’s tyranny. Genesis then traces a unique family line, highlighting how its members enjoy a special relationship with God and are a source of blessing to a world that lies under the curse of God (3:15; 4:25; 5:2; 6:8–9; 11:10–26; 12:1–3; 17:4–6; 22:16–18; 26:3–4, 24; 27:27–29; 28:14; 30:27–30; 39:5; 49:22–26).
This gives you a tiny sliver of an idea of what a good Study Bible offers!
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Then another tool for your study toolbox would be a Journal or Notebook
While I write notes directly in my Bible, I tend to run out of room or need more space. Having an additional notebook or journal allows you to record extra study notes or insights God is teaching you through His Word. Our new 2025 calendar notebook provides this very thing!
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A Solid Bible Commentary
Bible commentaries are resources where another Bible scholar has done the work of observing and interpreting Scripture. Just like a sermon, they seek to teach the meaning to a layperson or student.
These are wonderful resources for helpful interpretation, clearing up confusion, or presenting other insights you may not have seen yourself.
However, Bible commentators are excellent to read but they’re not inerrant. They offer their interpretation of Bible passages as best they can, but after consulting with several commentators over a particular passage, you will have to come to your own conclusions based on your own study.
Bible commentaries come in various forms, but the most common types are all-in-one volumes or book-specific volumes. You can find comprehensive commentaries that include every book of the Bible or you can find more in-depth stand-alone commentaries for individual books.
Commentaries are found in abundance at any Bible bookstore. If you need help just tell an employee what you need the commentary on and they will take you right to it.
How to Read The Bible Book-by-Book by Fee & Stuart is a great example of an all-in-one commentary.
Another top rated commentary is the New International Commentaries on the Old/New Testament.
I also regularly use online Bible Commentary. Two great sources are: blueletterbible.org, and biblehub.com
Let’s go now to a little video I produced to show you how to use biblehub.com
With these tools in hand, you are well equipped to begin the three-fold process of Observing, Interpreting, and Applying.
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And finally, before you begin your study: PRAY
To have a solid Bible study session, prayer is essential. Reading your Bible is reading God’s Word. He is speaking through Scripture, and prayer positions your heart to hear from Him as you read.
Pray for your heart to receive what God has for you to learn. Pray for understanding as you read and for wisdom in applying what you read to your daily walk.
Ask God to speak very clearly to you as you study. Be open, humble, and ready to receive whatever He has for you.
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Now it’s time to Choose A Book
While there are many different methods of Bible study (chronological, Bible characters, books, topical, verse by verse, etc.) the best way to read for comprehension and understanding is to choose a book and study it from beginning to end.
This type of Bible study is especially helpful for beginners because it allows you to fully comprehend an entire book and prevents taking verses out of context.
Studying a book from beginning to end allows you to track the themes of the book as well as how it fits in to the overall unity of the Bible.
Simply studying isolated passages or single verses can skew the meaning and leave you with only a partial grasp of what God is saying.
If you are new to studying the Bible I would recommend starting with one of the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John) and then move on to one of the epistles like Ephesians.
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Once you’ve picked a book:
Read The Envelope
Reading the envelope refers to what you do when you receive a letter in the mail. Before you open the mail to read it, you gather as much information about its contents as you can from the outside——who sent it, where are they from, what date was it sent, and so on.
We need to do the same with Scripture. Before beginning a book study, gather as much information about the book as you can.
• Who wrote it?
• To whom was it written?
• When was it written?
• What type of book is it? (Historical? Poetry? Gospel? Epistle? Law?)
• What are the central themes?
Most of this information will be readily available for you if you have a solid Study Bible as already mentioned.
At the beginning of each book, read through the Study Bible’s summary including the author, characters, location, time period, themes, and more.
For instance, the Introduction to Matthew in ESV:
Timeline
Author, Date, and Recipients
Matthew was probably written in the late 50s or early 60s A.D. Matthew (also called Levi), the former tax collector who became Jesus’ disciple, is the author.
The original audience may have been the church in Antioch of Syria. Its members included Jewish and Gentile Christians.
Theme
Matthew tells the story of Jesus of Nazareth, the long-expected Messiah who brought the kingdom of God to earth.
Purpose
Matthew writes his Gospel to demonstrate that Jesus is the Messiah, that he has the right to the throne of David as Israel’s true King, and that he is the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham that his descendants would be a blessing to all the world (1:1; Gen. 12:1–3).
Matthew seeks to encourage Jewish Christians (and all future disciples) to stand strong despite opposition. They should feel secure in the knowledge of their citizenship in God’s kingdom. Matthew shows that Gentiles also can find salvation through Jesus the Messiah.
Key Themes
• Portrait of Jesus (1:1, 23; 2:2; 14:33; 16:16; 18:20; 21:5–9).
• The bridge between Old and New Testaments (1:1–17, 22–23; 2:4–5, 15, 17, 23; 5:17–20).
• God’s continuing work of salvation within Israel, extended to all the peoples of the earth through the person and work of Christ (10:5–6; 28:19).
• The new community of faith (11:28; 16:18–19; 28:19).
• The church as built and maintained by Jesus’ continuing presence (16:18; 18:15–20; 22:10; 28:20).
• A “great commission” for evangelism and mission (28:19).
• Jesus’ five teachings as a manual on discipleship (chs. 5–7; 10; 13; 18–20; 24–25).
Outline
• The Arrival of Jesus the Messiah (1:1–2:23)
• John the Baptist Prepares for the Messianic Kingdom (3:1–17)
• Jesus the Messiah Begins to Advance the Messianic Kingdom (4:1–25)
• The Authoritative Message of the Messiah: Kingdom Life for His Disciples (5:1–7:29)
• The Authoritative Power of the Messiah: Kingdom Power Demonstrated (8:1–9:38)
• The Authoritative Mission of the Messiah’s Messengers (10:1–42)
• Opposition to the Messiah Increases (11:1–12:50)
• The Messianic Kingdom Revealed in Parables (13:1–53)
• The Identity of the Messiah Revealed (13:54–16:20)
• The Suffering of the Messiah Revealed (16:21–17:27)
• The Community of the Messiah Revealed (18:1–20:34)
• The Messiah Asserts His Authority over Jerusalem (21:1–23:39)
• The Delay, Return, and Judgment of the Messiah (24:1–25:46)
• The Crucified Messiah (26:1–27:66)
• The Resurrection and Commission of the Messiah (28:1–20)
The Setting of Matthew
The events in the book of Matthew take place almost entirely within the vicinity of Palestine, an area extending roughly from Caesarea Philippi in the north to Beersheba in the south.
During this time it was ruled by the Roman Empire. The opening chapters describe events surrounding Jesus’ birth in Judea, where Herod had been appointed king by the Romans.
The closing chapters end with Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension during the rule of Pontius Pilate and the tetrarchs Antipas and Philip.
—And this is only PART of the ESV’s introduction to Matthew! The intro closes with this beautiful map:
This illustrates the incredible value that a good Study Bible provides for studying and understanding God’s word!
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STOP! Unless time is good.
Next, as you read—Annotate The Text.
Annotate means “add notes to (a text or diagram) giving explanation or comment.”
It is well-documented that interacting in some way with what you are learning will make it more likely to “stick” in your memory. So here is one example of what annotating your text looks like:
Next time we’ll go over how to Observe, Interpret, and Apply!
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OBSERVE the text.
Most people overcomplicate their Bible study.
Observing the text brings simplicity and clarity as well as anchoring you in what the text is saying rather than jumping straight to what it means.
Very simply, what is in the passage you are reading?
Answer these questions as you read:
• Who is in the passage? Who is speaking or narrating? How are they described?
• Where are they? What is their location? Are they traveling?
• What are they doing?
• When? Make a note of the timeframe.
• Why? Is there a reason these events are happening? A reason why the person is speaking on that topic?
As you read, take note of any words you don’t understand and look them up.