How To Read The Bible

Five Tips for Anyone, Regardless of Belief

The Bible can be a little intimidating for readers, but it commands a massive presence in our culture. The Old Testament is a sacred text to two world religions, and the New Testament is spiritually vital to as many as 2.4 Billion people. For two thousand years, the texts that comprise the Bible have been read, studied, and debated in nearly nearly every nation on earth and have appeared in nearly every language. At the same time, there have been intense debates, not only about how to read and interpret the Bible, but about who is allowed to do so. In this day and age, there has never been more easily accessible resources, including different versions of the Bible, to guide those who want to know more, but now a certain amount of guidance is necessary to make sure the info you’re getting is good. More voices means more people competing for their interpretation to win out, so what is someone curious about the Bible to do?

In my time at Seminary, I read the Bible, a lot. I took more courses than necessary on biblical criticism, interpretation, and language, and I think it’s important for the things I learned to go beyond me. For religious people, the value of reading the Bible is obvious: we believe it has religious significance and contains valuable information about God, the teachings of Christ, and advice for…