A Bible Study of the Bible

Posted On April 21, 2022

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of all wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” – Proverbs 9:10

The title of this post is almost an oxymoron. However, with the various “Bible Studies” out there, it almost feels necessary to specify that.

Study the Bible – Not Books Studying the Bible

What I mean by “A Bible study of the Bible” is just that. There are no outside books that we “study.” A Bible study should be a study of the Bible. Of course, we can use other books to help us to better understand what the Bible is saying.

There are many well-known individuals who write books about the Bible. They then sell them as Bible studies. And many churches base their Bible studies on those books. I’m sure you know at least a few of them.

When the authors were writing those books, they might have been studying the Bible. But that was their Bible study, not yours.

Please understand, that books to help you study the Bible are not to be used as Bible studies themselves. In other words, you never want to do a Bible study without actually studying the Bible. I can’t believe it’s even necessary to say that.

One book that I do like to use when I’m studying the Bible, is the Halley’s Bible Handbook. It’s laid out in the same order as the Bible, and it breaks down each book for you. Not only explaining who wrote it, but also timelines, photos, maps, and a helpful understanding of life during the time that particular book of the Bible was written.

For example, in John chapter 5, Jesus heals a man at the pool of Bethesda. In Halley’s Bible Handbook, on page 697, it explains the various features of the pools and all of the ones in Bethesda. On page 700, there’s a reprint of a picture of one of the pools, the Pool of Siloam.

Using Halley’s Bible Handbook helps us to better understand the context in which a passage of scripture was written. What led up to this point. What was going on in the culture at that time. However, we don’t study the handbook or have a study session based on that book. It’s merely a tool to help us understand the Bible better.

How to Begin?

When starting a study of a book in the Bible, we want to understand the context in which that particular book was written. The Halley’s Bible Handbook can help with that.

One way to study is to use the COMA (Context, Observation, Meaning, and Application) method. After we understand the context of the writing, then we observe what was happening in the passage. At the same time, we’re trying to find the meaning of it. And finally, we want to determine how it’s applicable to the passage of scripture we’re studying. In some cases, how it might be applicable to our lives today. Some study Bibles have good commentary to help with that as well.

Here’s a resource to help you understand and utilize the COMA method: One-to-One Bible Reading

Notice how I didn’t say anything about “feelings.” Studying the Bible has nothing to do with how it makes us “feel” per se. But it’s very helpful to know how the audience, at the time of the writing, would’ve felt.

For example, during the time of the New Testament, fishing and farming were very well-known professions. Therefore, they’re often used in examples that Jesus gave in His teachings. In Matthew 11, Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30) If you didn’t know, a yoke is a device (typically made of wood) used to connect two oxen (or other animals) together to plow a field.

If you want good theologically based biblical commentary, I’d suggest the John MacArthur Study Bible. You could get the physical Bible (click here). There’s also the “The Study Bible” app for both Android and Apple devices. You can put it on your phone or tablet. Personally, I have the app on both. This way, I always have it with me. There is a small one-time fee to get the commentary. When I got it, that fee was $5. And it’s been well worth every penny.

Where to Begin My Study?

Before I answer that, let me ask you a question. Are you a believer? Have you accepted Jesus Christ to be the Lord and Savior of your life? If not, then I would suggest you seek wise biblical counseling to help you to accept God’s free gift of salvation. And stop buying into Satan’s lies. Why pay for something that leads to destruction? There’s a free gift to eternal salvation that’s waiting for you to simply accept it.

Now, where to begin. There are several schools of thought on this. Some would say that you should start with the book of Genesis. It’s the first book in the Bible and it’s where it all began.

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light ‘day,’ and the darkness he called ‘night.’ And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.” – Genesis 1:1-5.

There’s also the school of thought that you should start with Matthew. It’s the beginning of the New Testament and where Jesus Christ enters the scene. Even though there are many “Bibles” that only have the New Testament, God’s Word should have all 66 books. Otherwise, it’s not complete.

In my opinion, if you’re a brand-new Christian (or have even been around the Word for a while) and want to know where to start, I would start with the study of Jesus Christ. And I would do that by starting with the Gospel of John.

“In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him, nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” – John 1:1-5.

Of course, you could choose another book to study. The choice is really yours. And when you begin your study, especially of the Epistles, it’s important to understand the context and what preceded it. Not necessarily the book of the Bible that came right before it though.

For instance, if we were going to study the book of Philippians, before reading Philippians 1:1, we’d actually want to begin our study in Acts 16:6-40. That’s where Paul received his vision to go to Macedonia (the province where the Roman colony of Philippi was located). And that’s where we find out how the church in Philippi began.

And, if you’re asking, who’s Paul? To get the whole picture of him, I’d suggest that you start with the stoning of the disciple Stephen in Acts 7:54-60 (most notably verse 58) and then on into chapter 8.

What Are The Basics I Should Know?

As I mentioned earlier, there are 66 books of the Bible. The first 39 are known as the Old Testament and the other 27 are known as the New Testament. The book of John is in the New Testament. It’s actually one of the 4 Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), which make up the first 4 books of the New Testament.

The Old Testament had at least 30 writers (some authors are unknown), while the New Testament had at least 8 writers (it’s believed that Hebrews had multiple writers).

Below are the books of the New Testament in order that they’re organized in the Bible.

Even though there are over 38 writers, the Bible has only 1 author.

Many of the New Testament writers quoted or referenced the Old Testament, including Jesus himself. Remember, at that time there was no New Testament. The Old Testament was all that they had. The New Testament writings didn’t start until after Jesus’ death. But they were all written within that generation. Galatians and James were both written around 49 A.D. While Revelation was written in around 95 A.D. All the writings on Jesus were written from first-hand and second-hand accounts.

And many of the Old Testament writers foretold Jesus’ coming. The who, what, when, where, why, and how of His birth, life, and death.

Part of the Old Testament, through all of its’ Psalms, Proverbs, genealogies, wars, etc., pointed to the coming of Jesus Christ. And the New Testament starts with the birth, life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sin. Along with countless numbers of His miracles, lessons, instructions, and so forth.

Should I Study A Person Or A Book Of The Bible?

As mentioned before, if someone is interested in learning about Jesus, I often recommend starting with the book of John. The Book of John Study Book would make a great companion to your study. It’s by John MacArthur and goes in-depth with you as you study the book. Remember, we’re not studying the book by John MacArthur, we’re using it as a tool to help us study the book of John in the Bible. Note that oftentimes, in these books, the same commentary is what’s found in the John MacArthur study Bibles.

Even though Jesus Christ is the Word which everything was made (John 1:3), you might want to study other men and women in the Bible. Men like Daniel, Moses, Abraham, Isaac, Adam, Nehemiah, Jeremiah, Paul, James, and John, just to name a few. Or women like Esther, Miriam, Sarah, Eve, or Mary Magdalene, and the list goes on.

Whoever you decide to study, you’ll want to locate all of the scriptures in which they’re referenced. For instance, did you know that Moses wrote the first 5 books of the Old Testament? Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy were all written by Moses. They’re known as both the Pentateuch and the Torah. Did you know that Moses was a murderer? That he was afraid of public speaking? All of which can be found by studying him.

How about David, “the man after God’s own heart”? Have you heard of the story of David vs Goliath? How a young boy defeated a 9’ tall, seasoned warrior? Did you know that he had the chance to kill the king of Israel, while the king was taking a dump, but decided to spare his life? This was the same king that tried to have David killed several times. The Study of 1 and 2 Samuel (and the Psalms) will not only help you to understand David but also everything around his life. From his start as a shepherd boy and his underdog story as the savior of Israel. To become the king of Israel, fearing for his life from his oldest son, and eventually his death.

Read this related article: The Underdog Story of Gideon

What’s Hermeneutics?

Hermeneutics is a fancy word that means interpretation or to interpret. When using it to study the Bible, we’re using scripture to do this. In other words, using the Bible to understand and interpret the Bible. If we don’t understand the Bible, how are we supposed to use the Bible to understand the Bible? It sounds like a catch-22, but it’s not.

A good companion, to better understand Hermeneutics, is the book Christian Hermeneutics: Bible Study Interpretation and Methods.

Earlier in this article, I explained that if we wanted to study Philippians, we’d need to start in Acts. That’s a simplification of what we’re doing when we’re using hermeneutics. The purpose is to find other areas in which a word or passage is used. For instance, in chapter 3 of Paul’s first letter to Timothy (1 Timothy 3), Paul is explaining the qualifications to become a preacher/pastor/leader in the church. Similar qualifications are also found in Titus 1.

Remember, a Bible Study should be a Study of the Bible – Not Other Books

When studying the Bible, there are outside books that are helpful in this process. But remember, they should only be used to help you understand the Bible. They should not be used as a study in themselves.

You might also be interested in reading: Angels of the Bible.

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All scripture references were taken from BibleGateway.com.