Gods amazing bible

How to read the bible?

So, really do you know how do you read the bible? Have you learned how to study the bible? It is not like a novel, it is not a mystery story. In a typical book you start at the beginning and read to the end. Not the bible, you can not just read from page one to the end and expect to understand it. It was simply not designed that way, even though it looks that way. Unfortunately, not everyone who reads the bible will understand it, no matter what their IQ is.

Unless you get help from God, you are out of luck when you study the bible. That is how we ended up believing all kinds of made up stories, an ever burning hell for example. Only God can open your eyes and let you truly study the bible and understand it. So every single time you must pray for guidance and understanding.

So if it does not read like a novel, how do you read it? How are you suppose to figure all of this out on your own? Let’s turn to one of the largest books of the bible Isaiah. He wrote 66 scrolls in it, after God told him what to write. Yes we call them chapters today, but back in the day they were scrolls or books. So did Isaiah tell us how to read and study the bible.

So in Isaiah he told us:

28:9-13 Whom shall he (GOD) teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.
(you must be old enough to understand exactly what you are reading and able to accept it)

28:10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:
(have you noticed how I pull from all over the bible?)

28:11 For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people.
28:12 To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith all of you may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.
(not everyone will understand, only those God chooses)

28:13 But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.
(So if you try to read it like a typical book you will never understand it, get it?)

The Foolish or the Wise?

1 Corinthians 1:27 “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;” (God does not teach everyone, not the wise, but the weak.)

But I understand what I am reading. So I am blessed. Yes, I may have lost everything I owned that I spent my entire life building etc. But I would not change it for anything! Why do the wise think they know everything? How come the weak of the world are willing to listen? The mighty just will not listen typically, just like some who read my articles will not believe.

Have you ever noticed the word in the middle of “Believe” some will always think it a “lie”. As they say you can lead a horse to water but you can not make them drink, just saying… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The Amazing Bible

The bible truly amazes me. The fact is there is a massive amount of knowledge contained in it. You can glean so much from it. Of course one has to actually read it. Oh and then there’s that understanding what they are reading thing. But these things can be known with a little time and a little effort and a lot of prayers. As I am so fond of saying in II Timothy 2:15 “Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” yes from my namesake.

No one should ever be ashamed of studying the bible, and especially if you are truly dividing the word of truth. That last part is where people go awry. You really have to dig to get to the truth of any matter. A little here a little there, sound like Isaiah? You will notice that every time I talk about a subject I am pulling from all over the bible. Because that is where the information is, all over the bible. From the 50 books in Genesis to the 22 books of Revelations. It’s funny to me, I always found it interesting that the largest book is 66 Isaiah, and the last book is 22 Revelations. So then end is 1/3rd of the largest. I do not think it means anything, I just think it is fascinating.

Four Things

So in order to truly understand and study the bible you need four things. You need to be able to read, remember, meditate, and you need God’s blessings on you. That is why I have spent thousand of hours digging and digging. Today if you actually read all my articles you are getting the benefit of my labors. But just because I share with you is no reason you should not study the bible. In fact it should motivate you to study. I can not possibly tell you everything. It is way to big a resource to share everything.

Did you know that frying pans are in the bible? Yes in Leviticus 2:7 “And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the fryingpan, …” How about how to wash in running water. Sure you laugh now, but back then they had no idea how important running water was. In Leviticus 15:13 “…and wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in running water, and shall be clean.” Look if this sounds really silly to you. Just remember, it was critical information for people back then to stay clean.

At that point in time Infections were really bad, you could easily die from it. They did not have antibiotics back then. So God had to teach them to use running water to clean with. Otherwise people would just use a bowl of water and keep using the dirty water. They would clean everything that way. Bad cuts, their clothes etc. all in the same water. People were really ignorant back then. Yes some could argue about today being ignorant as well, but we will not go there. They only had one shoe for both feet, left and right did not come out till later on.

What to eat?

The Bible tells you what you should eat and what not to eat. Today people eat like pigs, I mean they actually eat pigs. Yes, I Know, I get it bacon, ham etc. But God says not to for a good reason. Back then, they did not pre-cook the pork, like is done today. They also did not have meat thermometers to make sure you kill all the nematodes in the pork. So they would get nematodes (worms). Bad things happen when you eat raw pork. That goes for other animal meats too. So to save these people God explained what to eat and what not to eat, pork, shellfish, fish with no scales, bottom eaters, none cloven hoof animals etc.

How to deal with mice and rats, or deal with a dead body, or how to build a building. Yes and yes and yes and yes, all are in the bible. I could go on for days, but I won’t. The point is if you lived even just a couple of hundred years ago and could choose only one book to own it would be the bible, hands down for anyone. Well, anyone that knew about the bible that is. Yes, I am sure that headhunters probably would choose a different book, probably a cookbook of some kind. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Do YOU know that the bible is actually God’s word? If you are not sure, then you need to read “Is God Real” It explains how we got the bible and proves God is real, and the bible is his word. So you really need to know that first.

How to study the Bible?

First I will always quote the King James Version. Let me show you an example of multiple bibles what they say for the exact same paragraph, I will use the New International version, the King James version, the New King James version, Moffatt:
Ephesians 2:8 the NIV says “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.”
Ephesians 2:8 the KJV says “For by grace are all of you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:”
Ephesians 2:8 NKJV it says “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,”
Ephesians 2:8 Moffatt says”For it is by grace you have been saved, as you had faith; it is not your doing but God’s gift,”

So now you have seen four different versions, again I use the KJV exclusively here. Yes I do have to check it all the time to make sure something was not translated wrongly. My best suggestion is you always need to check any bible to make sure you are reading God’s true words.

God created the bible

As I already said that God created the bible and checked the original words 7 times. So I like to be as close to the original as I can. The King James version is said to agree with 95% of the known Greek texts. And I know they have compared it to the dead sea scrolls. So as far as I know it is the closest to the original. I do not know how to read Hebrew or Greek. So I need something I can read to study the bible and you will to, right?

The Revised Standard Version

For just plain reading “The Revised Standard Version” is possibly the easiest one. You could read it from cover to cover to implant the basics into your mind. In fact I did that in the very beginning. I did not know there was even a difference between bibles at that time. Back then I just figured you pick up a bible hey they are all the same, right? Well not quite, as I later learned. But again it will give you all the basics to start with. The real key is you need to make sure they are not adding to God’s words or changing them. So I suggest you get both, the Revised Standard and the King James.

The 12 rules: How to study the Bible

I was taught that there are a dozen basic rules of bible study.

  1. Pray for guidance in your studies.
    1. In order to study the bible we must first ask God to help us. We must pray for God’s guidance. Otherwise none of us will get anywhere in our studies. Without God’s help nothing will happen period.
    2. So maybe an example would help. I am sure by now you are familiar with King David, I do tend to use him a lot. But David is the only person in the entire bible it says twice “he was a man after God’s own heart.” I just do not think you can get better than that. King David studied the only part of the scriptures that he had.
    3. David asked God to guide him in his studies, and to open his mind, to reveal God’s truth. He wrote in Psalms 119:33 “Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end.”
  2. Study for self improvement.
    1. Everyone’s ultimate goal should be to be just like Jesus Christ. Sense that is our future, we all need to be just like Christ.
    2. Look for things that you need to work on especially on a personal level. Then go and study your bible.
    3. Saint Paul taught us in II Tim. 3:16 “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” Jesus was righteous, and again he is the GOAL.
    4. Notice: God is our Father, and fathers correct their children. It says in Jeremiah 10:24 “O Lord, correct me, but with judgment; not in thine anger, lest you bring me to nothing.” Yes, make sure you do not end up as nothing!
  3. Prove all things.
    1. Saint Paul taught us in I Thes. 5:21 “Prove all things hold fast that which is good.”
    2. We have in the past talked about the Corinthians, and the Thessalonians, both had some issues. But we have not discussed the Bereans. The Bereans were very excited about the scriptures. So much so, that every time Paul would tell them something they would go directly to the scriptures. The Bereans would make sure what Paul was telling them was actually correct. Then and only then did the Bereans learn from it. They were “self correcting”, they made sure what they believed was true. That is what all of us must be like.
    3. Do not just believe what I tell you, check everything and hold fast that which is good.
  4. God’s word never contradicts itself.
    1. Do you think the God that created everything would make mistakes writing his own words? Jesus told us In John 10:35 “… the scripture cannot be broken
    2. Psalms 12:6 “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.” Yes, God checked them 7 times, so they are perfect.
    3. God never contradicts Himself. Usually if you read something that appears to contradict another scripture, read a little further. Study it a little more and usually it will clear it up, all by itself, with a little guidance from God.
    4. Let’s take a look at a scripture that some use to say that the bible contradicts itself. In Proverbs 26:4 it says “Answer not a fool according to his folly.” And the next verse 26:5 says “Answer a fool according to his folly” but both ends very differently. 26:5 ends with “lest he be wise in his own conceit” 26:4 says “lest thou also be like unto him.” These two scriptures do not contradict themselves, they are totally different situations and very wise answers to those situations. The problem is people do not read the entire scripture, so they take them out of context. So in other words they actually fulfill those proverbs, which is funny, right?
    5. Also check to be sure that the scripture is not a translation error.
  5. Find out what the bible really says.
    1. As I just said the bible contains human errors. The original scriptures are perfect, but when you translate anything errors creep in.
    2. Let’s look at an example: I am sure you have heard people say Jesus spoke in parables because the people were simple minded. That’s weird since Jesus himself said something totally different. In Matthew 13:10-11 “And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speak you unto them in parables? (11) He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.” Not everyone who will study the bible will get the right answer. It requires permission from God, I can not stress this enough.
    3. Back to the errors, you need to check using other sources, sometimes you need to check more than one. Personally I like Biblehub.com. Here is how I use it.
      • Just go to your favorite search engine.
      • Type in either the book and numbers or just some of the words. Followed by the language it was written in. If old testament “Hebrew and English” or if it is the new testament “Greek and English”. For example: “Biblehub.com John 8:42 Greek and English” You will then be presented with lots of choices. Then pick the one that says in the middle “Interlinear”. For this example you would pick: “https://biblehub.com/interlinear/john/8-42.htm
      • Notice the middle part “Interlinear” many different combinations come up when you search. So if you want to see the Greek and English or Hebrew and English you need the Interlinear. Otherwise you will get a different bible hub page that comes up without the two different languages.
      • However, when you choose the interlinear page you what you get is amazing. It will have the Strongs Number, the Greek words and the English words. If you hover over the blue links it will popup with the strong’s definition and will give you the meaning of them. This is truly a gift; I use it all the time to check for error and to understand exactly what I am reading.
  6. Examine the context.
    1. This again is where people think that the bible contradicts itself which is impossible.
    2. You must read and read until it makes sense to you. We are not God.
    3. This could be many paragraphs or even pages backwards, and sometimes even forwards.
    4. For example there have been many times were I was confused to what was being referred to; was it the Father or the son Jesus. This is especially true in the old testament more than the new testament, which has this issue as well.
    5. In Daniel 7:13 it talks about Ancient of days which is the Father. But this is a great example of just whom they are referring to. It happens to also reference son of man came with clouds. So that was easy to figure out. But sometimes it becomes a challenge. Make sure you are up for the challenge, and asking God for help, will work wonders.
  7. Here a little there a little.
    1. As we have discussed in Isaiah he told us in 28:9-13 here a little and there a little. This is the way it is for most of the bible.
    2. Yes there are many places where you are reading a story. Even in those stories will be little items that have to do with another part of the bible which connects to another part. It is like a puzzle and trying to put all the little pieces together can drive you crazy sometimes. You know they are there, but where did I read that again?
    3. Have I not said that the bible is an amazing piece of engineering by God. Sometimes I think God wanted to see just how far he could go to confuse us. Even God has a sense of humor. And he did want to “confound the wise”
  8. The bible interprets itself.
    1. First off let’s be clear, in II Peter 1:20 it says “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.” As I have said before, unless God wants you to understand, you will not.
    2. The bible is unusual, God wrote it this way to keep the information private to some. So many people think they understand and have no idea what it really says. You will see it a lot in this very confused world. Especially in the universal church, “In vain they do worship me, for teaching the doctrines of men.”
    3. Let’s just look at an example of this. Who wrote the book of Revelation? Most say “Saint John the Divine”. But if you read the very first verse it clearly says “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him” Did you read John in that, I mean really did you? What utter nonsense they teach, and it clearly makes no sense to anyone who can actually read. Wow.
    4. Let me give you an example of how they bible will interpret itself: When you read about the sign that was on the cross or tree in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John you get little pieces of the total puzzle. For instance:
      Matthew 27:37 says This is Jesus the king of the jews
      Mark 15:26 says The king of the jews
      Luke 23:38 says This is The king of the jews
      John 19:19 it says Jesus of Nazareth the king of the jews
      Sum it all up: This is Jesus of Nazareth The King of the Jews
  9. Start with clear bible scriptures.
    1. Not all scriptures are easy to understand so start with the known.
    2. For example, people say the bible says you can now eat unclean animals, such as pork. They claim in Acts 10 when God was talking to Peter, God said”What God has cleansed, that call not you common.”
      • But God was talking about other nations not animals. Yes God was using animals to make his point. It really is simple just read 10:28 “And he said unto them, All of you know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God has showed me that I should not call any man common or unclean.” See, as I have said if you keep reading the bible will clear it up for you every time. And to be clear you are not to eat unclean animals like pork!
  10. Use more than one bible translation.
    1. We covered this above but sometimes when you become confused sometimes another bible can help. There is a New Translation by James Moffatt, well ok it was new in 1913 for the new testament and then in 1924 for the old testament. It was a direct translation from the Hebrew and the Greek manuscripts. Note: It was not from the latin transcriptions, which are used by curtin groups 🙂
    2. I personally stay away from more liberal translations as much as possible. The modernizing of it gets away from the original words of God.
    3. Just remember, if God wanted the words changed, he would have changed them.
  11. Do not use bible helps to establish doctrine.
    1. Yes some of those bible helps can be useful, personally I have found them of no use, but you might.
    2. The point is you do not want to start getting the wrong information into your head. Really a BAD IDEA!
    3. If you study the so called scholars you may be finished before you start. Why would I say that? Well some will teach you that there is a trinity, there is only one being, then they say there are three. Heaven is for the saved (you float around on clouds). And if you are bad your going to go to an ever burning hell. Give me a break, for smart people they most ignorant people on earth. But maybe there is more than 1 person in their head. Just remember Mary Magdalene and the 7 spirits Jesus removed from her HEAD.
    4. Please study your bible, and keep the truth near your heart.
  12. Make notes in your bible and highlight.
    1. The words in your bible are holy, but the book is not.
    2. Whichever bible you study make sure you can add notes. You need space around the words or columns.
    3. Do not be afraid to highlight and add notes as you study your bible. Add notes, lots of notes. While I am talking about this, make sure that your highlighters do not bleed through to the other side.
    4. Make sure that you can read after you highlight in different colors. I made this mistake in the beginning. Parts of my bible are almost unreadable. Do not make my mistakes.
    5. I use pencil to add notes, you can do as you wish. However I have had to change some of my notes after clarification from other scriptures and other sources. So you may want to use a pencil like me. Pen, does not erase.
    6. Use a very thin one also like 0.5 or 0.7. I write my notes with 0.9 on binder paper, but not in my bible. It is way to thick.

In closing

Psalms 23:1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not lack. 2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures: he leads me beside the still waters. 3 He restores my soul: he leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: you anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

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