This website may keep you from studying the Bible. That’s not our goal, but it could happen.
Let us explain.
Like Productivity Advice
There’s a well-known paradox in the realm of organization and productivity advice. Some people spend so much time reading and thinking about productivity that they are less productive than they would have been otherwise. The very quest to be more productive has made them less so.
These folks can discuss organizational systems with anyone. They love setting up planners and talking about to-do apps. But they haven’t used the advice for its intended purpose. Productivity tips are only helpful if you eventually stop reading the suggestions and start implementing them. At some point, you need to stop fiddling and get to work.
Some people use Bible study articles the same way. Let’s face it—it’s much easier to read about Bible study than to study the Bible. Not only is Bible study a difficult mental task, but when we apply the Bible regularly, it is humbling and challenging.
Bible study articles are only useful if you turn away from the articles and spend time with your Bible.
This site exists to teach ordinary people how to study the Bible. But we don’t want you to spend all your time on our web site. Our articles and resources are designed to be used.
How to Get Started
There are two general types of people reading this page: those who don’t know how to study the Bible, and those who do.
If you’re in that first category, we’d love to help you get started! We suggest you begin here and then here. After reading some of our foundational articles, print out some worksheets, grab your Bible, and dig in. Richness awaits.
If you already know how to study the Bible, we’re glad you’re here, too. If you’ve come to our blog for a refresher, for help on a particular aspect of Bible study, or as part of your daily internet reading, welcome!
But there might be a few of you who are reading this in your devotional time. You’re putting off something difficult (prayer or Bible study) for a lighter read. This enterprise feels spiritual, because you’re learning about Bible study, but you’re just avoiding the more important task.
Please take this as a loving nudge: Turn away from your computer, tablet, or phone. Pick up your Bible. Listen to what God has to say about himself and his plan for the world. What God gives you in his word is much, much better than what we can give you here.
Go ahead, we don’t mind. Come back later. We’ll still be here.
What We Write
We write about anything having to do with the Bible. Some posts are Bible studies, giving you examples to follow. Other posts discuss methods for Bible study. Yet other posts present ideas for leading Bible study discussions. Along the way, We’ll refer you to other websites that are doing a good job of it, too.
Since everyone has a Bible study method, we’re not afraid to be honest about ours. We hope to convince you it’s the best method.
But the proof, as they say, is in the puddin’. So please let us know if you think we’re gettin’ ‘er dun or not. We can be taught. You won’t need to set anything on fire to get our attention (2 Sam 14:29-30, Judg 15:4-6).
We generally post 2.5 times per week, with Ryan’s reflections every other Monday, something to check out on Wednesday, and a “Method” or “Sample Bible Study” post from Peter on Friday. This blog combines a variety of elements like a mixed multitude (Ex 12:38), but it’s far more focused than 450 priests of Baal (1 Kgs 18:28-29).
Peter
My name is Peter Krol, and I’ve taught the Bible since 1996. I am the President of DiscipleMakers campus ministry and the Preaching Pastor at Grace Fellowship Church of State College, PA. I’ve trained dozens of people to study the Bible. Many of them now train others who have begun training others.
As a child, I read the Bible often so I could win at Bible trivia. Since then, my motivations have matured, but my delight remains insatiable. My New Year’s Resolution since 2011 has been to read no other book until I had read the entire Bible (see my reading plan at The Gospel Coalition). Each year I try to finish the Bible a little sooner and gain a better understanding of the scope of God’s love for us in Christ. I plan to continue this tradition, not because it makes God any happier with me, but because it makes me happier with him.
You can find me on Facebook and Twitter.
Ryan
My name is Ryan Higginbottom, and I teach mathematics to college students at Washington & Jefferson College. I promise not to bring up Calculus too often on Knowable Word. I’m a member of Washington Presbyterian Church, where I regularly teach adult Sunday school and have led an adult small group since 2009. I enjoy studying the Bible, teaching the Bible, writing about the Bible, and helping others learn to study the Bible themselves.
In addition to writing at Knowable Word, I post regularly at my personal blog.
Subscribe
Please consider subscribing [link goes to our feed to enter into a feed reader] so you won’t be left with darkness as your closest friend (Ps 88:18, NIV). If you prefer email, there’s a handy spot in the upper right corner for you to enter your address. If you try to get away without subscribing, though, we’ll hunt you down like the guilty refugee you are. All the way to the hill country of Gilead, if we have to (Gen 31:22-23).
Popular Posts
Some people will want to taste and see before they commit. So, judging by the blog’s stats, here are some posts others have found to be particularly helpful. You can find other significant posts in the top menu.
- Teach Bible Study to a 4-Year-Old
- 10 Reasons to Avoid Sexual Immorality
- Teach Your Child to Have Devotions
- Why Elihu is So Mysterious
- Main Points for All 66 Books of the Bible
- 3 Disciplines to Develop Wise Speech
- Don’t Be a Commentary Junkie
- The Only Intoxication the Bible Advises
- Teach Bible study to a 2-year-old
- Details of the OIA Method
- Top 11 OT verses quoted in the NT
Everything Else
Thanks so much for visiting the site. We’ve asked God to grant success at spreading his Word. And though we really mean it, we won’t promise to sacrifice anything when we get home (Judges 11:30-31, 34-35). So don’t even ask.
If you’d like to learn more, you can check out our assumptions.
Please note: Most Amazon links on this site are affiliate links. That simply means that if you click them and buy stuff, you’ll support this blog at no extra cost to yourself. “Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit” (Phil 4:17).
We reserve the right to delete any comments that are spammy or off-topic.
Don’t forget to subscribe! And learn how to interpret Scripture in context. If you fail in either task, you’ll surely regret it to your dying day (Prov 5:11-14).
Just found your blog and it looks great. I just bought your book too! I am glad I found you!
Thanks for the encouragement, Larry!
Hey! I’m Rebecca and I just found this site yesterday while preparing to teach my high school students. I’m excited to use this site as a resource. Not only because it *look* amazing, but also because it teaches the truth. Knowableword has already made me think about how I can grow into a better teacher and lover of Jesus. Thanks for creating this site for people like me. (:
Hi Rebecca! Thanks for taking time to encourage us. We’re glad to have made a good first impression. Hopefully that sweetness remains as you dig in further (Prov 25:16). 🙂 Please let us know if there’s any way we can better help you teach those high school students.
Great job! I teach hermeneutics at a seminary and this is really helpful for students.
Thanks,
Steve
Thanks, Steve. Glad to hear it’s helpful!
Hello! My name is Charly and I am a ruling elder(on sabbatical) and this site came up in a search. I am happy to have found you and you are firmly ensconsed in OneNote!!
Thanks for finding us, Charly!
I’ve been sharing what I have learned about God with others for years through service, facilitating Bible studies, discipleship groups and through leading worship. But now, I’ve been sharing more from the Bible itself to a watching world as we wait here from Korea (we are a military family) due to the Coronavirus. I found your website when looking for where the widow’s mite story was in the Bible and ended up reading your article, then your assumptions, and now what you are about. What a creative encouragement to remind your readers that THIS blog is not the Bible even though it is talking about the Bible. I feel similarly in what I do, may God use me to introduce people to Him or to remind people of His truth but ultimately, I pray I am making it easier for people to go straight to the source through prayer and by the His Word. I am also realizing that in an effort to not lead anyone astray with the misuse of the Bible and an incomplete view of God, I try to read other’s thoughts about the text and tend to lean towards organizations I am familiar with like Gospel Coalition for example. Long ago someone started to invest in me by meeting weekly to go through a one-on-one Bible study basics workbook from the Navigators. That was almost 10 years ago and we still meet today weekly via Skype. I do the same with other people and now I’ve ventured online putting videos out there involving my middle-school aged children. I guess that is some of my story; if you have any feedback for me, please share. In the meantime, I’ll take a look around when I can to see how I can improve the quality of my content for the glory of God. (I surely don’t want to be hunted down haha.) Thanks for reading~!
Hello Peter and Ryan, I just “discovered” your blog today while searching for “but I say unto you” info and after spending a few minutes looking over your many resources, I knew I had found a gem. I already have you earmarked for further time spent exploring. I will be back! God’s grace, peace and blessings to you and yours.
P.S. Yes, I have subscribed!
Good to hear from you, Bruce, and thanks for the kind words.
Hello Peter – I appreciate your website & blog very much. I learned the OIA Bible Study methodology as a Navigator in my younger days. At the moment, my wife & I have retired to a rural locale where folk’s educational levels, & biblical/theological literacy is often limited. Do you have any suggestions as to how to teach a modified form of OIA to folks from this demographic, where even recognizing the distinctions between observation, interpretation & application will be a challenge? I guess that’s lesson #1?
Thanks
Howard
Thanks for writing, Howard. I have taught lower-educated retirees before, and it was some of the most fun I’ve ever had in teaching the method. As you mentioned, I just tried to keep it as clear and straightforward as possible. It doesn’t have to be complex or deeply academic in order to help people connect directly with the Lord Jesus through the Scripture. I remember one widow even telling me afterward that she had grown accustomed, her entire Christian life, to simply being told what to believe and do as a Christian. And learning to study the Bible for herself felt like reconnecting with an old friend. Please keep up this good work. Our churches need old saints!
Sorry, I just re-read your comment and realized you’re not talking about teaching other retirees. But my advice remains the same. The OIA method lends itself very well to both simplicity and complexity, depending on what people are ready for. It simply reflects how all communication works, so take what your people already inherently know about communicating with one another, and use that to help them receive God’s communication more effectively.
Hi I would like to know if there is a book about the 6 principles for understanding the case laws of exodus.
I don’t know of any book particularly on that topic, but a commentary on the book of Exodus should provide further help with understanding those principles in chapters 21-23.