Knowable Word

Helping ordinary people learn to study the Bible

Copyright © 2012–2025 DiscipleMakers, except guest articles (copyright author). Used by permission.

You are here: Home / Archives for Study Guides

Basic Bible Study Skills Booklet – Now Available for Kindle

By

I am pleased to announce that the digital booklet of Basic Bible Study Skills is now available in Kindle format! We now join the prophets of old in communicating our message at many times and in many ways (Heb 1:1).

What is the difference between the various resources we have to help you learn OIA Bible study?

  • If you’re new to OIA Bible study, or you want to teach it to a group, see my book Knowable Word.
  • If you don’t mind clicking through dozens of webpages, see my blog series on how to study the Bible.
  • If you just need a refresher, or you’d like a handy reference, download the free booklet (available on the Resources page):
    • PDF for printing and passing out.
    • Epub for digital reading.
    • New! Kindle version for digital reading.

When we first released the free booklet, a number of folks asked for a Kindle version. And now we have it!

 

Free OIA Summary Booklet

By

OIA Bible study is a wonderful tool. With this tool, anyone can get to know the Lord Jesus by learning to study his word.

Perhaps you’ve worked through our series of posts walking you through the full process of observation, interpretation, and application. Perhaps you’ve read the book Knowable Word, which gives clearer examples and practice exercises in a manageable package. These resources have helped you to learn the OIA process, but you’d like something more.

What you could really use is a shorter booklet that merely summarizes the key principles. You don’t need all the drama or the fluff; there’s no need to pierce your ear with an awl just to prove how committed you are (Ex 21:5-6). You, like the Apostle Peter facing Ananias and Sapphira, just want the facts (Acts 5:7-9). You might use such a booklet as a reference guide to help you practice OIA, as it reminds you of the main concepts and the steps. You don’t want to have to go back to the complete book every time you have a specific question. And you don’t want to have to sift through page after page on this website to get a speedy answer or reminder. So what is there for you?

Yesterday, I would have sadly turned you away, like a bridegroom at the door of his wedding feast (Matt 25:10-12). But not today. Today, I am happy to welcome ye who are weary and heavy laden. May you find some rest for your soul.

Basic Bible Study SkillsWe’ve had a project in the hopper for many months, and I’m delighted to finally release it for general consumption. We have a short booklet outlining basic Bible study skills, and we’ve uploaded it for you to use at no cost.

You could keep this booklet on your desk as a handy reference. Or you could print it out for your study group or church book table. The booklet focuses only on the principles; it gives almost no illustrations or practice exercises. The point is simply to have all the concepts in a short reference guide.

Without further ado, you can find the booklet here:

Basic Bible Study Skills Booklet

I’ve also put these links up on the blog’s resources page, so you can find them easily in the future. Happy studying!

Many, many thanks to my colleagues who made this project come alive:

  • Jenny Carrington took the original blog material and edited it into concise form.
  • Dan Miller did the booklet design and typesetting.
  • Ryan Higginbottom scrutinized the project to make sure it was something we could cheerfully offer to our readers.
  • Caleb Olshefsky did the last-minute troubleshooting to ensure we could deliver usable formats to our readers.
Thanks for visiting Knowable Word! If you like this article, you might be interested in receiving regular updates from us. You can sign up for our email list (enter your address in the box on the upper right of this page), follow us on Facebook or Twitter, or subscribe to our RSS feed. 

What are Commentaries Good For?

By

Last week, Paul Levy gave some brief but helpful thoughts at Reformation 21 about using commentaries. Here are a few delicious quips:

Commentaries are often answering questions no one is asking.

They help you clarify what you don’t think.

I try to use commentaries only when I’m stuck, and invariably they are not a massive amount of help.

In finding what is the big theme of the letter most commentaries are of little use.

However, on the details of the text they can really help.

Levy’s musings are worth considering. Check it out!

Reformation Study Bible (2015 Edition): It’s Big

By

There must be quite a market for study Bibles, because they keep making more of them. And some older ones are being updated and revised. Like The Reformation Study Bible.

It was published in 1995 as The New Geneva Study Bible, using the New King James translation. 1998 saw the name changed to The Reformation Study Bible. In 2005, a second edition emerged, switching translations from NKJV to ESV. Now in 2015, a third edition hit the market with a long list of new features. It’s already out in ESV, and an NKJV version is on its way.

Study notes multiplied from 760,000 to 1.1 million words. Ten more maps, fourteen theological articles, ten creeds and confessions, almost 600 pages, and an extra 3/8 of an inch in thickness expand the contents. In addition, purchasers of this Bible gain access to over $400 worth of e-books, subscriptions, and online teaching series.

There’s a lot here. Is it worth it?

First Impressions

This study Bible is beautiful. I’ve been reading the leather-like light gray version, but cheaper hardbacks are also available. I’m tempted to judge this book by its cover, with its soft leather-like substance and three marvelous, protruding ribbon bookmarks.

Upon opening and flipping, I find the page layout pleasing. The font of the biblical text is easy to read and in single-column format. Theological notes in shaded gray boxes pepper the volume. The back matter (articles, creeds, and maps) draws my attention.

This study Bible is a delight to handle and to read.

Reformation Study Bible

Diving In

The Reformation Study Bible (RSB) will appeal to some and not to others. I trust it will help many; I fear it will hinder some. The difference depends on how it is used.

If you know how to determine the main points and trains of thought of Bible passages, you will find some real help here. The RSB will clarify the meanings of words. It will connect many passages to each other. It will tie things nicely with larger theological issues. But if you look to the RSB to give you the main points and trains of thought of Bible books, I think you’ll be disappointed. The RSB is heavy on correlation and observation of words, but it is light on main points, trains of thought, and application.

In addition, if you’re already familiar with the significance and teachings of the Reformation, you’ll be at home with the RSB. It explains the Reformation and Reformed theology (the covenants, Christ-centered interpretation, doctrines of grace, etc.) with plain language and clarity. It makes lofty concepts understandable and accessible. But if you’re not sure about Reformed theology, or if you’d like to understand how these teachings are drawn out of careful literary analysis of the Scripture, you’ll be disappointed. While I wouldn’t say this study Bible imposes its teaching on the Scripture, I must admit it often doesn’t show its work by drawing its teaching from the Scripture.

Study Bibles serve well as reference works, but sometimes they distract people from studying the text itself. Therefore, if we think of study Bibles as commentaries, we can be on guard against detrimental addictions. If you can resist the addiction, I’m happy to recommend The Reformation Study Bible. You can buy it at Amazon or Westminster Books.

—————–

Study note: Disclaimer. Amazon and WTS links are affiliate links, so this blog gets a small commission if you click and buy anything. The Greek word for disclaimer is “disklaemeros.” Pliny the Younger used this word in his famous work Natural History.

Read Mark Learn

By

In April I attended Together for the Gospel and got a pile of free books. Since the free books numbered more than I could ever read, I gave many of them away.

Read Mark LearnTwo volumes on the stack almost got passed on to a more available master, but were snatched from the fire at the 11th hour. These were the two Read Mark Learn volumes—one on John, the other on Romans—published by Christian Focus in partnership with St. Helen’s Bishopsgate.

I almost passed over these treasures like an angel of death on the fourteenth day of the first month. My initial perusal revealed them to be a series of Bible studies, and, well, I need more Bible studies like Solomon needs more wives:

I find something more bitter than death: the woman [substitute “Bible study guide” for “woman” and you’ll catch my usual disillusionment] whose heart is snares and nets, and whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God escapes her, but the sinner is taken by her. Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things— which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found. One man among a thousand I found, but a woman among all these I have not found. (Eccl 7:26-28, ESV)

I read one short study from the volume on John’s Gospel just for kicks. And boy, am I glad I did.

I read another and another. After 5 of them, I couldn’t stop raving over them to my wife (you should have seen the spittle in my beard!). After only 2 or 3 more, I was ready to purchase a volume on every other book of the Bible. But I searched online and could find only John and Romans. I spoke with a representative from Westminster bookstore, and he could find only John and Romans. I went on the Christian Focus website, and still I could find only John and Romans.

The bad news is that they have volumes on only John and Romans. The good news, however, is that I finally found this page on St. Helen’s’s website, which has a long list of studies on many other (though not all) books of the Bible—all available for free. More bad news, though: John and Romans cost money. Sorry.

What is so good about these Bible studies?

  • They are short: only 10 pages or fewer per unit of text.
  • They consider context. The book’s historical context, the unit’s literary context, and the entire Bible’s gospel context.
  • They concisely trace out (and focus on) the author’s flow of thought.
  • They identify a main point for each section.
  • They connect every passage to Christ.
  • They get specific in application.

I’m not sure I can think of anything else I would ask for in a Bible study.

The only problem I can see with these studies is the threat of addiction. Just be careful not to read them until after you study the text for yourself. But if ever I was tempted to ignore my own standards for such things, now would be the time.

Check it out!

———————-

Disclaimer: If you click the Amazon links in this post and buy stuff, you’ll support this blog at no extra cost to yourself. This may enable me to buy more copies of Read Mark Learn to give out to my friends.

5 Practices for Preparing Effective Bible Studies

By

There’s an incredible market in today’s Christian world for Bible study workbooks and leaders guides. Apparently, many people want to discuss the things of the Lord. And God has gifted some writers to unveil the riches of God’s word for broad audiences. These are good things, but the unfortunate side effects are legion:

  • We train people to believe the Bible on its own is not sufficient for life and godliness.
  • We learn to trust the experts more than we learn to trust the text.
  • We never learn how to get lost and find our way through a passage.
  • We promote a priestly layer of materials mediation between people and God.
  • We communicate that others should not try this at home. Leading a Bible study is too difficult and dangerous for those with fewer than two graduate degrees.

So I’m not surprised when people tell me they’re scared to lead a Bible study. They should be scared if their idea of Bible study is limited to what can be published in a workbook. Not just anyone can take big truths and package them up for such wide consumption.

Generation Bass, Creative Commons

Generation Bass, Creative Commons

But a Bible study doesn’t need to be packaged for wide consumption. No publisher knows your friends as well as you do. Nobody is as well-equipped to bring God’s truth to that small group of people as you are. So why not be his mouthpiece to them?

Here’s how I do it.

1. Depend on the Lord

Apart from Christ, we can do nothing. We’ll bear no fruit unless we stay connected to the vine. For me, this usually means I have to pray before I begin preparing, but prayer isn’t the only way to express dependence. Often, I’ll feel short on time, and I’ll try to rush my preparation and get on to the next thing on my to-do list. But when I get lost in the text, I remember I can’t do it on my own, and I ask for the help of the Holy Spirit.

2. Figure out what God has said

Sometimes we make too much of the difference between studying to grow and studying to lead, as though we’d study the text differently for each purpose. Or as though we should block out devotional time and teaching prep time in different sections of the calendar. But both should look the same: Observe and interpret. Figure out the author’s main point. Once you’re clear on what God has spoken in the passage, you’ll be ready to lead others into that truth.

And don’t read study notes or commentaries until after you’ve wrestled with the text yourself. Take a guess at the main point of the passage before you read what others have said about it. That way your reading will correct your mistakes and connect you to the Christian community without replacing your own walk with Christ.

3. Allow the message to change you

Again, studying to teach is not much different from studying to grow. Your teaching should flow out of your growth. If you’d like to see the text change people, you’ll have to show them how it’s changed you. Invulnerable leaders produce invulnerable followers. But the beginning of wisdom is a soft heart toward the Lord.

4. Decide how to lead your group toward what God has said

Now that you’ve humbled yourself before the text, understanding it and applying it to your own life, you’ll be able to show others the way. Only at this point does teaching prep begin to look any different from devotional study. Consider the main point of the passage and how to frame it in a way that will make sense to your group. Think of what’s going on in their lives that might hinder or promote the truth of Christ in the passage. Consider what lies they believe and what encouragement they need to honor the Lord. Make a list of observation questions that will get them into the text. Anticipate some interpretive questions they might have. Develop some applications for the individuals, the group, your church, and their interactions with the world.

5. Consider the beginning

The most important part of the Bible study will be the first 2 minutes. You’ll want to hook them and give them a reason to engage with the rest of the discussion. So think of a specific story to tell, or a specific question to ask, or a specific application to share. Your first words will set the tone for the rest of the study, so nail that part down.

For most of the study, you’ll have a list of possible questions to stimulate discussion, but you’ll want to keep it flexible to allow the discussion to flow freely. But the flexibility works best when you frame the discussion well from the beginning.

The details of preparation will differ from person to person. But always trust the Spirit to equip you through the text to speak the very oracles of God to your people, so God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs all glory and dominion forever and ever. (1 Peter 4:10-11).

Recalculating: How Study Bibles Can Limit Bible Study

By

I’m supposed to be on vacation this week, and we’re working hard on some house projects. So I’m pleased that Jen Wilkin gave me permission to repost this terrific article from her blog. Jen Wilkin is a wife, mom to four great kids, and an advocate for women to love God with their minds through the faithful study of his Word. She writes, speaks, and teaches women the Bible. She lives in Flower Mound, Texas, and her family calls The Village Church home. Jen is the author of Women of the Word: How to Study the Bible with Both Our Hearts and Our Minds (Crossway, forthcoming). You can follow her on Twitter.

We love our study Bibles. Many of us spend our daily reading time with a study Bible in hand, stopping at trickier passages to glance to the bottom of the page for help with interpretive difficulties. And we make progress – our reading plans stay on schedule, and we find that we reach the end of a passage with greater understanding than when we started. But are study Bibles as helpful as they seem?

Jim Clark (2007), Creative Commons

Jim Clark (2007), Creative Commons

Several years ago I moved from Houston to Dallas. Having lived in Houston for thirteen years, I could drive its streets with ease. I had no idea how to navigate Dallas, so I used a GPS to get everywhere I needed to go. It was a great feeling – knowing almost nothing of the city, I could map a route to my destination instantaneously. I never had to feel lost or waste time wandering around on the wrong roads.

But three years later, I still didn’t know my way around Dallas without that GPS. If its battery died or if I left home without it, I was in big trouble. And then another strange thing happened: I took a trip back to Houston. In a city I knew well, I found that my GPS didn’t always pick the route that made the most sense. It still spoke with the same tone of authority it used in Dallas, but I could tell that it was choosing the obvious route over the most direct one.

The Benefit of Getting Lost

When I got back to Dallas I knew what I had to do: I had to allow myself to get lost. I had to wander around a bit, plan extra travel time, miss some exits, make wrong turns in order to learn for myself the routes my GPS had spoon-fed me. And in some cases, in order to learn better routes.

This is the same lesson I have learned about study Bibles. If I am not careful, they can mask my ignorance of Scripture and give me a false sense that I know my way around its pages. I do not labor for understanding because the moment I hit a hard passage, I immediately resolve my discomfort of feeling “lost” by glancing down at the notes. And hearing their authoritative tone, I can grow forgetful that they are, in fact, only man’s words – commentary, an educated opinion, profitable but not infallible.

My intent is not to question the value of commentary. Sound commentary is invaluable to the Bible student. My intent is to question its place in the learning process. Unless we consult it after we attempt to comprehend and interpret on our own, we tend to defer completely to its reasoning. The problem is not with our study Bibles, the problem is with our need for instant gratification and our dislike of feeling lost.

In short, if I never allow myself to get lost, I never allow the learning process to take its proper course. If I never fight for interpretation on my own, I accept whatever interpretation I am given at face value. And that’s a dangerous route to drive.

Right Use

So, what is the right use for a study Bible? What should you do if you, too, find it limits your Bible study because it is just too easy to consult? I would suggest the following:

  • Don’t throw it away, just put it away. Keep your study Bible on the shelf when you read. Get a Bible with only cross-references to use as your primary copy. Investigate cross-references to help you comprehend and interpret.
  • Treat study Bible notes as what they are: commentary, and brief commentary at that. Remember that they are man’s words, subject to bias and error. Read them respectfully but critically.
  • Consult multiple sources. Study notes should be a starting point for further inquiry, not a terminus. Once you have read for personal understanding in a note-free Bible, consult not one, but several study Bibles and commentaries from trusted sources. Look for consensus and disagreement among them.
  • Ask the Holy Spirit for insight. Humbly ask the Spirit to reveal truth to your heart and mind as you read for understanding on your own, and as you compare your own discoveries to those of trusted commentators. Even if you find you have drawn the wrong conclusion from a text, you are more likely to remember the better conclusion because you have worked hard to discover it.

So use your study Bible as it is intended to be used: as a reference point for your own conclusions, but not as a substitute for them. And get lost a little bit. Allow yourself to feel the extent of what you don’t understand. It’s a humbling feeling – but if your destination is wisdom and understanding, humility makes an excellent starting point for the journey. Seek with all of your heart, trusting the promise that those who do so will find that which they seek (Jer 29:13).

What is a Bible Study?

By

Crazy LoveHave you ever had this conversation?

What do you have going on tonight?

I’m going to Bible study.

Oh, great! What part of the Bible are you studying?

Francis Chan’s Crazy Love.

Now, I’m no Chan-hater. I’ve never read his book, and shame on me for it.

But let’s be honest. A discussion of such a book is not really a Bible study. Why not call it a book discussion group or a reading group? Why “Bible study”?

With this post, I’m launching a new series about how to lead a Bible study. In this series, I’ll assume you already know how to study the Bible for yourself, and I’ll give more specialized tips on how to lead others in Bible study.

I plan to write about the unique opportunities and objectives of Bible studies. I’ll explain kinds of Bible studies (for both believers and non-believers). I’ll give tips on how to get started, how to prepare, and how to lead a discussion. I’ll warn you of the many pits I’ve fallen into along the way, and I’ll cast vision for training others to lead after you.

Let’s just make sure we’re clear on definitions up front: A Bible study is a group of people who study the Bible. When I use the term “Bible study,” I’m not referring to a book club. Nor to a prayer meeting, hymn sing, or revival service. Nor to a sermon or classroom lecture. I’m thinking of a group of people (could be small or large) who are actively engaged in mutual study and examination of the text of Scripture.

And while such Bible studies may occasionally involve using a pre-packaged study guide or curriculum, I propose that the best studies will be unmediated. That is, we train people to study the Bible itself and not only what others have said about the Bible.

Of course, we shouldn’t ignore what others have said about the Bible. We’re a part of the community of faith, and we’re not so much better than everyone else that we can study the Bible in a vacuum and have a corner on the truth. But we must always—yes, always—again, I repeat, always—evaluate what others say in light of what the text says. If we never learn how to know what the text says, we’re no different from the blind leading the blind. And, well, I hope you know how that will end up (Luke 6:39).

———————

Disclaimer: If you plan to lead a book discussion on Crazy Love, and you’d like to help cover this blog’s expenses at no extra cost to yourself, please click one of the affiliate links in this post and buy stuff.