Bible Reading Plans

Here are several options for people seeking Bible reading plans as we enter into the new year."...since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God." (1st Peter 1:23 ESV) There are a number of Reading Plans for ESV Editions. Crossway has made them accessible in multiple formats.

:: Web (a new reading each day appears online at the same link):: RSS (subscribe to receive by RSS):: Podcast (subscribe to get your daily reading in audio):: iCal (download an iCalendar file):: Mobile (view a new reading each day on your mobile device):: Print (download a PDF of the whole plan)

 Choose between plans like:ESV Study BibleWith this plan there are four readings each day, divided into four main sections:

:: Psalms and Wisdom Literature;:: Pentateuch and the History of Israel;:: Chronicles and Prophets; and:: Gospels and Epistles.

M’Cheyne One-Year Reading PlanWith this plan you read through: The NT twice, the Psalms twice, and the rest of the OT once.The plan begins with the four great beginnings or “births” of Scripture: Genesis 1 (beginning of the world), Ezra 1 (rebirth of Israel after her return from Babylonian exile), Matthew 1 (birth of the Messiah), Acts 1 (birth of the body of Christ). John Stott said of this reading schedule: “Nothing has helped me more to gain an overview of the Bible, and so of God’s redemptive plan.”The Gospel Coalition’s For the Love of God Blog (which you can subscribe to via email) takes you through the M’Cheyne reading plan, with a meditation each day by D. A. Carson related to one of the readings. M’Cheyne’s plan has you read shorter selections from four different places in the Bible each day.Several other helpful plans include:The Discipleship Journal Reading PlanWith this plan you read through the entire Bible once.The unique advantage of this plan is that there are “catch-up” days:

:: To prevent the frustration of falling behind, which most of us tend to do when following a Bible reading plan, each month of this plan gives you only 25 readings. Since you’ll have several “free days” each month, you could set aside Sunday to either not read at all or to catch up on any readings you may have missed in the past week.:: If you finish the month’s readings by the twenty-fifth, you could use the final days of the month to study passages that challenged or intrigued you.

The Bible EaterThe Bible Eater is an innovative new approach that has you reading whole chapters, along with quarterly attention to specific books. The plan especially highlights OT chapters that are crucial to the storyline of Scripture and redemptive fulfillment in Christ. You can find a PDF of the plan here.Regardless of what you choose remember that a new year, and a new Bible reading plan will never be your Savior. Only Jesus can save, only Jesus can restore. The Bible, in it's entirety is about Jesus, and for Jesus. May your pursuits of the scriptures end upon the worship of Christ.As we begin the new year pray that God will move you, motivate you, and grow you by his living and abiding word. Spend some time reading Psalm 1, Psalm 19, or Psalm 119 to stir your affections and point you to the fullness of scripture.