Skip to content ↓

Book Review – How To Study Your Bible

Book Reviews Collection cover image

Just a few months ago I came to the sudden and perhaps not-so-startling realization that although I have been reading the Bible for more than twenty years I had never really been taught how to study it. I have been told of the importance of spending time each day reading God’s Word, meditating on it and even memorizing it, but I do not ever recall being taught how to systematically study it.

After explaining this predicament to a friend of mine, she recommended the inductive Bible study approach, which she had only just discovered through buying the New Inductive Study Bible. Kay Arthur edited that version of the Bible and knowing she was a proponent of the inductive method, I decided to read How To Study Your Bible by Arthur.

I do not intend to go into detail about the Inductive method of Bible study. There is any number of resources available in bookstores and online that can outline the method in detail. Essentially, though, it begins with understanding the context of the big picture (the Bible) then works to the smaller picture (a specific book of the Bible) and so on until the study leads to specific words. The method relies heavily on note-taking and Bible marking. There is a whole system of Bible marking that Arthur recommends which helps in identifying themes and patterns. The appendices are filled with useful information about how to best use concordances and expository dictionaries. They even go into some detail about the tenses, moods and voices of Greek verbs!

Although the book sometimes appears as an advertisement for the New Inductive Study Bible, it does a fantastic job of outlining the method and rationale for the inductive approach to Bible study. This book is a valuable resource and I highly recommend it.


  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (January 2)

    A La Carte: Keep Bible reading from being rude / Roman Catholic apologetics targeting Evangelicals / Five vows I have made / Are we trying to be too clever? / The new year’s prayer challenge / and more.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (January 1)

    A La Carte: The best seats at church / Soul-health questions for a new year / The ministry of presence / Parental regret and moving forward when you’ve let down your children / Pastoral burnout / and more.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (December 31)

    A La Carte: Unpacking “new year, new you” / What the Bible says about divorce / A man at church thinks we should marry / Missing what was not meant to be yours / Growing in your understanding of biblical theology / and more.

  • A Grace-filled Redemptive Gathering

    This week the blog is sponsored by Burke Care. Those who fear you shall see me and rejoice, because I have hoped in your word. Psalm 119:74 With the year ending, we were recently invited to a small gathering about 30 minutes away from where we live. We met the usual traffic delays getting to…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (December 30)

    A La Carte: Honor your elderly parents / Retired from resolutions / Why we can’t focus / Be committed to leave a legacy / A broken relationship with dad / Kindle deals / and more.

  • The 2025 Christian Reading Challenge

    The 2025 Christian Reading Challenge

    Do you love to read? Do you want to learn to love to read? Do you enjoy reading books that cross the whole spectrum of topics and genres? Then I’ve coordinated with Visual Theology to create something that may be right up your alley—the 2025 Christian Reading Challenge. Whether you are a light reader or completely…