Bible Study Resources
I have been doing in-depth bible studies for around 5 years now. When I say in-depth I am not exaggerating. I spend hours praying, reading and researching to try and get a better grasp of what I am studying. I am by NO MEANS a professional or anything special when it comes to bible studies. I just have gained confidence, techniques and resources over the years. I will list a few resources and links below to help you dive in deeper when you are studying the Word.
Studying, Interpreting and Applying the Bible – by Walter Henrichson
This is by far the best book out there when it comes to helping you learn how to study the bible. It teaches you how to teach yourself. How to study, interpret and apply the bible. You will not regret reading this book. Available through Amazon for purchase. Click here for link.
www.BlueletterBible.org
This is an AMAZING resource! Not only does it have tons of versions of the bible, but it has the Strong’s Concordance (all the Greek and Hebrew – how the bible was originally written). If you are unfamiliar with Greek and Hebrew (I have never studied them either) this is a super tool. You can click on the word as you see it in scripture and it will take you to the concordance so you can see how it was intended to be written in the original. Our American English words now-a-days are not necessarily the same as they were when the bible was written. This tool helps you understand the meaning so much more then just reading the scriptures in the words you and I know today.
Example:
- Look up John 4:14
- Click on the Jhn 4:14 Hyperlink (in blue)
- Now you will see the entire verse broken down and laid out. The English version you are viewing it in (I love NASB the best) on the left and the original Greek on the right according to Strong’s Concordance.
- See the words “springing up”. There is a blue hyperlink “G242”, the Greek word written in Greek and the English translation hallomai. Click on the blue hyperlink G4095.
- In the box labeled “Outline of Biblical Usage” you will see the difference definitions of that word according to the original text. For this example there are 2 possible definitions: 1) to leap or 2) to spring up, gush up: of water
- To find out which or these definitions is the one for the verse you are reading you must look at the box labeled “Thayer’s Greek Lexicon”. Click on the blue hyperlink under the box labeled “Click Here for the Rest of the Entry”.
- Now this might be overwhelming and look like a ton of gibberish. Using your elementary school days think back to the use of Roman Numerals. Read through the this section looking for “Jn. iv. 14” Which is John 4:14 in Roman numerals. Here is it listed after the definition “to spring up, gush up: of water”, which means that is the original definition the author (more importantly God) wanted used in His written Word.
- Occasionally you will not find your verse listed in the Strong’s break down of biblical usage. I find this frustrating and read through it several times. I am not sure why its not listed but in those cases I make my own best educated guess as to which definition the Holy Spirit would want me to use.
BlueletterBible also has other great features like:
- Commentaries
- Devotionals
- Side by side verse comparison
- Audio options such as listening to a study or listen to the bible being read to you
- Much, much more!
OpenBible.info
This is my favorite place to get cross references. Using a cool color/shading system you can see references which our peers think are most spot on and beneficial. You can vote yes or no on whether you think that scriptures is a key reference to the one you are comparing.
Once at the main page scroll down a tad and you will see CROSS REFERENCES under the section “LABS”. Once you click on it it will bring you to this page. Here you can search any verse in the bible. For consistency reasons, let’s search John 4:14 again. Once you are viewing the page you can see that each cross reference box is a shade of pink. From deep pink that is verse searched is shaded, all the way to a light pink/almost white color. Readers like you and me are able to vote whether you feel this is a true and helpful cross reference. There is no signing in, just a little click to help the administrators manage this free and very helpful site.