THE BIBLE STUDY METHODS

In this section some of the most effective Bible study methods are described and accompanied by resources that will allow you to do these studies in your own way. More complete information is to be found in the following book:

Warren, Richard, with William A. Shell, 12 Dynamic Bible Study Methods, Victor Books, Wheaton, Illinois, 1987.

which is unfortunately now out of print. All the material that follows has been taken exclusively from this book and summarized for this course.  I had the privilege of studying this material under William (Bill) Shell in a class on Biblical Interpretation at Reformed Bible College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1988 –1989 and found both him and his teaching very beneficial as his heart was dedicated to the equipping of the saints.  If there is any copyright infringement I am solely to blame and plead the excuse that this material is simply too valuable not to share with others. 

In each case a basic outline of the method will be given and some useful tools for this method will be listed. The studies begin with the basic types and progress toward studies that are more in depth and require greater allocations of time but which will also yield greater results. Each method of Bible study in this document is accompanied by a chart which has been reproduced from the above book as a series of links to a chart in either HTML format or Adobe PDF format. The charts are also available for download as a single file in either format: HTML download - Adobe PDF download. Please note that you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your system in order to make use of the PDF charts. The reader may be freely downloaded from the Adobe website.

The Bible study methods discussed in this document are:

1 - Method One – The Devotional Method of Bible Study

2 - Method Two – The Chapter Summary Method of Bible Study

3 - Method Three – The Character Quality Method of Bible Study

4 - Method Four – The Thematic Method of Bible Study

5 - Method Five – The Biographical Method of Bible Study

6 - Method Six – The Topical Method of Bible Study

7 - Method Seven – The Word Study Method of Bible Study

8 - Method Eight – The Book Background Method of Bible Study

9 - Method Nine – The Book Survey Method of Bible Study

10 - Method Ten – The Chapter Analysis Method of Bible Study

11 - Method Eleven – The Book Synthesis Method of Bible Study

12 - Method Twelve – The Verse by Verse Method of Bible Study

Method 1 - The Devotional Method of Bible Study ~ Chart: HTML / PDF

In the Devotional Method of Bible study a passage of the Bible, large or small, is read and meditated on until the Holy Spirit guides you to an application of the passage into you life in a way that is personal, practical, possible, and measurable. It is the simplest and least costly in terms of time of all the Bible study methods in this outline. The goal is to take the Bible seriously and to do what it says to do.

1.1 - Tools

1.1.1 - Bible

1.2 - Hints

1.2.1 - This method can be used as part of your quite times with God

1.2.2 - Requires little investment of time and can be done as you travel or wait for life to catch up to you

1.3 - Steps

Step 1 - Pray for understanding and guidance as you apply the passage into your life.

Step 2 - Meditate on the verse(s) you have chosen for your study

Step 3 - Write out the application you will make from the passage into your life.

Step 4 - Memorize a verse from the passage that summarizes what you have learned.

Step 5 - Assess your application in the weeks that follow for success or failure.

Method 2 - The Chapter Summary Method of Bible Study ~ Chart: HTML / PDF

In the Chapter Summary Method of Bible study we attempt to gain an understanding of the contents of any given chapter of the Bible by reading it in its entirety several times (at least five), asking a series of questions relating to the content of the chapter, and ending with a general summary of the chapter. Note that the chapter divisions currently in our Bible are not in the original manuscripts but were added later (about 1,200 AD) by Bishop Stephen Langton in order to make the various parts of the Bible more accessible to the general reader. Although usually well done, at some points the chapter divisions interrupt the natural flow of the text. There are 1,189 chapters in the Protestant Bible so there is a wealth of material to study.

2.1 - Tools

2.1.1 - Bible

2.1.2 - Cross references

2.2 - Hints

2.2.1 - Read the chapter from a Bible without notes in order to encourage fresh insights rather than reaffirming those already found.

2.2.2 - Read the chapter without stopping in order to get a feel for the flow of the chapter.

2.2.3 - Read the chapter in various translations noting important differences discovered.

2.2.4 - Read the chapter aloud but quietly to yourself as an aid to concentration.

2.3 - Steps

Step 1 - Caption - Give the chapter a short but descriptive heading. Headings that are short and/or convey a vivid image of the chapter are especially beneficial.

Step 2 - Contents - Make a list or outline of the major point of the chapter.

Step 3 - Chief People - Make a list of the major individuals in the chapter, some reference to the surrounding chapters may be necessary.

Step 4 - Central Verse - Select a verse that is significant in the chapter or which you find is important during this study.

Step 5 - Crucial Word(s) - Make a list of the key word(s) of the chapter.

Step 6 - Challenges - List any difficulties you may have with the chapter. What don't you understand? Are there areas of your life that need changing but cannot be changed?

Step 7 - Cross References - Use your cross references to find other passages in the Bible that help you to understand this chapter.

- You should evaluate cross references in steps:

2.3.7.1 - Internal Cross References - Look for cross references within the book you are studying.

2.3.7.2 - External Cross References - Look for cross references within other books by the same author.

2.3.7.3 - Compare with cross references within the same Testament (Old or New)

2.3.7.4 - Compare with cross references within the Bible as a whole.

- There are also several types of cross reference, three are listed below (see your cross reference resource for more details):

2.3.7.5 - Pure Cross Reference – Says almost exactly the same thing as the verse you are studying.

2.3.7.6 - Illustrative Cross Reference – Illustrates what the verse you are studying is saying.

2.3.7.7 - Contrasting Cross Reference – Says the opposite of what the verse you are studying is saying.

Step 8 - Christ Revealed - As the Bible as a whole is the revelation of Jesus Christ (the Old Testament points to Him, the Gospels give the details of His earthly life, and Acts and the Letters show His activity in the world) it should be possible to find His presence in all areas of the Bible. Find out what you can discover of the nature, ministry, or person of Christ from this chapter.

Step 9 - Central Lesson(s) - List the major lessons taught in the chapter that you have learned at this time (next time you study this chapter entirely new insights may become evident).

Step 10 - Conclusion - Here you will begin to apply what you have learned. Two questions that are important to ask during any application of the Bible are:

2.3.10.1 - How do these insights apply to me personally?

2.3.10.2 - What am I going to do about them? 

Method Three - The Character Quality Method of Bible Study ~ Chart: HTML / PDF

In the Character Quality Method of Bible study we begin to use tools other than the Bible itself in order to discover what the Bible has to say of specific personal characteristics. A major emphasis of this study method is on personal application of the lessons you will be learning into your own life. The main goal of this method of Bible study is to learn God’s view of personal characteristics.

3.1 - Tools

3.1.1 - Bible

3.1.2 - English dictionary

3.1.3 - Bible dictionary

3.1.4 - Lexicon

3.1.5 - Cross references

3.1.6 - Exhaustive concordance

3.1.7 - Topical Bible or topical listings

3.2 - Hints

3.2.1 - Select a character quality that is of interest to you or that you wish to develop or have victory over in your own life.

3.2.2 - This study may take some time, be sure to allocate enough time to complete the study adequately.

3.3 - Method

Step 1 - Select the character quality you wish to study, look it up in an English dictionary and make note of the definition

Step 2 - Name and define the opposite quality, again using the English dictionary

Step 3 - Do a simple word study of the character quality first using the Bible dictionary to define the quality from a Biblical perspective. Use the concordance to find other verses containing the same word(s), remembering that often many different English words can be used to translate the same Hebrew or Greek original and vice versa. Then use the lexicon determine the usage by the author(s) of the word(s) defining this quality.

Step 4 - Find some cross references using either the verse listings within your Bible or a dedicated book of cross references such as "The New Treasury of Scripture Knowledge." The concordance and topical Bible (such as "Nave’s Topical Bible") will also be of benefit in this step.

Step 5 - Do a brief biographical study of at least one person who exhibits the character quality you are studying. Describe in brief the quality and the Bible references to it in this person’s life. Use the following questions to help you along:

3.3.5.1 - What shows this quality in this person’s life?

3.3.5.2 - How did this quality affect this person’s life?

3.3.5.3 - Did this quality help or hinder this person’s growth to maturity, spiritual or otherwise? How?

3.3.5.4 - What are the results of this quality in this person’s life?

Step 6 - Memorize at least one verse from your study that seems to stand out and which will help you as you apply the lessons you are learning into your own life.

Step 7 - Select a situation or a relationship in which to work on this character quality. Remember that we wish to minimize the negative qualities in our lives and emphasize or enhance the positive qualities. Jonah’s stubbornness helps us to see our own in light of its impact on our ability to do the will of God in our lives, whereas Moses’ humility before God in spite of his being able to meet God face to face can shed new light on how we are to treat special characteristics of our own lives.

Step 8 - Think of practical methods by which you may apply the positive aspects of your study into your life. If you are studying the quality of encouragement you might wish to go out of your way to encourage Christian behaviour in you fellow believers.

Step 9 - Make note of progress as you apply these lessons into your life. This will allow you to evaluate your development in the area you have studied.

Method Four - The Thematic Method of Bible Study ~ Chart: HTML / PDF

In the thematic method of Bible study you will approach a theme within the Bible and perform a basic study of it. It is shorter than the Topical Method of Bible study, which comes later in these notes, and is much less exhaustive in its scope. In a topical study you would examine each possible verse that relates to your topic of study, including each sub-them; in a thematic study you will study only those verses that apply directly to a single theme

4.1 - Tools

4.1.1 - Study Bible

4.1.2 - Exhaustive concordance

4.1.3 - Topical Bible or cross references

4.2 - Hints

4.2.1 - Stay narrowly focused on your theme since each associated idea can lead to hundreds of additional cross references causing your simple thematic study to grow quickly into a study requiring a great deal more time and effort than you have allocated.

4.2.2 - Keep your list of questions short as some themes may have one or two hundred references associated with them which, if you have too many questions, would cause you to tire of your study even before it is complete

4.3 - Steps

Step 1 - Choose a theme to study, for your first thematic study you may wish to choose a theme that is relatively simple

Step 2 - Make a list of all the verses you intend to study using the tools described above and select from this list the verses that are most applicable, or important, to your theme

Step 3 - Decide on, and make a list of, the questions you will ask of each verse. If you have written more than five you may wish to choose from this list as five questions is generally more than sufficient for the study

Step 4 - Ask these questions of each verse in your list of step two. You may not be able to obtain an answer for each question in each verse, some verses may only answer one or two of your questions but this does not mean that your verses have been improperly chosen

Step 5 - Draw some conclusions from your study. This would include collating the notes you have made and summarizing the details of the study

Step 6 - Write out a personal application and remember to evaluate your progress.

Method Five - The Biographical Method of Bible Study ~ Chart: HTML / PDF

5.1 - Tools

5.1.1 - Bible

5.1.2 - Exhaustive and/or biographical concordance

5.1.3 - Topical Bible

5.1.4 - Bible dictionary or encyclopedia

5.2 - Hints

5.2.1 - Remember that the person will often be referred to by means other than his/her proper name in many passages

5.3 - Steps

Step 1 - Choose an individual from the Bible for your study. See the list below for a selection of persons from the Bible.

Step 2 - List all references concerning that person. A concordance will help if the person is referred to in the Bible by their proper name, but you may also wish to look for ambiguous references to the person (ie: Pharaoh’s wife, or: the son of Zebedee).

Step 3 - Note your first impression of the person after your first reading of the passages

Step 4 - Make a chronological outline of the person's life after your second reading

Step 5 - Obtain some insights into the person after your third reading

Step 6 - Identify some character qualities after your fourth reading

Step 7 - Show how some other Bible truths are illustrated in this person's life

Step 8 - Summarize the main lesson(s) you have learned

Step 9 - Write out a personal application

Step 10 - Make your study transferable

Step 11 - Note someone with whom you will share the results of this study and commit yourself to doing this.

A Partial List of Biblical People

The three following lists include some of the major men of the Bible, the minor but important men of the Bible, and the prominent women of the Bible.

Major Men of the Bible

Minor but Important Men of the Bible

Prominent Women of the Bible

General Questions for a Biographical Study

Here is a list of seventy questions you can use in constructing a biographical study. You shouldn’t try to use every question listed here in a single study. Depending on the depth of your study and the time you have, select the questions you would like to have answered. The questions are categorized into seven major divisions for easier use. As you think of other questions, add them to this list.

Reputation

1.      Who wrote what we know about this person?

2.      What did people say about him/her?

3.      What did his enemies say about him/her?

4.      What did his/her family (wife/husband, children, brothers, sisters, parents) say about him/her?

5.      What did God say about him/her?

6.      Why do you think God allowed this person to be mentioned in the Bible?

Tests of Character

1.      What were his/her aims and motives?

2.      What was he/she like in his home?

3.      How did he/she respond to failure? Did he/she get discouraged easily?

4.      How did he/she respond to adversity? Did he/she handle criticism well?

5.      How did he/she respond to success? Did he/she get proud when praised?

6.      How did he/she respond to the trivial and mundane things in life? Was he/she faithful in the little things?

7.      How quickly did he/she praise God for the good/bad things that happened to him/her?

8.      How quickly did he/she obey God when told to do something?

Background

1.      What can you discover about his/her family and ancestry?

2.      What does his/her name mean? Why was he/she given that name? Was it ever changed?

3.      What was his/her home life like? How was he/she raised? Where was he/she raised?

4.      What were the characteristics of his/her parents? Did they influence him/her?

5.      Was there anything special about his/her birth?

6.      Where did he/she live? What was his/her everyday life like?

7.      Was he/she exposed to other cultures? Did they affect him/her in any way?

8.      What was the condition of his/her country -- politically and spiritually -- during his/her lifetime?

9.      What kind of training did he/she have? Did he/she have any schooling?

10.    What was his/her occupation?