Reading through the Bible in a year, each and every year, is extremely beneficial for understanding the biblical story at a macro level. Reading through the Bible in a year is something I do each year and something I recommend to all people (Christians and non-Christians).
However, the sheer size of the Bible can be quite daunting and some may not know where to begin. Many Christians opt for Bible reading plans that have you reading multiple different parts of the Bible each day, such as an OT narrative passage, a Psalm, a Proverb, and a NT passage. Although this can give the reader daily variety, reading plans that put you in multiple different parts of the Bible each day make it difficult to grasp the biblical story at a macro level and make it difficult to remember what you are supposed to read each day.
Thus, I have put together 6 Bible reading plans for reading through the Bible in a year that are underutilized by many Christians, but that can be very helpful for understanding the content of the Bible.
There are three things to note before we get into the plans. First, you should read four chapters per day. All of these plans assume you are reading four chapters a day (click here to see why). Second, all of my plans have you reading one book of the Bible at a time. I do not recommend reading plans that have you reading multiple Bible books at a time. Third, this article is only presenting reading plans. For help staying motivated while reading, see my article on that topic HERE.
Reading Plan 1: Sequentially according to English Bible Book Order
Surprisingly, many Christians underutilize the obvious and sensible reading plan of reading the Bible sequentially. The order of the biblical books in our English Bibles is very logical and is, thus, a great plan to follow for reading through the entire Bible. The Old Testament is in three groups and the New Testament is in three groups. Knowing why the various books have been ordered in the way they are will help you make sense of the content. Allow me to briefly explain the book order of both Testaments before I give the reading plan in a table.
Grouping of the Old Testament Books
| Book Group | Category/Genre |
|---|---|
| Genesis–Esther | History. These books trace the history of God’s salvific work from Creation, to the exile, to the return from exile, to the struggles of God’s people after their return. The books are ordered sequentially, so Genesis–Esther actually reads as one big story. |
| Job–Song of Songs | Poetry. These books are all poetry. They have been put together because they are from the same genre. The dating is extremely difficult for some (such as Job and certain psalms). |
| Isaiah–Malachi | Prophecy. These books are all written by prophets. They span several centuries and periods in salvation history (some are written prior to the exile, during the exile, or after the exile). The English editors have arranged them somewhat awkwardly. The Prophets are first arranged according to length: Isaiah–Daniel are the longest and called the Major Prophets (i.e., longer, not more important); Hosea–Malachi are the shorter of the prophetic books and are called the Minor Prophets (i.e., shorter, not less important). Second, the Major Prophets and Minor Prophets are arranged chronologically for the most part (i.e., Is–Daniel is chronological and Hosea–Mal is roughly chronological). |
Grouping of the New Testament Books
| Book Group | Category/Genre |
|---|---|
| Matthew–Acts | History. These books trace the history of God’s salvific work from Jesus’ birth to the spread of the gospel throughout much of the known world. The book of Acts comes after the four Gospels because it narrates the events after Jesus’ ascension. |
| Romans–Philemon | Letters from Paul. These books (or letters) have been put together because they all have the same author—the Apostle Paul. |
| Hebrews–Revelation | Letters from Other Authors. The final grouping of New Testament books are letters written by authors other than the Apostle Paul. The book of Revelation is the very last letter because it surveys the return of Jesus in the most detail. Confessional scholars also regard it as the last New Testament book to be written. |
Reading Plan
If you choose the sequential reading plan according to the English Bible book order, you should follow this reading plan:
| Genesis | History |
| Exodus | |
| Leviticus | |
| Numbers | |
| Deuteronomy | |
| Joshua | |
| Judges | |
| Ruth | |
| 1 Samuel | |
| 2 Samuel | |
| 1 Kings | |
| 2 Kings | |
| 1 Chronicles | |
| 2 Chronicles | |
| Ezra | |
| Nehemiah | |
| Esther | |
| Job | Poetry |
| Psalms | |
| Proverbs | |
| Ecclesiastes | |
| Song of Songs | |
| Isaiah | Prophecy |
| Jeremiah | |
| Lamentations | |
| Ezekiel | |
| Daniel | |
| Hosea | |
| Joel | |
| Amos | |
| Obadiah | |
| Jonah | |
| Micah | |
| Nahum | |
| Habakkuk | |
| Zephaniah | |
| Haggai | |
| Zechariah | |
| Malachi | |
| Matthew | History |
| Mark | |
| Luke | |
| John | |
| Acts | |
| Romans | Letters from the Apostle Paul |
| 1 Corinthians | |
| 2 Corinthians | |
| Galatians | |
| Ephesians | |
| Philippians | |
| Colossians | |
| 1 Thessalonians | |
| 2 Thessalonians | |
| 1 Timothy | |
| 2 Timothy | |
| Titus | |
| Philemon | |
| Hebrews | Letters from other authors |
| James | |
| 1 Peter | |
| 2 Peter | |
| 1 John | |
| 2 John | |
| 3 John | |
| Jude | |
| Revelation |
Reading Plan 2: Sequentially according to Hebrew Bible Book Order
It may surprise you, but the Hebrew Bible orders the Old Testament slightly differently from all English Bibles. Reading the Bible sequentially according to the Hebrew Bible book order is underutilized because many Christians simply do not know that there is a different order to the Old Testament. The Old Testament is still ordered in three groups, but they are given different labels and the book order is different. Here is the Hebrew Bible’s ordering of the Old Testament:
| Book Group | Category/Genre |
|---|---|
| Genesis–Deuteronomy | Torah. The five books of Moses, called the Torah, make up the first category. Torah means “law.” |
| Joshua–2 Kings (excluding Ruth), Isaiah–Malachi (excluding Daniel and Lamentations | Prophets. Because the historical books such as Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings were written by prophets, they have been included in this category. |
| Job–Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, 1–2 Chronicles. | Writings. The Writings encompass the rest of the biblical books. Numerous suggestions as to why Daniel and Lamentations are in this category have been put forward. It has also been suggested that 1–2 Chronicles were the last two books of the Old Testament to be written, which is why they are the last two books in the Hebrew Bible. |
If you choose the sequential reading plan according to the Hebrew Bible book order, you should follow this reading plan (note that the New Testament order does not change because the Hebrew Bible does not include the NT):
| Genesis | Torah (Law) |
| Exodus | |
| Leviticus | |
| Numbers | |
| Deuteronomy | |
| Joshua | Prophets |
| Judges | |
| 1 Samuel | |
| 2 Samuel | |
| 1 Kings | |
| 2 Kings | |
| Isaiah | |
| Jeremiah | |
| Ezekiel | |
| Hosea | |
| Joel | |
| Amos | |
| Obadiah | |
| Jonah | |
| Micah | |
| Nahum | |
| Habakkuk | |
| Zephaniah | |
| Haggai | |
| Zechariah | |
| Malachi | |
| Psalms | Writings |
| Job | |
| Proverbs | |
| Ruth | |
| Song of Songs | |
| Ecclesiastes | |
| Lamentations | |
| Esther | |
| Daniel | |
| Ezra | |
| Nehemiah | |
| 1 Chronicles | |
| 2 Chronicles | |
| Matthew | History |
| Mark | |
| Luke | |
| John | |
| Acts | |
| Romans | Letters from the Apostle Paul |
| 1 Corinthians | |
| 2 Corinthians | |
| Galatians | |
| Ephesians | |
| Philippians | |
| Colossians | |
| 1 Thessalonians | |
| 2 Thessalonians | |
| 1 Timothy | |
| 2 Timothy | |
| Titus | |
| Philemon | |
| Hebrews | Letters from other authors |
| James | |
| 1 Peter | |
| 2 Peter | |
| 1 John | |
| 2 John | |
| 3 John | |
| Jude | |
| Revelation |
Reading Plan 3: Chronologically according to Content of the Biblical Books
Due to the division of the biblical books into various groups as seen above, the books are not all ordered chronologically. For example, the book of Isaiah records the prophecies of Isaiah during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. The reigns of those kings are recorded in 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles. However, the book of Isaiah is found well after the books of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles in our English Bibles. Thus, it can be helpful to rearrange the books of the Bible so that they are in roughly chronological order based on the content of the books, not the supposed date they were written.
A second issue surrounds the dating of Old Testament prophetic books and New Testament letters. Some OT prophetic books do not state under which king(s) the prophecies were given, making dating difficult and sometimes controversial. Further, the dating of the NT letters can be difficult because most of them do not give clear indicators as to when they were written, especially since most were very personal and the original recipients would have known the author’s situation. Regarding the NT, I date all the letters prior to AD 70 with the possible exception of Revelation, which could have been written afterward.
Because I do not recommend reading part of one book and then part of another book, the below order is roughly chronological.
| Books of Bible | Reason for Placement |
|---|---|
| Genesis | This is clearly first because of the creation account. |
| Job | Job is notoriously difficult to date. However, the Sinai covenant that was established in Exodus 19–24 that includes the Law and the Tabernacle does not seem to have been established in Job’s day, suggesting it was prior to the Exodus. We put it here because it clearly is after the events of creation. |
| Exodus | Moses wrote Psalm 90. However, because we are not splitting up books of the Bible, you will not read this psalm until we arrive at the book of Psalms (the Psalter). |
| Leviticus | — |
| Numbers | — |
| Deuteronomy | — |
| Joshua | — |
| Judges | — |
| Ruth | The events of Ruth happened during the time of the Judges. |
| 1 Samuel | — |
| 2 Samuel | — |
| 1 Chronicles | 1 Chronicles contains similar content to 2 Samuel in that it is primarily about king David. |
| Psalms | Since just over half the psalms are attributed to king David, this is the best time to read the Psalter. |
| 1 Kings | 1 Kings recounts all the kings of Israel and Judah from Solomon to Jehoshaphat in Judah and Ahaziah in Israel. |
| Proverbs | Mostly written by Solomon. Portions were written by Agur (Prov 30:1) and Lemuel (Prov 31:1) |
| Ecclesiastes | Written by Solomon |
| Song of Songs | Written by Solomon |
| 2 Kings | 2 Kings recounts all the kings of Israel and Judah from Jehoram over Israel and Joram over Judah to the exile of both kingdoms. |
| 2 Chronicles | 2 Chronicles recounts all the kings of Judah from Solomon to the exile of Judah (it largely ignores the northern kingdom of Israel). Since 2 Chronicles covers the content of 1–2 Kings in less space, I have put it after those two books |
| Joel | Probably prophesied during the reign of Jehoram of Judah whose reign is recounted in 2 Kings. |
| Obadiah | Probably prophesied around the same time as Joel (during the reigns of Jehoram and Joash of Judah whose reigns are recounted in 2 Kings). |
| Jonah | Probably prophesied during the reign of Uzziah (also called Azariah) of Judah. |
| Amos | Prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah (also called Azariah) of Judah and Jeroboam II of Israel (Amos 1:1). |
| Hosea | Prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah (also called Azariah), Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah (all of Judah), and Jeroboam II of Israel (Hos 1:1). |
| Isaiah | Prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah (also called Azariah), Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah (Is 1:1) |
| Micah | Prophesied during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah of Judah (Mic 1:1). |
| Nahum | Probably prophesied during the reign of Josiah of Judah. |
| Zephaniah | Prophesied during the reign of Josiah of Judah (Zeph 1:1) |
| Jeremiah | Prophesied from the reign of Josiah of Judah until the captivity of Jerusalem by Babylon (Jer 1:1–3). |
| Habakkuk | Probably prophesied toward the end of the reign of Josiah of Judah or just prior to the captivity of Jerusalem. |
| Daniel | Began prophesying in the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim of Judah (also called Eliakim) when Nebuchadnezzar was besieging Jerusalem (Dan 1:1) |
| Lamentations | Probably prophesied shortly after the captivity of Jerusalem by Babylon. The author is Jeremiah. |
| Ezekiel | Prophesied during the Exile of Judah five years after king Jehoiachin was exiled to Babylon (Ezek 1:1–2). |
| Ezra | Return of the exiles to Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the temple |
| Haggai | Prophesied after the exile was over and some Jews had returned to Jerusalem to rebuild and resettle it, in the sixth month of the second year of king Darius (Hag 1:1). Haggai prophesied about rebuilding the temple. Ezra also mentioned Haggai prophesied (Ezra 5:1; 6:14). |
| Zechariah | Prophesied after the exile was over and some Jews had returned to Jerusalem to rebuild and resettle it, in the eighth month of the second year of king Darius (Zech 1:1). Ezra also mentioned Zechariah prophesied during this period (Ezra 5:1; 6:14). |
| Esther | The events of Esther happened after the exiles returned, but prior to Nehemiah’s arrival in Jerusalem. |
| Nehemiah | — |
| Malachi | Prophesied after the temple had been rebuilt, roughly 400 years before Jesus. |
| Matthew | You could flip Matthew and Luke if you like. |
| Luke | — |
| John | John doesn’t have a birth narrative, but it does mention Jesus’ eternality. John’s Gospel also contains a fair bit of action after Jesus’ resurrection. |
| Mark | Mark comes after Matthew, Luke, and John because Mark’s Gospel does not contain a birth narrative. |
| Acts | — |
| James | Considered by many to be the earliest of the NT letters. |
| 1 Thessalonians | This is regarded by many as Paul’s first letter |
| 2 Thessalonians | Some have argued that this letter was written prior to 1 Thessalonians. |
| Galatians | — |
| 1 Corinthians | — |
| 2 Corinthians | — |
| Romans | — |
| Ephesians | — |
| Philemon | — |
| Colossians | — |
| Philippians | — |
| 1 Timothy | — |
| Titus | — |
| 2 Timothy | — |
| 1 Peter | — |
| 2 Peter | — |
| Hebrews | — |
| Jude | — |
| 1 John | — |
| 2 John | — |
| 3 John | — |
| Revelation | Largely considered the last book in the Bible to be written. |
Reading Plan 4: Longest Book to Shortest Book
Sometimes I am quite motivated to read the Bible at the beginning of the year, so I begin with the longest book while my motivation is high. When my motivation begins to wane as the year goes on, the books get shorter and shorter, which encourages me to keep reading! Because many Christians have high motivation to read their Bible at the beginning of the year, this underutilized plan should be favoured.
Here is the list of the books of the Bible from longest to shortest according to English word count (click here for original language word count) and then according to chapter count (since I recommend you read four chapters per day):
| Bible Book | English Word Count (ESV) |
|---|---|
| Psalms | 42,295 |
| Jeremiah | 40,455 |
| Ezekiel | 37,206 |
| Genesis | 36,346 |
| Isaiah | 35,263 |
| Numbers | 30,957 |
| Exodus | 30,892 |
| Deuteronomy | 27,545 |
| 2 Chronicles | 24,798 |
| Luke | 24,616 |
| 1 Samuel | 24,126 |
| Acts | 23,471 |
| Leviticus | 23,438 |
| 1 Kings | 23,421 |
| 2 Kings | 22,777 |
| Matthew | 22,648 |
| 2 Samuel | 19,735 |
| John | 18,892 |
| 1 Chronicles | 18,525 |
| Judges | 18,287 |
| Joshua | 17,980 |
| Job | 17,610 |
| Proverbs | 14,531 |
| Mark | 14,351 |
| Revelation | 11,455 |
| Daniel | 11,242 |
| Nehemiah | 9,846 |
| Romans | 9,492 |
| 1 Corinthians | 9,282 |
| Hebrews | 6,908 |
| Ezra | 6,893 |
| 2 Corinthians | 6,072 |
| Zechariah | 6,053 |
| Esther | 5,478 |
| Ecclesiastes | 5,339 |
| Hosea | 4,966 |
| Amos | 4,048 |
| Lamentations | 3,254 |
| Galatians | 3,106 |
| Ephesians | 3,016 |
| Micah | 3,002 |
| Song of Songs | 2,533 |
| 1 John | 2,499 |
| Ruth | 2,427 |
| 1 Peter | 2,393 |
| James | 2,319 |
| 1 Timothy | 2,317 |
| Philippians | 2,147 |
| Colossians | 1,936 |
| Joel | 1,895 |
| 1 Thessalonians | 1,844 |
| Malachi | 1,738 |
| 2 Timothy | 1,633 |
| Zephaniah | 1,556 |
| 2 Peter | 1,549 |
| Habakkuk | 1,357 |
| Jonah | 1,299 |
| Nahum | 1,111 |
| Haggai | 1,083 |
| 2 Thessalonians | 1,065 |
| Titus | 926 |
| Obadiah | 604 |
| Jude | 604 |
| Philemon | 460 |
| 3 John | 302 |
| 2 John | 300 |
| Bible Book | Bible Chapter Count |
|---|---|
| Psalms | 150 |
| Isaiah | 66 |
| Jeremiah | 52 |
| Genesis | 50 |
| Ezekiel | 48 |
| Job | 42 |
| Exodus | 40 |
| Numbers | 36 |
| 2 Chronicles | 36 |
| Deuteronomy | 34 |
| 1 Samuel | 31 |
| Proverbs | 31 |
| 1 Chronicles | 29 |
| Matthew | 28 |
| Acts | 28 |
| Leviticus | 27 |
| 2 Kings | 25 |
| Joshua | 24 |
| 2 Samuel | 24 |
| Luke | 24 |
| 1 Kings | 22 |
| Revelation | 22 |
| Judges | 21 |
| John | 21 |
| Mark | 16 |
| Romans | 16 |
| 1 Corinthians | 16 |
| Hosea | 14 |
| Zechariah | 14 |
| Nehemiah | 13 |
| 2 Corinthians | 13 |
| Hebrews | 13 |
| Ecclesiastes | 12 |
| Daniel | 12 |
| Esther | 10 |
| Ezra | 10 |
| Amos | 9 |
| Song of Songs | 8 |
| Micah | 7 |
| Galatians | 6 |
| Ephesians | 6 |
| 1 Timothy | 6 |
| Lamentations | 5 |
| 1 Thessalonians | 5 |
| 1 John | 5 |
| James | 5 |
| 1 Peter | 5 |
| Jonah | 4 |
| Malachi | 4 |
| Ruth | 4 |
| Philippians | 4 |
| Colossians | 4 |
| 2 Timothy | 4 |
| Joel | 3 |
| Nahum | 3 |
| Habakkuk | 3 |
| Zephaniah | 3 |
| 2 Thessalonians | 3 |
| Titus | 3 |
| 2 Peter | 3 |
| Haggai | 2 |
| Obadiah | 1 |
| Philemon | 1 |
| 2 John | 1 |
| 3 John | 1 |
| Jude | 1 |
Reading Plan 5: Shortest Book to Longest Book
Sometimes my motivation is low at the beginning of the year or I have a lot going on. In years like this, I like to begin with the shortest book for motivation and work up to reading the longest. For this plan, just look at the above tables and reverse them.
Reading Plan 6: Whatever Order You Desire
The final underutilized reading plan is the one you create! This the plan that I recommend for those who have a good grasp of the content of the Bible and have been reading their Bibles every year for quite some years. If you’re not familiar with the content of the Bible and the biblical storyline, choosing whatever book fancies your interest may confuse you.
Sometimes I like to read whatever book fancies my interest. Sometimes I like to pair books with similar theological content (like Leviticus and Ezekiel because Ezekiel draws heavily from Leviticus). Because the Pentateuch (Gen–Deut) is quite a long set, I frequently like to read a short book between each one of the five books that makes up the Pentateuch (or I read one of the five books of the Psalter between each Pentateuchal book as it has been suggested that the Psalter was split into five books to mirror the Pentateuch). Ultimately, whatever order keeps you interested and in the Bible is a good reading plan.
Keep on reading and never stop!