Finding the best Bible study tools for you

Whether you’re new to the faith, or just looking for some new Bible study tools, chances are you have some questions. Like, should I use a Bible study from one of the big names (or little names) or try this on my own? What translation should I use? How important is it to dig into the original Greek and Hebrew anyway? Is this even something the average person can do?

There was a day when the answer was no to that last question. If you wanted to do more than read the notes in your Bible, you had to either head off to seminary to learn Hebrew and Greek (which is what the Scriptures were originally written in), or hope your pastor paid attention during his language classes.

Thankfully, we have so many resources available now, it’s much easier to grasp the writer’s message.

“There are a lot of great resources,” says Andy Lee, author of the Bible study, Radiant Influence. “So you don’t have to be a seminarian these days to study that way.”

Bibles

Let’s start off with the basics. What Bible translation should you use? There are more than 100 full translations of the Bible in existence… in just about every spoken language.

“If you know any language… you’ll know we don’t always have the perfect counterpart in English,” Lee says. “That is why we have so many translations of the Bible. The translators have done their best in context with the original Greek and Hebrew. It is really important when you start digging in yourself. You start finding that life when you’re digging into the ancient (language).”

The most popular translations include the King James Version (KJV), New International Version (NIV), New Living Translation (NLT) and English Standard Version (ESV). But honestly, the version you are used to or can easily understand is the best place to start.

Lee is a big fan of the Key Word Study Bible. This version has dictionaries in the back for old testament and new testament so the Hebrew and Greek. It also has  numbers by each key words, so you can look the words up and find the definitions and annotations.

“That means they have commentary with them and it is just so powerful,” she says.

Don’t be afraid to start looking at other translations. Sometimes comparing two or three of them can be enlightening as well. And you don’t have to invest in a bunch of Bibles. Tools that can help you dig into other translations include BlueLetterBible.org, BibleGateway.com and the Bible App.

“It is a great resource, you can look up the ancient language there and they have Strongs on BlueLetter.

Commentaries

Study Bibles already include some commentary with the Scripture to help you understand the verses you have read. However, if you want to dig deeper consider commentaries like Matthew Henry, The Baker Illustrated Bible Commentary, or Scofield.

If you are looking for online resources, check out BibleHub.com, BibleStudyTools.com and StudyLight.org.

Concordance

I can hear you now…”a what?”

A Bible concordance is an alphabetical list of words used in the Bible that also lets you know where that word appears in Scripture. It comes in really handy when you want to find a verse, but only remember one word. You can also use it to find all the instances of that word being used. Most Bibles have short concordance in the back of the Bible, but there are more thorough concordances available including exhaustive concordances that include all the words in the bible including a, an and the.

Maps

Who would have thought those lessons on map reading in Girl Scouts would come in so handy, but here we are… reading maps for Bible study! Maps are incredibly helpful at allowing Bible students to understand places references and distances between locations, which can be especially helpful in studying books like the Gospels and Acts when Jesus and his disciples did a lot of moving from town to town.

You can find maps in the back of most Bibles, but if you are looking for more, the Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts can be really helpful.

Prayer

Do you have to use these physical tools in order to get something out of your Bible study? Of course, not. The Holy Spirit is the best resource in helping you understand what Scripture is saying. In fact, in 1 Corinthians 2:14 it says that the Bible sounds like foolishness to those who don’t have the Spirit. But those who have the Spirit can understand what He means.

So, before you start using these Bible study tools or even get started studying at all, make sure to invite the Holy Spirit to guide you and instruct you. Ask Him to make things clear and to ignite your faith in a way you never could imagine before. He will… because He is faithful. (2 Timothy 2:13)