Intro • Understanding Biblical Flow

A quick summary of how the Bible flows from beginning to end. This section gives you a big-picture roadmap – from creation, to God’s covenant with His people, to the kings and prophets, to Jesus and the early Church – so that as you read individual books, you always know where you are in the story.

However, you don't have to read the Bible in this order. You don’t have to remember every detail for scripture to make sense. The goal is simply to see how the parts fit together into one unified story that points to Jesus.

• Creation

  The fall of man, the first sin, why we need a Savior.

  Primary book: Genesis, Adam to Noah (The Flood).

• God’s Promise: The Covenant

  Abraham & Moses – the “founding fathers of Judaism,” but ultimately what became Christianity.

  Primary books: Genesis & Exodus

• God’s Kingdom

  King David, his son King Solomon, and the lineage to Jesus Christ (Adam → David → Jesus).

  Primary books: 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings

• Prophets

  Still in the Old Testament. The promise of a Messiah – especially through Isaiah.

  Primary book for this guide: Isaiah

• Jesus: The New Covenant

  First four books of the New Testament – the Gospels.

  Primary books for this guide: John, Matthew, then Luke

• Paul's Ministry

  The Holy Spirit & the foundation of the Christian Church.

  Primary books: Acts, Romans

• Christianity, The Way

  Living as a follower of Christ – primary letters like Corinthians, Ephesians, and Philippians.

• The End & The New Beginning

  John’s vision. The beast. The second coming of Christ. Eternity.

  Primary books: 1, 2 & 3 John, Jude, Revelation

1) Gospel of John

Start with Jesus, not Genesis.

Read time: 75–90 mins.

Author

Probably John, one of the 12 disciples, “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23).

Why Start Here?

The first thing you may notice is that it begins like Genesis 1:1, in that John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Jesus = The Word = God. John is telling us who Jesus is.

Proverbs & Psalms

You can go ahead and get in a regular habit of reading Proverbs & Psalms. Just a chapter a day is great. More on these books later.

2a) Genesis: Back to the Beginning

Read time (key sections): 75–90 mins. Whole book: about 2.5 hours.

Author

Traditionally said to be Moses. He is the mediator between God and the people (Israel). He tells us the story of creation, and gives us the Law (Ten Commandments) from God.

What To Read

You can choose to read the entire book, or these key parts:

• Genesis 1–3 → Creation, Adam & Eve, the Fall.
• Genesis 6–9 → Noah and the Flood.
• Genesis 12, 15, 17 → God’s promise to Abraham.
• Genesis 22 → Abraham & Isaac – picture of sacrifice.
• Genesis 28 → Jacob.
• Genesis 37, 39–50 → Joseph and God’s providence.

Why read Genesis after John?

John says, "In the beginning..."; Genesis does too, and also shows you what that beginning looked like. Since you've read John, Genesis 1:1 makes more sense. The Godhead (3 persons of God, the Trinity, "let us") are all there: God the Father, His Word (Jesus), and His Spirit who is hovering over the waters before "let there be light".

You meet:

• Adam, whose sin brings death and brokenness.
• Abraham, who receives God’s promise that through his family all nations will be blessed – which ultimately points to Jesus.

Genesis begins the lineage: Adam → Noah → Abraham → Isaac → Jacob → Judah → David → Jesus.

Genesis answers, “What went wrong?” and “What did God promise to do about it?”

2b) Exodus: Moses & The Covenant

Feel free to read all of Exodus, but you don't have to if you'd like to speed things up. At least read just the backbone to understand more context for how you're jumping around the text.

Read time (key sections): 30–35 mins. Whole book: 2–2.5 hours.

Key Passages

• Exodus 1–3 → Israel in slavery, God calls Moses.
• Exodus 12 → Passover.
• Exodus 14 → Red Sea.
• Exodus 19–20 → Ten Commandments at Sinai.
• Exodus 32–34 → Golden calf & God’s mercy.

Who Moses Is

• A Hebrew, rescued as a baby, raised in Pharaoh’s house, runs away, then God calls him back.
• Moses is the one through whom God gives the Law (Ten Commandments) and the covenant.

The Ten Commandments are later summarized by Jesus in his famous Sermon on the Mount with two commandments:

• Commandments 1–4 → Jesus says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
• Commandments 5–10 → Jesus says, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37–39)

Why This Matters

• The Passover points forward to Jesus as the Lamb of God whose blood saves.
• The Ten Commandments show God’s holy character and our need for grace.
• Understanding Moses helps later when Jesus goes up on a mountain and gives the Sermon on the Mount. Here, Jesus mirrors Moses, where Moses goes up on Mount Sinai to hear from God and give the law to the people. When Jesus speaks on the mount, we hear directly from God in the flesh.

3) Isaiah & Matthew – read together

Read time: Matthew – about 90 mins; Isaiah – about 2.5 hours.

Why?

Connect Old Testament prophecy to Jesus’ New Testament teachings. Read both Isaiah and Matthew in parallel. Below are the main sections of Isaiah. Then Matthew features the Sermon on the Mount. Here, Jesus himself gives us the hard truths of following Him – how to truly love God and others.

Authors

Isaiah: a prophet in Judah around the 700s BC.
Matthew: some scholars say Matthew (one of the 12 disciples) wrote it; others say the author is unknown.

Isaiah – Main Sections

• Isaiah 1 → the problem of sin & unfaithfulness.
• Isaiah 6 → Isaiah’s vision of God’s holiness.
• Isaiah 7, 9, 11 → Messianic prophecies – the coming child/King.
• Isaiah 40 → comfort & God’s greatness.
• Isaiah 52–53 → the suffering servant – huge pointer to Jesus.
• Isaiah 61 → good news to the poor, brokenhearted.

Historical Significance

In the mid-1900s, a complete scroll of Isaiah was discovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls near Qumran. This scroll is over 2,000 years old and yet its text closely matches the book of Isaiah we have in modern Bibles today, with only small spelling and wording differences that don’t change the message. It’s a powerful reminder of how carefully God’s people preserved Scripture across the centuries.

Matthew – Key Sections

• Matthew 1–2 → Jesus’ genealogy & birth; note the line from Abraham → David → Jesus.
• Matthew 3–4 → John the Baptist, temptation.
• Matthew 5–7 → Sermon on the Mount.

Isaiah tells us what God promises. In Matthew, we see how Jesus fulfills those promises.

4) The House of David – 1&2 Samuel, 1&2 Kings, Proverbs & Psalms

First off, check out the show House Of David on Amazon Prime! Great battle scenes and choreography, strong acting and writing, and beautiful cinematography.

Read time: Proverbs – 60 mins; Psalms – 3 hours; 1 & 2 Samuel – 3 hours; 1 & 2 Kings – 3–3.5 hours.

Why go back to the Old Testament now?

We need to know who King David and King Solomon are. Solomon is the son of David. They wrote a lot of godly wisdom to study daily. So we read the books of Proverbs and Psalms as daily wisdom, praise, and worship, but it’s important to know the context – who wrote these books.

For Star Wars Fans

These King David stories are epic. If you’re into Star Wars, think of David as a real-life Jedi. The chosen one like Anakin- an absolutely fierce and fearless warrior empowered not by “the Force,” but by the Holy Spirit as he takes down Goliath. Goliath’s massive sword becomes David’s one-of-a-kind lightsaber. Samuel is the wise mentor, strong in God, like a real-life Yoda. Solomon, David’s son, is a bit like Luke Skywalker, carrying on the legacy and knowledge of God- becoming one of the greatest and most remembered kings the world has known. And David’s best friend Jonathan (Saul’s son) is like Obi-Wan: loyal, courageous, and deeply devoted to God. In that sense, the path of following Jesus is like the journey to becoming a Jedi Master—only Scripture calls it sanctification. And the Dark Side is obvious: the sin, temptations, and distractions that try to pull us away from the path of righteousness.

Read These Books Daily

• Proverbs – book of wisdom → written mostly by Solomon.
• Psalms – book of praise and worship → written mostly by David, but also others.

Stories of Samuel, David, and Solomon

1–2 Samuel & 1–2 Kings are historical narratives telling Israel’s story with God. Time period is around 1010–970 BC.

Authors: likely compiled by prophets and later scribes; tradition associates Samuel with early portions.

David is a Worshiper

• The shepherd-king chosen by God; anointed king by Samuel.
• Deeply flawed, but deeply repentant.
• The one to whom God promises, “your throne will be established forever” (2 Sam 7) – ultimately fulfilled in Jesus, the Son of David.

Solomon, David’s Son, Wrestles With Life

• A wise king. Legend has it he is the wisest and richest man to ever live. A wise prayer would be to regularly ask God for wisdom like Solomon.
• Concludes that "everything is meaningless without God." Later you can read the book Ecclesiastes for more of his reflections.

5a) Luke, Acts, & the Holy Spirit

Now we go from promise and King → to the cross, resurrection, and the birth of the Church. At this point, you’ve already read John and Matthew. The Gospel of Luke offers a beautiful third angle.

Read time: Luke – about 105 mins; Acts – about 100 mins.

Author of Luke

Most historians say Luke wrote this book even though the writer doesn’t say specifically who he is. Luke is a physician and companion of Paul.

Author of Acts

Also Luke. Acts is like “Luke: Part 2.”

Why Luke & Acts Matter

They show the Trinity in action → God the Father’s plan, God the Son’s finished work, and God the Holy Spirit empowering the Church. You see how the story moves from Jesus and the disciples to the gospel going out to the nations.

The Trinity

It’s important to know that the word “Trinity” is never mentioned in the Bible. While the word “Trinity” is not in the Bible, the concept was developed by early Church Fathers in the 2nd–4th centuries to reconcile several clear biblical truths:

• There is only one God (monotheism: Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 44:6; James 2:19).
• The Father is God.
• The Son (Jesus) is God (John 1:1, 14; 8:58; 10:30; 20:28; Romans 9:5; Colossians 2:9; Hebrews 1:8).
• The Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3–4; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 2 Corinthians 3:17–18).
• The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are personally distinct (Jesus’ baptism in Matthew 3:16–17; John 14–17).

The Trinity is the attempt of the human mind to conceptualize who and what God is. One eternal Being who is three Persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. One God, all God. We’re not asked to fully understand Him, we’re asked to fully believe Him.

5b) Ephesians, Philippians, 1 & 2 Corinthians, & Romans

Read time: Romans – about 40 mins; 1 & 2 Corinthians – about 110 mins; Ephesians – 10–15 mins; Philippians – about 10 mins.

Paul, His Letters, & the Beginning of the Church

Paul teaches us how to walk out life in the New Covenant. But as you learn in Acts 9, first he was Saul, but then encounters the resurrected Jesus.

Author

Romans and these letters are written by Paul (Saul).

Romans (at least chapters 5–8)

Sin, grace, justification, and life in the Spirit. In Romans, Paul writes a deep and structured explanation of the gospel.

Ephesians

Who you are in Christ and how the Church is one new family. Written to the church in Ephesus (and likely surrounding churches). Ephesus had the sensuality and partying of Las Vegas and the economic impact of New York City.

Philippians

Joy in Christ, even in suffering. Written when Paul was in prison. Shows the mindset of Christ (Philippians 2) and joyful endurance.

1 & 2 Corinthians

Messy, real church life + God’s power in weakness. Written to a very broken but loved church in Corinth. Here we get the deeply philosophical and theological verse of 2 Corinthians 12:9 – “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Corinthians is a great place to talk about how God meets us in weakness, in humility, not performance.

Total Read Time

Estimated total: 45–50 hours.

• 1–1.5 hrs/day → about 5–7 weeks.
• 30–45 mins/day → about 10–14 weeks.
• 15–30 mins/day → about 4–6 months.

6) Quick and Short Extras

• James → wisdom on living out faith.
• 1 Peter → hope in suffering.
• 1 John → assurance of God’s love and walking in light.