Read the Bible in the Order of the Hebrew Old Testament (Bible Reading Plan)

ReadingPlan (iPhone)

INTRODUCTION

Before we go any further, let me begin by saying that there are slight variations to this order depending on what Hebrew manuscript you choose. This order is based on the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (BHS) manuscript.

All Hebrew manuscripts have the same major divisional order: The Law, the Prophets, and the Writings. The minor variations between the manuscripts are the minor differences in book order within the three divisions. The three divisions are in the same order in all the manuscripts. Thus, 'Old Testament' in the New Testament is referred to as 'The Law, the Prophets, & the Writings (or David)'. If you are interested in learning more, we recommend Dr. John Sailhamer and Dr. Robert Cole. Dr. Cole, one of our favorite professors at Southeastern Baptist Seminary, was our Old Testament Professor. This Bible Reading Plan is inspired by his teaching of the importance of the Hebrew Old Testament order.

KEY FEATURES

• This is a 1-Year reading plan. It is designed to finish reading the Bible in 309 days.
• There will be a free day every week to reflect on what you have read that week, or to catch up on missed reading, or to read ahead.
• You will read more or less 100 verses a day. Sometimes, it will be as low as 70 verses, and sometimes as high as 130 verses. This inconsistency is to avoid the break in flow between certain chapters.
• As mentioned earlier, this reading plan is based on the BHS book order for the Old Testament (Law, Prophets, & Writings). The New Testament is in the commonly used reading order.
• This reading plan is in thematic order, since the Hebrew Old Testament is in thematic order, not chronological order. Thus, for example, even though Ruth is before Solomon (chronologically), in the Hebrew Old Testament (BHS), Ruth (the woman of strength) is placed after Proverbs 31 (which is about the woman of strength).
• The plan is made available in various formats. You can print it, or add it to your calendar, or use it with certain apps on your smartphone.

ReadingPlan Settings (iPhone)

THE PLAN

• In Spreadsheet format: You can view the reading plan online (Spreadsheet), or download it (Excel) for offline use, or print it (PDF), or use/modify it as you see fit.
• In Calendar format (HTML or iCal or XML): You can add the reading plan to your calendar on your computer/phone/tablet (online/offline), or you can print it, or use/modify it as you see fit. The calendar repeats itself yearly, and leap years will not break it :)
• To use with iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch (ReadingPlan app): Install the ReadingPlan app (one of our favorite iOS apps) from the Apple App Store. Within the app, go to Settings>Reading Plan to browse available reading plans. Download the 'BHS Order' reading plan. Return to Settings, and select 'Bible Link' to choose your preferred Bible app to link to the selected reading plan. This way, when you click on the day's reading in the ReadingPlan app, it will open that day's reading in your preferred Bible app.
• To use with Android/Kindle Fire (And Bible app): Install the And Bible app (our favorite Bible app) from the Google Play Store or from the Amazon Appstore, and follow instructions, in the app, to download one of the available Bible versions (we recommend ESV). Next, using ES File Explorer (or a similar 'file manager' app), create a folder in your SD card named 'jSword', and within that folder, create another folder named 'ReadingPlan'. Now, download the 'BHS 100 (1yr)' file and save it to the newly-created 'ReadingPlan' folder. After this, when you open And Bible and navigate to Menu>More>Reading Plan, you should see 'BHS 100 (1yr)' listed. Select it to use it.

And Bible (Android)

NOTE

This is not the ultimate, infallible reading plan. This is just one of many reading plans out there. We put this together because we believe that there is a purpose behind the order of the Hebrew Old Testament. Also, I think that it will be interesting to read the Old Testament in the order that it was probably read during Jesus' time, and to see the thematic connections between the books. So, if you use it, we hope that it will be a blessing to you. If you run into any trouble, or if there are any mistakes in the reading plan, please let me know and I will do my best to assist.