The ESV Study Bible Daily Reading Plan
You can now download and print the Daily Bible Reading Plan found in the back of the ESV Study Bible and the Literary Study Bible. It is perforated to allow for creating four separate bookmarks, matching the four main sections of the reading plan.
As written in the plan’s introduction…
This schedule of daily Bible readings is designed for reading through the entire Bible in one year.
There are four readings for each day. These readings are divided into four main sections: Psalms and Wisdom Literature; Pentateuch and the History of Israel; Chronicles and Prophets; and Gospels and Epistles.
In order to make the readings come out evenly, four major books of the Bible are included twice in the schedule: the Psalms (the Bible’s hymnal), Isaiah (the grandest of the OT prophets), Luke (one of the four biblical Gospels), and Romans (the heart of the Bible’s theology of salvation).
The list of readings from the Psalms and the Wisdom Literature begins and ends with special readings that are especially appropriate for the opening and closing of the year. The list of readings from the Pentateuch and the History of Israel proceeds canonically through the five books of Moses and then chronologically through the history of the OT, before closing the year with the sufferings of Job. The List of readings from the Chronicles and the Prophets begins with the Chronicler’s history of the people of God from Adam through the exile, followed by the Major and Minor Prophets, which are organized chronologically rather than canonically.
The Gospels and Epistles are largely grouped according to authorship; first, the writings of Luke (in the Gospel of Luke) followed by the book of Acts, then the letters of Paul (from Romans through Philemon); next Matthew, followed by Hebrews (both of which seem to have been written to largely Jewish-Christian audiences); then Mark, which was probably based on the experiences of Peter, followed by Peter’s own letters; then a repeat of Luke and Romans; finally, James and the writings of John (including the Gospel of John, the epistles of John, and Revelation).
This is just one of many good plans for reading through the Bible in one year. This plan and a number of others are available for free at www.esv.org (direct link here). The most important thing is to take your Bible and read it, praying to the Father that the Spirit will take what all the Scriptures teach about Christ and apply it to your mind and heart and life.
