Does It Matter What Order You Read the Books of the Bible?

I received this question from a reader recently:

“Can you tell me if there is a certain order that I need to read the books of the Bible. Mr. Gray says to start at Genesis through Revelation. Is that the way you would suggest to go through the Bible or not?”

(NOTE: Mr. Gray is a reference to James M. Gray, former president of Moody Bible Institute, who wrote How to Master the English Bible in 1904. Mr. Gray’s book is what prompted me to write The Forgotten Bible Reading Method.)

Here is my response to the question above:

My short answer is “yes.” Reading the Bible from Genesis to Revelation is a great idea.

But then I must add that there are several good ways to read through the whole Bible. One of those is to read the Old Testament in the order of the Hebrew Bible (the Bible that Jesus would have used). The content of the Hebrew Bible is identical to our English Bible, but the order of the books in the Old Testament Hebrew Bible is slightly different, and I find it most helpful.

I’m reading through the Old Testament right now and I’m using this “Hebrew Bible approach.” You can read more about it here:
https://godwrotethebook.com/2-year-bible-reading-plan/

By the way, I’m grateful that this reader wants to know how to read through the whole Bible in March. Most people think about reading the entire Bible in January, and often make a commitment to do so at the beginning of the year, only to hit a rough patch when they get to Exodus or Leviticus, lose momentum, and then give up altogether. It happens.

If you have a desire to read the whole Bible, any day of any month is a good time to begin the journey. Don’t let the calendar get in your way of deepening your relationship with God through quality time in the Word.

There’s a multitude of 1-year Bible reading plans available online. You can find several of them here:
https://www.ligonier.org/blog/bible-reading-plans/

For the world’s simplest 1-year Bible reading plan, check this out:
https://godwrotethebook.com/bible-reading-have-you-read-the-worlds-best-selling-book/

You know, there’s a sense in which I didn’t really understand the Bible until I started reading the whole Book.