If you are a new Christian, it is possible that you are not used to the Bible at all. It may be completely new to you. Trying to find your way around it might be a little overwhelming at first, but you can find your way around it easily enough so that you become used to it very quickly. This current post helps you with the practical steps of finding a passage in the Bible. I would then recommend you read a Quick Overview of the Bible.

The Bible

The Bible is actually a library of 66 books. It is divided into the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament. See the post on a Quick Overview of the Bible to help you understand these divisions. The main thing to know for now is that the Old Testament promised the coming of Jesus Christ (in various ways) and the New Testament is about the fulfilment of that promise and what happened as a result, such as the beginning of the church.

As you read the posts in First Steps, and as you read other books, articles and posts that quote from the Bible, you will often need to look up a ‘verse’ or passage from it. There will be a reference that might look something like this:

John 10:9-12

Finding it in a Bible

If you have a Bible, you can find this passage easily. The first word will be the book of the Bible (out of the 66) that you will need to turn to. You can find where this is by looking at the contents page at the beginning of your Bible.

The first number in the reference refers to the chapter of that book. You will find them as the big bold numbers throughout the book.

The second number (or numbers) refers to the verses of the chapter. They are found as smaller numbers with the text of the chapters. There may be one, or more than one, number depending on whether you are looking up one verse or several verses.

Using Online Bibles

I will sometimes try to make it easier for you in the First Steps posts by creating a direct link to Bible software so that you don’t have to look it up in the Bible for yourself. You may find that you like to use an electronic Bible most of the time rather than a physical copy. That’s fine, but you will still need to find your way around.

I mainly use Bible Gateway and there is also the YouVersion from bible.com for online Bible platforms. Most of them will have some kind of drop down menu for the books of the Bible in place of the contents page. They will be in the order that the books appear in the Bible, just as with the contents page. It will then give you the numbers of chapters in that book that you can select from. Once the chapter you want appears, you will still need to find the relevant verses as the small numbers within the text. The online Bible will also give you the choice of lots of different translations or versions of the Bible. How do you know which one to choose?

Translations and Versions

People have been translating the books of the Bible for thousands of years. Not only do they translate them into different languages but we now have lots of different versions of the Bible in English, and in many languages. There are some old versions, such as the King James Version (from 1611). There are also some very contemporary versions, like The Message or The Passion translation. Some are more accurate and faithful to the original and some focus on trying to use up to date language and be easy to read.

As a new Christian, I would recommend the New Living Translation (NLT) because it combines accuracy and an easy to read, up to date style. The New International Version (NIV) and the English Standard Version (ESV) are also good.

As you get used to finding your way around, you should try to get a sense of the big picture or the big story of whole Bible, and how it all fits together – see my post on A Quick Overview of the Bible. Then you might want to look at my post on the different ways to use the Bible. These posts are all written with the desire and intention that you go on to experience a lifetime of adventure in getting to know the wonders of the Bible. To immerse yourself in God’s big story that makes sense of life, our world and everything. And that you get to encounter the God of the Bible in life changing and life shaping ways so that you become part of the great Story!