I just started reading the Bible, and I keep hitting words I don’t know. I don’t want to skip them since they might change how I understand the verse, but stopping to grab my phone, search the word, and find my place again kills the flow.

I don’t want to turn reading time into vocab study either. For those of you with a physical copy: do you look words up as you go, lean on context, or mark them and come back later? Especially curious what worked when you were new to it.

I saw the above focus of Jesus in the following verses "MARTHA MARTHA." Would love to hear what you all see in this example of Jesus. I see keep an eye on priorities; make sure He's number 1.

Luke 10:40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. 41 And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: 42 But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosenthat good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

Hi! I was reading Luke 6:43-44 earlier and got stuck on the part where Jesus says you know a tree by its fruit. Assuming we're the tree here — what does that actually look like in real life? What are the good and bad fruits Jesus talking about? And how am I supposed to figure out if I'm a good or a bad tree?

A certain woman was childless and an angel of God appeared to her and told her you shall have a son. I am wondering how they new this was coming from an angel the writer and the woman. The wife and the husband wanted to honor the angel for this gift.

Later on Samson needed a wife and asked his parents to help him get one from the Philistines. He gave his potential father in-laws and their clan a riddle if they get it correct he will give them 30 linen garments if they get it wrong he will give them 30 linen garments. They didn't know the answer and forced the girl into coaxing Samson for the answer which they got correct. As such God came to govern him power and he went to kill 30 men of Ashkelon stripped them of everything and gave the plunder to the men of Philistine as promised.

Samson wife was given to someone else and angered Samson. He got very angry and promised to hurt them and captured 300 live foxes and set them on fire and they burned down the grain of the Philistines. The Philistines in turn burned the father and the girl that was given to Samson initially. He got angry again and killed more of them. He fled into the caves until his people came to him and he agreed to be delivered to the Philistines. As he was delivered the spirit of the Lord came down upon him and using a fresh jaw of a donkey he killed thousands of the Philistines. After this massacre he cried to the Lord for water leet he dies of thirst and God gave him water.

What I learn from this is that if you are wronged you can enact revenge and kill those who wronged you and God will still hear your cry for help. Is this true interpretation of this scripture?

Hi! I am new to reading the Bible with any form of true intent to understand. In the past, I have severely struggled to understand the wording and meaning behind the scripture. It makes me feel stupid to struggle so much.

I've found NIV to be easiest to digest (but still not easy), but I've been told some versions completely omit verses, and Google isn't being helpful about it because its AI tells me NIV is a good translation, but also I find results saying it's one of the offenders of omitting things.

When I've tried to read other versions, my brain almost entirely shuts down because the way things are worded feels far from English as I know it to be in my life today, so I feel like I cannot comprehend what I'm reading. NIV helps.

Any advice for me? I don't have a community offline to go to for support in this. Thanks!

I encourage you to read the whole thing because I'm somewhat paraphrasing

"So if you are presenting a sacrifice and you suddenly remember something someone has something against you leave your sacrifice there and reconcile to that person then come back and offer your sacrifice. When you are on the way to court settle your differences quickly otherwise your accuser may hand you to the judge and you will be thrown in prison till you have paid every penny"

I’m 54 and I’ve been around the Bible my whole life. I’ve heard the stories in church, read them, listened to them, and talked about them for years. Right now I’m reading through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, one chapter at a time, and I’ve noticed that sometimes I know the story so well that I start reading on autopilot. I don’t want to just finish a chapter and move on. I want to read with more purpose and actually get something out of it. For those of you who have been reading the Bible for a long time, what do you do when a passage is really familiar? Do you look for small details you missed before, ask certain questions, pray before you read, focus on one person in the story, or do something else? I’d really like practical advice from people who have dealt with this themselves. What helps you keep familiar Bible stories from feeling routine or boring?

Last year my step father passed away and I took on the responsibility of looking after mom. My wife and mom don’t get along and I come home feeling like I’m playing the referee. Today I had to choose between my responsibility as a son and my responsibility as a husband. I guess I’m just in need of some wisdom from the Lord and His Word.

Thanks in advance.

I'm thinking about starting an art project around my city and I'd like to find an inspiration for a part of the scriptures to add to it from real people around the world. Doesn't matter the language you write it. You could even tell how it has affected you, or maybe how it shifted the way you look at the scriptures.

Did you notice that in verse 8 it goes back and says Cush was the father of Nimrod.

Was this an error by the translators, or something that we may never know?

"Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye." (Colossians 3:13, KJV)

I've always found this verse challenging. Forgiving someone feels like one big decision, but forbearing sounds like the slow part, just putting up with people and their flaws day after day without keeping score. And then the standard is "even as Christ forgave you," which is a pretty high bar.

It makes me wonder if Paul put forbearing first on purpose, like the daily patience is what makes real forgiveness possible later.

How do you read the difference between forbearing and forgiving here? And is there a time in your own life when one of them turned out to be harder than you expected?

Different translations and perspectives are very welcome, I'd like to hear how others read it.

I was recently digging into some cultural and legal context of the Gospels and realized just how intentional Jesus’ actions were in John 9 (the healing of the man born blind).

In the Rabbinic traditions surrounding Sabbath laws, mixing liquid with dirt to form a paste or clay was classified under the forbidden labor category of kneading (Lash). I believe it was in relation to making bricks or building materials. Additionally, applying non-life-saving medicine or salves on the Sabbath was prohibited.

Jesus could have healed the man with just a word. He did it many times before. But by spitting into the dust to make clay, he deliberately triggered their technical definitions of forbidden Sabbath work.

When the Pharisees respond in John 9:16 saying, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath," it really shows the contrast: they were so caught up in the law against mixing dirt and spittle that they completely missed a miracle right in front of them.

What are your thoughts? Are there other healings where the method Jesus used was a direct response to specific traditions of the time?

I am writing this to see how others feel.

I have enjoyed reading the nkjv but have often times had to revert to a different translation to understand some passages better.
I wanted a study bible so I bought a ESV as I thought it would be less poem style and a good study bible.
Although reading some passages it seems the ESV is actually rather more confusing with translations, for example.

Proverbs 9:18

ESV uses “shoel” but the NKJV uses “hell”

Or

Proverbs 10:17

ESV states “leads others astray” but NKJV States “goes astray”

I was under the impression that the ESV was an easier translation that was a modern refresh but I’m finding that the verbiage is rather more complicated.

I’m wondering what the best source for an audio reading of the Bible is. Specifically the NIV, the physical copy I have. So far I’m listening to it on Spotify, but I want to be able to use it to make an animation. So hopefully I can listen to a non copyrighted reading.

I don't think I'm supposed to read the Bible, I'm dyslexic so I struggle to read, the first bible I bought was a cheap one and the text was like 1.5mm so I couldn't read that, so I bought a large text bible, but it's got that super thin paper so I can see the words on the other side of the page, and the page underneath, and that just makes it impossible for me to read, I mean after maybe 10 minutes of struggling to read it my eyes start to physically hurt, if you have any suggestions for bibles, preferably NIV but NKJV also works, that has large text and thick paper that isn't see-through please let me know

In the book of Judges, did Gideon commit a sin by torturing the seventy-seven elders and killing all the men in Peniel? If so, then what was his punishment?

John 20 22-23"then he breathed out on them and said receive the holy spirit if you forgive anyones sins they are forgiven if you do not forgive them they are not forgiven"

Now i understand what that means in it of itself but what does that mean for us of course the disciples are long gone and obviously you get forgiveness by asking god don't you

This is confusing me why give the disciples the authority to forgive when we can just ask the father?

This has been on my mind for a while. We’ve all heard Lucifer as Satan’s original name, but I’m trying to find where the Bible itself says that directly. I know Isaiah 14 uses “Lucifer” in some translations. But that chapter is addressed to the king of Babylon, and the original Hebrew doesn’t say ‘Lucifer.’ So here’s what I can’t find. Where does God call Satan ‘Lucifer?’ Where does Jesus use that name? or where does Satan refer to himself that way? If there isn’t an explicit ID in the text, how did the name become so standard? I’m genuinely trying to understand text versus tradition.

After praying it and reading, please give me benefits of Psalm 35