Could someone tell me where a good starting point would be to read the
Bible?  I know very little. I have tried to read the Bible and have
learned you can't begin on page one.  It only makes more confusion and
leads you to put the book down and tell yourself you will try later. 
I am a spiritual person and believe in the Lord but I don't seem to
understand what I am reading.  Possibly there is a book I can purchase
at the book store to help me with my study.  There is so much to learn
and it will take a long time to achieve that, but I need to be drawn
in somehow and understand what I am reading.  I am going on a vacation
in early July and will have a lot of time alone to begin my study.  I
am close to Barnes and Noble to purchase what I need.  My Bible is the
NIV not the King James Version.  My Bible contains the Old and New
Testament.   Bless you for your help,   Meemaw-ga

Hi! Thanks for the question.

The following advice could be of great help.

"The best place to start is with the gospels, that is the books of
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. These books document the life of Jesus
and help us to believe. They are at the beginning of the section
called the New Testament."

"How To Read The Bible"
http://aibi.gospelcom.net/articles/fllwup2.htm


"Instead of starting at the beginning, therefore (like you do with
most books), I suggest instead you start with what I call the Bible's
"center": the four Gospels. (I often suggest people begin with the
Gospel of John.)"

"Gospels best place to start when reading Bible"
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/graham/252020_billy04.html


---------------
My own advice is depends on your knowledge about Jesus Christ. If you
don't know Jesus Christ yet I mean you haven't heard of Him then I
suggets you start with the Gospel of Luke. If you know the life
details of Christ from just watching TV and other books, I think it
would be good to read the Gospel of John so you will have a deeper
understaing of who Christ really is and also His teachings.

Now if you've known Christ and has read or heard lots of sermons about
Him but never really read the  Bible then I think Paul's epistles will
be another great place to start since it talks about what the crucial
points of the Christian faith. Start with Romans and go on to the
next.

In case you are still having some difficulty handling the NIV, I
suggest that another good translation will be the New Living
Translation or the NLT. The words are easier to understand.


Search terms used:
best place to start Bible
 
I hope this would help you in your research. Before rating this
answer, please ask for a clarification if you have a question or if
you would need further information.
                                                          
                              
Regards,                              
Easterangel-ga                              
Google Answers Researcher

Thank you so much for helping me choose the best place to start
reading.  I was amazed with the additional comments.  I am a
protestant for those who were wondering.  I am really enjoying the two
websites you provided to me, easterangel.  It was great to get a quick
response too.

I started with John, still haven't finished the Bible, but John is a
great book if you're a new believer or have never read it.

As Easterangel has pointed out, the New Testament is the place to
start, to read about Jesus, his life and teachings in the Gospels, and
then the Acts of the Apostles and their teachings in their letters  -
Epistles.

But what is all the contents of the Old Testament then, the thicker
first part of the Bible?  It is really several/many different books. 
If you have heard sermons or maybe Bible stories in your youth, go or
have gone to church, some of it will probably be familiar to you:  the
story of the creation and Adam and Eve in Genesis, where you started;
the Psalms (23 "The Lord is my shepherd ..."), which are individual
texts of faith, praise and appeal to God.  They are very good and easy
reading.  Proverbs is also good, and a little fun, discovering that
advice on how to live with neighbors and family hasn't changed in 3000
years.
Much of the Old Testament is the history of the Isrealites, the Jews: 
Abraham, Moses, David, and other names you may have heard of.
To find the parts of the Old Testament that are have a bearing on the
New Testament you do need a guide, and I am sure that there are books
available.
My King James's Bible for children has useful pages in the back with
recommended readings and maps, which help understand where things
happened, both in the Old testament and in the New Testament  - where
St. Paul traveled around the Mediterranean Sea.  It makes the Bible
more interesting when one can see that the strange place names are or
were actual towns and regions.

Some folks might disagree, but you don't have to read the Bible from
cover to cover to get the best from it, so don't be discouraged by its
size.  And you don't have to read all of any part at once  - after you
have finished the Gospel of John.

I hope that you will have a good vacation and discover much in the Bible.

My wife's dear grandmother, trying to save my wife's soul from the
Eternal Damnation she was slated for because she was marrying out of
the Faith, provided a bible that was translated into colloquial
speech. It is almost confounding NOT to have the "thou" and "thy"
stuff, but it is worth looking into.

I think the bible loses something by not reading it in order, like all
those pesky little details that rather conservative religious leaders
seem to avoid while they denounce the supposed shortcomings of various
groups.

Hmmmmm

Doesn't it depend on one's religion?

I suspect that not many Jews would ignore the Old Testament or even
want to read the New.

PB

Yes, there is an assumption that the question is from someone with a
Christian orientation, but a Jewish person would  - I think -  not
have asked the question, and a Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist or person with
another belief would most likely have said so.

The chronology of the bible confuses alot of people (including
myself).  The books of the bible are not in chronological order which
makes the stories often seem jumbled.

A Chronological Bible really helped me read cover to cover.  The
stories make alot more sense when they are put in the context of time.
 I'm sure Barnes & Noble has one, and here is an example:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/084235090X/104-0966738-5896721?v=glance&n=283155

And feel free to start in the New Testament, it will make sense
without the historical background of the Old (however when you gain
more knowledge in the future the Old will bring you much insight).

Also, it will greatly help to find someone you can talk to frequently
who has great knowledge of the bible.  Ask lots of questions.

Thanks meemaw-ga for the kind words, the 5 stars and for the generous tip!

One more word of advice is that pray before reading. Pray that God may
enlighten you with His Word. Be ready also with a prayerful heart and
reflect upon the things you've read.

God Bless!

The Bible in its entirety is just too much to take in. But like most
things, basics must be learned first. Here are a few scriptures which
many main religions ignore in favour of long held traditions.
1. Almighty God. He has no beginning and no end. Alpha and Omega.
Revelation 22;13. It does not matter too much which translation you
choose as God has promised he will protect his word to us. Revelation
22;18,19. And he has a personal name. Psalm 83;18 in the 1611 Kinbg
James will tell you. It is confirmed at Exodus 3;13-15 & 6;3.
In contrast, Jesus IS God's son. Many religions claim he is God
himself. But unlike God, Jesus had a beginning as God's very first
creation. Proverbs 8; 22-31. Many religions teach that this refers to
the 'quality' of wisdom, but when have feelings like 'fondness' been
credited to a quality. The scripture is a description of Jesus'
beginnings. Jesus was in existence as his Father's helper, but did not
'come into the picture', until he was sent by his Father to sort out a
problem. Caused by Adam and Eve. The problem of having to die.Jesus at
no time sought worship for himself. He always directed worship to his
Father. No one has seen God at any time [ Exodus 33;20] but thousands
saw Jesus.
So the claim that Jesus IS God is not supported by the Bible. The
"problem" as mentioned, began way back when Adam and Eve disobeyed and
brought on death. God in his perfect way, has set in train a system to
legally reverse the problem.
Genesis 3;15. God is speaking to Satan [ thje cause of all our
troubles] There will be enmity between Satan and the "woman", God's
heavenly system ruled by Jesus. Satan will 'bruise' Jesus, a non
lethal blow [ Jesus' death and resurrection, a bruise in the heel] and
then Jesus will deal Satan a totally death dealing blow that Satan
cannot survive [ a bruise in the head..Rev, 20;10]. Once the basics
are learnt, and proved by scripture, it is then possible to establish
which religions are teaching truthful things and which are operating
entirely on long held traditions that have no basis in fact.

Salaam (Peace)

As a recent (4 years) convert to Islam, I would like to suggest that
in reading the Bible we should be aware that the Bible and the Quran
are related and we should read backwards from the Quran in order to
understand what the Bible is actually saying.

check out sacred texts online on Google where you can read Torah,
Christian Books and Islamic books.

'The Truth is out there '

I think Islamic belief that there is not Original sin makes sense
because when a person is born he or she is born innocent. Remember
reading in the Bible when God asked Satan to bow to human he refused.
According to Islam when Adam and Eve made mistake they realized their
mistake and they asked God for to forgive them which God did. But when
Satan made a mistake by disobeying God and not bowing to human and
instead of asking God for forgiveness, Satan blamed God for his
mistake. Satan said something like God you knew my weakness (arrogant
one of them) and still you put me in that situations and made me make
the mistake of questioning you and not bowing to human. So you see the
humans accepted the mistake and asked for forgiveness but Satan did
not accepted his mistake and continued to argue and actually blamed
God for his mistake. So the muslim belief is that all new borns are
innocent and when they grow older then they commet sin.

Also myoarin you are wrong to think that the Jewish person would
accept the Old Testament even if he or she doesn't accept the New
Testament but a Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist would not accept both Old and
New Testament. In fact the Muslims do believe in both Old and New
Testament. They also accept all the prophets including
Adam,Noah,Abraham,David,Joseph,Moses and Jesus. Since you haven't read
the Quran and doesn't know anything about Islam do not make an
assumption. It is one thing to read and do not understand it fully and
it another thing to make false claims out of air.