Top 5 Bible Reading Plans for 2023

Have you considered how you will read God’s Word in 2023? Do you find it difficult to consistently read the Bible? We are all so busy, and it is so easy to neglect Bible reading amid all the other constraints on our time and our minds. But daily Bible reading is a vital part of the Christian life. It is through reading God’s Word that we hear from God, and it is through praying that we talk back to God.

It is difficult to maintain a relationship with someone when you never communicate with them, and reading the Bible is one of the best, most consistent ways we hear God’s voice. Bible reading and prayer are inextricably connected.

Bible reading plans help us read God’s Word regularly by taking the difficulty of decision-making out of the process. The point of a Bible reading plan isn’t to be legalistic or strict about Bible reading so much as it is meant to make Bible reading less stressful. By having a passage assigned to each day, you never have to wonder where to open up and start reading.

Here are five of the best Bible reading plans I’ve found (and most of them I’ve used) for you to consider as you try to meet God through reading His Word in 2023:

1. 52 Weeks in the Word With Trillia Newbell

In November 2022, Trillia Newbell published 52 Weeks in the Word: A Companion for Reading Through the Bible in a Year. In it, you’ll find the following:

• A reading plan—not too big or too small
• 52 Reflections—one per week
• Prayer prompts for each Scripture reading
• Built in rest and catch-up days
• Space for your own reflection or study
• Easy instructions so you can begin throughout the year!

Here’s a bit more about the book:

52 Weeks in the Word guides you through God’s sacred and trusted Word, all while helping you organize your reading and pausing for deeper meditation. The result? Greater knowledge of God, by grace and the power of the Spirit, can lead to wisdom and worship of God. You’ll discover treasures—some old to you, some new—help for daily living, hope in times of suffering, and a deep abiding relationship with the God who loves you.

This is the Bible reading plan included with that book, and you’re welcome to give it a try!

2. Five Day Bible Reading Plan

The Five Day Bible Reading Plan is a favorite of many who regularly use Bible reading plans and attempt to read the entire Bible in a year.

This Bible reading plan requires a little bit more time each day of the week than a typical seven-day reading plan, but it bakes two catch-up days into every week. Of course it is good for the Christian to read the Bible every single day, but many weeks that just doesn’t happen. Some weeks you need a couple of days to make up for where you’ve missed. A Bible reading plan that accommodates this reality makes keeping up with weekly readings a lot easier.

This Bible reading plan is loosely chronological, but with an Old Testament, a New Testament, and a Psalm reading every day. (This is probably my favorite part of it—its structure.)

3. The Gospel Coalition’s Daily Devotional Reading Plan

Without a doubt, this is probably the most intense Bible reading plan in this list. But because it is based on the M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan, which is historically one of the most popular, it deserves a mention!

This Bible reading plan leads the reader to, over the course of a year, read the New Testament and Psalms twice and the rest of the Bible just once. It is a lot, and there are no days off! This Bible reading plan is certainly not for the new Bible reader or the person trying to establish a consistent reading regimen for the first time. But, if you’ve been at this Bible reading thing for a while and you’re looking to push yourself, consider this plan.

4. ESV Chronological Bible Reading Plan

Our friends at Crossway have a bunch of Bible reading plans you can choose from at any time, but a chronological Bible reading plan is one of the most popular kinds around.

Many people have never read the Bible in the order of the events that take place. This Bible reading plan does a good of a job at leading you through the Scriptures as they happened across the historical timeline.

Please note that there are no catch-up days baked into this seven-days-a-week Bible reading plan (similar to the one listed above), so while you may be asked to read less on any given day in this plan than you are in other plans that provide weekly catch-up days, you will have to double up readings if you miss any days.

5. TGC Two–Year Bible Reading Plan

Our friends at The Gospel Coalition provide a great two-year Bible reading plan for Bible readers who want to take their reading a bit slower than these other plans require.

Reading the Bible in a single year can sometimes be so heavy on reading that it makes journaling or otherwise reflecting on the Scripture somewhat difficult. This sort of two-year Bible reading plan requires less reading on any given day and may provide readers a bit more freedom to journal along with their reading as a means of thinking through the text. This plan does offer a couple of catch-up days each month for readers to make up for where they may have fallen behind.

If you’re trying a Bible reading plan for the first time or maybe you’re completely new to reading the Bible at all, this may be the best plan for you!

Bible Reading Essential to Life

Regular Bible reading is essential to the life of the Christian. Dr. Michael Rydelnik, author and professor at Moody Bible Institute, writes about Bible reading:

I believe that it should be a life essential for us all. It is helpful to have a contemporary, easy-to-understand translation of the Bible. By spending just 10 to 15 minutes a day reading God’s Word, we will grow as believers. If you are new to Bible reading, there are many good reading plans available. Find one and use it. And remember what the evangelist D. L. Moody is widely attributed to have said: “The Bible was not given for our information but our transformation.” We can begin to experience God’s transformation of our lives as we read the Scriptures every day.

We are meant to be transformed by the Word of God. The Bible really is that powerful. We can trust it to change us. If you believe that’s true, but you never bother to pick up a Bible and read it…do you really believe the Bible is transformative? Maybe give it a try with one of the Bible reading plans above this year and see what God does through it.