About (old)

The 3 Year Bible was created by Ted Williams, MD. The goal was to read the whole Bible front to back, year after year, as a devotional experience.
Ted Williams, hiking

Meet Ted!

If you’ve ever used a one-year Bible, you know how long those daily readings are. Usually they require reading about three chapters a day. It’s easy to fall behind in a program like that: the more days you miss, the harder it is to catch up.

Also, many “read through the Bible in a year” programs spend most of the time in the Old Testament, since it’s so much longer. But that’s not a great plan for readers who want to make the New Testament the backbone of their devotional.

“I couldn’t find a Bible reading program that suited me, so in 2002, I started working on one.”

This is the thought behind 3year Bible: shorter, more manageable readings which revolve around the New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs throughout the year, for a more contemplative devotional experience.

3year OT

The Old Testament is divided over three years, for shorter readings.
  1. Genesis through Judges
  2. Job, then Ruth through the life of Solomon
  3. The kings of Israel & Judah through Malachi

Daily Proverbs

Proverbs are spread evenly throughout the year.

With one to two proverbs per day, you can focus on small pieces at a time and give them time to soak in.

Chronological

Biblical stories are arranged in order, in context: highlighting connections throughout the Bible.

For example, the story of David hiding from Saul in the cave is placed alongside the Psalm that David wrote after the event. The prophets are organized in context, too, setting books of prophecy next to the histories (and gospels!) to which they relate.

Christmas Devotional

The readings of the month of December are devoted to the coming of the Messiah.

“Using this calendar through the years, I’ve noticed that during the month of December, I’d like for my daily readings to help build the anticipation of the coming of Christ, Christmas.”

These December readings course through history, beginning with Genesis as God prepares the world for the redemptive gift of His Son, flashing forward to the New Testament, linking the biblical history to Christ.