The Bible is a little library, divided into sections of the Old and New Testaments and not each book is written in the same style. The Lord divided the Old testament into three sections, the law, the prophets and the Psalms (Luke 24:44). In the New Testament, you start with the gospels, which tell the story of Jesus from four different perspectives, for four different purposes. Luke, was a physical by trade, wrote his gospel as a historian, gathering the facts of eyewitness accounts (Luke 1:1-4). John said he wrote his gospel so you would have faith in Jesus Christ (John 20:31). Matthew wrote his gospel primarily for Jewish readers, and Mark gives a brief account of Jesus life, hitting the high points of His earthly ministry in quick detail. You have history (Acts) and the epistles (which is just a different way of saying letters) written to either individuals or churches, and closing out with prophecy in Revelation.
This is important to better understand what it is you are reading. For example, Psalms 23:1-2, “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.” Here is a truth taught in a poetic way. I don’t think the Lord will literally make me lay down in a pasture, but this is a poem and the image of a shepherd (the Lord) and a sheep (me) and from it I can understand the truth of the Lord’s care for me. Understanding the books and their purposes will help you to read it. Let’s imagine we are back in school, and it’s 8 a.m. and it’s time for history class. You get out your book and you read about the American Civil War. What would you expect to find? Information about key people, important battles, political struggles. You might even find some interesting tidbits about minor players playing a big role. The bell rings and now its English Literature class and you get out your copy of Shakespeare’s King Lear and read, “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child.” Now, that’s a truth spoken it a way to make you stop and think about it. The child doesn’t literally have sharp edges, but metaphorically speaking, a sharp tongue. The bell rings and it’s time for Math. You get your book out and there is a brief section on the theory but it’s mostly examples to look at and formulas to remember. You read the problems, think about the theory, spot the concept in the example, then work it out yourself. God also teaches us in the Bible in various ways (Hebrews 1:1-2). Sometimes we read history, sometimes, a poem, or you might read the dimensions of the tabernacle or the sacrifices and offerings in Exodus and Leviticus and look at that pattern and formula for worship and sacrifice and work out from that picture truth about heavenly patterns (Hebrews 9:23).
