Have you read an entire book of the Bible in one sitting? (Third John doesn’t count.) When was the last time? If you’re like me, before I started hosting Thirsty Thursday, it had been a while. Maybe you’ve never read through the whole book of Revelation, or it’s been a while since you read more of 2 Corinthians than your cherished favorite verses.

Why Read Through a Whole Book at Once?

The benefits of reading through a whole book of the Bible in one sitting are numerous. Yet it’s not the way we typically read God’s Word. Often, sermons focus on a few verses, while in our own personal devotions we might meditate on several chapters in one sitting.

Last year my husband, Nate, suggested we start reading through whole books of the Bible aloud as a church, after listening to a Bible Project podcast discussing how that is the way many books would have been read aloud originally. The ancient Hebrew people would read Scripture aloud as a group and had the practice of reading the Torah aloud together. This tradition, instituted in the Old Testament, continues in synagogues today.

Reading the Bible by yourself, especially large chunks at one time, can be challenging. It can be easy to get distracted and hard to persevere when something is confusing. When you hear God’s Word read aloud with others, or are reading it out loud yourself with others, there are rich blessings that you might miss out on when you read the Bible only in one way.

Five unique benefits to reading entire books of the Bible in one sitting, according to Crossway, are:

1. Gain unique perspective on themes of patterns in the writing, flow, and context.

2. Let Scripture speak for itself, without additional insight from study notes or a commentary.

3. Read like a writer, tracking with the overall structure and form of the Bible as a singular story.

4. Read more. You’d be surprised how quickly you can read an entire book of the Bible.

5. Broaden your understanding and get a more holistic comprehension of the Bible’s message.

The Birth of Thirsty Thursday

Feeling inspired to give it a try? So was I. Here’s what we did.

We instituted Thirsty Thursday, the name inspired by a church member who quipped that we were thirsty for the Word. In practice, it’s very simple. We invite everyone in the church to come to our home one evening a month to read an entire book of the Bible. We sit in a circle, with a cheese plate to share, and read one chapter each, going around the circle, until we’ve finished the book. We don’t stop mid-book to talk or ask questions. We just listen, absorbing the book in its entirety.

For Thirsty Thursday regular Deryl Robson, this is the first time she has read lengthier books of the Bible in one sitting. “I’ve thought about it, but haven’t been motivated to take the time beyond shorter books,” she said. “But it gives me a better understanding of how well-known verses fit into the whole picture.”

There are places along the way where we easily could stop and have hours-long conversation. One verse could be an entire sermon series. But this is a different way of reading the Bible: the whole book, all the details and big themes and overarching messages.

A major benefit is getting the larger perspective of the whole book, rather than individual verses plucked out, said Solomon Van Vlack, a high school student and Thirsty Thursday attendee. “It helps a lot with reading the entirety of the context the verses are in,” he said.

For Pastor Daniel Howe, reading through the whole book gives “a better sense of the book as a whole, including patterns, themes, and repetitions.”

David Robson, an elder and Thirsty Thursday regular, agrees. “There’s an overall feel I get from the book, which I don’t always get when reading a chapter or concentrating on a particular set of verses,” he said.

How It Works

After we’ve finished the book, we’ll talk about what stood out to us, things that were confusing, and things that we’d never noticed before. A nice thing about this group is that we don’t need any-one to preach or teach. “No one is expected to have something smart to say afterward, although all can share their thoughts and observations,” said David Robson.

Indeed, no one has to spend hours preparing, and it’s not another thing to add to the elders’ plates. Anyone can host this in their home, and everyone can attend and participate, simply by reading aloud. “Spending time reading the Word will always result in blessing,” David Robson reflected. “We don’t always need to do ‘big’ things like Bible studies to enjoy one another’s company and spend time considering our faith.”

In addition to the benefits gleaned from God’s Word during this time, participants also enjoy the unity and fellowship the evening affords. “It’s encouraging to be among fellow Christians who are willing to invest time together and simply read,” said David Robson.

A few practicalities to note if you’d like to start this in your own church:

1. We pray briefly before starting our reading: that the Holy Spirit would speak to us through the reading and that God would “Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law” (Ps. 119:18).

2. Some books of the Bible would be really difficult to read in one sitting because of their length. We found a webpage that tells approximately how long it takes to read each book of the Bible, and we choose books that take one to two hours to read. So far, we’ve read Daniel, Acts, Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Revelation, and Ecclesiastes and found each to be a good length to read in one sitting.

3. We don’t stop in the middle of the book to discuss or ask questions—we plow right through. Some people find it helpful to jot down notes or questions while we’re reading to discuss or medi-tate on later.

Maybe you feel discouraged that your church doesn’t have a robust weekly Bible study or rich theological Sunday school class, but you don’t feel equipped to lead one. Maybe you want more fellowship with other Christians or to motivate yourself to spend more time in the Word.

Consider hosting your own version of Thirsty Thursday. I come away every month with a deeper understanding of a particular book of the Bible, often having read it in its entirety for the first time. I’m more able to say with the prophet Jeremiah, “When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight” (Jer. 15:16).