Chronological Bible Reading Plan
The short answer
A chronological Bible reading plan arranges the readings in the order the events unfold, so that over the course of a year you move through the whole sweep of Scripture as one continuous story—from creation, through Israel's history, to Jesus and the early church. Instead of dipping in and out of familiar passages, you follow the plot. Laws sit next to the wilderness wanderings they governed; prophets speak into the reigns of the kings they confronted; the letters of the New Testament land in the middle of the church's early years.
The honest truth about any year-long plan is that most of us will fall behind at some point. A busy week, a dry stretch in Leviticus, a vacation—the reading schedule keeps moving whether we do or not. This is where the plan's own content can speak back into the discipline of reading it. James E. Davison, reflecting on Ephesians in his guide to a year of Bible reading, points to the benediction at the end of chapter 3: we trust a God who works in us "above all that we ask or think" (Ephesians 3:20). Davison suggests that this is exactly the verse to hold onto when you slip behind in your readings. The plan is not a performance to be graded; it is a way of putting yourself in the path of a generous God.
A year of reading also works better as a shared project than a solo one. Davison's practical counsel is to involve the whole household and congregation—children reading age-appropriate portions from a children's Bible rather than the full schedule, church school leaders weaving the year's theme into their teaching, and parents reading alongside their kids. Read this way, the plan becomes less a private checklist and more a common journey.
What scholars say
In these two excerpts, James E. Davison answers the two questions every year-long reading plan raises: what do you do when you fall behind, and how do you bring children and a whole congregation along? He finds grace for the first in Ephesians 3:20 and offers concrete suggestions—church school projects and a children's Bible—for the second.
“Ephesians, since it does not address acute difficulties and problems, is much more serene in tone than Galatians. It, too, talks about justification and, like the end of Galatians, offers comments on living as Christians in the world. In fact, Ephesians contains some practical advice about this. Even more significant, perhaps, are the appealing statements about the riches of God in Jesus Christ. Notice how frequently this theme returns in the first four chapters. The benediction at the end of chapter 3 is worth pondering: We believe in a God who is able to accomplish in us “far more than all we can ask or imagine” (v. 20). Isn’t that a good verse to remember when you fall behind in your readings for The Year of the Bible?”
“Naturally, you will not want to have children do all the readings from The Year of the Bible, since many adults will have trouble with that! You can easily do special projects through the church school, and you can continually stress the project to the children. Ask the leaders of your church school to concentrate their efforts on this program for the year. With a little encouragement, they will likely find a host of ways to weave the theme of the Bible into their plans. Be sure to recommend to parents, too, that they read some of the material with their children from a version of the Bible that is specifically aimed at children. An excellent children’s Bible to consider is Growing in God’s Love: A Story Bible , by Elizabeth F.”
What it means for you
If you take on a chronological Bible reading plan this year, decide at the outset how you will handle falling behind—because you probably will. The healthiest answer is simply to pick up with today's reading and keep going, trusting that God accomplishes more in us than our tracking apps can measure. And consider not doing it alone. Invite your family or a few friends to read with you: adults on the full schedule, children on shorter portions from a Bible written for them. The goal is not a perfect record but a year spent steadily inside the story of Scripture, together.
In context
Davison's reflection comes from his reading notes on Ephesians, which he describes as more serene in tone than Galatians because it is not written to address a crisis. He highlights how the letter's opening chapters return again and again to the riches God gives in Jesus Christ, and how it offers practical counsel for Christian living. The verse he singles out—Ephesians 3:20—is the benediction that closes chapter 3, a doxology celebrating a God whose work exceeds what we can ask or imagine, which Davison connects directly to the experience of falling behind in a year-long reading plan.