Bible Basics

Memorizing the Books of the Bible: Techniques for Mastering the Order from Genesis to Revelation

• Jacqueline Williams Adewole • Season 3 • Episode 4

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Ever found yourself fumbling through the Bible, feeling like everyone else has a secret map? Well, say goodbye to those awkward moments! Our latest episode of the Bible Basics Podcast promises to turn you into a Bible-navigating pro. Join me, Jacqui Adewole, as we break down the essential skills you need to memorize the books of the Bible. Get ready to learn practical techniques like chunking and mnemonic devices that make it fun and easy to remember the order, from Genesis to Revelation. 

We’ll take you through the structure of the Old and New Testament, helping you understand why knowing the order is more than just a cool party trick—it enhances your Bible study experience. Whether it's the catchy acrostics like "Great Elephants Like Napping Daily" or clever tips on common word endings, you’ll walk away with a toolkit that will boost your Bible confidence. Prepare to impress your friends at your next Bible study session with your newfound knowledge and navigation skills!

RELATED EPISODES

Unveiling the Old Testament Structure: A Journey Through Law, History, Poetry and Prophecy
Delving Ito the New Testament: It’s Structure and Significance

LINKS TO THE SONGS ON THE BOOKS OF THE BIBLE

https://youtu.be/v3aRBIxMs5g?si=-yEAT0Kb6j-ZAmAR

https://youtu.be/V__n3oXTBcc?si=ekqf5YjarQNVi_Rz

https://youtu.be/J0T2coTAtBw?si=EgHtyoeEkd-xZGDQ

Song played in Episode: Memorize New Testament Books in 20 seconds by Pints with Aquinas - https://youtu.be/hCyYzwU9pcY?si=UHZF9-r_CY1vWqic

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Note: All scripture references are from the NIV translation unless otherwise indicated.

Jacqui:

Greetings listeners. Have you ever had that moment in a Bible study where you're flipping through the pages trying to find a book and it feels like everyone else found it 10 minutes ago? Or you sneak a peek at the table of contents to try to locate a book? Yeah, we've all been there. But fear not. Today we're going to tackle a challenge that'll boost your Bible confidence Memorizing the books of the Bible in order. Whether you're brand new to the Bible or just need a refresher, by the end of this episode you'll have a whole toolbox of methods to help you nail the order of the books like a pro. Let's dive in. Well, welcome everyone.

Jacqui:

I'm your host, Jacqui Adewole, and this is the Bible Basics Podcast, where, weekly, we break down the basics of the Bible into understandable, bite-sized chunks. So why should we memorize the books of the Bible? Well, knowing the order helps you navigate the Bible faster and deepens your understanding of how the different parts fit together. Plus, it's a pretty cool skill to have up your sleeve. Today, we'll break down the process into fun, manageable steps. We'll explore different memorization techniques and I'll even demonstrate how I apply some of these techniques. By the end of this episode, you'll be ready to start impressing your friends at Bible Study with your newfound knowledge.

Jacqui:

Let's start with the basics. The Bible is like a library with two main sections. There's the Old Testament. That consists of 39 books covering everything from the creation to the prophets and the return to the promised land. Then there's the New Testament. That's 27 books about Jesus, the early church and the future. But it's not just a random collection. It's organized into categories. There's the Old Testament, which contains five books of law, 12 books of history, five books of poetry, five major prophets and 12 minor prophets. For those of you who listened to the episode on how the Old Testament is structured, you'll know how we remember how the Old Testament is organized is structured. You'll know how we remember how the Old Testament is organized. We say 5-12-5-5-12-5-12-5-5-12. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, the link will be in the show notes for that. Then there's the New Testament 4-1-21-1, 4-1-21-1. That's four Gospels, one history book that's Acts 21 letters or epistles and one book of prophecy or revelation. 4, 1, 21, 1. Now think of it as the ultimate bookshelf. Knowing where everything is makes it a lot easier to find what you need when you need it.

Jacqui:

Now let's get to the fun stuff how to actually memorize these books without feeling overwhelmed. The first method we'll discuss is the chunking method. This means break it down, divide the books into smaller groups, like the five books of law or the four gospels, so you're not trying to memorize the whole thing at once. Focus on one chunk at a time, master that one section, then move on to the next. Then there are mnemonic devices, and the first one we'll talk about are acronyms and acrostics.

Jacqui:

You know where you turn the first letter of each book you're trying to remember into a silly sentence. For example, for the first five books in the Bible, you could use Great Elephants Like Napping Daily. That's for Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy Great Elephants Like Napping Daily. Or you can go with my favorite way to learn the first seven epistles Romans, 1st and 2nd Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians. I remember this by the acrostic. I actually still use this sometimes when I'm trying to think oh wait, what comes first, Ephesians or Philippians? Now, you don't always have to use a long acrostic.

Jacqui:

I remember that Ecclesiastes comes before Song of Solomon, because E-S is a common ending to a lot of words. E comes before the S. The same thing applies to Ezekiel coming before Daniel, because E and D or E-D is a common ending to words, so I always remember that the E comes before the other letter. But that's just me. Then we can use rhymes and songs. Ever notice how you can remember song lyrics from years ago? Use that power to memorize the books of the Bible. Turning the books into a catchy song or rhyme definitely makes them easier to recall. You can create your own song or you can go to YouTube and find one. There there are many songs. Here's one.

:

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, acts and Romans and Corinthians, Corinthians. Romans and Corinthians, Corinthians. Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians, Thessalonians, Timothy, Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, Peter, Peter, John, John, John, Jude, Revelation.

Jacqui:

The link to that one and others are in the show notes. I struggle with trying to remember the two books that come after the minor prophet, joel. I heard a preacher teaching that sometimes you don't have to know a song, but just apply a rhythm to help you remember. So how do I recall the two books that come after Joel in the Old Testament? I say them together in a rhythm. I say Amos Obadiah, Amos Obadiah, Amos Obadiah. Say it with me Amos Obadiah, Amos Obadiah. So, starting with the minor prophets, I say Hosea, joel, amos Obadiah. I say Hosea, joel, amos Obadiah. Another approach I use is to link names together. For instance, I know the first minor prophet is Hosea. I just know that it starts with an H-O or ho, which reminds me of Christmas. Ho, ho, ho. I link that with the next book, which is Joel or Joel, which rhymes with Noel, another Christmas word. So that gives me Hosea and Joel. These are just ways that I remember the books of the Bible. Hopefully they're helpful to you.

Jacqui:

If you're a visual learner, try this. Create a visual map. Picture the Bible as a map, with each book in its place. Use colors and symbols to help you remember. I saw one that seemed particularly helpful where the teacher mapped out a home and its rooms. Each room or area in the house was linked to a certain New Testament book or a group of books. Of course, the link for that will be in the show notes too.

Jacqui:

And then there's flashcards. Remember those that we used back in elementary or secondary school to remember definitions or when studying for tests? Well, you can use this for the books of the Bible and their categories as well. This is old school, but effective. Quiz yourself and get a friend involved. Quiz yourself and get a friend involved. Then there are Bible apps and games Like everything else. There is an app for that. Turn your phone into a Bible memorization tool, with apps and games designed to make learning the books of the Bible fun.

Jacqui:

And finally, repetition and review. Practice makes perfect. Set aside time each day to go over what you've learned. It's like working out, but for your brain, or teach someone else. Explaining it to others helps you reinforce what you know. All right, let's see one of these techniques in action.

Jacqui:

We'll do a quick demo of the chunking method, but before we start, I must confess that I didn't learn the books of the Bible by just one method, as you can see from our discussion so far, I use the combination of methods to keep the book straight in my mind, so I'll give you a little peek into how my complicated brain works. I do start with the chunking method. That means for me, I break down the books of the Bible into smaller, manageable chunks, and then I use various techniques to remember what's in the chunk. Let's take a look at the New Testament. This is a good place to start, since you're likely to be more familiar already with these books. Let's start with the first chunk, the first five books of the New Testament Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Acts. I learned these just by repetition, but just for your information, this might help you. I heard someone else say that they remember Acts by visualizing Matthew, mark, luke and John acting up in church, in church Acting up Acts. Okay, anyway, practice saying these five books in order, repeat them out loud and write them down until you have them memorized. I already shared with you how I learned the next seven books. I'll tell you again.

Jacqui:

Real Christian girls eat pork chops Romans, 1st and 2nd Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians. So after eating the pork chops, these girls might be thirsty and want a cup of tea. So the next section I call the five teas. 1st and Thessalonians. 1 and 2, Timothy and Titus. I learned the order of these five books by their title length. Thessalonians is the longest, so that's first. Then comes Timothy in length, and the shortest is Titus. Easy, right, think about it and do it a few times until it's second nature and you'll have these next five books down.

Jacqui:

Now, to make these five cups of tea to your liking, you might want to add some lemon. In fact, you might want to add five lemons Philemon, philemon, get it Five lemons. Philemon, get it. Five lemons. Philemon. Okay, that's the book that comes after 1 and 2. Thessalonians. 1 and 2, Timothy and Titus. It's Philemon.

Jacqui:

Now this next chunk helps with another way to remember Philemon. If those five lemons didn't help you out, try chunking that with the books of Hebrews and James, which come next. There's Philemon, Hebrews, James. I have a visual tag for this one. Imagine two guys wrestling. Who are the two guys? Philemon and James. They're wrestling. Who do you think wins? Philemon and James, they're wrestling. Who do you think wins Philemon? Because he bruised. James, get it, he bruised. So the order is Philemon, he bruised and James. Don't give up on me, guys. Hang in there, I'm not completely crazy, guys. Hang in there, I'm not completely crazy. And the next to last chunk is 1st and 2nd Peter. 1st, 2nd and 3rd, John and Jude. Well, after those guys get worn out wrestling, they go home and put on their PJs. Pjs, that signals P, first and second Peter, j, first, second, third, john and another J, Jude PJs. And we wrap up the New Testament with the last book, which is Revelation, and we all know that's the last book.

Jacqui:

Now, I don't expect you all to use every one of these tips to help you remember the 27 books of the New Testament and their order, but maybe there's just one technique that might be helpful to you, something that you can apply. So let's keep it real. Memorization can be tough, but it doesn't have to be boring. So let's end with these three tips. One consistency is key. Stick with it. A little bit every day goes a long way.

Jacqui:

Use a calendar or an app to track your progress. Number two make it fun. Add some flair to your study sessions, maybe a catchy Bible song or a colorful chart. Incorporate music, art or rhythm into your study sessions to keep the process engaging. Get others involved, turn it into a group challenge. And finally, leverage technology. Explore apps and videos that offer memorization challenges or quizzes on the books of the Bible.

Jacqui:

There's so much out there to help you out. Find what works best for you and run with it. And there you have it. Today we've unpacked a ton of strategies to help you memorize the books of the Bible, from chunking to mnemonics, repetition to visualization. You've got a whole toolkit at your disposal. It's not about perfection. It's about progress. Keep practicing and soon you'll be navigating the Bible with confidence and ease. As you continue to familiarize yourself with the books of the Bible, you'll find that your understanding and appreciation of Scripture deepens as well. Be sure to tune in next time for more tips to enhance your Bible study journey. Until then, keep reading, keep seeking and keep growing in your faith. Thank you so much for listening. Thank you so much for listening so that we can spread God's word further, please share, like, follow and subscribe.