Every new year, many believers recommit to consistent Bible reading, with a good chunk settling on reading the entire Bible cover to cover. Using various cover to cover Bible reading plans, they embark on a journey to read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation.
Though many start with fresh resolve and determination to finish, statistics show that the vast majority of these journeys end prematurely, often within the first two months.
According to Lifeway Research, only one in ten adults has read the Bible cover to cover! This is alarmingly low, and it shows that many who start fall by the wayside.
Why do so many committed Christians fail to complete the full Bible reading journey?
It is not that they lack faith or determination; the answer lies in some obvious and other not-so-obvious, avoidable dangers.
After many failed attempts, I finally, by God’s grace, read through the Bible cover to cover. Now, in the second cycle, I’ve noticed a few traps that readers often fall into. In this post, we’ll highlight common mistakes to avoid when reading the Bible cover to cover, and how you can steer clear of them.
i. Going into it without a plan
One common mistake many believers make is starting cover-to-cover Bible reading without a plan. That is, to simply start reading, hoping to figure things out as you go along.
That’s a recipe for disaster. Enthusiasm without structure is futile.
Without a definite reading plan, the daily reading portion will remain unclear. You may read too much on day 1 and too little by day 20. Eventually, discouragement sets in.
Besides, you will be unable to track your pace, hence it is very easy to derail.
As you consider cover to cover Bible reading, develop a plan. It’s nothing complicated; you can do it in a few minutes.
First, decide how many chapters you will be reading a day. Will you follow a canonical or chronological order, or have daily readings from both the Old and New Testaments?
Let that be very clear, as it will determine your pace.
You can bypass all the hustle by choosing a trusted plan. Whether you want a canonical, cover to cover Bible reading plan or the chronological Bible-in-Order plan, you will have plenty of resources to choose from.
Moreover, decide on the time and place where you will read the Bible. Whether it is in the morning, evening, on commute, over lunch, before bed, pick what works for you and stick to it.
A clear plan is like a road map, which keeps you from wandering.
Pro tip: When planning your reading schedule, include “catch-up days” where no new chapters are assigned. Many people use Saturday or Sunday for this. Read on weekdays, then use the weekend to catch up on anything you missed. This prevents missed days from accumulating.
ii. Setting unrealistic goals
Related to that, in the excitement of starting something new, it is easy to bite more than you can chew. That is, deciding you will be reading too many chapters daily.
For instance, some Bible reading plans will assign a couple of chapters from the Old Testament and more from the New Testament, as well as Psalms and Proverbs, to the daily reading portion.
If you settle for such, the momentum of a new beginning can carry you through the first few weeks with ease. But sooner or later, life catches up. A busy work schedule, a sick child, or simply exhaustion – you name it – and you begin to lag, piling up missed days.
The unsustainable volume quickly turns Scripture reading from a delight into a crushing chore. At this point, many people give up on reading the bible cover to cover altogether.
Don’t do this.
Pick the daily number of chapters you can handle comfortably. If you can read only one chapter a day, do it unashamedly.
You have no point to prove to anyone. Dont even pick more to impress God (the number of chapters you read does not change how much He loves).
You are better off reading one chapter a day consistently throughout the year than attempting to read five chapters daily, only to fall short virtually every day, which leaves you feeling guilty. And guilt, which will compound and push you away from your Bible.
Saint, cut your coat according to your size.
iii. Missing study for no good reason
When it comes to reading the bible from cover to cover, consistency is the name of the game.
Granted, life happens, and despite your best efforts and desire, some days, you will miss the daily allotments, but avoid missing study for no good reason.
Also, avoid taking long, unplanned breaks.
Breaking the flow kills momentum and can easily result in drifting, often turning into weeks or months off.
Embrace consistency. As much as is in your control, strive to read and study the Bible every day faithfully.
If you need to take a break, set clear parameters and keep it brief. Plan how long the break will be and what you will do during it so that you won’t lose momentum.
Pro tip: Transitioning from one book, especially a long book, to another is a very vulnerable moment. Feeling tired from the long journey, reading through the book, you might be tempted to take an unplanned break. Don’t fall for it, it’s a trap. Start the next book and continue the journey.
iv. Reading only when you feel like it
Another common mistake believers make when reading the Bible cover to cover is bowing down to the god called feelings. That is, reading the Bible only when you feel like it. Or when you feel motivated.
See, feelings are fickle. And motivation is fleeting.
So, when your cover to cover Bible reading depends on feelings and motivation, you are anchoring it on very shaky grounds.
Once you decide to read the bible cover to cover in one year or so, commit to it. When the time allocated for study comes, settle in and read whether or not you feel like it. If you do so, you will start feeling like it and delight in it.
That’s what discipline is.
Build a habit, not a mood-dependent routine.
If you persist, feelings notwithstanding, you will find your rhythm, and consistency will set in. And Bible study will become a delight, not a chore.
Aim for that.
vi. Giving up when the going gets tough
The creation account in the book of Genesis is fascinating. The accounts of how God created the earth, the intrigues of the first family, Noah and the ark, the Tower of Babel, and others make for interesting reads.
Bible readers often zoom past them excitedly as they enjoy the read. We find ourselves looking forward to the next chapters to get the gist of the stories.
Soon, though, we get to the genealogies. The measurements for the Ark of the Covenant and its accompanying objects of worship given in the book of Exodus. Let’s not talk about the numerous laws, most of which seem largely irrelevant.
The examples continue, but such seemingly irrelevant sections can be a struggle to read through. Reading the bible from cover to cover, which was once a delight that you looked forward to, becomes a heavy burden you would rather avoid.
One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to allow such sections to derail or slow you down.
Dont give up. Instead, continue showing up and reading without fail. Force yourself if you have to. Read whether or not you understand it, or find the texts relevant.
Keep going
Encourage yourself. Reach deep within and find strength in God. Keep reminding yourself why you started and continue the journey. When your ‘why’ is clear, it’s easier to navigate the desert seasons.
As you do so, you will find that it becomes easier. Once you overcome the initial resistance, you will get your flow and will be good to go.
When the going gets tough, the tough get going, we are told. You are tough because of God’s grace upon you. Keep pushing, keep keeping on.
Soon, the “boring” sections will give way to exhilarating texts, and you will be glad you stuck out.
Pro tip: A change of strategy might help you when you come to the boring or seemingly irrelevant text. Instead of reading to memorise every detail, say of the sacrifices or every name in the genealogy, you could adopt the skim-for-the-theme strategy. Looking for big themes, such as God’s character, man’s sin and God’s redemption story, as well as how the text points to Jesus, etc.
vii. Worrying too much about texts you don’t understand
Continuing in the same vein, if not the boring sections, some portions like the prophetic books and the eschatological books can be hard to understand.
Many believers just skip such Scripture. Don’t, that’s a bad Bible reading habit.
Others pause or stop altogether to dig deeper and conduct extensive research, ensuring they thoroughly understand the text before proceeding.
While that is commendable, it could easily be another of the pitfalls to avoid when reading Genesis to Revelation.
Why?
You risk falling behind and piling up missed days. Additionally, a prolonged pause for research could cause you to lose momentum and ultimately lead to giving up.
Don’t get hung up on the difficult sections. By all means, research more and seek to understand the text more, but dont let it paralyse you.
Search and move on.
Some verses that won’t make sense right away, but clarity usually comes as you keep reading. Remember the hermeneutic principle that Scripture interprets Scripture?
Who knows? Later on, you may come across a passage that sheds perfect light on what you couldn’t understand before. Or you might hear a sermon where the preacher unpacks it in just the right way, bringing clarity.
So, keep moving, leveraging what you understand. In the fullness of time, God will unravel the mysteries that perplexed you.
Talking of understanding, when reading the bible cover to cover, focus more on the parts that you understand than those that you dont. For a fact, those that make sense will be more than those that dont. Make the most of that.
Pro tip: Use the catch-up days to research and understand the complex texts. This will eliminate the danger of stopping the study altogether to zoom in on one text, which comes at the expense of lost momentum.
viii. Quitting when you fall behind
Often, we are too hard on ourselves. We chase perfection and we dont entertain any deviation from the ideal.
That’s a major undoing for many believers, one of the serious pitfalls to avoid when reading from Genesis to Revelation.
The fact is, life is not perfect. Seldom do all things go as planned.
As you embark on the cover-to-cover Bible reading journey, give room for deviation. Regardless of how committed you are, something will happen and you will fall behind a few times.
When that happens, dont be too critical of yourself or beat yourself too hard. Don’t even think of quitting either.
Perfectionism kills progress. Give yourself grace.
And don’t succumb to guilt, shame, and discouragement. These are the tools the enemy uses to keep believers stuck, rather than moving forward.
Rise, pick up the pieces, and continue the journey.
Missed a couple of days or even weeks of study?
You dont have to restart. Allow God to revive your heart, pick up from where you left off, and continue reading through the Bible cover to cover.
Pro tip: When you miss some days of reading, avoid the trap of guilt-driven reading of many chapters to catch up. Aside from cognitive overload, which limits understanding of the texts, it can also lead to burnout. Spread the number of chapters missed over a couple of days, so the daily portions remain manageable.
ix. Reading alone
Walking alone makes the journey harder. When you get discouraged, tired, or behind, there’s no one to encourage you (Ecclesiastes 4:10).
Why is this dangerous?
Isolation increases the chances of quitting, while community fuels perseverance.
Find a band of friends, church members, or an online group, or even your spouse, and do the cover to cover Bible reading challenge together.
Share weekly wins, challenges, and insights with them.
Most importantly, pray together. Pray for each other. You cant do this by your own strength, lean on God’s strength. Let God uphold you.
If you cannot find people to read with, the least you can do is inform someone close of the journey you are embarking on. Give them permission to check in frequently and ask how you are faring in your reading through the Bible.
Accountability is a powerful tool; add it to your arsenal today.
x. Overloading yourself with too many extras
As you use the various tools at your disposal, you need to avoid one of the other common mistakes in cover-to-cover Bible reading: overloading.
Some believers turn their Bible reading into a heavy spiritual exercise. Going out to read virtually all the journals, commentaries, devotionals, Greek word studies, and more, on a given chapter.
Unless you are preparing a sermon or deliberately delving into a complex text, overloading yourself with many extras can be counterproductive. It can easily turn your study into a herculean duty, and it will soon become unsustainable.
The result? Information paralysis.
If used strategically, these extra tools are beneficial. Otherwise, using them all at once can overwhelm you.
Get a study Bible of your favorite version and use it in your cover to cover bible reading.
A good study Bible will provide you with the necessary details about a text, such as the author, date of writing, major themes, book introduction, historical and cultural context, study notes, and concordances, all of which are vital details that will give you a good grasp of the text.
Unless you need to go deeper and understand the text further, this will suffice. Take it in and proceed with your reading.
There is no need to put yourself under unnecessary stress. Keep your daily reading simple and lightweight.
Also, avoid taking on many other plans when you start cover to cover Bible reading. Keep it simple, keep it focused to prevent fatigue.
xi. Not using the available tools
While some Christians overwhelm themselves with too many study additions, others fall into the opposite mistake—they ignore the very tools that would make their cover-to-cover journey clearer, smoother, and more enjoyable.
God has provided the church with resources that help illuminate Scripture, such as study Bibles, commentaries, and journals, as well as tools like Bible reading plans and apps, verse-of-the-day reminders, and progress dashboards.
Yet, many believers attempt to navigate the entire Bible on their own, relying solely on their own willpower and memory.
That limits our understanding of certain texts. We dont milk every juice we could have from the text. Sadly, this might lead to the misinterpretation of texts, resulting in incorrect application.
It need not be that. Not when most of these resources are freely and readily available.
Without these tools, we face unnecessary struggles.
For instance: missed dates (yet there are free reminders), not reading the Bible because you cant access a physical Bible (when we have Bible apps and audio Bibles), struggling with choosing daily reading portions (when there are tonnes of free plans), etc.
Friend, harness technological advances to enhance your cover to cover Bible reading. That’s good stewardship.
Dont struggle when help is within reach.
If you are struggling with certain aspects in your full Bible reading journey, you might want to find out if there are resources or tools you can use to make your reading more effective.
If there are, use them to their full potential. These resources and technology are part of God’s co-creating through human beings, hence God’s gift to humanity.
They are not a substitute for the place of the Holy Spirit; they are tools He uses to minister to us. So take full advantage of them without any guilt.
Conclusion: Mistakes to avoid when reading the Bible cover to cover
Reading the Bible cover to cover is not a walk in the park, but it is very possible and hugely rewarding. While the journey can feel long and at times overwhelming, knowing the mistakes to avoid when reading the Bible cover to cover positions you for success.
If you have tried before and struggled, or if you’ve started multiple times but never made it past certain books, take heart. You are not a failure; you simply needed a better strategy and a little more wisdom. When you deliberately avoid these common pitfalls, you remove the very barriers that have been slowing you down.
My prayer is that this time, you will walk steadily through the Torah, relish the historical accounts, persevere through the prophets, rejoice in the Gospels, get inspired in the epistles, and finally arrive at the beautiful finish line, Revelation 22, with joy in your heart and gratitude on your lips.
May God give you grace, strength, and consistency as you begin—or begin again. The whole counsel of God is waiting for you.
As you finish reading mistakes to avoid when reading the Bible cover to cover, you can also read:
Subtle Idolatry: The Danger of Idolizing Spiritual Things
I Have Completed a Bible Reading Plan – Now What?
The Sad Reality of Biblical Illiteracy in the Information Age