How to Study the Scriptures
A Book Study

Article IV

2 Tim 2:15 Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

For this article, you will be learning how to do a book stody in the Word of God.  This kind of study involves gaining an overview of an entire book of the bible, not dissecting the book chapter by chaper or even verse by verse.  The purpose of a book study is to gain a general understanding of the writer's purpose, theme, structure and content.  We will begin by doing an actual study, listing all of the information needed to complete the study.  This completed study will teach you step-by-step how to do a book study of the Bible.

Keep in mind that each writer of the Bible wrote from their personality, perspective, and experiences; they were all inspired by the Holy Spirit to give biblical truth as it came from the heart of God. You can trust that upon your research, that your discoveries came from God just as though He had ministered to you personally.

2 Tim 3:16-17 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. KJV

The purpose of a book study

This kind of study reveals the main points you need to know regarding a particular book of the Bible. Understanding its background and main points gives you needed knowledge that you have not had in the past. It also gives a much clearer prospective on the reality of the book you are reading. In addition, it gives you a much clearer understanding of several verses that you may have had trouble with in the past. Many verses, which are hard to understand, become clearer when they are seen in the larger context of the book in which they are found. It is easy to pull a scripture verse out of context, which could then easily change the meaning of what the writer intended. Doctrines have been built around pulling individual scripture verses out of its context, causing much division within the Body of Christ. Doing a book study helps keep verses within the context of its original meaning, as well as keep the Christian biblically sound.

Basic book study tools

A good study Bible

A good study Bible is an essential tool to have to conduct a thorough book study. In most study Bibles you will find at the beginning or end of each book helpful information that you will need to know in a book study. For instance, if you are studying the book of Isaiah, your study Bible will give information on the prophet Isaiah, the date of his writing, the theme of his book, and certain pertinent information you may need to know to help you understand the book more thorough. Understanding the author can give you a lot of information on the thoughts and intents of who he wrote the book to, what the book is about, and why he wrote the book.

Your study Bible will also include commentaries to give clarity and understanding to words, verses, and passages. Please note that in a book study you are not studying details about a particular book of the Bible, but gathering information that will later help you understand as you dig deeper into the book. Keep in mind, however, that all commentaries are simply the commentary of the writer, which may or may not be accurate. Regardless of its slant, commentaries are helpful in understanding the text. By doing a thorough study, especially with multiple study Bibles, it will help you keep accurate in the truths of what the author intended.

Bible Dictionary

Another good source of information will come from a Bible dictionary. There you will find pictures that will give you a clearer understanding of the times, along with a lot of good helpful information, such as the culture of the times, geographical and political situation at that time, along with the political times of when the book was written. Good Bible dictionaries, just to name a few, may include Holmen Bible Dictionary, Unger’s Bible Dictionary, Smith’s Bible Dictionary, and Nelson’s Bible Dictionary. Many of these sources can also be found on the world-wide web.

Bible Almanac

You may also want to study in a Bible Almanac on what the times were like at the time the author wrote the book. Although this is an optional tool, it is helpful in finding its location in relationship to other places. You may also ask such questions as what was their cultural background, political environment, customs of the people, etc.

Bible Atlas

Although not a necessity, a Bible atlas is helpful is searching out the geographical area of the book you are researching. Maps and charts gives greater clarify to your research.

The Internet

The internet can also be a good tool to studying the Bible. You need to be careful, however, at which sites you examine. Ones that are generally recommended are academic sites that have an .edu extension to the website or those that you are familiar with and trust.

Tools
A good Study Bible
Bible Dictionary
Bible Atlas (optional)
Bible Almanac (optional)
The Internet (optional)

Step One
Gathering pertinent information

There are many ways to study a book of the Bible. Listed below, however, are eight practical steps to learning about a book of the Bible[i].  While this method will require more research, gathering pertinent information will give you a much fuller, accurate understanding of the book you have chosen to study.  It will be helpful for when you later go into a chapter and verse study of that book. You will be grateful you began your book study by following this most important step.

For your first study, it would be wise to choose a book of the Bible that has less than 12 chapters.  As you become more proficient in your studies, you can then choose a larger book of the Bible.

This Study:  The Book of Ephesians

For this article, we will study the Book of Ephesians. It has only six chapters and fairly easy to study.

As you begin your study from this most fascinating book of the Bible, you will need to go to your study Bible to find basic information on who is its author, the date of its writing, the theme of the book, and certain pertinent information that you think would be helpful in your study. Take the time to read through this information in your Bible to understand its contents. It will be your introduction as you prepare to read the contents of that particular book.

The following information was taken from various study Bibles on the Book of Ephesians:

Author: Apostle Paul

Date of writing:  Late 50s or early 60s while the apostle was in prison in Rome for the first time. Most scholars claim around 62 A.D.

To whom addressed: Saints in Christ Jesus (in Lycos Valley in the region of Phyrgia).

• This letter, along with Colossians and Philippians were considered prison epistles because they were written from a prison.
• This letter was hand delivered by Tychicus, a close friend of the Apostle Paul to the church at Ephesus or one of a group of house churches in the Lycos Valley.
• The original manuscripts of this letter did not say it was addressed specifically to the church of Ephesus.  Ephesus, however, was the largest city in the Lycus Valley, having the largest church. It was also at Ephesus where the apostle ministered at for two years and, therefore, knew many people. Scholars have speculated that this letter could also have been addressed to the church of Laodicea or a group of house churches in the Valley.
• This letter was similar to the writings sent to Colossae, sent as a circular letter to be addressed to many churches.

Purpose in writing:

• Counteract false doctrine that had set in the church.
• To re-establish the believer’s union with Christ.
• To re-inform the good news of the union of Jew and Gentiles in Christ.
• Emphasize the marriage relationship between husband and wife – analogy for expression Christ’s love, sacrifice, and lordship over the church.
• Teach on how to overcome Satanic forces.

Theme of the book:

• Relationship between the heavenly Christ and His earthly body, the Church.
• Rules for Christian family living.
• How to defeat Satanic powers, authorities, and principalities.

Step Two
Reading the Book

You are now ready to read the book of the Bible you have chosen to study.  Begin first with an easy-to-read authorized translation, such as New International Version, New American Standard, or New King James version. As you read the content of the whole book in one setting, you should remain more focused than if you read it in segments.

Most books of the Bible can be read in less than four hours. The book of Ephesians, however, can be read in a little over an hour. Your reading will give you a broad overview of what the writer was trying to convey to his reader.

Don’t read your book with chapters and verses in mind. Read it like you would a novel. Get into the heart of its content and follow the flow of the writer. Don’t get bogged down with details, using commentaries or other research material at this time, as that will defeat the initial purpose of a book study. Detailed studying will be done later.

Listen to the book

Another great way to get a broad overview is to listen to a book of the Bible on audio tape or CD. Many have music as background and several voices and tones incorporated in its reading for the enjoyment of the listener. Not only is it interesting, but you will discover that you are listening to the text from an entirely different perspective, discovering new things you hadn’t seen while reading the book.

Step Three - Answering Questions
Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How

Go back and read the book of the Bible again from a different version.  As you read through the second time, write down your impressions and important things you discover as you read. Feel free to write in your Bible some brief information that you want stored for future reference. Ask yourself the following questions:

Is this book study a book of laws, history, poetry, biography, discourse, letter, etc.?

• In the book of Ephesians, you will discover that it is a letter (called an epistle), written to a church in the Lycos Valley in Phyrgia. It was also meant to be circulated to other churches in the valley as an encouragement.

What is the main theme of this book?

• Relationship between heavenly Christ and His earthly body, the Church. The Church is encouraged to see who they are in Christ and what Christ has done for them.
• Rules for family living

How is this book organized? Is it organized around people, places, events, ideas, etc.?

• The book of Ephesians is organized around ideas – the believer’s place in Christ, and righteous living for believers.

Who are the principle personalities in the book?

• The principle personalities are not individuals, but the Church in Christ. It was written as instructional and encouragement.

Step Four
Background study

It is now time to do a background study of the book you have been reading. This will take the most time in your study.  Go back to t he information you did in step one, except now do some research on the author – his personality, and any other supportive information that would be helpful to your book study. Also, do a historical/political, sociological, and geographical research of the book. Do a study on the origin of the surroundings that the book was written to or from to get a better idea why the author wrote his message. Also, investigate the people that the book was written to. Ask yourself – why was this book written? Was it a book of encouragement or warning? If you have Bible software or access to the internet, you may even incorporate a map, show a chart, or add pictures to give supportive material to your study. While this step will take the most time, it will be extremely valuable in learning the background of the book you are studying.

Author : The Apostle Paul

• A native of Tarsus in southeast Asia Minor.
• Date of birth – unknown; however an ancient tradition places it at 3 A.D.
• Jewish birth name was Saul
• Saul was of Jewish descent – tribe of Benjamin. He was also a Roman citizen by birth. He referred himself as a Jew but used his Roman citizenship to his advantage when necessary in his ministry.
• At the age of 13, Saul was sent by his parents to Jerusalem to further his studies in Judiasm. They wanted their son to be well-grounded in the best traditions of Jewish orthodoxy. Saul became a student of the famous Gamaliel, a distinguished teacher of the law.
• Saul also learned the trade of tentmaking.
• Became a Pharisee, well versed in the Law of Moses.
• Saul loved God but thought that believers in Yeshua (Jesus) was part of a Jewish cult. He thought they should be exterminated.
• As a Pharisee, Saul gave instructions for the martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 6:8)
• Saul continued to persecute the Church, going from house to house (8:3) and placing believers in prison. His notoriety was known far and wide.
• Jewish and Gentile believers scattered far and wide to avoid persecution. One of the places was Damascus.
• Saul, determined to pursue the believers in Jesus, went to the high priest asking for a letter of permission to present to the synagogues at Damascus to have believers in Jesus arrested.
• While on his journey, Saul had an encounter with the resurrected Jesus the Christ through a light from heaven and a spoken word from Christ. Saul became an instant believer in Jesus. The light caused him to be struck blind and he was led by the hand by his soldiers into Damascus. Jesus had commanded him to go to the house of Ananias to be baptized, have his sins forgiven, and his sight restored. For three days Saul sought repentance and fasted. (Approximately 37-40 A.D.)
• Upon Ananias laying hands upon him and being baptized in water, Saul sought out the disciples of Jesus Christ. It was, however, not to persecute them, but join them in spreading the gospel for the Jesus Christ.
• For a short span, he ministered with the disciples of Jesus Christ. He later went off alone to Arabia for three years to be alone with the Lord. It was there where he received revelation of the Old Testament in relation to the risen Christ.
• After his seclusion time with the Lord, he returned to Damascus and rejoined the disciples.
• Paul stayed with the disciples for several years in Antioch. It was in Antioch that believers in Jesus the Christ took on the name of Christians.
• During that time Antioch became the largest Christian community. [ii]
• Saul began his 1^st missionary journey to the Gentiles around 45-47 A.D. with Barnabus. Saul then took on the Gentile name of Paul.
• On his 2^nd missionary journey, Paul left by boat from Corinth with Aquila and Priscilla to Ephesus. He only stayed there briefly and sailed on (Approximately 53 A.D. Acts 18:19 & 26).
• On his third missionary journey, Paul returned to Ephesus and stayed there for over two years. He preached in the synagogue for three months until he was asked to leave. He then rented space at the School of Tyrannus and taught the Word of God (Acts 19: 9-10). In the heat of the afternoon he taught to believers and in the early evening he went out into the market places or homes to witness the gospel. At night before bed, he worked as a tentmaker to earn a living and pay for the rent of the hall. He left Ephesus around 57 A.D.
• Near the end of his stay at Ephesus, the Apostle Paul wrote  his first letter to the church at Corinth.
• His 3^rd journey ends at Jerusalem in 58 A.D. when he is beaten by Jews and brought before the Sanhedrin Council (Jewish council). He is then taken to Caesarea and judged before Governor Felix. There he spent two years in prison. In 60 A.D. Festus becomes governor and Paul appealed to Caesar. Thus his journey to Rome began. Paul then spent two years in his own hired house as a prisoner in Rome (61-63 A.D.). It was during this time that the Apostle Paul wrote the letter to the church at Ephesus (around 62 A.D.)
• The apostle was released from prison in 63 A.D. He then traveled to Corinth, Miletus, Troas, Crete, and Nicopolis.
• He later was captured and returned to Rome.  He was imprisoned until his death. There he wrote other epistles.
• The Apostle Paul died in Rome by the sword in 68 A.D. under the Emperor Nero about the same time as the Apostle Peter.

Geographic location

Ephesus was located in Asia Minor, (Province of Asia) in the large region Phrygia, on the coastline of the Aegean Sea, which is a part of the Mediterranean Sea.  Ephesus was a major city on the coastline, where the Maeander River (meaning winding) flowed 250 miles downward from the mountain,through the area of Colossae, down to the coastline of Ephesus.

• The whole area of the Western Province of Asia was called the Lycos Valley, because it was fertile land. 
• Ephesus became the capital of proconsular Asia. It was considered to be the first and greatest metropolis of Asia – 3^rd largest city in the Roman Empire – largest commercial center in Asia.
• Ephesus was the biggest trade center of Asia Minor because of its well protected harbor. Ships came in and out of there, being well protected by the winds of the sea.
• A royal road had been built by the Persians to run from Ephesus to Susa (Persia’s capital), so it became a gateway to and from the interior of Asia Minor.
• Under Augustus, aqueducts were constructed.
• Paved streets and the enlarging of the agoras (market places) were built.

Political/Religious Environment

• Founded as a colony about 1000 B.C. by Athenians.
• Paganistic from its formation
• City was on lower swampy ground – always in danger of flooding.
• Under control of King of Lydia until Persian King Cyrus conquered it (and Mesopotamia, Assyia, and, Israel) in 547 BC.
• Around 350 B.C. Alexander the Great from Macedonia conquered Persians. He hellenized the world with Greek philosophy. Ephesus was among a major part of hellenization. Worship of Greek gods and infiltration of Greek language.
• During this time Phrygia became infiltrated with Persians and former Babylonian Jews.
• In 356 B.C. fire destroyed Ephesus – including temple of Artemis – city then was brought to higher ground – up the hill by orders of Alexander the Great.
• Temple dedicated to Artemis (Greek goddess) by Alexander the Great.
• It stood on top of the hill outside of Ephesus and attracted visitors from all over the world

 

Made of marble and regarded as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world

• Grecian and Roman legend: Artemis was the daughter of Zeus (the #1 Greek god) and his mistress Leto. She was often described as a virgin huntress, fearless in opposing her adversaries. In Ephesus she was the mother goddess, a provider of fertility, and overseer of childbirth.
• In 67 B.C. Romans conquered the world around the Mediterranean Sea - became known as the Roman Empire. The Romans brought in their own gods/goddesses and laws.
• In Ephesus, Artemis took on the Roman name of “Diana” – mother goddess.
• The temple also served as a marketplace and a religious institution.
• During the time of the Apostle Paul, the temple was the largest edifice in Greek antiquity.
• Travelers came in to do sacrifices and worship at the temple. Worship was designed to bring fertility and “good sex.” The priests were generally women.

• One of the ways the local daughters gave homage and worship to Diana was to give their virginity away to local travelers and merchants at the temple. The proceeds were then given to the temple. This was an ancient practice that had been in effect since pre-historic times in Ephesus and other nearby places.
• The sanctuary of the temple was visited by merchants, tourists, artisans, and kings who paid homage to the goddess by sharing their profits with her.
• The temple was then used for a bank from distant lands. The temple issued receipts for the deposit of gold and other goods.
• The making and selling of idol and being a trade center were the main industries in Ephesus.
• Ephesus grew to be the most densely populate city of its time. There was about 250,000 people when the Apostle Paul came to minister at Ephesus.

Ephesus’ large harbor was in constant danger of silting over because of excessive topsoil slipping into the streams upriver toward the mountains. · As one walked up the road from the harbor, it was lined continuously with various Greek and Roman gods all the way up to the marketplace.  It was at the marketplace where Paul did a lot of evangelism and preaching to the Gentiles.   Below is a modern picture of the relics of the Harbor Road up to the marketplace.

• Footprints were placed on the harbor road as a map to the nearest local brothel. Ephesus housed many brothels, which were well patronized. Prostitution was rampant.
• At the end of Harbor Street were two gates entering into the marketplace.
• At the harbor gate were large Roman public baths and pools. Used for bathing and socializing.
• In the market places goods were sold, as well as political and social issues were discussed by the people.

A new amphitheater was built 2 years prior to the apostle’s coming  (Shown in picture above).

• The amphitheater housed 25,000 spectators.
• At that time it was used for all kinds of ceremonies, i.e. athletic contests, chariot races, horse races, animal fights, and gladiator combat.

From 100 B.C. to 100 A.D. Ephesus was the world capital of slave labor.  Slave owners came from across Asia Minor to buy and sell. Slave labor was common place.

• The Apostle Paul addressed slaves and their masters in his letter to the church at Ephesus).

Ephesus was also a city of superstition, known for magic and miracles.

These were the conditions of Ephesus and other cities within the Lycos Valley when the Apostle Paul came to evangelize.

The Apostle Paul in Ephesus

· The Apostle Paul came to Ephesus to evangelize around 52 A.D.  His first trip was a “stop-over on his way to Antioch, Syria to visit churches he had established in Galatia and Phrygia. He later returned and conducted his ministry, which lasted for over two years.

• With Ephesus as their base of operation, the Apostle Paul and his associates spread Christianity into the adjacent cities and regions of Asia. From a political, economical, and religious perspective, Ephesus was a good place to spread the Gospel. Ephesus was big, cosmopolitan, multicultural center. It was also a place where the most conflict against them would arise.
• While in Ephesus, Paul wrote his first letter to the church at Corinth.

What happened in Ephesus to warrant the Apostle Paul to write the church there a letter?

As Christianity grew in Ephesus, a form of Gnosticism (cultic beliefs) began to infiltrate not only Ephesus, but also surrounding cities and towns in the Lycos Valley.

• There were those who sought to combine the teachings of Diana (and neighboring city of Colossae who worshiped the goddess Sophia) with Christianity, creating a cultic belief.
• It was in this setting when these teachings began to invade the church at Ephesus that Paul, while in prison, wrote back to Timothy, who was then pastor over Ephesus, (1 Tim. 1:4) to remind the Christians what they already had in Christ, rules on how to live a godly Christian life, and how to fight the forces of the enemy. The apostle stated in 1 Tim 6:20 that we are to come against any falsely beliefs. He also wrote two letters to Timothy personally on how to conduct the church at Ephesus.
• Throughout the Book of Ephesus the Apostle Paul is counteracting many of the beliefs of the Gnostics.

Step Five
Organizing a Chart

At this point of time you probably have a lot of information listed in various places, and it is probably listed on several sheets of paper. A time of organization is now recommended. A horizontal chart may be helpful in summarizing the information you have gathered together. It can be gathered together in categories. If you have a lot of information that is pertinent to your study, you may want to use more than one page, or condense your information tighter within the columns. Creating a chart can easily be done within MicroSoft Word creating tables or on an Excel spreadsheet. Your chart then becomes a diagramed layout of your researched information.

Chart of the Book of Ephesians
Author	Kind of book	Theme	Principles in book	Location of Book	Political/Socio/ Religious Environment	Purpose in Writing Book
Apostle Paul	Epistle (letter) to church(es)	Relationship w/Christ	Ideas on Christian living	City of Ephesus – located in Asia Minor/Phyrgia/Lycos Valley – Coastline of Aegean Sea	Under Roman rule	Wrote to those Paul had earlier ministered to
Date of writings – Early 60s	Addressed to Christians in church(es)	Rules for godly living	Personalities – Church in Christ	Ephesus – Large metropolis - Capital – 1st metropolis of Asia	Paganistic society – Greek/Roman goddess worship (Diana)	Since leaving, church had become cultic in its doctrine and beliefs.
Native-Tarsus. Jewish/ Roman roots		Centered around ideas		Largest trade center – sea gateway	Had temple of worship – visited by merchants/tourists/artisans/kings	Writing was meant to counteract false cultic behavior with believers - Gnosticism
Trained in Jerusalem as a Pharisee under Gamiel. Also tentmaker		How to overcome Satan		Densely populated – 250,000	Temple priests - generally women – used for sex. City of prostitution. Temple also used for trade & banking	To give correction, instruction, and encouragement to the Church
Persecuted Christians until converted to Christ on road to Damascus		Considered prison epistle (written from prison in Rome)		World capital of slave labor	Main industry – making/selling of idols
Went to Arabia to be alone with Christ – 3 yrs				City of instant gratification and sexual perversion	Local daughters gave away virginity to travelers/merchants as act of worship
Ministered in Ephesus for 2+ years on 3rd missionary journey				City of superstitution/ magic/miracles	A needed place for evangelism – but also a place of religious persecution
Wrote back to Ephesians while in prison - 62 A.D.

Step Six
Creating an Outline

Write out a tentative outline of the book, highlighting the high points of the each chapter. Whether you do your outline in Roman numeral or bullets is simply a matter of preference. The important thing is to document the important information on paper in this step.

The Book of Ephesians

Salutation (1:1-2)
The believer's position in Christ (1:3-3:21)
- The elements of Christ’s position (1:1-14)
- Prayer for knowledge and faith to appropriate the power of the position (1:15-21)
- Christ as Head of the church (1:22-23)
- Gentile salvation (2:1-10)
- Joining of Jew and Gentile in Christ (2:11-18) 
- The Church as a temple inhabited by the Spirit (2:19-22)

The church as a special divine revelation (3:1-12)
- Hidden in past ages (3:1-6)
- Revealed especially to the Apostle Paul (3:7-12)
- Second prayer for knowledge and faith to appropriate the power of the position (3:13-21)

The walk of the believer in Christ (4:1-6:9)
- The worthy walk (4:1-3) 
- The believer’s walk as an expression of doctrinal unity (4:4-6) 
- The believer’s walk as a ministry of gifts (4:7-16)
- The believer’s walk as a regenerated man (4:17-29)
- The believer’s walk of the believer indwelt by the Spirit (4:30-32)
- The believer’s walk as a child in God's family (5)
- The believer’s walk of children and servants (6:1-9)

The warfare of the Spirit-filled believer in Christ (6:10-22)
- The believer’s power (6:10)
- The believer’s armor (6:11)
- The enemy (6:12-17)
- The believer’s resources (6:18-22)

Benediction (6:23-24)

Step Seven
Application

If you simply researched and gathered information for the purpose of learning the information, you would have missed what God wanted you to learn. The application of what you have learned is the next step. At this point of time it is recommended that you write out a personal application of what the book of the Bible has shown you. Even though the main purpose of a book study is to get you acquainted with the general contents of a book, you should not forget to make a personal application of some insight you discovered while surveying the book. You may want to select one or two major things that the Lord showed you while studying that book of the Bible. Write a reflective personal, practical, and maybe a measurable application on that truth.

Review all of your personal applications and ask the Lord how you should incorporate that information in your life.

The book of Ephesians is a powerful book for Christian living. The first three chapters are filled with what Christ has given us. What we have in Him is incomprehensible. It causes me to be so grateful. It also encourages me in my faith and walk with the Lord. Chapters 4-5 are filled with instruction on godly living – first for the adult and then the children. These are practical instruction that I, as a Christians, need to know for everyday living. By living according to them helps me to be more like Christ. Chapter 6 is filled with the weapons of our warfare against Satan and his angels. By using our weapons, I can stay strong in the Lord. All of the weapons end up with the power of the Word of God.

Sharing with others

Share what you learned with others. That is the beauty and enrichment of this kind of study. God wants you to share what you learned and applied to your life with others. You will then become the knowledgeable person for that particular book of the Bible and its application. Others will want to know what you have learned through your study. By sharing what you learned, you will then be ministering to other people.

It is now time for you to chose a book of the Bible to research.  Remember, to begin with, chose a book that has less than 12 chapters.  Don't overwhelm yourself before you begin.  As you continue to do these book studies, you will gain vast knowledge of the scriptures, and therefore will be able to share what you have learned and applied to your life with others.

End Notes

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[i] Warren, Rick. Personal Bible Study Methods. The Encouraging Word. Lake Forest, CA. 1981.
[ii] Moody Press of Chicago, Ill. New Unger's Bible Dictionary. 1988.