About FerventWord

FerventWord exists to help you connect with God daily by reading and exploring His Word. To get started I suggest that you sign up for a Bible reading plan and receive daily emails for the scheduled passages that you can read or listen to. Sign up here to begin your journey!

This is an online Bible study ministry of Jerry B Simmons, a former pastor and lifelong student of the Bible. The resources made available here are the byproduct of teaching the Bible for over 30 years. Over the years Jerry developed a passion for helping people to read the Bible daily and discover God's life-changing power for themselves.

"The power of God to change a life
is found in reading His Word daily."

Bible Reading Schedules

FerventWord's reading schedules are unique, and developed from decades of reading through the whole Bible. The order of the books have been rearranged to provide variety and so that parallel accounts are fresh and valuable reminders when encountered again. The different reading schedules allow you to choose your time commitment.

  • New Testament In 1 Year: Ideal for those who have never read through the New Testament, this schedule covers the most important passages for Christians to read, study, and meditate on, with a time commitment of about 5-10 minutes daily.
  • Bible In 2 Years: With this schedule, you'll read the New Testament twice and the Old Testament once, helping to keep the life of Jesus and the ministry of the church fresh in your mind, while exploring the Old Testament in manageable chunks, committing about 15-20 minutes daily.
  • Bible In 3 Years: This arrangement takes you through the Old Testament over two years, followed by the New Testament in the third year, providing a journey through the whole Bible at a comfortable pace with a commitment of about 5-10 minutes daily.
  • Bible In 1 Year: Engage with the entirety of Scripture in one year, reading from two sections of the Old Testament and one section of the New Testament daily, which maintains variety and interest with a 20-30 minute daily commitment.

Whichever schedule you choose, the most important principle is this: Read today what God has appointed for you today. If you fall behind, don't stress about catching up, as this could lead to legalism or discouragement. While catching up can help maintain the continuity of historical accounts, remember that the Bible is much more than a textbook. God provides what you need for today in His Word. The goal is spending time with God, not achieving a perfect reading score. So, focus on reading today what God has appointed for you today.

Chapter Tools And Resource Information

Key Verse

Key verses offer a quick glimpse into the main point or event of a chapter, providing a focused lens on its core message. Selecting just one verse can be challenging, so I encourage you to suggest your own alternatives.

Context

Context is the most crucial factor in Biblical interpretation. To gain the clearest understanding of a passage, consider its historical setting, preceding verses and chapters, language, human author, and related passages. By examining these elements, you can uncover a deeper and more accurate picture of the Scripture's meaning.

Visuals

These visual resources are a mix of slides from my teachings over the years and unique images created for the FerventWord Bible Guide.

Maps

These maps are provided to enhance your general understanding of the locations and landscapes described in the Bible. Precise identification of ancient sites can be difficult due to changes over time and limited archaeological evidence. The information here is based on a combination of scholarly research, traditional thought, and my own conclusions from the Biblical texts.

Timeframes

Dates for Biblical events are intended to give a sense of the chronological order of events and relative distance between them. It is important to note that exact dates are often challenging to ascertain from ancient records. The dates presented here are derived from a combination of insights from various scholars, general consensus among Bible teachers, and my own calculations based on clues found within the Biblical texts.

Doctrines

The primary Biblical passages related to each major doctrine are presented for quick reading and understanding. This exercise is essential for every believer in Jesus, ensuring clarity in what we believe and why. While a lifetime of study would not yield perfect knowledge, God graciously reveals deep and profound truths about Himself in simple ways.

Teachings

This collection includes recorded teachings that I have delivered over the last three decades. Each entry is accompanied by the date and occasion of its delivery, offering insights into my maturity level and experience at that time.

Bible Version

Throughout the FerventWord website and its resources, the primary Bible version used is the English Standard Version (ESV). While there are numerous excellent modern translations of the Bible available, the ESV was specifically chosen due to its very affordable licensing permissions, which are well-suited for a small initiative like FerventWord.

Scripture quotations marked “ESV” are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated into any other language. Users may not copy or download more than 500 verses of the ESV Bible or more than one half of any book of the ESV Bible.

Non-Profit Organization

FerventWord Ministries is a religious non-profit 501(c)(3) organization (Tax ID: 33-2826562). FerventWord exists to help people develop and maintain a passion for God’s Word that fuels their relationship with God and equips them to serve the Lord empowered by the Holy Spirit. As a 501(c)(3), donations to FerventWord are tax-deductible and directly support the development and distribution of educational materials. Donations can be made here.