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How long does it take to read the Bible?
Reading the whole Bible silently takes most adults roughly 50 to 65 hours. At 15 minutes a day, that is about 7 to 9 months. These are estimates: everyone reads at their own speed.
The quick answer
These ranges assume a silent reading pace of about 200–250 words a minute and round the word counts. Audio Bibles are slower, at roughly 70–80 hours for the whole Bible depending on the narrator.
- Whole Bible: 1,189 chapters and roughly 780,000 words (KJV). About 50–65 hours of silent reading.
- Old Testament: 929 chapters and roughly 600,000 words. About 40–50 hours.
- New Testament: 260 chapters and roughly 180,000 words. About 12–15 hours.
- A Gospel such as Mark (16 chapters): about 45–60 minutes.
- A short letter such as Philippians or James: about 10 minutes.
How long at your pace
Some books read faster than others. Narrative books like Genesis, Acts or the Gospels move quickly; Leviticus, the prophets and Paul's letters take more thought.
- 10 minutes a day: whole Bible in about 10–13 months; New Testament in about 2.5–3 months.
- 15 minutes a day: whole Bible in about 7–9 months; New Testament in about 2 months.
- 20 minutes a day: whole Bible in about 5–6.5 months.
- 30 minutes a day: whole Bible in about 3.5–4.5 months; New Testament in about 1 month.
- By chapters: about 3–4 chapters a day finishes the whole Bible in one year (1,189 ÷ 365 ≈ 3.3).
Tips for finishing
- Pick a plan with a set number of chapters a day so you always know where you are.
- Mix Old and New Testament readings so you are never stuck in a hard book for weeks.
- Listen to an audio Bible on a commute or a walk.
- If you fall behind, skip to today's reading rather than trying to catch up all at once.
- Speed isn't the goal. A slower read you understand is worth more than a fast one you forget.
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