3 Easy Ways For Using Colour in Your Bible Study
If you like searching Pinterest or spending time on Instagram you will have seen colourful images of Bibles – Let’s explore and find out how you too can start using colour in your Bible!
Why Use Colour in Your Bible?
Colour has been used in Bibles for centuries. Think back to the early illuminated manuscripts created by monks huddled over desks creating the beautiful pages seen in museums today – the writing may have faded to a dull brownish colour but the images shine with gold leaf, alongside vibrant colours of blue, yellow and red.
Today, we live in a visual age where images often speak louder than words. Why? Because an image can convey information instantly, and our curiosity to explore further is invited. Images often hold our attention where a page of text so easily tires.
And we can use colour in our Bibles, and for Bible Study, in these 3 Easy ways:
Index your Bible with Washi Tape
There is a vast range of Washi Tape available today in all sorts of colours and designs. By adding it to the long outer edge of the title page of each book you can index your Bible. This makes it easier to find the beginning of each book.
You can use patterned tapes if you want to but how about taking it one step further? When you use particular colours or patterns for each of the genres of the Books of the Bible, you can identify distinctly the type of book you are reading. To help you with that here are the books grouped together by type;
The Old Testament are:
- Law – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy
- History – Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1&2 Samuel, 1&2 Kings, 1&2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther
- Wisdom – Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon
- Prophecy – Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi (this can be split into Major and Minor Prophets if preferred).
The New Testament are:
- Gospels & Acts
- Letters Of Paul – Romans, 1&2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1&2 Thessalonians, 1&2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews (the author of Hebrews isn’t named in it but there is strong evidence it was Paul)
- General Letters – James, 1&2 Peter, 1,2&3 John, Jude
- Prophecy – Revelation
BONUS IDEAS: You could make Page tabs for each Book or create a quick access tab to your favourite passages of Scripture.
Use Colour in Your Bible with Highlighting
If you want to use colour in your Bible this is the most effective way, and NO artistic skill is needed! You simply highlight verses according to the theme or topic. You will need a system to make sense of which colours to use for each subject type. Simply decide the topics you want to highlight and select a colour for each. Make a key either inside the cover of your Bible or as a bookmark.
DOWNLOAD this free ‘Using Colour in Your Bible’ Chart HERE
I like to keep things simple so the colour scheme I’ve tended to use is:-
- Blue for Heaven
- Red for Sacrifice, Jesus
- Purple for the Heavenly Kingdom
- Yellow for Golden Verses ie those that really mean something to me personally
There are more colour suggestions on the Colour Chart you can find HERE (it has ideas for using coloured symbols too!)
The Best Colouring Tools
(The following suggestions are Affiliate links which mean if you make a purchase I will receive a small commission at NO extra cost to you!)
There is a vast range of highlighters available today so you may want to try a few. The problem with liquid type highlighters is that they can bleed through the paper. If you are concerned it might spoil your page, do some test lines on the back page of your Bible to check it out. THESE are the ones I have heard work best of all.
You can also use a wax type highlighter like these Bible Highlighters – I like them but I do find they have a broader tip. They don’t bleed through the paper or smudge.
Using pencil crayons gives you a far greater range of colours to use, and they probably last longer too. The only snag is you need to sharpen them so These are the best solution to that problem
To find out more about ‘How to Get the Best from Your Bible Journaling Tools’ check out THIS VIDEO
BONUS IDEA:
Use a highlighting scheme for each book of the Bible – this would be especially helpful if you want to study specific themes or topics. Make sure you add a key at the beginning of each book as a reminder. The FREE Colour and Symbol Chart has suggestions of colours, themes and topics along with some blank Key Charts for you to use – You will find it HERE
Use Colour in Your Bible With Journaling
The third way of using colour in your Bible has to be the most dramatic! You can add graphic designs to the pages of your Bible, either in the margins or across whole pages. The purpose is to highlight the message or a particular verse within a passage of Scripture. Bible Journaling is more of a devotional technique than a study method.
Do you want to know the difference between Devotionals and Bible Study? – Read THIS POST
For an in-depth article about Bible Journaling read THIS POST
Which Scheme Will You Choose?
- Will you use washi tape on the Book Title pages or will you make Page Tabs?
- Have you a list of Themes or Topics that you want to Highlight? Will you use crayons or highlighters?
- Would you like to be more creative in your devotional time and try out Bible journaling?
- Or will you try a combination of techniques to make your Bible truly your own?
And if you are unsure that you should even be adding anything to your Bible page remember: The content taught within the Bible is to be read, learnt, and where appropriate obeyed – the book, as in the cover and the pages are just that. It’s ink on sheets of paper. They do not undergo some spiritual transformation because the Word of God is imprinted on them. They are the surface on which to record your interaction with God’s Word. God gave each one of us creative abilities so why not use them in making reading and studying your Bible colourful?!
DOWNLOAD the ‘Using Colour in Your Bible’ Chart HERE
