What is Scripture Writing? Plus Where to Find Free Plans

Have you ever thought about writing out the Bible? I’m serious. Scripture writing is a great way of internalizing what the Bible has to say. It can have a huge impact on the time you spend in the Word.

What is Scripture Writing?

Scripture writing is the practice of intentionally writing out the Bible. I want to emphasize that it should be handwritten since the interaction between pen and paper affects your brain in a different way than typing does.

Years ago, I read the story of a man who spent years copying the Bible by hand. My first thought was, what a lot of work!

But there was a hint of intrigue there as well. What must it have been like to write the entire Bible by hand? If he had an open mind, I know his life has been changed as he came into a close, personal contact with God’s Word.

Since that time, I have written out countless verses of Scripture and at least two books of the Bible and I can attest that writing the Scriptures can have a powerful impact on your life.

What is the purpose of Scripture writing?

1. Helps you focus on the Scripture. Have you ever noticed how sometimes you tend to skip over some parts of the Bible when you read it? Especially those parts of the Bible you’d consider boring, like the begats. But it also happens when you read familiar passages of Scripture.

Scripture writing slows you down and forces you to focus on what you’re writing.

2. Forces you to think about the passage. Since you’re now reading at a slower pace, Scripture writing gives you room to think about what you’re copying. You may find yourself asking questions like:

• What does that mean?
• Why would he do that?
• That’s something that I do, how can I stop doing that?

Your curiosity is engaged as you wrote the Scriptures which will lead you into a deeper study of the Bible.

3. Aids memorization as you go over the text multiple times in copying it down. When you’re writing a passage of Scripture, you’ll often go over it multiple times because you don’t want to make any errors (especially if you’re hoping to leave it as a legacy for your children one day).

Scripture writing examples

If you were to ask ten people to show you examples of their Scripture writing, you’d probably get several different examples.

Some would be all fancy and artistic using hand-lettering and pops of color. Others would be written simply in their everyday handwriting. 

I’ve included two Scripture writing examples below. As you can see, the visuals are very different but the impact is the same: both persons spent some time writing out God’s Word. The point of Scripture writing is to get into God’s Word, the aesthetics are irrelevant.

One thing you may be wondering about Scripture writing is what is the correct way to write a Bible verse? Citations from the Bible typically include the translation or Bible version, for example, NKJV for New King James Version or ESV for the English Standard Version.

Some citations use the abbreviations for the book while others include the full name. Decide what works best for you but keep it consistent.

What Does God Say About Writing Things Down?

It shouldn’t surprise you that God is in the habit of having people write things down. I mean the Bible wouldn’t exist otherwise.

God often told His prophets to write down their vision as He did in Revelation 1:19 and Habakkuk 2:2. But there were also times when He told people not to write things down (Revelation 10:4 and Daniel 12:4).

However, when I think about Scripture writing, the reference that most often comes to mind is found in Deuteronomy 17:14-20.

God instructed the children of Israel through Moses that their kings should write out a copy of the Law and read it all the days of his life so that he could learn to fear the Lord.

Now, I understand that the invention of the printing press has made this practice null and void. I also agree a greater emphasis should be placed on reading and studying the Bible than should on writing the Scripture.

But, I still maintain that you and I could benefit from copying out the Scriptures.  If you’re interested to try writing Scripture, there are several writing plans available.

How Does a Scripture Writing Plan Work?

Scripture writing plans typically follow one of two layouts:

1. They follow a theme. Thematic Scripture writing plans will have you copying Scripture from various books of the Bible based on a particular theme such as love.
2. They are based on a specific book of the Bible. Book-based Scripture writing plans will have you copying an entire book of the Bible over a period of time.

Each day, you’ll be given a verse or passage to copy from the book or based on the theme.

Some writing plans include only the Scripture that you’re to copy on a daily basis (plans are usually monthly) while others include additional resources like prayer prompts and reflection questions.

Regardless of what’s included in your monthly Scripture writing plan, you always have the option to go deeper into the Word. Use the Scripture writing plan as a springboard to study the Bible.

Some examples of Bible study methods you can use to enhance your plan are verse mapping, SOAP, or Bible journaling.

Free Printable Scripture Writing Plans

There are a number of Scripture writing plans available.  Some creators do a monthly Scripture writing challenge which they send out to subscribers. Additionally, any topical Bible reading plan could also double as a Bible writing plan.

There are several options available. You can use anything from a composition notebook (plain or decorated to suit your taste), a pretty journal, or custom-designed Scripture journaling pages.

Whatever you decide, I hope that you will remember that writing the Word is about deepening your interaction with God.

You may also like:

• 4 Fantastic Reasons to Keep a Bible Study Journal
• Elements of Bible Art Journaling