Why Is Bible Reading In Decline?

Why Is Bible Reading In Decline?



Jesus warned that the anxieties of life and the desires of other things entering will choke out the word from continuing to grow in our lives, and a recent vision drove this home to me once again. Since the pandemic, Americans in particular are reading their Bibles less and less, and the reasons may be manifold. So for those who agree, what's your opinion on why? Growing concerns over health, finances, or political concerns, and a growing fixation on those things? Are generations becoming dumbed down to the point where they just don't read anything anymore? Or is the Christianity we are being presented no longer motivating people to want to seek God?

All opinions are welcome, and thanks in advance for posting.
Hidden

22 Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. 23 But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty." (Matthew 13:22-23)

The vision that inspired this thread. I believe it is about Americans in particular, since among the developed countries the United States still ranks first in obesity.

Big Boy Johnson said:

Maybe someone should make a Bible video game.

Then maybe more people would read the Bible thru the video game.

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If it's high quality, I'd probably go for it, LoL. Maybe a 4X game called "To The Promised Land"?

marks said:

Are you certain it is? In my experience it ebs and flows like most things.

Much love!

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Well, after reading the vision mentioned in the OP, I looked it up, and Bible reading appears to have taken a serious hit during the epidemic. No statistics on if the pendulum has swung back the other way yet or not, but I would seriously doubt it. The trend has been a downhill slide for decades now, and the pandemic only sped things up.

One of the articles:

Dramatic Drop in Bible Reading: Why?​

Kenneth Berding — March 15, 2023




In 2011, the percentage of Americans who “used the Bible at least 3-4 times on their own, outside of a church setting” was around 50%. Again in 2012—around 50%. Then again in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021. Always around 50%.

But according to the American Bible Society, in 2022, that number dropped to 39%. And daily Bible reading dropped from 14% to 10%.[1]

Dramatic. Precipitous. Unprecedented. Those are the adjectives being used by people commenting on this change. There was an 11% drop in the number of people in the US who sometimes (3-4 times a year) picked up a Bible (or looked at a digital Bible) and a 4% drop in those who read it daily.

What could possibly drive such a statistical decline? Let me suggest three possibilities:

1. A corresponding drop in church attendance. According to one survey, before the COVID-19 pandemic, 25% reported that they never attended religious services of any kind. That number increased to 33% in 2022.[2] When Christians spend time with other Christians, they learn from other Christians how to nurture their spiritual lives, including the discipline of regular Bible reading. Furthermore, they hear sermons that encourage and model engagement with the Bible. One possible reason for the drop in Bible reading could be a corresponding drop in church attendance during this same period.
2. A decline in book reading. According to a recent Gallup survey, the average American read 12.6 books in 2022—down from 15.6 in 2016.[3] Now, I’m personally skeptical that the average person actually read one book a month in 2022. But the fact that people reported reading fewer books than they previously reported still signals that book reading is on the decline. The Bible is a big (and let’s be honest, a sometimes challenging) book. If someone has never read any large book in the past, they may think they won’t succeed with a book as large and varied as is the Bible.[4] The general decline in book reading could be another reason for a decline in Biblereading.
3. Distractions. There are more distractions now than ever before—including distractions to our eyes. Social media, news reports, on-demand television, texting, and video games are probably the main contemporary distractions. We could be using our eyes to read the Bible; instead we use our eye-time on the news (or gossip-news), or to keep up on what our friends (or “friends”) are posting.[5] Distractions may be one more reason that Bible reading is currently on the decline in the United States.

The good news from the most recent American Bible Society State of the Bible report is that one-third of those surveyed reported that they are very or extremely curious about the Bible. Perhaps we who know and love the Bible can use this interest in history’s most influential book to introduce people to the One who gave us his Word.

marks said:

Are you certain it is? In my experience it ebs and flows like most things.

Much love!

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From last month:


BREAKPOINT


ARTICLES

The Gap Between Bible Sales and Bible Reading​

The time has never been better to help people consume the Word, not just have it on their shelves.​

04/3/25​

Shane Morris​

In his Confessions, St. Augustine tells the story of a spiritual experience that triggered his conversion. Torn between his fleshly temptations and his attraction to Christianity, the future church father sat down beneath a fig tree and wept. Then, he heard a child’s voice chanting “Take up and read; Take up and read.” Augustine took this as a sign to read the Bible and immediately opened to Romans 13 where Paul warns against drunkenness and sexual immorality, urging readers instead to put on Jesus Christ.

At these words, Augustine writes, “light as it were of serenity infused into my heart, all the darkness of doubt vanished away.”

This has always been the case with Scripture, whose power to speak to restless hearts and to make wise the simple has not dimmed in the centuries since Augustine wrote Confessions. But today, shockingly few people are heeding the voice’s advice.

Bible reading in the U.S. has fallen to what is likely an all-time low. Pew Research reported back in 2014 that 45% of American adults seldom or never read Scripture. Today, that number has shot to 61%. Just 22% said they read the Bible outside of religious services at least once a week.

Some of this disengagement from the Bible is disengagement from books in general. Americans are reading less than at pretty much any time in history. The U.S. Census Bureau found in 2023 that less than half of American adults had read even a single book in the last year, down six points from the previous decade.

But there’s more to the story than just the declining popularity of books. Despite rarely cracking it open, people do seem to be increasingly interested in the idea of the Bible. I noted last month on Breakpoint that Bible sales were up 22% in 2024, which makes for a confusing intersection of trends that reminds me of Michael Scott’s line in The Office: “Read it? I own it! But no, I have not read it.”

This gap between Bible sales and Bible study is a reminder not to celebrate prematurely every time a poll hints at a pro-religion trend. But it’s also an opportunity for those who know the power of God’s written word to be the voice in people’s lives saying those old and providential words: “Take up and read.”

Opening God’s Word, whether physically or digitally, and simply reading it, not just a verse at a time, but as Augustine would go on to do, in its entirety and frequently, is a must. We should do this individually, of course. But the role of the local church here is also vital. It has long been common even in professedly Bible-believing congregations for the pastor to get up on Sunday, read a verse or two, and then talk for 40 minutes, often about unrelated material. This habit of using Scripture as a quote at the beginning of a spiritual TED Talk is not edifying, nor is it what was historically meant by “preaching.”

Churches, pastors, parents, and teachers should instead seek to engage Scripture deeply and nourish their people with the whole counsel of God. Tell the story of creation and redemption in all its splendor, tragedy, and hope, not skipping any chapter but trusting its Author when He promises His Word will not return void.

This is especially important because as the idea of the Bible becomes more popular than actually reading the Bible, people will turn to psychological gurus who tickle their ears with strange and novel readings of Scripture. This has sadly been the case with Jordan Peterson, who often gives good life advice, but has lately tried his hand at biblical commentary and wound up saying some strange and heretical things. It should go without saying, but it’s a bad idea to get our sermons from people who refuse to affirm that God exists, whatever else they may say that’s wise or useful.
Finally, while reading the text of the Bible itself both individually and corporately is important, we should take advantage of the many innovative ways Christians have come up with to reintroduce a biblically illiterate culture to this life-and-civilization-changing book.

A decade ago, news of declining Bible reading triggered efforts like The Bible Project, You Version, Bible reading plans and apps, and audio Bibles. Today, these represent vast catalogues of highly accessible resources that serve a similar purpose to homilies and stained-glass windows in past centuries, when literacy was also low. I’ve seen these efforts bear bountiful fruit, but far more people need to hear about them. We can be the ones to sow those seeds.

Make no mistake: Augustine’s spiritual awakening under the fig tree and the transformation it would bring to civilization is just as possible today, because God’s plan to reveal Himself through Scripture has not changed. As Isaiah wrote, the Word of our God doesn’t wither or fade, but endures forever. It doesn’t do much good sitting on a shelf, though, which is why those of us already transformed by the Bible are called to be that voice of invitation that changes someone’s life. Thankfully with so many Bibles and resources out there, there’s never been a better time—or more ways—to get the Word out.

Big Boy Johnson said:

Anybody quoting the heretic Augustine has been deceived, so anything they have to say is going to have false teaching tucked in their commentary

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I'm not a huge fan of Augustine either, but the piece is less about doctrine and more simply about the current trend towards less Bible reading.

marks said:

Wait til the pressure is on again . . .

Much love!

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You would think that pressure like what happened during the pandemic would drive people to seek God, so it's surprising that the opposite took place, at least where scripture reading was concerned. And we are commanded to seek Him first and all the other things will be added. I think this is one of the driving points of the Parable of the Sower: Those who have not trained themselves to focus on the Lord and sit at His feet during the easy times will most certainly not do so in the tough times. That seems to be the meaning of the Parable, and it seems to bear out in what we are seeing today.

talons said:

If we don't read the Bible our Christian walk will suffer the consequences of this lack of effort .

God's word that we have read can be brought back to our remembrance by the Holy Spirit ! Praise God !
But we must read it or have it spoken to us first .

John 14:26 Context​

23Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. 24He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me. 25These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. 26But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. 27Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 28Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I. 29And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.

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Yeah. That's why I admire those who read over the scriptures or listen to them numerous times in a year. It's not something I do because I am more prone to study specific books and passages intently. But the more that the word goes into your ears, the more the Holy Spirit can then bring to remembrance, so it's a very sound practice to engage in when your ears are attuned to the Spirit of God.