What are some benefits of memorizing whole books of the Bible?
Ezekiel 1:1
On April 15, 2022, I began an epic journey in scripture memorization—the Book of Ezekiel. 48 chapters, 1273 verses. Somewhere in the back of my mind was the well-known Chinese proverb, “A thousand-mile journey begins with a single step.” I also remember how reticent Bilbo Baggins was to go on any sort of adventure at all, so much did he love the comforts of his home. But goaded by the wizard Gandalf, he hurriedly set out on the epic journey that would change his life:
To the end of his days Bilbo could never remember how he found himself outside, without a hat, a walking-stick or any money, or anything that he usually took when he went out; leaving his second breakfast half-finished and quite unwashed-up, pushing his keys into Gandalf’s hands, and running as fast as his furry feet could carry him down the lane, past the great Mill, across The Water, and then on for a mile or more. Very puffed he was, when he got to Bywater just on the stroke of eleven, and found he had come without a pocket-handkerchief! (JRR Tolkien, The Hobbit)
But in all honesty, I’ve been on many long scripture memory journeys before. I had learned more than I can possibly recount, and I was eager for this journey as well. I chose Ezekiel because I did not understand the book, many aspects of it. The last nine chapters portray a rebuilt temple in visionary terms, a temple based entirely on animal sacrifice, which was never actually built. And when Jesus died, the author of Hebrews made it plain that animal sacrifice was obsolete by the once for all sacrifice of Jesus’ blood (Hebrews 8:13). So, what in the world was that prophetic temple?
Furthermore, there are many verses in Ezekiel which seem to strongly emphasize free will over God’s sovereignty in salvation, especially in Ezekiel 18:31 in which God begs people, “Why will you die, O Israel? Make for yourself a new heart and get a new spirit!” Beyond this, frankly I just didn’t know the book very well at all and thought memorizing would help greatly. And it did! Not all the mysteries are solved… and now I have many new ones as well! But many insights, too.
And that’s why I do this labor… actually, two primary reasons: Insights, and Intimacy (with God).
And that’s why I do this labor… actually, two primary reasons: Insights, and Intimacy (with God). Insights and intimacy. By insights, I mean new truths that have been hidden in the mines of these passages for centuries which the Spirit excavates by daily repetition. Some are scintillating, blinding flashes of profound truth that help shape my theology and ministry for the rest of my life. Others are simpler, humbler truths that just cause my eyebrows to rise and my mind to say, “Hmmm. That’s neat!”
Intimacy is just as important for me. Closeness to Christ… a heart on fire for him, a sense of his great love for me, a stimulation and stabilization of my fickle love for him. Scripture delivered Christ to me to begin with, and it is by scripture (or more accurately, by the Spirit’s illumination of scripture) that my faith in Christ will remain strong until I lay it down for the face-to-face intimacy I yearn for in heaven.
So, on April 15, 2022, I started, and I finished it on October 22, 2023. 556 days till I had finished my one hundredth day of reciting the last three verses of the book. My pattern was to memorize three new verses a day, reading each verse ten times and reciting each verse ten times. And then saying all three new verses ten times together, then reciting yesterday’s new verses ten times. And then every verse I had learned up to that point, but dropping off verses that I had recited for one hundred days. Every verse got recited for one hundred days, then I kissed those verses goodbye. Therefore, I reviewed about three hundred verses every day and in this way, I moved through the whole book.
As I would recite old verses, some “stuck” better than others, and I had no qualms about glancing at my laminated chapter sheets to get needed hints. I have found visionary prophetic writing to be among the hardest genres to memorize in the Bible. It is very non-linear… very hard to trace out why one thought leads to the next, one paragraph to the next. It’s like Obadiah said to Elijah, “I don’t know where the Spirit of the Lord may carry you” (1 Kings 18:12).
Yet it was a glorious journey, and I learned much. I would like to share some of those insights with you over the next few months by way of devotional writings. May God bless my writing and your reading of these insights, and may he give you your own increased intimacy with himself.
