Color-Coding the Bible: How I Started, and Why You Should, Too

I have been very serious about reading and studying my Bible every day for a little over a year and a half now. I am a natural notetaker since writing information down helps me remember it, and I had been feeling the call to start using different colors of ink, or highlighters, in my Bible for a while, but life got in the way, and I put it off. However, I recently discovered that my favorite brand of pen, which does not bleed through the pages of my Bible, offers a set of pens that are different colors. Seeing this gave me the extra push I needed to begin color-coding scripture, and the package offers six colors to choose from. 

I started off with pink. I have chosen to use the pink pen in the package to underline passages about God’s promises, compassion, forgiveness, and passages about salvation. After that, I picked up the pen that has a slightly peach shade to it (which I suppose is orange, but it’s not very bright), and I decided to use it to underline parts that focus on warnings against sin, commandments, and virtue. The color that came next was green, which I was particularly excited about because that is my favorite color. I plan to use it for passages about spiritual growth, eternal life, and encouragement. 

Blue and purple came after that. In the future, I will be using blue to highlight scripture about prophecies, promises God has given about the future, and parts that connect the Old Testament to the New Testament. Furthermore, purple was the color I picked for mentions of things like worship, priests, prayer, and the temple. When I began to actually start underlining scripture once I came up with that system, I noticed that it helped me much more than I thought it would, and there are several scientific reasons for that. Here are some of the reasons why this has helped me, and why it might help you as well if you wish to dive deeper into God’s Word. 

You’ll Process Things In A Deeper Way 

When we read the Bible, we tend to pick up on a few things here and there that we remember for a while. However, that does not mean we will remember them for a really long time, and it also does not mean that we have much of an understanding of what it is that we have read. But, using various colors to highlight or underline scripture can be a great way for someone to revitalize their personal Bible study sessions, as well as to ensure that they will gain a better understanding of the scripture that they are studying

This is true because when a person spends time trying to figure out which color to use for certain parts of scripture, they end up thinking about said scripture for a longer time than they would if they were simply reading it and moving on with their day. This usually results in them using the internet or other books to find out more about that particular part of the Bible, which essentially shows that they are processing it in a deep way. So, those who do color-code their Bibles end up being able to remember scripture better, and they are also more likely to understand the context behind it. 

Our Brains Naturally Engage In Semantic Networking 

As I stated earlier, when I got my set of pens, I created a system that allows me to use individual colors to underline certain groups of things in the Bible (which is a popular thing I learned about from the internet). For example, I use a purple pen for things like the parts where someone is praying, worshiping God, going to the temple, and mentions of priests. Each color that I have is used for one group of verses, and each group has parts that are different but still related to one another. 

This can make Bibles look pretty, but it goes deeper than their appearance. This works well for helping people study the Bible because the human brain engages in something called semantic networking. An example of that that I can personally use is this: when I think of the color blue, my brain will probably remind me that I use that color to underline biblical verses about prophecies, which will then remind me that I also use that color to underline ones about connections between the Old Testament and the New Testament, plus God’s promises. Our brains connect ideas and memories that are related to one another, and that can greatly improve our understanding of the Bible. 

We Are More Likely To Remember Things That Stand Out 

When verses are underlined or highlighted, they are very likely to stand out more than the ones that are not, or the ones that are highlighted or underlined with different colors. This would make such verses look unique to the eye, which would result in the person reading it being able to remember it more than the others. Highlighting and underlining things in the Bible is a wonderful way for one to get more out of their study sessions. 

Also, the last color of pen in the set I purchased is gray. In my opinion, this is one of the most important ones in the system I made because I am going to use it to underline things that I do not fully understand, and write down questions I have that I wish to speak to a priest or deacon about. This can serve as a reminder that even though color-coding the Bible can greatly improve our study sessions, it is still very important to ensure that we submit to the authority of the Church. Highlighting and underlining parts of the Bible are effective tools for studying, but doing that does not give someone as much of an education on this as bishops, priests, and deacons have. Also, we must remember and be respectful of the fact that bishops are the successors of the apostles. 

Lastly, one of the most important things for us Catholics to remember when we are studying the Bible is that much of it can mean several things at once. Therefore, those who wish to highlight or underline certain parts must also be careful and avoid focusing on one meaning of whatever it is they’re reading at the moment while ignoring other meanings that same passage might have. I have decided that when I come across parts like that, I will first underline them using the color I have chosen for the most obvious meaning, and then I will draw some tiny symbols nearby with the pens that are the colors I picked to represent the other meanings of them. 

Writing some notes about the additional meanings is good, too. At the end of the day, the important thing is that after each Bible study session, we walk away with a stronger relationship with the Lord, and more knowledge on how to live as the Christians we are called to be.