Working Through Zach Windahl The Bible Study
Zach Windahl puts out a fairly thorough Bible study curriculum that covers both Old and New Testament books. He breaks passages down paragraph by paragraph and usually pairs each section with discussion questions and some historical context. The format is straightforward enough that most people can use it on their own, but there are a few things you should know before you start. The study materials are available through his website, though the direct links shift occasionally depending on whether he reorganizes the archive. I'd recommend searching specifically for "Zach Windahl The Bible Study" since he has several separate courses floating around the site. Once you land on the right page, you'll see the books listed in order. Some people jump around, but it actually helps to follow the sequence. The earlier lessons build vocabulary and context that the later ones assume you already have. Before you go too far, grab a notebook or a Google Doc. Zach's lessons include a lot of cross-references, and if you're not writing them down, you'll lose track of where key passages connect. This is more important than it sounds. I learned that the hard way when I tried to follow along without notes and ended up confused about which chapter the discussion questions were actually referencing.
Setting up your reading schedule matters more than most people expect. He structures each lesson to take roughly 45 to 90 minutes depending on the book and how much historical background gets included. I'd plan for the longer end if you're doing a dense book like Leviticus or Ezekiel. You can cut it down, but you'll miss the connections he's building.
How The Lessons Actually Work In Practice
Each lesson starts with a reading assignment, usually a specific chapter range. Then comes the commentary, which runs the full text out and hits the main interpretive issues. After that are the discussion questions. The questions aren't filler. They're designed to make you apply what the commentary just walked through, so don't skip them or rush through in your head. Writing out answers takes longer but locks in what you're actually learning instead of just passively absorbing. One thing beginners miss: the historical and cultural notes aren't optional background. They're the reason certain verses make sense. When the commentary mentions something like Second Temple Jewish expectations or ancient Near Eastern covenant structure, that's not decoration. That's the lens. If you gloss over those sections, you'll come back to the passage three lessons later wondering why you didn't understand it the first time. I ran into this repeatedly with the Genesis material. The Abram sections hit different once you actually know what a vassal treaty looked like. There's also a practical edge case worth mentioning. The discussion questions sometimes reference a previous lesson's conclusion. If you're doing this alone and you skip a lesson or finish it weeks ago, you won't remember what the earlier discussion established. My workaround was keeping a running index in my notes where I recorded the key conclusion from each lesson. It takes maybe five extra minutes per session, but it prevents the confusion of jumping back in cold.
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Things To Watch Out For
The study assumes you have a Bible open. Not everyone likes the same translation, so pick one you're comfortable with and stick with it for the duration of a book. Switching mid-book creates more friction than it solves because the commentary will quote specific wording and you'll lose that thread. The lessons lean heavily toward evangelical Protestant interpretation. That's not a criticism, but it does mean you won't get much engagement with alternative scholarly views on contentious passages. If you're in a tradition that values patristic or liturgical readings alongside these, you may want to supplement on your own. I found this especially noticeable in the Epistles section, where the treatment of justification stays within a fairly narrow Reformed framework. Nothing wrong with that approach, but you should know what you're getting into. The biggest bottleneck is consistency, not difficulty. Most people start strong and then drop off after three or four weeks. The lessons don't pile on complexity quickly, but they do require regular engagement. If you go two weeks without touching it, the context fades and the next lesson feels like starting over. I've seen this happen more times than I care to count, including with myself. The fix isn't heroic effort. It's just showing up at the same time each week and doing the minimum viable session, even if it's only twenty minutes.
Another downside worth noting: the materials are free but ad-supported, which means interruptions can break your flow. It's annoying in small doses, but it adds up. I started using an ad blocker while going through the lessons and saved myself a significant amount of fragmented attention. YMMV depending on your setup.
Who This Works For And Who Should Look Elsewhere
This is solid for individuals doing personal Bible study or small groups that want a structured path through Scripture without someone having to prepare every lesson from scratch. It's less ideal if you're looking for academic-level engagement with Hebrew or Greek texts, or if you prefer a conversational format over a commentary-driven one. There are better resources for those needs, but they're usually either paywalled or require significantly more setup on your end. For the actual download or access, you'll find everything at his site under the study section. The URLs change periodically, so a search for Zach Windahl The Bible Study will point you to wherever the current hosting is. Bookmark the main landing page once you find it, and you'll be set for whenever he adds new books to the curriculum.
