Not Reading the Bible: What Happens and Will God be Mad

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Have you ever thought about reading the Bible, then decided not to read it, only to feel guilty later? I have. It’s an all to normal experience in the Christian life. Failure to read the Bible can affect our relationship with God, but probably not in the way you think.

In general, God expects us to read the Bible. Failure to do so can have many negative effects on our life and relationship with God. That said, God does not get mad at those who fail to read His word. He may be disappointed, but He’ll use the opportunity to draw you into a deeper relationship with Him.

So, let’s keep exploring to see what exactly God says about reading the Bible, what gets in our way when we want to read the Bible, and how God transforms our guilt into a greater desire for Him and His word.

What Happens When We Don’t Read the Bible

What God Says About Reading the Bible

Scripture says a lot about reading the Bible. Here are some verses that discuss and mention reading the Bible:

Exodus 24:7: Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, “We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey.”

Deuteronomy 17:19: It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees.
Deuteronomy 31:11: when all Israel comes to appear before the Lord your God at the place he will choose, you shall read this law before them in their hearing.
Joshua 8:34-35: Afterward, Joshua read all the words of the law—the blessings and the curses—just as it is written in the Book of the Law. There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel, including the women and children, and the foreigners who lived among them.

2 Kings 22: The book of the law was found in the temple of the Lord through Hilkiah the priest. Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it.
Nehemiah 8: Ezra the teacher of the Law stood on a high wooden platform built for the occasion… and read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law.
Isaiah 34:16: Look in the scroll of the Lord and read: None of these will be missing, not one will lack her mate. For it is his mouth that has given the order, and his Spirit will gather them together.

Matthew 12:3: He answered, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?”
Matthew 12:5: Or haven’t you read in the Law that the priests on Sabbath duty in the temple desecrate the Sabbath and yet are innocent?
Matthew 19:4: “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female’…”

Matthew 21:16: “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him. “Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read, ‘From the lips of children and infants, you, Lord, have called forth your praise’?”
Matthew 21:42: Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”
Matthew 22:31: But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you…

Acts 8:28-32: and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”
Acts 13:15: After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people, please speak.”
Acts 13:27: The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him, they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath.

Colossians 4:16: After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea.
1 Timothy 4:13: Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching.
Revelation 1:3: Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.

So, what does God say about reading the Bible? God expects us to read the Bible because it reveals who Jesus really is, and it is useful for guidance throughout life. The Bible is to be read both publically and privately as it exhorts, encourages, and challenges people to live for God, bringing life and blessing.

Reasons Why We May Not Read the Bible

Now that we see why God wants us to read the Bible and how it reveals Him, why don’t we? Why is reading the Bible so difficult sometimes?

In 2023, the American Bible Society did a study on the state of the Bible in America. Their findings concluded that the number one reason why people did not read the Bible was that they felt they didn’t have enough time.

The number one reason among Bible disengaged people was a lack of excitement about reading the Bible. This chart below further illustrates common frustrations with Bible reading among the survey respondents.

Probably the number one reason why I don’t read the Bible sometimes is a lack of motivation, especially when I’m tired. When I feel tired, I think about reading the Bible. Like “I need to do that, but I’m not going to be able to concentrate anyway, so why bother.”

What about you? What is your number one reason why you don’t read the Bible as often as you’d like?

Consequences of Not Reading the Bible

Spiritual Disconnect

Consistent Bible reading is one of the primary ways we grow and deepen our relationship to God. All throughout the Bible there is an emphasis on seeking God and drawing near to Him. James writes, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.”

Reading the Bible helps us understand God’s character, nature, and will. It reminds us of His promises, love, and grace. All of this contributes to a deeper faith and love for God. So when we fail to read the Bible, we are hurting our ability to grow closer to God, our Father.

Lack of Moral Guidance

Likewise, failure to read the Bible will result in a lack of moral and ethical guidance. The Bible is full of God -given wisdom. It is designed to guide us through the brokenness and darkness of a fallen world. Psalm 119:105 reads, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”

This verse illustrates the idea that the Bible is like a compass that guides us throughout life. So, failure to read the Bible can leave us without a clear foundation for making right choices. It can lead to moral and ethical ambiguity and living in the world and being of the world.

Limited Understanding of Faith

The central message and heart of the Bible is that God desires to have a relationship with us, but our sin gets in the way. However, God stops at nothing to have a relationship with us. He sent Jesus to die on the cross for our sins and rise again so that we can have a relationship with God. This is the gospel.

Paul writes to Timothy, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” Scripture is necessary to knowing God, the gospel, and other Christian doctrines of faith.

So, not reading the Bible will result in a limited understanding of the Faith that the Bible says we are to hold onto and defend. We see throughout the verses in Matthew above, how much the Pharisees missed because of their failure to read and understand Scripture.

Missed Opportunities for Growth

Not only does failure to read the Bible result in a lack of moral growth, it also results in a lack of spiritual growth. Consistent Bible reading results in life and blessing (Rev. 1:3). Psalm 1:2-3 describes the person “whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.”

This person is compared to a tree planted by flowing water, alive and bearing fruit in season. It’s not only alive, it thrives. That is how important Bible reading is. We ought to root ourselves in Scripture, allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives and grow us to look more like Christ.

So, failure to read the Bible will result in the opposite. We will miss out on growing more like Christ as much as we can. We’ll not give the Holy Spirit as much opportunity to work through God’s word. This can have devastating effects on our spiritual growth and well being.

Reduced Ability to Share Gospel

All Christians are called to go and make disciples, to share the gospel with the world (Matthew 28:18-20). Knowing the Bible and being familiar with it is vital to sharing the gospel. Similarly, Peter writes,

“…always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15).

We are to be ready to share our faith whenever the occasion arises. But how can we be ready if we don’t read the Bible? Failure to read the Bible will have devastating consequences on our ability to share the gospel message and be a light in the world.

God is Not Mad When You Fail to Read the Bible

If we don’t read the Bible, we can begin to wonder if God gets mad at us? We ask ourselves, “Is God mad at me when I don’t read the Bible?” This question has some key things behind it that we need to pull out and understand to answer this question.

First, it expresses feelings of guilt. By asking this question we are expressing guilt. We know reading the Bible is important. It’s something God wants us to do. So, when we don’t we get concerned and ask this question. That demonstrates we are feeling guilty about not reading our Bible.

Merriam-Webster defines guilt as, “a feeling of deserving blame for offenses.” So, when we don’t read the Bible we feel like we messed up. We have guilt that we need to address. So we often ask ourselves, “Is God mad at me?”

You don’t feel guilty over something you don’t care about.

The second thing we see in this question is a desire to read the Bible. Feeling guilty by not reading the Bible demonstrates our desire to read the Bible. You don’t feel guilty over something you don’t care about.

So, when you ask yourself, “Is God mad at me when I don’t read my Bible?” You are showing that you care about and want to read your Bible. Therefore, there are two things that this question shows about you:

You have a desire to read your Bible, but failed to do so.
Therefore, you feel guilty and are afraid God is mad.

Now, let’s take what we know of God and our relationship with Him and apply it to this question. If you are a Christian, then these things are true about you and your relationship to God:

God is a loving Father. Remember, God loves you so much He sent Jesus to die for you. He loves you. He wants good things for you. That’s why He wants you to read His word. He cares about you.
God’s Word invites you into a deeper relationship with Him. God uses His word to reveal Himself to you and invite you to know Him better and grow closer to Him.
In Christ there is freedom and grace. Paul writes in Romans 8:1 that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. In Christ you are completely free and guiltless, thanks to His work on the cross and the Holy Spirit applying it to your life.

God disciplines and corrects those He loves. Proverbs reminds us that God disciplines and corrects those that He loves (Proverbs 3:11-12). So feelings of guilt could lead to returning to God and His word.

Let’s apply these truths to our question of, “Is God mad when I don’t read the Bible?”

We’ve seen how this question exposes our desire to read our Bible and that aligns with God’s desire. But we know we messed up, and we know God disciplines and corrects those He loves. So, the guilt we are feeling could be conviction from the Holy Spirit to get back up and read the Bible again.

God sees and knows our desires. He knows we have a desire to read the Bible when we don’t for whatever reason. So, I don’t think God gets mad at us.

Disappointed, yes.

Sad, yes.

But angry and vengeful, no.

How to Want to Read the Bible More Frequently

So, we know that God wants us to read the Bible, and we’ve dealt with feelings of guilt over not reading the Bible sometimes. So, how do we get back up on the horse? How do we foster a desire and put into practice reading the Bible more frequently.

Well, here are some tips to reach that goal,

Understand the Purpose: Ask yourself why reading the Bible is important to you. What do you want to get out of reading the Bible more?
Set Realistic Goals: Start small and build a consistent habit, then grow it. Check out this article about creating the perfect Bible study routine for you.
Choose a Reading Plan: Find and use a reading plan. There are many great reading plans online. You can even use a One Year Bible, and read through the BIble in one year.

Join a Study Group: Joining a study group, or finding a partner, can create accountability and encouragement for you if you struggle reading the BIble daily.
Use Easy to Read Translations: If you find certain translations challenging or less engaging, try exploring different versions of the Bible. These are some great, easy to read translations that can make Bible reading feel less like reading a textbook.
Use Devotional Materials: Devotionals can be a great way to start creating a daily Bible reading habit. They feature a short passage, offer insights, and takes little time.

If you are interested in exploring the benefits of daily Bible reading, then check out this article. It will explore nine benefits of daily Bible reading and offer even more tips to get started.

Overall, regular Bible reading strengthens our relationship with God. So, God expects us to read His word. But things like time constraints or a lack of excitement makes it difficult at times.

Over time, we can begin to see the negative effects not reading the Bible has on our lives. But it is important to remember that God responds with grace, not anger, because he knows our genuine desire to read His word.