The Top 20 Most-Read Bible Verses on Bible Study Tools in 2024

The New Year is when many people decide to read their Bible more. Resolutions and goals abound regarding choosing a new Bible reading plan, reading a passage a day, having a daily quiet time with devotions, reading through the Bible in a year, and more. The New Year is a great time to create a new habit and make plans to dive into Scripture and connect more with your Father God.

The New Year is also a time for reflecting on the past year—what worked, what didn’t, and where did we place our focus? This kind of reflection on the past can help us shed light on the future and clarify what our current focus should be. 

To this end, here at Bible Study Tools, we decided to do a deep dive into the top Scripture passages that were searched and read on our site in the past year. We think you’ll find the results as fascinating and encouraging as we did.

First, a bit about what we searched. We looked at both specific Bible verses and whole passages that were searched on our site for the past year. We pulled the top 20 verses and passages. Here are some overarching things to note:

Nine of the top verses/passages were from the Psalms. As real and sometimes raw expressions of emotions from real human beings, the Psalms have long been beacons of hope for Christians throughout history and into the modern day. In high school I began reading through the Book of Psalms, one Psalm a night before bed. This routine encouraged me by reminding me that, whatever struggle I was facing was not unique to me.  The thoughts, feelings, and truths expressed in the Psalms by David and other writers clearly resonated with our Bible Study Tools readers as well this past year. You turned to the Psalms for comfort, hope, solidarity, and peace.Romans was the next most popular book of the Bible. Three of the top 20 passages were from Romans, and two were from Romans 8 which talks about life in the Spirit, present suffering and future glory, and how we are more than conquerors through Christ.There were more New Testament passages than Old Testament passages if you don’t count the Psalms. Only four Old Testament verses appeared in the top 20, while eight New Testament passages made the list.Most of the top passages focused on encouraging words and hope for difficult times. This is no surprise since we all know and feel the truth that we live in a fallen world. From natural disasters to mental health crises to broken families to addictions and more, sin and darkness seem like they are lurking around every corner. Despite talk of fresh beginnings and positive energy in the new year, as Christians, we know that 2025 will have its share of sin and suffering, too (and for many, it already has). This is why Scripture is such a lifeline to us—it reminds us that Jesus is with us through it all and that he will one day make all things new and wipe away every tear (Rev. 21:4).

And now, without further ado, here are Bible Study Tool’s top 20 Bible passages (all passages are NIV):

1. Psalm 91 which begins: “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’”

2. Jeremiah 29:11: “’For I know the plans I have for you,’” declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”

3. Hebrews 13:5 and/or Deuteronomy 31:6: “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’”

4. Isaiah 41:10: “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

5. Psalm 1 which begins: “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night.”

6. Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

7. Philippians 4:13: “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”

8. Psalm 51: David’s famous Psalm of confession and repentance after his sin with Bathsheba which begins: “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!”

9. Romans 8 which begins: “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.”

10. Psalm 109 which begins: “My God, whom I praise, do not remain silent,  for people who are wicked and deceitful have opened their mouths against me; they have spoken against me with lying tongues” and then ends “With my mouth I will greatly extol the LORD; in the great throng of worshipers I will praise him. For he stands at the right hand of the needy, to save their lives from those who would condemn them.”

11. Psalm 121, one of the shortest Psalms: “I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber;  indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD watches over you— the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.  The LORD will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.”