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Immerse: The Reading Bible #1
Immerse: Messiah
Part of NLT The Reading Bible, Complete Set, the Winner of the 2022 Christian Book Award for Bible of the Year! Messiah is the first of six volumes of The Bible Reading Experience program. Messiah takes the reader on a new and unique journey through every book of the New Testament. Each part of Messiah begins with one of the Gospels, and together combine to provide the reader with enjoyable and impactful readings all centered on Jesus. The end result is a Bible developed for the purpose of being read and understood, not referred to. Messiah is a new way to interact with God's Word.
Messiah delivers Scripture to the reader as it was originally without chapter or verse breaks. While references are made available for ease of finding specific Scripture references, those references do not appear within the actual text of Scripture. This makes for uninterrupted reading of God's Word. Created with the look and feel of a paperback book, and written using the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, the most readable translation available, Messiah enables you to easily read and understand the Bible.
Messiah delivers Scripture to the reader as it was originally without chapter or verse breaks. While references are made available for ease of finding specific Scripture references, those references do not appear within the actual text of Scripture. This makes for uninterrupted reading of God's Word. Created with the look and feel of a paperback book, and written using the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, the most readable translation available, Messiah enables you to easily read and understand the Bible.
514 pages, Paperback
Published October 12, 2021
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* They are officially published under that name
* They are traditional stories not attributed to a specific author
* They are religious texts not generally attributed to a specific author
Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.
See also: Anonymous
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 68 reviews
September 13, 2017
This was such a wonderful way to read the New Testament without verse or chapter breaks & numbers. It reads more like the story that it is. It was interesting to read it with the books arranged by audience as opposed to how it is traditionally. I also enjoyed the New Living translation that is new to me! It was very understandable!
March 10, 2023
Wow. Because of this arrangement, I listened to the entire New Testament in 4 weeks! I've never done that before. It was interesting to listen to the NT books in a different order than usual. This format also removes the chapter and verse numbers and footnotes, so the reading or listening experience is truly immersive.
The main content of Immerse: Messiah is the New Living Translation of the entire New Testament of the Bible. I love the NLT translation for its clarity, accessibility, and accuracy to the meaning of the original languages.
What other book can you read and get something new out of every time? The Scripture is living and active. The Word speaks.
The main content of Immerse: Messiah is the New Living Translation of the entire New Testament of the Bible. I love the NLT translation for its clarity, accessibility, and accuracy to the meaning of the original languages.
What other book can you read and get something new out of every time? The Scripture is living and active. The Word speaks.
March 28, 2018
My review of Immerse: The Reading Bible follows below. Here, I'd simply like to draw attention to one feature of Messiah, the volume which contains the entire New Testament:
Immerse reorganizes the books of the Bible in an interesting fashion. For example, the standard New Testament order of books is Gospels, Acts, Paul’s letters, other epistles and Revelation. Messiah pairs each gospel with letters related to it: Luke–Acts with Paul’s letters, Mark with Peter’s and Jude’s letters, Matthew with Hebrews and James, and John with John’s letters and Revelation. This helps readers see thematic connections between each gospel and its associated letters.
What follows is my review of the entire six-volume series.
_____
Most Americans own a Bible, but few read it. According to American Bible Society’s State of the Bible 2017 (SOTB), 87 percent of U.S. households own at least one copy of the Scriptures. Unfortunately, only 50 percent of U.S. adults read the Bible, listen to it, or pray with it at least three or four times a year.
How can we help people move toward greater Bible engagement?
There are many ways to answer this question, but I want to focus on a new Bible product I believe merits attention. It’s called Immerse: The Reading Bible, which Tyndale House Publishers created in Alliance with the Institute for Bible Reading. You can read more about it at ImmerseBible.com (BibliaInmersion.com for the Spanish version).
Immerse is designed to take the church — from junior high to senior adults — through the Bible in three years. It presents Scripture in six high-quality, low-cost paperbacks or e-books.
Messiah (New Testament)
Beginnings(Genesis–Deuteronomy)
Kingdoms (Joshua–2 Kings)
Prophets (Isaiah–Malachi)
Poets (Job–Song of Songs, plus Lamentations)
Chronicles (1Chronicles–Esther, plus Daniel)
According to its website, “Immerse is built on three core ideas: reading a naturally formatted Bible, reading at length, and having unmediated discussions about it together.”
While most Bibles are formatted like a dictionary — a two-column format with scholarly apparatus, including chapter and verse numbers, headings, cross-references and notes — Immerse presents Scripture in a single-column format and eliminates the scholarly apparatus entirely. According to SOTB, 8 percent of U.S. adults cite difficult layout as a significant frustration when reading the Bible. Immerse’s formatting reduces that frustration.
Using this Bible, a church’s small groups or Sunday School classes meet twice a year for eight weeks each time to read and discuss one of Immerse’s six paperbacks, starting with Messiah. Reading each paperback takes 20 to 30 minutes daily, five days a week, for the duration of the small group. This is what Immerse means by “reading at length.” Thirty percent of U.S. adults say lack of time is a significant Bible reading frustration. By delimiting how much and how often participants read, Immerse’s program addresses this concern.
During meetings, a leader facilitates open discussion around four questions:
What stood out to you this week?
Was anything confusing or troubling?
Did anything make you think differently about God?
How might this change the way you live?
State of the Bible 2017 found that readers are motivated to increase Bible reading when encountering difficulty (41 percent), a significant life change, such as marriage or childbirth (17 percent), or contemporary discussions about religion and spirituality in the media (17 percent). By focusing on four open-ended questions, Immerse encourages readers to ponder what the Bible teaches in the specifics of their lives.
Several other features of Immerse are worth highlighting. First, it uses the New Living Translation of Scripture (NLT). According to SOTB, 16 percent of U.S. adults are frustrated by the Bible’s difficult language. The NLT features readable, idiomatic English for a broad audience.
Second, within each paperback, Immerse reorganizes the books of the Bible in an interesting fashion. For example, the standard New Testament order of books is Gospels, Acts, Paul’s letters, other epistles and Revelation. Messiah pairs each gospel with letters related to it: Luke–Acts with Paul’s letters, Mark with Peter’s and Jude’s letters, Matthew with Hebrews and James, and John with John’s letters and Revelation. This helps readers see thematic connections between each gospel and its associated letters.
Third, Immerse provides resources to help readers understand the theological, historical and literary context of each book of the Bible. All six paperbacks include brief introductory essays. And the website includes free aids for small groups: a weekly 3-minute video that introduces each week’s readings, audio files of daily Bible readings, and downloadable guides for pastors, small-group leaders and participants.
God inspired the Bible to equip us for holy living (2 Timothy 3:16–17). If we don’t use it, however, it does us no good. Immerse offers church leaders a well-thought-out strategy for guiding readers through Scripture.
Books Reviewed
Immerse: The Reading Bible, 6 vols. (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2017).
P.S. This article originally appeared in the May/June 2018 edition of Influence magazine.
P.P.S. If your found my review helpful, please vote "Yes" on my Amazon.com review page.
Immerse reorganizes the books of the Bible in an interesting fashion. For example, the standard New Testament order of books is Gospels, Acts, Paul’s letters, other epistles and Revelation. Messiah pairs each gospel with letters related to it: Luke–Acts with Paul’s letters, Mark with Peter’s and Jude’s letters, Matthew with Hebrews and James, and John with John’s letters and Revelation. This helps readers see thematic connections between each gospel and its associated letters.
What follows is my review of the entire six-volume series.
_____
Most Americans own a Bible, but few read it. According to American Bible Society’s State of the Bible 2017 (SOTB), 87 percent of U.S. households own at least one copy of the Scriptures. Unfortunately, only 50 percent of U.S. adults read the Bible, listen to it, or pray with it at least three or four times a year.
How can we help people move toward greater Bible engagement?
There are many ways to answer this question, but I want to focus on a new Bible product I believe merits attention. It’s called Immerse: The Reading Bible, which Tyndale House Publishers created in Alliance with the Institute for Bible Reading. You can read more about it at ImmerseBible.com (BibliaInmersion.com for the Spanish version).
Immerse is designed to take the church — from junior high to senior adults — through the Bible in three years. It presents Scripture in six high-quality, low-cost paperbacks or e-books.
Messiah (New Testament)
Beginnings(Genesis–Deuteronomy)
Kingdoms (Joshua–2 Kings)
Prophets (Isaiah–Malachi)
Poets (Job–Song of Songs, plus Lamentations)
Chronicles (1Chronicles–Esther, plus Daniel)
According to its website, “Immerse is built on three core ideas: reading a naturally formatted Bible, reading at length, and having unmediated discussions about it together.”
While most Bibles are formatted like a dictionary — a two-column format with scholarly apparatus, including chapter and verse numbers, headings, cross-references and notes — Immerse presents Scripture in a single-column format and eliminates the scholarly apparatus entirely. According to SOTB, 8 percent of U.S. adults cite difficult layout as a significant frustration when reading the Bible. Immerse’s formatting reduces that frustration.
Using this Bible, a church’s small groups or Sunday School classes meet twice a year for eight weeks each time to read and discuss one of Immerse’s six paperbacks, starting with Messiah. Reading each paperback takes 20 to 30 minutes daily, five days a week, for the duration of the small group. This is what Immerse means by “reading at length.” Thirty percent of U.S. adults say lack of time is a significant Bible reading frustration. By delimiting how much and how often participants read, Immerse’s program addresses this concern.
During meetings, a leader facilitates open discussion around four questions:
What stood out to you this week?
Was anything confusing or troubling?
Did anything make you think differently about God?
How might this change the way you live?
State of the Bible 2017 found that readers are motivated to increase Bible reading when encountering difficulty (41 percent), a significant life change, such as marriage or childbirth (17 percent), or contemporary discussions about religion and spirituality in the media (17 percent). By focusing on four open-ended questions, Immerse encourages readers to ponder what the Bible teaches in the specifics of their lives.
Several other features of Immerse are worth highlighting. First, it uses the New Living Translation of Scripture (NLT). According to SOTB, 16 percent of U.S. adults are frustrated by the Bible’s difficult language. The NLT features readable, idiomatic English for a broad audience.
Second, within each paperback, Immerse reorganizes the books of the Bible in an interesting fashion. For example, the standard New Testament order of books is Gospels, Acts, Paul’s letters, other epistles and Revelation. Messiah pairs each gospel with letters related to it: Luke–Acts with Paul’s letters, Mark with Peter’s and Jude’s letters, Matthew with Hebrews and James, and John with John’s letters and Revelation. This helps readers see thematic connections between each gospel and its associated letters.
Third, Immerse provides resources to help readers understand the theological, historical and literary context of each book of the Bible. All six paperbacks include brief introductory essays. And the website includes free aids for small groups: a weekly 3-minute video that introduces each week’s readings, audio files of daily Bible readings, and downloadable guides for pastors, small-group leaders and participants.
God inspired the Bible to equip us for holy living (2 Timothy 3:16–17). If we don’t use it, however, it does us no good. Immerse offers church leaders a well-thought-out strategy for guiding readers through Scripture.
Books Reviewed
Immerse: The Reading Bible, 6 vols. (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2017).
P.S. This article originally appeared in the May/June 2018 edition of Influence magazine.
P.P.S. If your found my review helpful, please vote "Yes" on my Amazon.com review page.
August 8, 2021
It's a whole different reading experience when all the extras (chapter and verse numbers, notes, cross references) have been removed and the page is simplified to single column text. It allows space for helpful formatting of poetry and quotations. The stories and narratives are not interested by unnatural breaks.
I also appreciated reading the NT in a different order than normal. Here they've been arranged into 5 sections.
1. Luke - Acts and all the letters of Paul (not arranged by length)
2. Mark, 1,2 Peter, and Jude
3. Matthew, James and Hebrews
4. John and his epistles
5. Revelation
A different ordering allows for a fresh perspective on the whole collection, and different connections pop between works that are undoubtedly related but often not read alongside. It is the same scriptures, but displayed just differently enough to re-engage with new eyes.
I also appreciated reading the NT in a different order than normal. Here they've been arranged into 5 sections.
1. Luke - Acts and all the letters of Paul (not arranged by length)
2. Mark, 1,2 Peter, and Jude
3. Matthew, James and Hebrews
4. John and his epistles
5. Revelation
A different ordering allows for a fresh perspective on the whole collection, and different connections pop between works that are undoubtedly related but often not read alongside. It is the same scriptures, but displayed just differently enough to re-engage with new eyes.
April 25, 2022
I really enjoyed this rendition... It is the entire New Testament in one book. No chapter/verse breaks, single-column, read like the books/letters that they were. I annotated throughout the margins and such of this entire book, and it's nice that the pages are very susceptible to that. I really enjoyed it.
July 31, 2022
The final collection of the NLT reader’s Bible. And like the rest it was so good. I love this translation and this version in a reading format was great. I wish they had this in a hard back but ultimately it was a great series!!
May 12, 2025
I'm always skeptical about "new" ways of presenting the Bible...but this is fantastic. I love the layout and the ordering of the books. To my own surprise, I strongly recommend this to someone who's new to reading the Bible or needs a fresh look.
May 8, 2019
Loved the format of this--caused me to notice things I have never seen before. We are reading this as women's small groups at our church and have gotten a lot of positive feedback.
June 15, 2023
An awesome way to read the bible. Helps to grasp the story that is the bible vs. trying to decipher a little bit of scripture at a time.
November 18, 2023
Best way to read the Bible!
I recommend reading this type of Bible always. Also, read the the intro and outro to the book every time read it.
I recommend reading this type of Bible always. Also, read the the intro and outro to the book every time read it.
April 26, 2023
What can I say about this? It’s the Bible in a novel format (format only – nothing was added or taking away from the text itself), making it more compulsively readable and less fragmented. This was the first time I’ve read the entire New Testament, so that’s saying something! It was a smooth reading experience without any chapter numbers or titles or verse numbers. I really loved my experience with this.
The only downside I could see would be if you need to reference a specific verse for any reason. I don’t see why that would be necessary, but I know people like that option. The chapter/verse ranges are at the top of the pages, so you can find the general area where something may be contained. I think this may be better overall than looking up just a specific verse. The more I read of the Bible, the more I see context is key in order to keep its motives and meanings clear.
Overall, this is a wonderful way to READ the bible. An in-depth study may be slightly more difficult, but that’s not what this version was created for. I can’t wait to get the rest of the volumes!
The only downside I could see would be if you need to reference a specific verse for any reason. I don’t see why that would be necessary, but I know people like that option. The chapter/verse ranges are at the top of the pages, so you can find the general area where something may be contained. I think this may be better overall than looking up just a specific verse. The more I read of the Bible, the more I see context is key in order to keep its motives and meanings clear.
Overall, this is a wonderful way to READ the bible. An in-depth study may be slightly more difficult, but that’s not what this version was created for. I can’t wait to get the rest of the volumes!
December 5, 2025
Cannot recommend this Bible enough! I never considered how distracting the typical format of Bibles really is. This Bible is formatted to encourage and facilitate reading. It is so easy to curl up and read entire books or sections of Scripture without the hindrance and distraction of chapters and verse markings and headings. The NLT, with its everyday English style, is readable and reminiscent of the fact that the NT was written in the common, "street" Greek of the people. I also loved that they rearranged the books of the NT by presenting them in author groupings. I'm motivated to continue with Beginnings-- reading the Torah using the helpful reading guides in the book.
January 19, 2026
I enjoyed reading the Bible as a cohesive story, very interesting and enables the reader to rethink and better humanize scripture. It’s more than just a story, it’s an incredible spiritual and historical experience.
-1 One state deducted because of “chapter” Week 1 Day 4
My comment is this: Yes, God wants us to give up our loved ones and ourselves for Him, but I don’t like the translation that we should “Hate everyone else” as it is featured in this book. It’s misinterpreted, ungodly, and unbiblical to present it that way. We are to love everyone, including our enemies. There is no love in hate.
-1 One state deducted because of “chapter” Week 1 Day 4
My comment is this: Yes, God wants us to give up our loved ones and ourselves for Him, but I don’t like the translation that we should “Hate everyone else” as it is featured in this book. It’s misinterpreted, ungodly, and unbiblical to present it that way. We are to love everyone, including our enemies. There is no love in hate.
May 7, 2019
This is the New Testament of the Bible but written in an easy to read version and the books are laid out different than in the regular bibles you have. I noticed points and certain scriptures stood out to me that I had not noticed before. It was really an enjoyment to read. Our whole church started reading it in January, we did the 16 month format and by the week of Easter/Resurrection Sunday we were finished and had read all of the New Testament. It was a very rewarding experience. I would encourage anyone to purchase the Messiah (Immerse - Reading Bible), you will be blessed!
May 1, 2020
Our church read this together and I enjoyed it so much. Many passages in the New Testament have become so familiar that I don't really "hear" them when I read them. Immerse Messiah shakes things up by omitting verses and chapter breaks so you are "immersed" in the story. The translation (NLT) takes you away from the familiar while remaining understandable and very readable. I highly recommend reading Immerse as a way to incorporate larger portions of Scripture in your reading while gaining a broader understanding of the story of Scripture.
June 4, 2024
I am unsure why the description is in Spanish, as it is an English version of the New Testament. The translation is the New Living Translation of the Bible, which is on the paraphrase side of the translation spectrum. However, it is an easier read since there are no chapter and verse demarcations. Besides the paragraphs, there are suggested reading sessions. There is a short synopsis of the book before each book, and the placement of the books makes better reading sense.
This is an excellent translation to get back into the Bible reading habit. It is more fluid and understandable.
This is an excellent translation to get back into the Bible reading habit. It is more fluid and understandable.
November 23, 2020
Every time! Every time I read through the Messiah, I am struck again by how powerful this format is! Who would have thought that changing the format to be more ‘readable’ would make such a big difference? But it does! Removing verse numbers, breaks, headings, footnotes, and all the extra ‘stuff’ of modern bibles. Back to a one-column format. (I used to think one of the last things we needed was yet another English language Bible ... I was wrong. Kudos to the developers!)
October 11, 2021
Highly recommend. It's the NLT translation but it's reordered to be chronological. And all the intros to each book give you that context of what just happened and what is about to happen. It helped finally reading all of the NT in correct chronological order. I listened to the podcast which was the book broken up by days. If you read the book they took out chapter and verse markers and made it all a single column so it reads like a book/letter which is how it originally was written.
July 16, 2024
An interesting way to read the Bible
This is a great way for anyone, and particularly new Christians, to read God's word.
It is NOT a study Bible. But it does bring God's word to light in a fresh new way. Having studied the Bible for 50+ years, I very much enjoyed reading it in this new format, laid out like a regular book. I learn something new every single time I open God's word, and this time did not disappoint.
This is a great way for anyone, and particularly new Christians, to read God's word.
It is NOT a study Bible. But it does bring God's word to light in a fresh new way. Having studied the Bible for 50+ years, I very much enjoyed reading it in this new format, laid out like a regular book. I learn something new every single time I open God's word, and this time did not disappoint.
May 15, 2018
This is such a cool way to read the Bible. All of the chapter and verse numbers are removed, and the order of the books are rearranged to give it a more natural flow, so that it reads more like a novel. The introductions to each book are incredibly helpful as well. I read this with a small group in 8 weeks, and each week we would discuss it like a book club. Loved it and highly recommend.
September 21, 2020
Really loved the presentation in this New Testament. It was nice to be immersed in scripture and do a quick read-through. I never realized how distracting the verse/chapter/section divisions were to my Bible reading experience. I also love the New Living Translation. It’s incredibly readable. I can’t wait to read the rest of the Bible this way.
October 2, 2020
An absolute game changer.
This simplified and chronologically reordered Bible is a breath of fresh air. Modern Life is fast-paced and we often find ourselves "learning" in sound bites and single sentences. The Immerse Bible gently calls us back to a clean, calm, and communal read of the most famous and influential work of all time.
This simplified and chronologically reordered Bible is a breath of fresh air. Modern Life is fast-paced and we often find ourselves "learning" in sound bites and single sentences. The Immerse Bible gently calls us back to a clean, calm, and communal read of the most famous and influential work of all time.
June 13, 2021
This is a particularly excellent format ("Reader's" format) and translation (NLT) for someone new to the Bible, or who hasn't read through the Bible before.
Written to be easy to understand, and with the books rearranged in a way that makes encountering them on a straight read-through of the Bible make sense.
Written to be easy to understand, and with the books rearranged in a way that makes encountering them on a straight read-through of the Bible make sense.
January 12, 2022
Loved this translation of the New Testament and got so much out of the narrative structure they used. Highly recommend to anyone who is feeling intimidated by the Bible, wanting to read the word more, or wants to have a new way of looking at this timeless text that is the foundation for Christian life.
February 8, 2022
I really enjoyed reading this book, I just really dislike how the immersed series is constantly saying to read it on its own without the Bible I feel like you should be encouraged cross reference especially if you have a conflicting thought from something you read on your own in the Bible to something you read in the study.
May 7, 2024
Interesting way to present the New Testament. At first I felt as if I was cheating and not listening to the real Bible, but after researching how it came to be, I’m more comfortable with it and it was much more “palatable” than a traditional Bible. I’m on to find the other Books/podcasts, so that, I will finally be able to say I’ve read the Bible cover-to-cover.
November 4, 2018
Inspired Approach to Reading the Bible as a Novel
It makes it easier for someone that is new to reading the Bible. Great explanations precede a book and thereby remove confusion or add clarity to the message.
It makes it easier for someone that is new to reading the Bible. Great explanations precede a book and thereby remove confusion or add clarity to the message.
August 24, 2019
Reading Bibles are a wonderful concept, but not terribly practical if the language isn’t actually meant for reading. That’s the beauty of Immerse Messiah - readability in layout and translation. If you want to *read* the New Testament, this is the best way to do it.
Read
May 5, 2020Very easy to read New Testament. Flowed more like a book since there are no chapter or verse markings or footnotes. Very insightful to read swathes of scripture instead of tidbits and get more of the big picture of what God is doing!
October 8, 2020
So glad I found this series
I have tried so many times and have struggled to understand what I was reading. While reading this first book the verses were jumping off the page. Can't wait to start the next book in this series.
I have tried so many times and have struggled to understand what I was reading. While reading this first book the verses were jumping off the page. Can't wait to start the next book in this series.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 68 reviews