How to Use By The Water: Read, Understand, Go Deeper

By The Water walks you through the Bible in five tabs: Today serves your daily reading and progress; Guided Bible explains every chapter with summaries and deeper context; Word Study opens a 20,000-entry Greek and Hebrew lexicon that works offline; Go Deeper offers seven guided study methods; and Journal keeps your prayers and reflections beside the text. Download free, pick a plan, and today's reading is ready.

Step 1 — Choose your path

On first launch you pick one of two reading plans (you can switch any time):

• Bible in a Year — all 1,189 chapters arranged into 365 balanced daily readings, pairing Old and New Testament each day (Genesis 7–8 with Matthew 3, and so on). About 15 minutes a day; the plan tells you exactly what today holds and how long it will take.
• At Your Own Pace — the canon in order, one chapter at a time, no dates and no “behind.” The app always knows your next unread chapter.

Step 2 — Read from the Today tab

The Today tab is home base: today's reading with an estimated time, a progress ring showing how much of the whole Bible you've read, chapters-read and books-started counts, separate Old and New Testament progress bars, an estimated finish date, and your reading streak. Tap Start today's reading and the text opens — the full Bible (KJV and World English Bible) is bundled offline, so it works on a plane or at a cabin.

Step 3 — Understand every chapter in Guided Bible

Each chapter carries a Guided Insight: a chapter summary, the key verse, and a “Go Deeper” set — Literary Structure & Key Themes, Historical & Cultural Context, Significant Words, Cross-References & Canon Links, Fulfillment in Christ, and Spiritual Formation & Reflection. Read the summary before the chapter for orientation or after for consolidation. The first chapter of every book of the Bible is free; Premium unlocks all 1,189. A My Notes sub-tab keeps your own observations beside each chapter.

Step 4 — Meet the original words in Word Study

The Word Study tab is a full Greek and Hebrew lexicon — 20,000+ Strong's entries — that lives on your device. Search in plain English (“love”), transliteration (“agape”), or the original script (ἀγάπη); each entry gives the definition, pronunciation, morphology, lexicon detail, and every verse where the word occurs, with a notes tab for your own findings. For passages, the Textual Analysis method shows an interlinear view — every word of, say, John 3:16 tagged with its Strong's number and meaning. If you've never done a word study, start with agape and see what English translations flatten.

Step 5 — Go Deeper with seven study methods

The Go Deeper tab holds seven guided study methods — Word Study, Topical, Character, Devotional, Textual Analysis, Inductive, and Historical-Cultural (explained here). Each walks you through its steps, auto-saves your session, and keeps a history so half-finished studies survive interruptions. Premium members can export finished studies as PDFs — sermon prep and small-group handouts, done.

Step 6 — Pray it back in Journal

The Journal tab has two shelves: Prayers — request cards with a linked verse, tags, optional photos, and a status you update as God answers (“Waiting on God” → answered) — and Reflections for free-form writing. Reading that ends in prayer is the whole design (James 1:22).

Free and Premium, honestly

• Free: the complete offline Bible, both reading plans, all progress tracking and streaks, daily reminders, the entire Word Study lexicon, the journal, all seven study methods, guided insights for the first chapter of every book, and four generated insights each month.
• Premium: guided insights for every chapter of the Bible, unlimited generated insights, and PDF export — as a monthly or annual subscription (the annual includes a 3-day free trial when eligible).

Frequently asked questions