Read in context
Read Mark 1:1–20. After the opening account of John and Jesus’ baptism and testing, Mark introduces Jesus’ proclamation in Galilee and the calling of the first disciples.
Bible Study Tutor
Bible reading plan app
Bible Study Tutor includes Bible reading plans to help users keep a steady rhythm of reading Scripture, then slow down into deeper study when a passage needs attention.
Let a plan create space for understanding: Mark 1:14-20
Read the passage before comparing your answers with the worked notes. Each example separates what the text says, how its meaning follows from context, and one possible response. Use a Bible and paper or your preferred study tool.
Mark 1:14-20 · WEB · World English Bible
14 Now after John was taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Good News of God’s Kingdom, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and God’s Kingdom is at hand! Repent, and believe in the Good News.” 16 Passing along by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 17 Jesus said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you into fishers for men.” 18 Immediately they left their nets, and followed him. 19 Going on a little further from there, he saw James the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets. 20 Immediately he called them, and they left their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired servants, and went after him.
Scripture text source · Public domain
1. Observation · what does it say?
Question: What does Jesus announce and call people to do?
Example answer: Verses 14–15 connect His proclamation with God’s good news, the fulfilment of the time, and the nearness of God’s Kingdom. Repentance and belief are named responses. Verses 16–20 then describe people being called to follow Him and leaving their fishing work. The story shows a response as well as stating one.
2. Meaning · how does the context explain it?
Question: What holds the announcement and the calling together?
Example answer: Jesus’ message calls for a reorientation toward God’s reign, expressed in trusting the good news and following Him. The disciples’ response illustrates the seriousness of that call. It does not mean every reader must leave their employment immediately; that detail belongs to these particular callings.
3. Application · one possible response
One possible response: “I will identify one area where I treat following Jesus as an optional extra—perhaps honesty when it costs me—and choose a specific act of faithfulness this week. I will ask a trusted believer to help me think it through.” This applies the call to respond and follow without copying every circumstance of the fishermen.
Let a plan create space for understanding
Try it yourself: What would count as a worthwhile reading session besides marking a day complete?
After a short reading in Mark, write one observation, one question, and one possible response. If a passage needs more time, stay with it. A plan helps you return to Scripture; completing its schedule should not replace paying attention to what you read.
A reading to avoid
Avoid reducing repentance to feeling bad or treating this scene as a universal command to resign from work. Trace what following Jesus comes to mean throughout Mark.
Pray and revisit
Jesus, help me receive Your good news and follow You in the choices before me.
After trying your response, return to the passage: what did you learn, what did you do, and what still needs thought? You can revise your notes as your understanding grows.
Follow a plan
Choose a short, medium, or long reading plan and continue from the next reading. Plans can help with John, Romans, Psalms, the Gospels, the New Testament, or the whole Bible.
Keep reading and study connected
Open a plan reading in the Bible reader, then send the passage to Study when you want guided prompts, notes, prayer, or a printable worksheet.
Track progress without pressure
Mark readings complete, catch up when needed, and keep ordinary chapter reading separate from plan completion.
Use plans on desktop and mobile
Signed-in users can keep reading plan progress available across devices while still using the app in a simple, privacy-aware way.
Types of reading plans
Different reading plans serve different seasons and goals.
Short plans
Useful for prayer, peace, grief, new believers, or a focused 7-14 day rhythm.
Medium plans
Useful for Gospels, New Testament sections, overviews, or book-based reading.
Long plans
Useful for reading the whole Bible, the New Testament, or Psalms and Proverbs over a longer period.
Custom plans
Useful when a church, group, or individual wants to create a specific reading pathway.
Reading plan safeguards
A plan should help Scripture reading, not become a burden.
- Choose a pace that fits your actual life.
- Use catch-up tools when dates need adjusting.
- Do not confuse chapter read status with plan-day completion.
- Send important readings into Study when you need to slow down.
- Let the plan serve prayerful reading rather than pressure.
Open Bible reading plans
Choose a plan, open the next reading, and keep your Bible reading rhythm clear.
Common questions
What is a Bible reading plan?
A Bible reading plan gives you a sequence of passages to read over a set number of days.
Can I study a reading plan passage?
Yes. You can open a plan reading in the Bible reader and send it into a guided study method.
Can I follow more than one reading plan?
Bible Study Tutor supports multiple active reading plans while keeping the Bible reader focused on the next readings.
Continue in Bible Study Tutor
Open the free app on desktop or mobile. Bible Study Tutor is privacy-aware, has no public timeline, and includes guided study, the Bible reader, memory verses, journal tools, and printable worksheets.
Open reading plans