Memorize Scripture

1. Get Motivated! What Can Motivate Me? I Need God’s Word!

Psalm 1
1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers.

4 The wicked are not so,
But they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the wicked will perish.

Matthew 4
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” 4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.’”

2. Pick a Good Translation and Select Some Verses or Chapters to Memorize

English Standard Version (ESV) verses are found here: Select to open in a new tab.

New American Standard Version (NASB) verses are found here: Select to open in a new tab.

3. Start to Memorize

These seven habits are vital for successful Scripture memory.
1. Start early. Begin you memory work early in the day.
2. Carry your pack. Keep your cards with you; review in free moments.
3. Learn topics and references. Always state the topic first, then the reference. Next, quote the verse and repeat the reference.
4. Maintain word perfection. Keeping your standards high will bolster your confidence.
5. Review all verses daily. For success review all memorized verses at least once each day six days a week.
6. Check out new verses. Be certain you have learned all new verses correctly. At week’s end write them out for yourself or quote them to a friend.
7. Overlearn your verses. At least 36 repetitions, once a day for six weeks, are necessary to give a verse sufficient overleaming to assure instant recall. After this they should be kept available for periodic review in order to keep them sharp.
(From “MEMORY HABITS TO DEVELOP AND MAINTAIN” by NAVPRESS)

4. Challenge Someone Else Who Will Memorize

The Scripture Memory Challenge from Stephen Simpson

Step 1	Determine that you will assign yourself the task of committing a small portion of God’s Word to memory each and every day.
Step 2	Make it a goal to teach and encourage at least one other person each year to make Scripture memorization a part of their lives too.
Step 3	As you teach others to memorize Scripture, prepare them for the day when they too can encourage others to memorize, and so create an ever-increasing network of those who memorize God’s Word.

“We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.” Colossians 1:28-29

Year	Number of People Memorizing Scripture	Comment
1	1	Just you
2	2	You and your friend
3	4	One family
4	8	Two families
5	16	Small group
6	32
7	64
8	128	Small Church Membership
9	256
10	512
11	1,024	Large Church Membership
12	2,048
13	4,096	Small Town
14	8,196
15	16,384
16	32,768
17	65,536
18	131,072
19	262,144	Population of average City
20	524,288
21	1,048,576
22	2,097,152	Population of Toronto
23	4,194,304
24	8,388,608
25	16,777,216
26	33,554,432	Population of Canada
27	67,108,864
28	134,217,728
29	268,435,456
30	536,870,912	Population of North America
31	1,073,741,824	Population of China
32	2,147,483,648
33	4,294,967,296	Just about everybody
34	8,589,934,592	Much more than the population of the world
35	17,179,869,184	More than I can count

The Scripture Memory Challenge is Copyright (c) 2000 Stephen Simpson.
(All rights reserved. You may use the material on these pages freely, but it may not be sold.)
Other information from a variety of sources.