I’ve spent the last few years memorizing the Bible, and in the process of doing so, I’ve come up with a multi-tool approach for helping verses stick in my brain. Here are the tools I currently use:
1. I find it hard to keep the verse locations in the Bible anchored in my mind when I am learning individual verses on this website for two reasons. First, some books have multiple verses which are great for memorizing (I’m looking at you Romans and Ephesians), but they all seem to run together when I try to keep them straight in my brain. Second, you see the passage right before you test on a verse, so it is too easy for me to know the passage location without actually knowing it because I have just seen it 10 seconds before. To overcome this, I use the Quizlet Learn and Test features which allows me to test myself on the locations in a multiple-choice format without seeing them ahead of time. 2. For keeping long passages retained over time, I find using the Anki program with the “Bible Memorizer” addon (https://ankiweb.net/shared/info/2012700632). This addon will take a long passage and break it down into a grid format, with each square containing the first letter of each word of a verse all in a sequence with punctuation included (see link for example). When I go to review the passage, I just look at the grid and replace the letters with words as I speak the passage out verbally or subvocally. 3. For learning individual verses, I use this website exclusively. I love how it slowly removes words, tricking you into saying the verse multiple times without realizing it. I also like how it moves from word blocks to passage blocks around 20%. Indeed, this website is spectacular for testing your memorization for at least the first 60%-70% of mastering a verse. I’d love to see what methods other people use to enhance their memorization retention in addition to this website!
I guess there is a character limit. Here is the rest.
SPACED REPETITION
As you successfully review a verse, it will increase your learning interval based on how long you have been reviewing the verse and how well you did based upon spaced repetition. You can find out more information about spaced repetition here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaced_repetition
If you find that the spaced repetition percentages are not working for you, or you want to review a verse more frequently, the best option is to create a Passage set based on that verse and review it as desired. When you go to review a verse in a passage set that is not ready to review based upon spaced repetition, however, it will show you the verse as read only. You can override this feature and make the verse reviewable by taking the following steps: 1. On the verse screen, click on the three bars on the upper right of the verse 2. Check the box Test instead of read (When you check this box, you can review the verse over and over as desired) 3. Note: You can make this easier by clicking on the push pin icon which will add that option to every verse you see.
If you prefer a uniform schedule as opposed to a spaced repetition schedule, the easiest way to do that is through the naming pattern of the passage sets. Here’s how I do it. 1. Verse Passage Sets I need to learn begin with “[R0] Learn:” 2. Verse Passage Sets I want to review daily begin with “[R1] Daily:” 3. Verse Passage Sets I want to review bi-weekly daily begin with “[R2] Bi-weekly (Mon/Thu):” 4. Verse Passage Sets I want to review weekly begin with “[R3] Weekly:” 5. Verse Passage Sets I want to review bi-monthly begin with “[R4] Bi-monthly (01/15):” 6. Verse Passage Sets I want to review monthly begin with “[R5] Monthly:” 7. Verse Passage Sets I want to review forever begin with “[R6] Finished:”
Here’s an example of what my review queue looks like today: [R0] Learn: Romans 16:17-27 [R1] Daily: Luke 15:1-32 [R5] Bimonthly - (01/16): John 16:01-15 [R6] Monthly - (01): John 01:01-18
Basically, I just go down the list starting with the R0’s and work my way to the R6’s. Doing it this way, while cumbersome, helps to avoid running into a 91% verse with a 3 month interval that you cannot remember.
WEBSITE ADMINISTRATOR CONTACT INFORMATION
For questions related to features not discussed above, feel free to contact Luke Plant (spookylukey) at contact@learnscripture.net.
Keep in mind that this is a secondary project of Luke and he may be slow to respond.
Here is a compilation of the questions that have been asked on this website since its creation in 2018 and the answers that were given. I’ve tried my best to provide the answers to those questions which received no response. If you find anything that I’ve missed feel free to add them above.
BEFORE POSTING QUESTIONS HERE
There are several Help sections listed below that may answer your question. If you cannot find an answer or need clarity on the help given, feel free to post those questions here for assistance. https://learnscripture.net/help/ https://learnscripture.net/faq/
INDIVIDUAL VERSES, SELECTION SETS, PASSAGE SETS, AND CATECHISMS:
There are currently two ways to learn a new verse on this website: 1. Choose individual verses: This option allows you to create a set of one to four verses in sequential order. When created this way, the set of one to four verses will show up as individual verses on the Learn or Review section of the Dashboard (e.g., Verses coming up: Heb 11:1-2, Romans 3:23) 2. Create a verse set: This option allows you to create a Selection set or a Passage set. a. A Selection set is a selection of individual verses linked to a common theme (e.g. The Romans Road). There are many to choose from on this website, or you can create your own. b. A Passage set is a selection of individual verses in sequential order (e.g. Romans 12). i. There is a 200-verse limit for verses added this way, so you can span several chapters if you wish (Romans 1-4). ii. You can section breaks for these verses (e.g. Rom 12:1-2, 3-8, 9-13, 14-21) to make it easier to learn but this is totally optional.
Once you create a passage or selection set there is currently no way to delete it. You can, however, stop learning in one of two ways.
If you have not learned a verse in the set: 1. On your Dashboard, move down to the Review or Learn section and find the verse set 2. Click Cancel to the right of the set 3. Click OK on the confirmation screen
If you have already learned a verse in the set but the above will not remove it: 1. Click on your username in the blue Dashboard bar at the top 2. Click on Verse Progress 3. On the Progress stats screen, search for the verse 4. Click on the three bars to the right of the verse and click Stop learning this 5. NOTE: When you do this, keep in mind that you will lose any Longest streak or Current streak stats on your main page until you add the verse back.
USERNAMES AND PROFILES:
There is currently no way to change your username. You can contact the website administrator Luke Plant to delete your account (see below), but that username remains taken forever. If you do not like your username, unfortunately you will have to create a new account on the website which will have no verse stats or verse streaks.
There is no user customization beyond the username other than to designate that you are below 13 years old or to announce publicly your first and last name. Profile pictures or icons do not exist currently on this website.
CATECHISMS
Catechisms are sets of established questions and answers usually aligned to a specific denomination (e.g. Westminster Shorter Catechism in Modern English). When you add a catechism, it will show up on your Dashboard Learn queue usually under the Other verses section. Learning a question from a catechism counts as a verse on your Longest streak and Current streak score.
To cancel a catechism: 1. On your Dashboard, move down to the Review or Learn section and find the catechism set 2. Click Cancel to the right of the set 3. Click OK on the confirmation screen
If it is still showing up on your Review screen: 1. Click on your username in the blue Dashboard bar at the top 2. Click on Verse Progress 3. On the Progress stats screen, choose Type: Catechism 4. Search for the question 5. Click on the three bars to the right of the verse and click Practice question 6. Click Stop learning this question 7. NOTE: Removing a question this way will cause you to lose any Longest streak or Current streak stats on your main page until you add the question back.
NEWS AND GROUP COMMENTS
Once you make a comment in a group, that comment is public forever. It will also show up in the News sidebar of the website. There is currently no way to delete those messages or to block seeing the comments of individual or to block users from your News feed. If you wish, you may contact the website administrator who may choose to delete your account, but any messages posted will remain with a [Deleted] tag beside them instead of your username.
The News feed on your Dashboard favors the comments of people you are currently following or groups you are currently a member of. You can click on See more news… to see the full news feed.
GROUPS
The easiest way to invite a user is to give them the name of the group or send a direct link for them to click on (e.g., https://learnscripture.net/groups/bible-memory-tips/). If you wish to invite someone individually, however, there are two ways to do it.
When creating a new group: 1. From the Dashboard, click the View other groups link on the right side 2. Choose create your own 3. On the Group details, choose the Invited users 4. When you add a person this way, it will put the following message at the top of the Dashboard in Yellow: “<username> invited you to join the group <Test Group>”. 5. The invitee will then need to click on the Group name and choose Join group.
When the group already exists: 1. From the Dashboard, click the group name listed under Your groups on the right side 2. On the right side under See also, click on Edit this group 3. On the Group details, choose the Invited users 4. When you add a person this way, it will put the following message at the top of the Dashboard in Yellow: “<username> invited you to join the group <Test Group>”. 5. The invitee will then need to click on the Group name and choose Join group.
STATS, STREAKS, AND POINTS
The stats, streaks, and points sections of the website display the points or achievements you earn automatically as you memorize the Bible. These points are given based upon how well you do and the length of the verse.
Most users fall into one of two categories related to these stats: 1. Some have a competitive personality and use them as motivators 2. Others prefer a humility-based approach to learning verses (i.e., Matthew 6:3).
While the points given and streaks earned automatic, what you do with them is totally optional. If you are interested in using these as motivational tools, feel free to join groups like the Leaderboard group for everyone (public) or the Multi-Millionaires’ Club! (invite only after reaching 2 million points). Keep in mind that every group has a leaderboard, and the two below are the most popular. 1. https://learnscripture.net/groups/leaderboard-group-for-everyone/ 2. https://learnscripture.net/groups/the-multi-millionaire-club/
If you prefer a humility-based approach, the best choice is to not join any groups. If you are not in a group, no one can see your points unless they click on your name directly. You may, however, still receive comments from users congratulating you on reaching a public milestone or when you publicly join a group or learn a passage set or a selection set.
Removing a verse from your Review queue or resetting the progress of a verse will eliminate your Longest and Current streaks. If you remove the verse, you can always add it back to restore this streak. Resetting a verse removes it from the streak permanently, but the points earned before the reset will remain on the User information screen as well as on the leaderboard of any group you join. If you find your streak missing, it is likely related to one of these options.
To reset your progress on a verse permanently: 1. Start a review of the verse 2. Click on the three bars and choose Reset Progress 3. Click OK on the warning screen 4. Note: Once you click OK your spaced repetition progress resets to 0% and you have to start over as if you have never touched that verse. Any points earned from this verse, however, remain on your tally.
It is possible to have a verse in a selection set, a passage set, and an individual verse set at the same time. The website keeps track of your verse progress by verse, and you only receive points and verse progress once regardless of which way you added it. Example: You add Romans 3:23 as an individual verse and a passage set for Romans 3:23-26. When you learn the individual verse, it acts as a normal verse ready for review and you earn points. If you then choose the passage set and try to review it, the verse will already show completed and ready to skip to the next verse. On your items started streak, it would only show one verse added even though you technically added two verses (i.e., one verse in two different ways).
The Addict badge works on a 24-hour clock. The easiest way to get this badge is to create a list of all 24 hours and delete an hour when you know you’ve reviewed a verse during that hour. This will show you which hours you need to target to complete this badge.
SPACED REPETITION
As you successfully review a verse, it will increase your learning interval based on how long you have been reviewing the verse and how well you did based upon spaced repetition. You can find out more information about spaced repetition here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaced_repetition
If you find that the spaced repetition percentages are not working for you, or you want to review a verse more frequently, the best option is to create a Passage set based on that verse and review it as desired. When you go to review a verse in a passage set that is not ready to review based upon spaced repetition, however, it will show you the verse as read only. You can override this feature a
Regarding the review queue, sometimes it is good to combine sets to maintain your mental sanity. For example, I have almost 70 sets for the book of John. As a result, my review queue goes on for days, and it was depressing to look at sometimes. Since perception is reality, I decided to change the perception. So I combined those 70 sets into 21 chapter sets. Eventually, I created sets that were several chapters long, reducing John to 5 sets. My review queue now looks a lot more manageable.
Sometimes you also just have to perform triage on your review queue. There is no rule that says every verse you learn must go to 100% completion. There is also no rule that says you must review a verse tomorrow that you learned today. There is no need to put that pressure on yourself. If you need to put aside some verses to fit your schedule, go for it. Memorizing is hard, but it need not be a chore.
Personally, I like learning a new verse every day even if I don't keep them all actively on the path to mastery. I like that no matter how my day looks or my review queue looks, I'm going to learn something new today. I do not, however, review the verse the next day as most probably do. Instead, I prefer to begin reviewing them as a set once the section has been learned. I find that the verses stick better in memory when they are memorized in context with the section. I end up doing the same amount of work but just all at once instead of spread out across several days.
So, for example, I am currently in Romans 2. The first set is vv. 1-16. I found that it is easy to spread that section into vv. 1-11 and vv. 12-16. So for the first 11 days, I will learn one verse per day until the section is complete with no subsequent reviews on the following days. Once I reach the 11th verse, I will cram that section the next day, reviewing it over and over until I make no mistakes that day. The next day I will repeat the process for 12 while reviewing the previous section. So today, for example, from this hypothetical situation I will do the following in this order:
1. Learn Romans 2:12 2. Review Romans 2:1-11 multiple times 3. Review Luke 15 4. Review Romans 1 5. Review any John verses that have come up for review 6. Review any individual verses that have come up for review
This is all time permitting, of course. For example, the last few days I have done my new verse and no reviews because I've been sick. Today, I'll start my reviews again after my new verse is done. No stress, no mess.
No one process fits all. Pick and choose what works for you. We have lots of great users who find success with different processes and memorization philosophies. Just make sure your process avoids the stress which leads to burnout.
It is very useful during the initial learning stage. Go through the verse once, and then open the set again and repeat it over and over until you can do it without making any mistakes (and then do it five more times). The verses stick a lot better the more time you spend on them in the first hour/day of learning. Because of this, I only create passage sets for myself for individual verses instead of selection sets (although I rarely do individual verses, personally). I flag them as private, of course, to avoid spamming the group 30-40 times.
Can you clarify what you mean by comment? Is this a post by your brother to a specific group? If so, what group and what comment are you missing? Is this a comment on an achievement? If so, which one? To my knowledge, all comments are public, and there is very little policing on this website. That's why you see names like "deeznuts".
It is certainly possible to test fully learned verses, and dropping percentages is certainly a risk. I was referring to how the system prompts you to practice whenever you review a verse that is 100% instead of prompting it to go to the next verse. So, say you are reviewing a long passage or book, typically you'll just type the first verse and hit the space bar to go to the next verse in the series. Then you rinse/repeat until the section is done. If a verse is at 100%, however, it will instead prompt you to practice. It interrupts your flow because you have to move the mouse and click to move to the next verse instead of just hitting the spacebar.
I cannot see any impact on the points/percentages when refreshing or deselecting test other than what I described above. I've done the same on short verses with high percentages. There is one verse in Romans 1 ("foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless") which gives me nightmares every time I review it. One wrong fat finger and I know it will drop it 25%.
I have some follow-up information regarding our discussions about how the website calculates percentages. When I started back 24 days ago, I went through all of my John reviews to see how many I could finish from memory because most of them were in the high 90s.
This morning, I decided to review those same verses in John 12-16, where I have several verses at 98% and 99%. Out of 21 verses, 17 of them went from 98% and 99% to fully mastered when I scored perfect on the verse. I verified that the system registered them as mastered for the day as well. I also hit "Learn" again on the set and reviewed each verse to verify the percentage stayed the same. [Sometimes in the past I've seen the screen display a certain percentage but then change afterward (usually when you get 95% on the first review and then 100% on the second. It seems the first review takes priority.)].
Now given the intervals of 30 days per percentage point at that level, the expected result should have been that none of them advanced a point since I just reviewed them all 24 days ago. Now it is possible that some of the 99% verses might have reached 100% if there is rounding up on the display, given our previous discussions. However, of the 14 that were at 98%, 10 of them advanced to fully mastered if I did not make a mistake. That should not have occurred, right?
So I believe you guys may be right that there is a hidden percentage that is not fully displayed, along with some sort of rounding on the screen once you cross half a percentage point. But there also has to be some sort of bonus for getting the verse perfect. I believe I have a solution. Perhaps the mastery percentage algorithm matches the scoring algorithm. In other words, in the scoring algorithm when you get a verse perfect, you get the points-per-word score and a bonus 1.5x multiplier on top for making no mistakes.
If that were the case, it is possible that one of the 98% verses was actually at like 98.4% and was then given a .8% increase for the normal interval, pushing it to 99.2%, rounded down to 99% on the display. Then it was given another .4% for getting it perfect (98.4 + .8 = 99.2%, 99.2 + .4 = 99.6%, rounded up to 100%). This would also explain why some verses at 98% and 99% did not advance to 100%.
I agree, MarkAnthony. As PeterP said, my memory is just not what it used to be. Had I started memorizing the Bible as a child it would probably be much easier for me than it is now at 48. I want to keep everything active very badly, but my retention is what it is. Most of my verses I retain to about 95%, which is tremendous. The perfectionist in me hates it, however.
Thankfully, as I've been memorizing my brain has gotten into what I call "memorization mode." When I first started on this website, doing the first initial reviews seemed to take forever. Now I can look at a verse and retain it into short term memory after a couple of reads.
I hope no one takes any of my comments as a discouragement to memorizing the Bible in whatever way you choose. We have all been given different graces and callings from God, and one person's experience is not that of another. In whatever way you choose, by God's will I hope to be here with you in the struggle.