Route 66: A Journey Through the Bible (Complete)

Here’s the full reading plan for the Route 66 survey of the sixty-six books of the Bible. I organized the material around eleven days of reading. Below you will find an explainer video and questions to ask of each passage. I plan to organize this material into a pdf booklet and will make that available here as well. Hope it’s helpful!

Bible Summary: God created us to live in his presence and be satisfied with his goodness.

Route 66 Theme Verse: In your presence there is fullness of joy and at your right hand there are pleasures forever more. (Psalm 16:11)

Questions to ask of each passage:

1. 1. What is this verse about; what does it mean?
   2. How does this verse fit with what this particular book of the Bible?
   3. How does this verse point to the theme that God created us to live in his presence and be satisfied with his goodness?

Some tips:

1. Whether you are reading about God’s judgment, floating axe heads, Old Testament sacrifices, prophecies of judgment, or promises of hope, think about how they all point to Jesus and how God created us to live in his presence and be satisfied with his goodness.
2. To figure out what a particular verse is about, particular when it isn’t immediately apparent, do a quick survey of the context and look at the study notes in your Bible (if you are using a study Bible), and the chapter titles. Most of the time a few minutes spent looking around in the book will give you an idea.
3. We did six verses per day around meal times. That meant that after each meal we read and discussed two verses. I had my boys write the verses out in their journal and answer the questions on their own before we discussed them.
4. Don’t get too bogged down in one spot. If you feel stuck with a passage and are unsure how it fits, feel free to set it aside and come back to it later.
5. I didn’t realize how cool the journals would be. My boys decorated them. If you want to take the Route 66 challenge to another level you might order a Route 66 notebook from Amazon, or even go online and order a bunch of Route 66 stickers and decorate a generic notebook like we did.
6. And just for fun, here’s a little humor and devotional reflection on how we got stuck on the side of a mountain near the Grand Canyon: Google Maps, Mater, and Proverbs.
7. Be creative. You might not be able to hit Route 66 like we did, but you could incorporate this into some other trip you are making. Find a little diner that feels like it would fit on Route 66 to kick off or end your study.

Day One:

Genesis 6:6
6 The LORD regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled.

Exodus 6:6
6 Therefore, say to the Israelites: ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.

Leviticus 6:6
6 And as a penalty they must bring to the priest, that is, to the LORD, their guilt offering, a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value.

Numbers 6:6
6 Throughout the period of their dedication to the LORD, the Nazirite must not go near a dead body.

Deuteronomy 6:6
6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.

Joshua 6:6
6 So Joshua son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant of the LORD and have seven priests carry trumpets in front of it.”

Day Two:

Judges 6:6
Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out to the LORD for help.

Ruth 1:6
When Naomi heard in Moab that the LORD had come to the aid of his people by providing food for them, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there.

1 Samuel 6:6
Why do you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh did? When Israel’s god dealt harshly with them, did they not send the Israelites out so they could go on their way?

2 Samuel 6:6
When they came to the threshing floor of Nakon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled.

1 Kings 6:6
The lowest floor was five cubits wide, the middle floor six cubits and the third floor seven. He made offset ledges around the outside of the temple so that nothing would be inserted into the temple walls.

2 Kings 6:6
The man of God asked, “Where did it fall?” When he showed him the place, Elisha cut a stick and threw it there, and made the iron float.

Day Three:

1 Chronicles 6:6
Uzzi the father of Zerahiah, Zerahiah the father of Meraioth,

2 Chronicles 6:6
But now I have chosen Jerusalem for my Name to be there, and I have chosen David to rule my people Israel.’

Ezra 6:6
Now then, Tattenai, governor of Trans-Euphrates, and Shethar-Bozenai and you other officials of that province, stay away from there.

Nehemiah 6:6
in which was written: “It is reported among the nations—and Geshem[a] says it is true—that you and the Jews are plotting to revolt, and therefore you are building the wall. Moreover, according to these reports you are about to become their king

Esther 6:6 
When Haman entered, the king asked him, What should be done for the man the king delights to honor? Now Haman thought to himself, Who is there that the king would rather honor than me?

Job 6:6
6 Is tasteless food eaten without salt,
or is there flavor in the sap of the mallow?

Day Four:

Psalm 6:6
I am worn out from my groaning.
All night long I flood my bed with weeping
and drench my couch with tears.

Proverbs 6:6
Go to the ant, you sluggard;
consider its ways and be wise!

Ecclesiastes 6:6
… even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?
Lunch

Song of Songs 6:6
Your teeth are like a flock of sheep
coming up from the washing.
Each has its twin,
not one of them is missing.

Isaiah 6:6
Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.

Jeremiah 6:6
This is what the LORD Almighty says:
Cut down the trees
and build siege ramps against Jerusalem.
This city must be punished;
it is filled with oppression.

Day Five:

Lamentations 1:6
All the splendor has departed
from Daughter Zion.
Her princes are like deer
that find no pasture;
in weakness they have fled
before the pursuer.

Ezekiel 6:6
Wherever you live, the towns will be laid waste and the high places demolished, so that your altars will be laid waste and devastated, your idols smashed and ruined, your incense altars broken down, and what you have made wiped out.

Daniel 6:6
So these administrators and satraps went as a group to the king and said: “May King Darius live forever!
Lunch

Hosea 6:6
For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.

Joel 1:6
A nation has invaded my land,
a mighty army without number;
it has the teeth of a lion,
the fangs of a lioness.

Amos 6:6
You drink wine by the bowlful
and use the finest lotions,
but you do not grieve over the ruin of Joseph.

Day Six:

Obadiah 1:6
But how Esau will be ransacked,
his hidden treasures pillaged!

Jonah 1:6
The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.

Micah 6:6
With what shall I come before the LORD
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?

Nahum 1:6
Who can withstand his indignation?
Who can endure his fierce anger?
His wrath is poured out like fire;
the rocks are shattered before him.

Habakkuk 1:6
I am raising up the Babylonians,[a] that ruthless and impetuous people,
who sweep across the whole earth
to seize dwellings not their own.

Zephaniah 1:6
…those who turn back from following the LORD
and neither seek the LORD nor inquire of him.

Day Seven:

Haggai 1:6
You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.

Zechariah 6:6
The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses toward the west,[a] and the one with the dappled horses toward the south.

Malachi 1:6
A son honors his father, and a slave his master. If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me? says the LORD Almighty.
It is you priests who show contempt for my name.
But you ask, How have we shown contempt for your name?

Matthew 6:6
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Mark 6:6
He was amazed at their lack of faith.Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village.

Luke 6:6
On another Sabbath he went into the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was shriveled.

Day Eight:

John 6:6
He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.

Acts 6:6
They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

Romans 6:6
For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,[a] that we should no longer be slaves to sin.

1 Corinthians 6:6
But instead, one brother takes another to court—and this in front of unbelievers!

2 Corinthians 6:6
… in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love;

Galatians 6:6
Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor.

Day Nine:

Ephesians 6:6
Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart.

Philippians 1:6
… being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Colossians 1:6
… that has come to you. In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace.

1 Thessalonians 1:6
You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.

2 Thessalonians 1:6
God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you

1 Timothy 6:6
But godliness with contentment is great gain.

Day Ten:

2 Timothy 1:6
For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.

Titus 1:6
An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe[a] and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient.

Philemon 6
I pray that your partnership with us in the faith may be effective in deepening your understanding of every good thing we share for the sake of Christ.

Hebrews 6:6
… and who have fallen[a] away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.

James 1:6
But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

1 Peter 1:6
In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.

Day Eleven

2 Peter 1:6
… and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness;

1 John 1:6
If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.

2 John 6
And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.

3 John 6 
They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way in a manner that honors God.

Jude 6 
And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.

Revelation 6:6
Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, Two pounds[a] of wheat for a day’s wages,[b] and six pounds[c] of barley for a day’s wages,[d] and do not damage the oil and the wine!

Congratulations! You’ve completed the Route 66 tour of the Bible!

(Photo credit: this is the only photo in the post I didn’t take. We had to save the trip from Flagstaff, Arizona to Los Angeles, California for another time. This is from this website.)