Advent Reading Plan 2026: One Chapter a Day from November 29 to Christmas
By the ItsBible team · Updated November 8, 2026 · Facts checked November 8, 2026 · How we check our guides
Advent 2026 begins on Sunday, November 29 and ends on Christmas Eve, December 24. This plan gives you one chapter of the Bible for each day of Advent, plus one for Christmas morning. Every reading links straight to its chapter on ItsBible, where the whole Bible is free to read in the World English Bible, with no account and no ads.
The readings follow the story Advent tells: a world waiting in the dark, promises kept alive by the prophets, a voice in the wilderness, and a child born in Bethlehem. Most chapters take only a few minutes to read.
Advent 2026 dates
| Day | Date |
|---|---|
| First Sunday of Advent | Sunday, November 29, 2026 |
| Second Sunday of Advent | Sunday, December 6 |
| Third Sunday of Advent | Sunday, December 13 |
| Fourth Sunday of Advent | Sunday, December 20 |
| Christmas Eve | Thursday, December 24 |
| Christmas Day | Friday, December 25 |
In most churches Advent begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, so it starts on a different day each year, somewhere between late November and early December, and its length changes too.
How the plan works
- One chapter a day. Read it once, slowly. If a single line stays with you, that is enough.
- Four weeks, four themes. Many churches name the four weeks of Advent hope, peace, joy and love, and light one more candle on an Advent wreath each Sunday. The readings follow that pattern. Traditions vary, so if your church names the weeks differently, follow your church.
- Sundays match church. Each Sunday’s chapter holds one of the readings set for that day in the Revised Common Lectionary, the shared list of readings many churches use, so you may hear it read aloud that morning too.
- Nothing to sign up for. Reading on ItsBible needs no account. If a reminder helps, you can also get the verse of the day by email, and every email has a link to stop. It is a single verse, not this plan.
Week 1: Hope, November 29 to December 5
Advent begins honestly, with longing, and with the first promises of the story.
| Day | Reading | What to look for |
|---|---|---|
| Sun, Nov 29 | Psalm 80 | A prayer for God to come and help, with a refrain that returns through the psalm: “Cause your face to shine, and we will be saved.” Psalm 80 is set for today in many churches. |
| Mon, Nov 30 | Genesis 3 | Where the longing starts. Many Christians read verse 15 as the Bible’s first hint of a rescuer. |
| Tue, Dec 1 | Genesis 12 | God calls Abraham and promises, “All the families of the earth will be blessed through you” (verse 3). |
| Wed, Dec 2 | 2 Samuel 7 | God promises David a kingdom that lasts: “Your throne will be established forever” (verse 16). |
| Thu, Dec 3 | Isaiah 9 | “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light” (verse 2), and a child is born (verse 6). |
| Fri, Dec 4 | Isaiah 11 | Jesse was King David’s father. “A shoot will come out of the stock of Jesse” (verse 1), and then comes a picture of peace where the wolf lives with the lamb (verse 6). |
| Sat, Dec 5 | Micah 5 | Bethlehem, “small among the clans of Judah” (verse 2), named as the town a ruler will come from. |
Week 2: Peace, December 6 to 12
The second week brings peace into view, and a call to get ready: a voice calls out to clear a road, and a messenger is promised.
| Day | Reading | What to look for |
|---|---|---|
| Sun, Dec 6 | Isaiah 40 | “Comfort, comfort my people” (verse 1), and a voice calling, “Prepare the way of Yahweh in the wilderness!” (verse 3). Verses 1 to 11 are set for today. |
| Mon, Dec 7 | Isaiah 2 | A day when nations “shall beat their swords into plowshares” (verse 4). |
| Tue, Dec 8 | Psalm 85 | A prayer for a land at peace again: “Righteousness and peace have kissed each other” (verse 10). |
| Wed, Dec 9 | Isaiah 35 | The desert blooms, and fearful hearts are told, “Be strong! Don’t be afraid!” (verse 4). |
| Thu, Dec 10 | Malachi 3 | The last book of the Old Testament promises someone to go ahead: “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me!” (verse 1). |
| Fri, Dec 11 | Mark 1 | Mark’s Gospel opens with John the Baptist in the wilderness, calling people to get ready. |
| Sat, Dec 12 | 2 Peter 3 | Why the long wait? “The Lord is not slow concerning his promise” (verse 9). |
Week 3: Joy, December 13 to 19
The third Sunday of Advent is often called Gaudete Sunday, from the Latin word for “Rejoice,” and in many churches its candle is rose colored. This week’s readings are full of songs.
| Day | Reading | What to look for |
|---|---|---|
| Sun, Dec 13 | Isaiah 61 | Good news for the humble, and “the oil of joy for mourning” (verse 3). Verses from Isaiah 61 are set for today. |
| Mon, Dec 14 | Zephaniah 3 | A God who “will rejoice over you with singing” (verse 17). |
| Tue, Dec 15 | Psalm 126 | A short psalm about joy after tears: “Then our mouth was filled with laughter” (verse 2). |
| Wed, Dec 16 | Isaiah 52 | Joy when a runner arrives with news: “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news” (verse 7). |
| Thu, Dec 17 | John 1 | “The light shines in the darkness” (verse 5), and “The Word became flesh and lived among us” (verse 14). |
| Fri, Dec 18 | 1 Thessalonians 5 | Three short lines to carry all week: “Always rejoice. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks” (verses 16 to 18). |
| Sat, Dec 19 | Psalm 98 | “Make a joyful noise to Yahweh, all the earth!” (verse 4). Isaac Watts drew on this psalm for the carol “Joy to the World.” |
Week 4: Love, December 20 to 24
In the last days before Christmas the story comes close to the people in it: Mary, Joseph, and a family line that runs through Bethlehem.
| Day | Reading | What to look for |
|---|---|---|
| Sun, Dec 20 | Luke 1 | The angel Gabriel visits Mary, and she answers, “let it be done to me according to your word” (verse 38). Verses 26 to 38 are set for today. This is the longest reading in the plan, so it is fine to read it in two sittings. |
| Mon, Dec 21 | 1 John 4 | “God is love” (verse 8), shown in this: “God has sent his only born Son into the world that we might live through him” (verse 9). |
| Tue, Dec 22 | Galatians 4 | Paul writes that “when the fullness of the time came, God sent out his Son, born to a woman” (verse 4). |
| Wed, Dec 23 | Ruth 4 | In Bethlehem, Ruth’s faithful love for Naomi leads to a son, Obed, the grandfather of King David (verse 17). |
| Thu, Dec 24 (Christmas Eve) | Matthew 1 | A family tree with Ruth in it (verse 5), then Joseph’s dream and the name Immanuel, “God with us” (verse 23). |
Christmas Day and after
| Day | Reading | What to look for |
|---|---|---|
| Fri, Dec 25 (Christmas Day) | Luke 2 | The birth in Bethlehem, and the angel’s words to shepherds at night: “Don’t be afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be to all the people” (verse 10). |
If your family reads the Christmas story on Christmas Eve, swap the last two readings and read Luke 2 on December 24.
Christmas is a season too. For Epiphany, read Matthew 2, where wise men from the east follow a star to the child.
Starting late
Found this after November 29? Start with today’s date and read forward. The chapters stand on their own, so nothing is lost by beginning partway. If you want the readings you missed, save them for a slow Sunday afternoon or the quiet days after Christmas. Advent is a season of waiting, not a test.
Reading it with children or a group
- Read the day’s chapter aloud at breakfast, dinner or bedtime. A few minutes is plenty.
- With young children, lean on the story chapters: Genesis 3, Genesis 12, Ruth 4, Mark 1 and Luke 2. For Luke 1, verses 26 to 38 are enough for little ones.
- Ask one question afterward, such as “What did you notice?” and let the answers be short.
- If you light an Advent wreath, read the Sunday chapter when you light the candle.
- On ItsBible, English chapters can be read aloud to you, which helps on tired evenings.
When a chapter is hard to follow
Much of Advent’s reading comes from the prophets, who wrote to people facing war, exile and hard years, so some chapters take a second look. Every chapter on ItsBible is explained free, in plain words. For questions of your own, you can ask a few free questions every day, and every verse shown is the real text, so a verse that does not exist cannot appear. Where Christians disagree, you see the main views side by side. If you want more, Plus, the paid plan, lets you ask more questions and ask about any verse while you read.
Questions people ask
When does Advent start in 2026?
Advent 2026 starts on Sunday, November 29, the fourth Sunday before Christmas, and ends on Christmas Eve, Thursday, December 24. Christmas Day is a Friday.
Why does Advent start on a different date each year?
Advent begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, and Christmas falls on a different day of the week each year, so the first Sunday of Advent moves between late November and early December. That is also why Advent can be as short as 22 days or as long as 28.
What are the Gospel readings for the Sundays of Advent 2026?
In churches that follow the Revised Common Lectionary (Year B), they are Mark 13:24 to 37 on November 29, Mark 1:1 to 8 on December 6, John 1:6 to 8 and 19 to 28 on December 13, and Luke 1:26 to 38 on December 20.
What if I miss a day?
Pick up with today’s reading. Each chapter stands on its own, so nothing breaks if you skip one, and you can read the ones you missed after Christmas.
Why does this Bible say Yahweh?
The World English Bible, the public domain translation ItsBible uses, writes God’s name in the Old Testament as Yahweh, where many English Bibles print LORD in capital letters. Both stand for the same Hebrew name; the World English Bible spells it out.
Sources
- Year B, Advent 2026 readings, Revised Common Lectionary (Vanderbilt Divinity Library, text file) lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu
- Advent dates 2024 to 2040, with the weekday of Christmas and the days of Advent each year (JesusWalk) jesuswalk.com
- Year B, Christmas 2026 readings, Revised Common Lectionary (Vanderbilt Divinity Library, text file) lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu