Bible reading plans with an app lock: John, Psalms, Advent, Lent
A reading plan is easier to keep when your phone waits for it. These are the plans inside Psalmlock, what each one covers, and how the lock fits around them.
Updated
The plans
- The Gospel of John, 21 days. One chapter a day. The default first plan for both Protestants and Catholics.
- Psalms, 30 days. Thirty selected psalms, one a day: 1, 4, 8, 16, 19, 23, 25, 27, 31, 32, 34, 40, 42, 46, 51, 62, 63, 84, 90, 91, 96, 100, 103, 121, 130, 139, 145, 146, 148, and 150. Psalm titles appear in small italics above the text.
- Proverbs, 31 days. One chapter a day, a month of wisdom.
- Mark, 16 days. The shortest Gospel, one chapter a day.
- Romans, 16 days. One chapter a day.
- Philippians, 4 days. A short plan for a short week.
- Acts, 28 days. The story after the Gospels.
- The four Gospels, 89 days. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, one chapter a day.
Each day ends with a short prayer. When a plan is finished, the next one begins the following day. For Protestants the order is John, Acts, Romans, Psalms, Mark, Philippians, Proverbs, the four Gospels; for Catholics, John, Mark, Psalms, Acts, Philippians, Proverbs, Romans, the four Gospels. You can switch plans any time in Settings.
Advent and Lent
Advent runs December 1 to 25 and reads the Christmas story day by day: the promises in Numbers, Deuteronomy, 2 Samuel, the Psalms, and the prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Micah, Zephaniah, Malachi), then Matthew 1 and Luke 1 and 2, ending on December 25 with the child in the manger.
Lent runs from Ash Wednesday to Holy Saturday. The forty counted days follow Luke from his baptism toward Jerusalem and the cross, with the seven penitential psalms (6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, 143) on Wednesdays, Psalm 51 on Ash Wednesday, and Psalm 130 on Holy Saturday. Sundays are not counted in the forty and have their own readings, with Luke 19 on Palm Sunday.
A card on the Today tab invites you when a season is near. Joining a season does not touch your usual plan; when the season ends, your plan picks up where you left off.
How the lock fits around a plan
Psalmlock locks the apps you choose during the hours you set, and today's reading from your plan is what opens them. That is the whole mechanism: the plan supplies the passage, the lock supplies the reason to open the app before the feed.
The Today tab shows the passage with verse numbers, a timer, and a banner that your apps are locked. The "Amen" button waits a short while, scaled to the passage length. Then a short prayer, and the apps open. If you turn on "Lock again after", your apps lock again after 15, 30, or 60 minutes of use within your lock hours, and one more short verse opens them.
{verse('But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night.', 'Psalm 1:2 BSB')}Translations and the Catholic option
Plans are read in public-domain translations: the Berean Standard Bible (BSB) and World English Bible (WEB) for Protestants, the World English Bible Catholic edition (WEB-C) and Douay-Rheims for Catholics, Reina-Valera 1909 and Santa Biblia libre para el mundo in Spanish, and Bíblia Portuguesa Mundial in Portuguese. Every plan is checked to read correctly in all of them. You can open the day's passage on bible.com in another translation from inside the app.
In Catholic mode, you can choose one decade of the Rosary each day instead of a reading plan, with the day's mystery and its Scripture passage.
Keeping the plan
Progress and streak are saved in your own iCloud account, so a new iPhone or a reinstall picks up where you were. Lock Screen and Home Screen widgets show today's verse and your streak, and an optional evening reminder nudges you if you have not read yet. A new day starts at 3:00 AM.
Psalmlock is free to download and requires a subscription or a one-time purchase: Yearly (with a 7-day free trial for new subscribers), Weekly, or Lifetime. It needs an iPhone with iOS 17 or later, Screen Time turned on, a passcode, and an iCloud sign-in. There is no account, no ads, and no tracking.
Frequently asked questions
Which plan should I start with?
The Gospel of John in 21 days is the default. If you want something shorter, Philippians is 4 days; Psalms and Proverbs are about a month.
What happens when I finish a plan?
The next plan in the order begins the following day. You can also pick any plan in Settings.
Do Advent and Lent replace my plan?
No. Seasonal readings run on their dates, and your usual plan continues where you left off when the season ends.
Can I change plans without losing my streak?
Yes. Your streak counts days read. Changing plans restarts that plan from day 1, and Psalmlock asks before it does.
