Telescope into a specific scripture passage or narrow topic. Follow every footnote, trace every cross-reference, read full chapters for context. Produces intermediate findings in a working document. Use for focused, depth-first study on a single text or concept.
Deep reading is the telescope — focused on one passage, one chapter, one concept. You go deep before going wide. This skill produces the kind of study where you read Moses 4 and end up in Revelation 12 because the footnotes took you there.
This contrasts with the wide-search skill, which casts a broad net across the library. Both are valuable. Deep reading comes first in a phased study.
Don't search for it — read_file the entire chapter. Read the verses before and after. Get the flow.
Scripture markdown files contain superscript footnote markers and a footnote section at the bottom of the chapter. For each footnote on the target passage:
read_file the cross-referenced passageUse the webster-analysis skill for any word that might carry Restoration-era meaning different from modern usage. Don't guess — look it up.
For phased studies, maintain a working document at study/{topic}/notes.md (or similar) that tracks:
## Intermediate Findings
### From [source passage]
- Key quotes (with links)
- Footnote chains followed
- Webster insights
- Questions raised for the next phase
### Threads to Pull (for wide-search phase)
- [Concept or phrase that deserves semantic search]
- [Connection to explore across library]
- [Conference talk topic to look for]
This document is NOT the final study — it's the workbench. The final study gets written after all phases are complete.
Deep reading always surfaces questions that require broader search. Note these explicitly for the wide-search phase. Don't try to answer everything in one pass.
| Regular One-Shot Study | Deep Reading Phase |
|---|---|
| Discovery + Reading + Writing in one session | Reading only — writing comes later |
| Searches broadly then reads selectively | Reads exhaustively in a narrow area |
| Produces a finished document | Produces intermediate findings |
| Self-contained | Part of a larger phased plan |
In a phased study plan (see study-plan prompt):
Deep reading feeds wide search with specific threads to pull. Wide search feeds synthesis with breadth and connections. The plan coordinates them.