How a Bible alarm clock works

Plain answers to the questions people ask before they try one. Updated October 12, 2026.

A Bible alarm clock is an alarm that reads you the Bible. Not a beep and a reminder to read later. The reading is the alarm. Morning Manna is one. When it goes off, a whole chapter of Scripture is already being read to you, by a real narrator, before you have touched the phone. Here is how it works, and the honest answers to what people ask us.

Is there an alarm clock that reads the Bible out loud?

Yes. Morning Manna is a Bible alarm clock app. At your alarm time, a chapter of the Bible is read out loud by a real narrator. You do not have to unlock the phone, dismiss anything, or open the app. You can lie there and listen. It is free to start, with no ads and no account required.

Can my phone wake me up with a Bible chapter?

Yes. Set the alarm once: pick a time and the days you want. That is all there is to set up. Each morning the day's chapter starts reading at your alarm time. It opens with three quiet chimes and a gentle background sound, then the narrator begins. The first seconds of a morning should not be a jolt.

You can listen to the end, snooze, or just let it play. A whole morning can go by without tapping anything.

How is this different from a Bible app with a reminder?

Most Bible apps wait for you to open them. A reminder beeps, you unlock the phone, clear the notifications, find the app, choose something, and then Scripture. By then your phone already has your morning.

Morning Manna does not wait. The chapter is already speaking when you wake, and then the app gets out of the way. It is also small on purpose: one chapter a day, picked for you, so you can sit with it. No plans to pick, no streams, no badges.

Who is reading? Is it a real person?

Yes. The narrator is Bob Souer, a professional reader. His recording of the Berean Standard Bible is in the public domain, and the app plays it exactly as he read it, word for word, never in a hurry. You can hear a whole chapter on our home page: Psalm 23, just as the app plays it.

Which Bible translation is it?

The Berean Standard Bible, read exactly as written. It is a modern, readable English translation that was placed in the public domain, which is what lets us play it word for word with no ads and no account. Other translations are not available in the app. Scripture is from the Berean Standard Bible (public domain).

Does it work offline, or with Do Not Disturb on?

Both. Whenever you open the app, it downloads the days ahead, so the morning's chapter is already on your phone and no signal is needed at 5 a.m. The alarm uses your phone's own alarm system, the same one your clock app uses, so it rings through Do Not Disturb, on a locked screen, at your volume.

What if the chapter did not download? Will it be silent?

The alarm is never silent. If today's chapter could not reach your phone, one you already have plays instead. And under everything, a passage of Scripture is built into the app itself. The Home screen tells you the night before what tomorrow's alarm will play.

Phones sometimes put apps to sleep to save battery. Setup asks your phone, once, to keep Morning Manna awake, and tells you exactly what to tap if yours needs more. If an alarm ever rings silently or not at all, our support page walks through the three phone settings that fix it.

What happens on weekends?

No new chapter comes out on Saturday or Sunday. A weekend alarm replays a chapter from the past week, so the morning still starts with the Word. Saturday looks back at the week. Sunday rests and shows the week ahead.

What happens after the alarm?

Every chapter comes with its full text, so you can read along while it plays or come back to it later. A verse from the morning's chapter stays on your home screen all day in the Today's verse widget, changing through the day. There is a private journal for a few lines about the chapter, and a Journey that fills in slowly as you hear more of the Bible. Every chapter you wake to is kept in your Library.

Is it free? What does Premium add?

The free plan is the whole morning, and it never ends: a new chapter every Monday, which your alarm plays all week, plus alarms, read-along, the journal, your week and Journey, the widget, and joining groups. No card, no account, no end date.

Premium adds a new chapter every weekday morning, favourites in your Library, going back for a missed morning, and leading a group. It is $8.99 a month, $59.99 a year, or $199.99 once for life, billed through Google Play. New subscribers get a seven-day free trial through Google Play, which shows you the end date before you confirm.

Can our church or small group wake to the same chapter?

Yes. A pastor, study leader or parent starts a group in the app, and others join with a code. Everyone in the group wakes to the same chapter, and the leader can add a short word for the day or pick extra chapters just for the group. The group sees how many listened, never who. Joining is always free; leading is part of Premium, and a church can cover every member with group seats.

Is there an iPhone version?

Morning Manna is on Android now. The iPhone version is next. If you would like to hear when it is ready, email contact@morningmanna.app and we will tell you once, when it exists.

How do I find it on Google Play?

Search for Morning Manna Bible Alarm on Google Play. The developer is K-Bridge LLC and the icon is an amber vessel. Several other things are called Morning Manna, including devotionals, podcasts and at least one other app; ours is the alarm clock.

Still have a question?

Email contact@morningmanna.app. We read every message.