Reading Greek will never be fun or effective without a basic knowledge of the vocabulary in the NT. Many specialists in linguistics have reflected extensively on the best model for selective vocabulary learning (also see here and here.
My own opinion, not based on any scientific evidence, is that once you have memorized all the words that occur 20 times or more, it’s time to be more selective. Remember: reading Greek is the best way to learn Greek, so the sooner you get into the NT the better. This is not to say that memorizing words that occur 10-19 times is unimportant, only that it is lower on the priority list.
So how can you be more selective? First, get the UBS’s Reader’s Greek NT and start reading. Read fast, read broad, read out loud, and don’t look up every word. Just read.
Second, pick a book you are interested in and read with focus. Check out Zhubert.com. In addition to providing an easy-to-use Greek NT system, that have some tools for memorizing specific words in specific books. Let’s say you’ve memorized everything in the NT that occurs 20 times or more and that you want to spend some time in the Epistle of James (hypothetically). Select James in Zhubert.com, select words occurring 20 times or less, and start a more focused vocabulary study. Such a focus will let you take those all important detours in syntax analysis and exegesis.
The point: you need a balance of both the broad and the narrow. Effective Greek reading requires both a range of reading, but also more focused attention on particular authors. The former helps you pick up the general features of a language, while the latter allows you to experience its depth and richness, not to mention the particular stylistic tendencies of different authors in the NT.
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That’s helpful. Thanks Tommy