Open Bible Stories

The Creation

This is how God made everything in the beginning. He created the universe and everything in it in six days. After God created the earth it was dark and empty because he had not yet formed anything in it. But God’s Spirit was there over the water.

Sin Enters the World

Adam and his wife were very happy living in the beautiful garden God had made for them. Neither of them wore clothes, but this did not cause them to feel any shame because there was no sin in the world. They often walked in the garden and talked with God.

The Flood

After a long time, many people were living in the world. They had become very wicked and violent. It became so bad that God decided to destroy the whole world with a huge flood.

God’s Covenant with Abraham

Many years after the flood, there were again many people in the world, and they still sinned against God and each other. Because they all spoke the same language, they gathered together and built a city instead of spreading out over the earth as God had commanded.

The Son of Promise

Ten years after Abram and Sarai arrived in Canaan, they still did not have a child. So Abram’s wife, Sarai, said to him, “Since God has not allowed me to have children, and now I am too old to have children, here is my servant, Hagar. Marry her also so she can have a child for me.”

God Provides for Isaac

When Abraham was very old, his son Isaac had grown to be a man. So Abraham sent one of his servants back to the land where his relatives lived to bring back a wife for his son, Isaac.

God Blesses Jacob

As the boys grew up, Jacob loved to stay at home, but Esau loved to hunt animals. Rebekah loved Jacob, but Isaac loved Esau.

God Saves Joseph and His Family

Many years later, when Jacob was an old man, he sent his favorite son, Joseph, to check on his brothers who were taking care of the flocks.

God Calls Moses

After Joseph died, all of his relatives stayed in Egypt. They and their descendants continued to live there for many years and had many children. They were called the Israelites.

The Ten Plagues

God warned Moses and Aaron that Pharaoh would be stubborn. When they went to Pharaoh, they said, “This is what the God of Israel says, ‘Let my people go!’” But Pharaoh did not listen to them. Instead of letting the Israelites go free, he forced them to work even harder!

The Passover

God sent Moses and Aaron to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go. They warned him that, if he did not let them go, God would kill all the firstborn males of Egypt’s people and animals. When Pharaoh heard this, he still refused to believe and obey God.

The Exodus

The Israelites were very happy to leave Egypt. They were no longer slaves, and they were going to the Promised Land! The Egyptians gave the Israelites whatever they asked for, even gold and silver and other valuable things. Some people from other nations believed in God and went along with the Israelites as they left Egypt.

God’s Covenant with Israel

After God led the Israelites through the Red Sea, he led them through the wilderness to a mountain called Sinai. This was the same mountain where Moses had seen the burning bush. The people set up their tents at the base of the mountain.

Wandering in the Wilderness

God finished telling the Israelites about all the laws that they must obey because of his covenant with them. Then he led them away from Mount Sinai. He wanted to take them to the Promised Land. This land was also called Canaan. God went ahead of them in the pillar of cloud, and they followed him.

The Promised Land

At last it was time for the Israelites to enter Canaan, the Promised Land. In that land was a city called Jericho. It had strong walls around it to protect it. Joshua sent two spies to that city. In that city lived a prostitute named Rahab. She hid these spies, and later she helped them to escape from the city. She did this because she believed God. The spies promised to protect Rahab and her family when the Israelites would destroy Jericho.

The Deliverers

After Joshua died, the Israelites disobeyed God. They did not obey God’s laws, and they did not drive out the rest of the Canaanites from the Promised Land. The Israelites began to worship the Canaanite gods instead of Yahweh, the true God. The Israelites had no king, so everyone did what they thought was right for themselves.

God’s Covenant with David

Saul was the first king of Israel. He was tall and handsome, just like the people wanted. Saul was a good king for the first few years that he ruled over Israel. But then he became a wicked man who did not obey God, so God chose a different man who would one day be king in his place.

The Divided Kingdom

King David ruled for 40 years. Then he died, and his son Solomon began to rule over Israel. God spoke to Solomon and asked him what he wanted most that God should do for him. Solomon asked that God would make him very wise. This pleased God, so he made Solomon the wisest man in the world. Solomon learned many things and was a very wise ruler. God also made him very wealthy.

The Prophets

God was always sending prophets to the Israelites. The prophets heard messages from God and then told them to the people.

The Exile and Return

The kingdom of Israel and the kingdom of Judah both sinned against God. They broke the covenant that God had made with them at Sinai. God sent his prophets to warn them to repent and worship him again, but they refused to obey.

God Promises the Messiah

Even when God created the world, he knew that he would send the Messiah at some time far later. He promised Adam and Eve that he would do this. He said that a descendant of Eve would be born who would crush the snake’s head. Of course, Satan appeared as a snake in order to deceive Eve. God meant that the Messiah would defeat Satan completely.

The Birth of John

In the past, God had spoken to his prophets so they could speak to his people. Then came 400 years of silence in which he did not speak to men. Then God sent an angel to a priest named Zechariah. Zechariah and his wife, Elizabeth, honored God. They were very old, and she had never born any children.

The Birth of Jesus

Mary was engaged to a righteous man named Joseph. When he heard that Mary was pregnant, he knew it was not his baby. However, he did not want to shame Mary, so he decided to have mercy on her and to divorce her quietly. But before he could do that, an angel came to him in a dream and spoke to him.

John Baptizes Jesus

John, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, grew up and became a prophet. He lived in the wilderness, ate wild honey and locusts, and wore clothes made from camel hair.

Satan Tempts Jesus

Immediately after Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit led him out into the wilderness. Jesus was there for 40 days and 40 nights. During that time he fasted, and Satan came to Jesus and tempted him to sin.

Jesus Starts His Ministry

After Jesus refused Satan’s temptations, he returned to the region of Galilee. This is where he lived. The Holy Spirit was giving him much power, and Jesus went from place to place and taught people. Everyone said good things about him.

The Story of the Good Samaritan

One day, an expert in the Jewish law came to Jesus. He wanted to show everyone that Jesus was teaching wrongly. So he said, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered, “What is written in God’s law?”

The Rich Young Ruler

One day, a rich young ruler came up to Jesus and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to have eternal life?” Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me ‘good’? There is only one who is good, and that is God. But if you want to have eternal life, obey God’s laws.”

The Story of the Unmerciful Servant

One day, Peter asked Jesus, “Master, how many times should I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus said, “Not seven times, but 70 times seven!” By this, Jesus meant that we should always forgive. Then Jesus told this story.

Jesus Feeds Thousands of People

Jesus sent his apostles to preach and to teach people in many different villages. When they returned to where Jesus was, they told him what they had done. Then Jesus invited them to go with him to a quiet place across the lake to rest for a while. So, they got into a boat and went to the other side of the lake.

Jesus Walks on Water

After Jesus fed the crowd, he told the disciples to get into a boat. He told them to sail to the other side of the lake while he stayed behind for a little while. So the disciples left, and Jesus sent the crowd to their homes. After that Jesus went up on a mountainside to pray. He was there all alone, and he prayed until late at night.

Jesus Heals a Demon-Possessed Man & a Sick Woman

Jesus and his disciples went in their boat to the region where the Gerasene people lived. They reached land and got out of their boat.

The Story of the Farmer

One day, Jesus was near the shore of the lake. He was teaching a very large crowd of people. So many people came to hear him that Jesus did not have enough room to speak to them all. So he got into a boat in the water. There he sat and taught the people.

Jesus Teaches Other Stories

Jesus told many other stories about the kingdom of God. For example, he said, “The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed that someone planted in his field. You know that the mustard seed is the smallest seed of all.”

The Story of the Compassionate Father

One day, Jesus was teaching many people who had gathered to hear him. These people were tax collectors and also other people who did not try to obey the Law of Moses.

The Transfiguration

One day, Jesus took three of his disciples, Peter, James, and John, with him. (The disciple named John was not the same person who baptized Jesus.) They went up on a high mountain by themselves to pray.

Jesus Raises Lazarus from the Dead

There was a man named Lazarus. He had two sisters named Mary and Martha. They were all close friends of Jesus. One day someone told Jesus that Lazarus was very sick. When Jesus heard this, he said, “This sickness will not end with Lazarus dying. Instead, it will cause people to honor God.”

Jesus Is Betrayed

Every year, the Jews celebrated the Passover. This was a celebration of how God had saved their ancestors from slavery in Egypt many centuries earlier. About three years after Jesus first began preaching and teaching publicly, Jesus told his disciples that he wanted to celebrate this Passover with them in Jerusalem, and that he would be killed there.

Jesus Is Put on Trial

It was now the middle of the night. The soldiers led Jesus to the house of the high priest because he wanted to question Jesus. Peter was following far behind them. When the soldiers took Jesus into the house, Peter stayed outside and warmed himself by a fire.

Jesus Is Crucified

After the soldiers mocked Jesus, they led him away to crucify him. They made him carry the cross on which he would die.

God Raises Jesus from the Dead

After the soldiers crucified Jesus, the Jewish leaders said to Pilate, “That liar, Jesus, said he would rise from the dead after three days. Someone must guard the tomb to make sure that his disciples do not steal the body. If they do, they will say he has risen from the dead.”

Jesus Returns to Heaven

On the day that God raised Jesus from the dead, two of his disciples were going to a nearby town. As they walked, they talked about what had happened to Jesus. They had hoped that he was the Messiah, but then he was killed. Now the women said he was alive again. They did not know what to believe.

The Church Begins

After Jesus returned to heaven, the disciples stayed in Jerusalem as Jesus had commanded them to do. The believers there constantly gathered together to pray.

Peter and John Heal a Beggar

One day Peter and John went to the Temple. A crippled man was sitting at the gate, begging for money.

Stephen and Philip

One of the leaders among the first followers of Jesus was a man named Stephen. Everyone respected him. The Holy Spirit gave him much power and wisdom. Stephen did many miracles. Many people believed him when he taught them to trust in Jesus.

Saul Becomes a Follower of Jesus

There was a man named Saul who did not believe in Jesus. When he was a young man, he guarded the robes of the men who killed Stephen. Later he persecuted the believers. He went from house to house in Jerusalem to arrest both men and women and to put them in prison. Then the high priest gave Saul permission to go to the city of Damascus. He told Saul to arrest followers of Jesus there and to bring them back to Jerusalem.

Paul and Silas in Philippi

As Saul traveled throughout the Roman Empire, he began to use his Roman name, ‘Paul.’ One day, Paul and his friend Silas went to the town of Philippi to proclaim the good news about Jesus. They went to a place by the river outside the city where people gathered to pray. There they met a woman named Lydia who was a merchant. She loved and worshiped God.

Jesus Is the Promised Messiah

When God created the world, everything was perfect. There was no sin. Adam and Eve loved each other, and they loved God. There was no sickness or death. This was the way God wanted the world to be.

God’s New Covenant

An angel told Mary, a young woman, that she would give birth to God’s Son. She was still a virgin, but the Holy Spirit came to her and made her become pregnant. She gave birth to a son and named him Jesus. Therefore, Jesus is both God and human.

Jesus Returns

For almost 2,000 years, more and more people around the world have been hearing the good news about Jesus the Messiah. The Church has been growing. Jesus promised he would return at the end of the world. Though he has not yet come back, he will keep his promise.