The Most Bizarre Stories From The Bible
From a talking donkey to a man being eaten by a giant fish, the Bible has no shortage of strange stories. In her new book “A Most Peculiar Book: The Inherent Strangeness of the Bible” , Kristin Swenson, an associate professor of religious studies at Virginia Commonwealth University, delves into these stories and many others. Here’s a look at 20 of the more bizarre biblical stories that Swenson discusses in the book. Some, such as Jonah being eaten by a giant fish, refer to important archaeological sites, like Nineveh, an ancient Assyrian city in modern-day northern Iraq. Others, such as that of a literal scapegoat, explain how phrases that are commonly used in modern times came into existence.
God Tries To Kill Moses
The Book of Exodus also contains a baffling turn of events: At one point, God gives Moses instructions on what he must do to help free the Israelites from Egypt’s pharaoh. God gave Moses special capabilities, such as the ability to turn his staff into a snake. However, as Moses heads toward Egypt, God gets another idea.
“At a lodging place on the way, the Lord met Moses and was about to kill him. But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it. ‘Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,’ she said. So the Lord let him alone,” Exodus 4:24-26.
Scholars have been baffled about why God initially planned to kill Moses, Swenson said. One possibility is that some passages from this biblical story that may have shed light on that question were lost.
All The Stories Of The Bible
This is a five book series that presents all the stories of the Bible, written in an easy to understand conversational style. Each story is presented in its simplest form and is accurate to Scripture.
* The stories are accurate to Scripture
* They are crafted so as to present only the simple understanding of the story.
* Small stories are grouped together with other events.
* Larger stories are broken into two or three units.
* Duplicate stores are blended so they only appear once.
* The stories are crafted into a “spoken” style.
* A warning icon is placed on stories that may not be acceptable to children.
In recent years, there has been a dramatic change in how people approach learning. It is now clear they respond to a different type of teaching. Analytical logic no longer dominates teaching/learning. One aspect of this change is that people respond positively to listening and learning stories. It must be a part of the Christian educational process for adults as well as children.
Another major difference in our society is how few Bible stories people know. Bible stories were not emphasized in their homes. As children, they attended childrens programs where teachers were not taught how to tell Bible stories accurately and in an interesting way. As adults, they sat through sermons that only referred to Bible stories without telling them. Pastors simply said, And of course, we know that story.
Copyright 2011 by John Walsh, BibleTelling
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Exceedingly Long Life Spans
The Book of Genesis is chock full of centenarians.
“When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image and he named him Seth. After Seth was born, Adam lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Adam lived a total of 930 years, and then he died. When Seth had lived 105 years, he became the father of Enosh. After he became the father of Enosh, Seth lived 807 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Seth lived a total of 912 years, and then he died. When Enosh had lived 90 years, he became the father of Kenan. After he became the father of Kenan, Enosh lived 815 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Enosh lived a total of 905 years, and then he died,” Genesis 5:3-10.
Scholars have long debated why the Book of Genesis tells of people having superlong life spans, Swenson wrote in her book. One possibility is that the writers of Genesis measured the length of a year differently, she said another possible explanation is that the shortening of life spans as the Bible goes on is a punishment for humanity’s sins.
The End Of All Badness
Why does the Bible speak of horses in heaven?
What is the name of Gods war with bad people on the earth, and what is the purpose of this war?
From the picture, who is the One who will take the lead in the fighting, why does he wear a crown, and what does his sword mean?
Looking back at Stories 10, 15, and 33, why should we not be surprised that God will destroy bad people?
How do Stories 36 and 76 show us that God will destroy bad people even if they claim to worship him?
Additional questions:
ReadRevelation 19:11-16.
How do the Scriptures make clear that Jesus Christ is the rider on the white horse?
How does the blood sprinkled on Jesus outer garment confirm that his victory is decisive and complete?
Who are likely included in the armies that follow Jesus on his white horse?
Story 115
What conditions does the Bible indicate we will enjoy in the earthly Paradise?
What is the Bibles promise for those who live in Paradise?
When will Jesus see to it that this wonderful change takes place?
When Jesus was on earth, what did he do to show what he would do as King of Gods Kingdom?
What will Jesus and his heavenly corulers make sure of when they rule over the earth from heaven?
Additional questions:
What is signified by the fact that the name of the Father and the name of the Lamb are written on the foreheads of the 144,000?
Story 116
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A Little Boy Serves God
What is the name of the little boy in the picture, and who are the others?
What prayer does Hannah say one day when she is visiting Jehovahs tabernacle, and how does Jehovah answer her?
How old is Samuel when he is taken to serve at Jehovahs tent, and what does his mother do for him each year?
What are the names of Elis sons, and what kind of men are they?
How does Jehovah call Samuel, and what message does He give him?
What does Samuel become when he grows up, and what happens when he grows old?
Additional questions:
Read1 Samuel 16:1-14.
How do Jehovahs words at 1 Samuel 16:7 help us to be impartial and to avoid being prejudiced by outward appearances?
How does Sauls example show that when Jehovah removes his holy spirit from a person, the vacancy can be filled by a bad spirit, or an inward urge to do wrong?
Story 58
What challenge does Goliath make to the Israelite army?
How big is Goliath, and what reward does King Saul promise to the man who kills Goliath?
What does David say when Saul tells him that he cannot fight Goliath because David is just a boy?
In his reply to Goliath, how does David show his trust in Jehovah?
As you can see in the picture, what does David use to kill Goliath, and what happens to the Philistines after this?
Additional questions:
How do the anointed remnant imitate Davids example of trusting in Jehovah?
Story 59
Why is Saul jealous of David, but how is Sauls son Jonathan different?
Additional questions:
Story 61
Additional questions:
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Million People Leave At Once
In the Book of Exodus, Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt and into the Sinai desert, where they wandered for 40 years.
“How could approximately two and a half million people, with all their animals, collectively leave Egypt to wander in the Sinai Desert for forty years?” Swenson wrote in her book. “We are told that they drew water from a rock and that food miraculously appeared, but practically speaking, that’s a whole lot of people with dependent animals in a barren space for a very long time.”
The number 40 is mentioned several times in the Bible, with Jesus wandering the desert for 40 days and 40 nights. What symbolic meaning the number has, if any, is a matter of debate among scholars.
Originally published on Live Science.
Owen Jarus is a regular contributor to Live Science who writes about archaeology and humans’ past. He has also written for The Independent , The Canadian Press and The Associated Press , among others. Owen has a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Toronto and a journalism degree from Ryerson University.
How We Can Live Forever
What do we need to know if we are to live forever?
How can we learn about Jehovah God and Jesus, as shown by the little girl and her friends in the picture?
What other book do you see in the picture, and why should we read it often?
Besides learning about Jehovah and Jesus, what else is needed to gain everlasting life?
What lesson do we learn from Story 69?
What does the good example of little Samuel in Story 55 show?
How can we follow the example of Jesus Christ, and if we do, what will we be able to do in the future?
Additional questions:
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Nile Turning To Blood
The longest river in the world could have been filled not with freshwater but with blood, at least according to one passage in the Bible.
After Egypt’s pharaoh refuses to grant the Israelites freedom, God tells Moses and Aaron to use their staffs to turn the Nile river to blood. “Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all the water in the Nile turned into blood. And the fish in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood throughout all the land of Egypt ,” Exodus 7:20-21.
The pharaoh simply shrugs off what happened. “Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not take even this to heart. And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile ,” Exodus 7:23-24.
The bible doesn’t shy away from the abode for the eternally damned.
Jesus warns people of the dangers of going to hell if they sin. He says, for example, “If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell,” Matthew 5:29.
The Wonder Book Of Bible Stories
| LC Class | BS551 |
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The Wonder Book of Bible Stories is a 1904 collection by Logan Marshall published in the United States. The book includes biblical stories from both the Old and New Testaments retold for children and illustrated with rich woodcuts and color plates. Reprinted several times in the 1920s, it went out of print in 1925. It was made available online by Project Gutenberg in 2005 and there have subsequently been several print editions in Chinese and in English, published in Taipei, as well as other ebook versions.
Other collections of Bible stories with this title have been made by Mary Juergens , David Kyles and Jesse Lyman Hurlbut .
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Literature And The Arts
The Bible has directly and indirectly influenced literature: St Augustine‘s Confessions is widely considered the first autobiography in Western Literature. The Summa Theologica, written 12651274, is “one of the classics of the history of philosophy and one of the most influential works of Western literature.” These both influenced the writings of Dante‘s epic poetry and his Divine Comedy, and in turn, Dante’s creation and sacramental theology has contributed to influencing writers such as J. R. R. Tolkien and William Shakespeare.
Many masterpieces of Western art were inspired by biblical themes: from Michelangelo’s David and Pietà sculptures, to Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper and Raphael’s various Madonna paintings. There are hundreds of examples. Eve, the temptress who disobeys God’s commandment, is probably the most widely portrayed figure in art.The Renaissance preferred the sensuous female nude, while the “femme fatale” Delilah from the nineteenth century onward demonstrates how the Bible and art both shape and reflect views of women.
The Bible has many rituals of purification which speak of clean and unclean in both literal and metaphorical terms. The biblical toilet etiquette encourages washing after all instances of defecation, hence the invention of the bidet.
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Study Questions For My Book Of Bible Stories
My Book of Bible Stories
Story 1
Where have all good things come from, and can you give an example?
What was the first thing God created?
Why was the first angel special?
Describe what the earth was like in the beginning.
How did God start getting the earth ready for animals and people?
Additional questions:
What is the origin of the earth?
What happened on the first creative day?
Describe what happened during the second creative day.
Story 2
How did God prepare the earth to be our home?
Describe the great variety of animals that God made.
Why was the garden of Eden special?
What did God want the whole earth to become?
Additional questions:
What did God create during the third creative day?
What occurred during the fourth creative day?
What kinds of animals did God make on the fifth and sixth days?
What two special trees did God place in the garden, and what did they symbolize?
Story 3
How is the picture in Story 3 different from the picture in Story 2?
Who made the first man, and what was the mans name?
What work did God give Adam to do?
Why did God make Adam fall into a deep sleep?
How long could Adam and Eve live, and what work did Jehovah want them to do?
Additional questions:
What was the climax of Gods creation on the sixth day, and how was this creation different from the animals?
What provision did Jehovah make for both man and animals?
ReadGenesis 2:7-25.
What was involved in Adams assignment to name the animals?
Story 4
Why did Jehovah punish them?
Story 5
On The Mount Of Olives
In the picture, which man is Jesus, and who are with him?
What did the priests try to do to Jesus in the temple, and what did he say to them?
What do the apostles ask Jesus?
Why does Jesus tell his apostles some of the things that will be happening on earth when he is ruling as King in heaven?
What does Jesus say will happen before he puts an end to all badness on earth?
Additional questions:
What expression at shows the urgency of preaching the good news, and how should Jesus words affect us?
Story 99
As portrayed in the picture, why are Jesus and his 12 apostles in a large upstairs room?
Who is the man leaving, and what is he going to do?
What special meal does Jesus begin after the Passover meal is finished?
The Passover reminded the Israelites of what event, and of what does this special meal remind Jesus followers?
After the Lords Evening Meal, what does Jesus tell his followers, and what do they do?
Additional questions:
In what sense did Jesus pray for his followers to be one?
Story 100
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My Book Of Bible Stories
Enjoy 116 stories from the Bible. They are accurate, easy to understand, and beautifully illustrated.
True stories taken from the worlds greatest book, the Bible, provide a history of the world from creation onward.
PART 1
The Genesis story of creation is understandable and fascinatingeven to young children.
STORY 2
According to Genesis, God made the garden of Eden a very special place. God wants the whole earth to be just like that beautiful garden.
STORY 3
God created Adam and Eve and placed them in the garden of Eden. They became the first married couple.
STORY 4
The Bible book of Genesis tells us how the original paradise was lost.
STORY 5
Outside the garden of Eden, Adam and Eve faced many problems. If only they had obeyed God, life would have been happy for them and their children.
STORY 6
The story of Cain and Abel, as recorded in Genesis, teaches us about the kind of people we should beand what attitudes to change before its too late.
STORY 7
The example of Enoch shows that you can do what is right, even if people all around you do what is bad.
STORY 8
Genesis chapter 6 tells about giants who hurt people. Those giants, called Nephilim, were children of the fallen angels who left heaven and lived as humans.
STORY 9
Noah and his family survived the Flood because they obeyed God even though others would not listen.
STORY 10
PART 2
When you see a rainbow, what should it remind you of?
STORY 12
STORY 13
STORY 14
Why did God ask Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac?