Here are a few of those special notes

God has put in the Bible for you

When you are...

afraid Joshua 1:9, Isaiah 41:10
discouraged Isaiah 40:31, Isaiah 41:13
lonely Proverbs 18:24, Psalm 68:5-6
sick or in pain James 5:15, Psalm 103:1-3
sad Psalm 147:3, 2 Corinthians 1:3-4
tempted 1 Corinthians 10:13, 1 Peter 1:6-7
The story God wrote
worried Philippians 4:6-7, Matthew 6:33-34
When you need...
God’s protection Psalm 121:7-8, Psalm 91:9-11
God to guide you Proverbs 3:5-6, Psalm 32:8
Romans 12:17-19, Colossians 3:13
T
to forgive someone he Bible is God’s story—a true story of His love
hope Philippians 4:19, Psalm 42:11 for us. It is a story with real people that lived in
peace and rest John 14:27, Matthew 11:28 cities and towns, some of which are still around
an answer to prayer Mark 11:24, Isaiah 58:9 today. It is a story that began thousands of years ago
When you feel... and carries on into the future. And so the story
unloved Psalm 103:13, 1 John 3:1
includes you, and within the story you will find some
guilty Isaiah 1:18, Psalm 51:10
personal notes that God has sent you. Although God
worthless Ephesians 2:10, Philippians 1:6
used different people to write the story, every word is
like giving up Philippians 4:13, 2 Chronicles 15:7
true and comes from Him.
When
people are mean Matthew 5:11-12, 1 Peter 3:13-15 This is how God’s story begins.
bad things happen Romans 8:28, Jeremiah 29:11

24 1
 God • Adam • Eve John • God

will be terrible times for those who have chosen not to

The OLD TESTAMENT believe in God.
In the beginning, before there was time, God When God decides to bring the world to an end, He
decided to create a beautiful place called earth. He will judge those who did not turn to Him and ask for
decorated the earth with trees and plants and grass. forgiveness. They will stand before God with every sin
God also put the sun, moon and stars in the sky and still in their hearts. Those who are dead will be made
He created animals of every kind to live on the earth alive, and anyone whose name is not found written in
He had made. the Book of Life will be punished in the lake of fire for
Then God said, “Let us all eternity.
make man in our image.” Then God will create a new sky and a new earth
So God created man (peo- where all believers—those who love God and whose
ple) to be just like Him, sins are forgiven—will reign with Him. And there will
with a spirit inside that can be no more sadness or pain, for we will have new,
have a close friendship perfect bodies and live happily for ever and ever in
with Him. the most beautiful place you can imagine!
He put the first man and woman in a beautiful 
garden called Eden and allowed them to enjoy fruit
from all the trees, except one tree—the tree right in
The end
the middle of the garden. God told them not to eat
from that tree. If they did, they would die! (although, actually, there is no end!)

2 Genesis 1 • Genesis 2:15-25 • John 1:1-3 Revelation 20:11-15 • 2 Peter 3:7 • 1 Corinthians 2:9 23
 Paul (Saul) • John The devil • Adam • Eve
Saul, one of the religious leaders, even started Now the devil—who had been an angel in heaven—
killing those who were bold enough to take a stand was thrown down to earth because he was filled with
for Jesus. But one day, while Saul was on his way pride and rebelled against God.
to Damascus, Jesus spoke to him from heaven and
The devil hates anything that is good. So he spoke to
changed his life; and his name was changed to Paul.
Eve through a serpent, tempting her to disobey God
He became a bold follower of Jesus and the first mis-
by eating from the tree in the middle of the garden.
sionary. Paul was thrown into prison many times for
“Nothing will happen to you,” the devil lied.
preaching, and while he was in prison, he wrote
letters to friends and to the churches he had started. Eve listened to the devil and took from the fruit. Then
Many of those letters are now part of the Bible. she ate it. She gave some to Adam, and he ate it too.
From that very moment, sin entered the world; and sin
Many Christians living in Jerusalem were also put in
brought with it sickness, pain, and death.
prison and even killed for their faith, so the believers
fled to other cities and countries, spreading the good God punished Adam and Eve for their disobedience
news of Jesus wherever they went. and sent them out of the Garden of Eden. Life for them
would never be the same again. It would never be
After many years, John—one of the disciples of Jesus—
perfect.
had a vision. He saw what heaven is like. Then Jesus
gave him messages to write to the seven churches. Adam and Eve had children and, as time went by, the
After this, he was taken up into heaven and shown number of people on earth grew. But sadly, as the peo-
what will happen at the end of the age, when there ple became more and more, and spread on earth, so
did their sin. People started doing very wicked things.
It got so bad that, as God looked at His creation, He
Acts 9 • Colossians 4:3 • Mark 16:15-16 • Revelation 2 - 3 Revelation 12:9 • Genesis 3 • 1 Corinthians 15:22
22 Matthew 24:3-31 Genesis 4:1-2 3
 Noah The Holy Spirit • The church • The apostles • Peter

was sorry that He had made man. The Lord wanted messengers from God told the disciples that Jesus
to have a special closeness with the people He cre- will come back in the same way as He went to
ated, but now, sin had destroyed the pure life He had heaven. When He comes, all believers will be changed
breathed into Adam. Nothing pure and good could and rise to meet Him in the clouds.
ever come from the hearts of such wicked people. So
Jesus had promised His followers that when He left
God planned to destroy the world and put an end to
earth, He would send someone in His place—the Holy
the growing ugliness of sin.
Spirit who would comfort and guide them. A few weeks
But there was one man, Noah, who did right in the later, while the disciples were together in a room, the
eyes of the Lord. He was a good man who believed Holy Spirit came down on them and they were filled
in God. God wanted to keep with His power. They went out, boldly preaching about
Noah and his family safe, so Jesus and doing miracles among the people. Many
He told him to build a huge listened to them and turned to God.
boat called an ark. After
From then on, the believers met in homes and shared
many years, when Noah had
all they had with the poor. That is how the church of
finished building the ark, God
Jesus started.
brought pairs of every kind of
animal to the ark, and they The twelve disciples of Jesus became known as the
went inside. Then Noah and his family went in too, Apostles, and Peter became the leader of the church
and God shut the door. It started to rain; and it rained in Jerusalem. The religious leaders tried to stop the
nonstop for forty days and nights until the flood waters apostles from preaching in the streets and threatened
covered the highest mountains. to send them to prison.

John 16:7-11• Acts 2 • Acts 4:32-37 • Acts 4:1-22

4 Genesis 6:5-8 • Genesis 6:9 - 8:17 Acts 8:1-8 21
 Jesus • The disciples Abram (Abraham)• Isaac • Jacob

After Jesus died, two of His followers took Him down After a long time, the water started going down,
from the cross, wrapped His body in strips of cloth and after many months, the ark came to rest on a
and laid Him in a tomb (a mountain. When the water had dried up, Noah and
cave). his family and all the animals came out of the ark
and were free to live in a clean, sinless world.
On the morning of the
third day, something very Over time, Noah’s sons Shem, Ham and Japheth had
special happened. God children of their own and grandchildren and great-
raised Jesus from the grandchildren. And the children became tribes and
dead! This showed that nations. But because the heart of man has always
His death was enough to pay for the sin of the whole been sinful, people started doing bad things again.
world. An angel stood in front of the empty tomb and
But there was one man who was faithful to God.
told the women there, “He is not here - He has risen
His name was Abram. Because of his faith, God
from the dead.”
promised to make his children a great nation—a nation
Later, Jesus appeared to some of His followers, and that would be God’s very own people! God changed
to His disciples who were together in a room. He told Abram’s name to Abraham, and when he was very
them to go down to Galilee and meet Him there. old, his wife Sarah had a son, and they called him
Isaac.
Forty days after Jesus had risen, He told His disci-
ples to go preach the good news all over the world. Isaac grew up and married Rebecca. They had two
Then Jesus was taken up to heaven in a cloud, and He sons whom they name Jacob and Esau. Jacob longed
now sits on the right side of His Father in heaven. Two for God to bless him, and although he tricked his father

Luke 24:1-12 • Luke 24:13-49 • Hebrews 9:26-28 Genesis 10 • Genesis 12:1-2 • Genesis 21:1-5
20 Matthew 28 • Acts 1:1-11 • 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 Genesis 24 • Genesis 25:21-34 5
 Jacob (Israel) • Joseph • The Israelites Jesus • The disciples

and his twin brother, God saw the longing in his heart rules and respecting them. So they thought up a plan
and blessed him in a special way. to arrest Jesus and have Him killed.

Jacob married Rachel. He also had other wives, and It was the night before the Passover feast in Jeru-
together they had twelve sons. Joseph, the favorite, salem. Judas, one of the disciples, decided to turn
was the second youngest son. One day, his jealous against Jesus for the payment of some silver that the
brothers sold him to some traders who took him to leaders had offered him. Judas led the Temple
Egypt as a slave. guards to the garden where Jesus was with the
other disciples praying. The guards arrested Jesus
There, Joseph became the faithful servant of an offi-
and took Him to the house of the High Priest. Early
cial in Pharaoh’s army. However, God had planned
the next morning, He was taken to Pilate the gover-
that after many years, he would be the top leader of
nor of Judea. Pilate found no fault in Jesus and told
Egypt under Pharaoh the king.
the crowd that He had done nothing to deserve
There was a famine at that time, and because food death. But because Pilate was afraid of the people,
was scarce in Canaan, Joseph’s brothers went to who were shouting to have Jesus crucified, he had
Egypt to buy food. Now Joseph, who had been put Jesus whipped and handed him over to the Jewish
in charge of all the stored-up food, recognized his leaders. Then the Roman guards led Jesus out of the
brothers, but he was kind to them. He gave them food, city to a hill, where they nailed Him to a cross.
and he also told them to go fetch their father and
Jesus died on the cross for the sins of the whole world.
settle in Egypt. So Jacob and his eleven sons moved
God placed all our sins on Him. In this way, Jesus took
from Canaan to Egypt, and Pharaoh gave them land
the punishment we deserved by dying in our place.
to farm.

Genesis 27:1-40 • Genesis 29:16-30 • Genesis 37:11-36 Matthew 21:45-46 • Luke 22 - 23 • John 3:16
6 Genesis 41:41-57 - 42:1-5 • Genesis 45:4-11 • Genesis 46:8-27 John 19:38-42 19
 Jesus • The disciples The Israelites • Moses

with Jesus to their hometown Nazareth. Jesus grew God had changed Jacob’s name to Israel, so all
up in Nazareth, and at the age of twelve, his parents the children after him became known as Israelites.
dedicated Him at the Temple in Jerusalem. There in Egypt, God blessed his twelve sons with big
families and they became the twelve tribes of Israel.
When Jesus was a grown man, He was baptized by
John the Baptist. He then went to the desert of Judea After many years, there was a new king in Egypt.
for forty days and was tempted three times by the The Egyptians didn’t like the Israelites and were
devil. Yet He did not sin. Then Jesus chose a team of worried that they would become so many and so
twelve disciples and went from town to town, doing strong that they’d take over their country. So the
good and teaching people. He used stories, called Egyptians made the Israelites work very hard as
parables, to help people understand the lessons of slaves. For four hundred years, they were treated
the kingdom of God. harshly, and they prayed that God would save them.

For three years, Jesus went all over Judea and God heard their prayers and raised up a leader,
Galilee, telling people about the love of God and how Moses, to rescue His people. But Pharaoh would
to have eternal life. He healed the crippled, let the not let the people go because his heart was hard.
blind see and cured those with diseases. He chased So God sent ten plagues—like sickness and pests—
out evil spirits that lived in people, forgave people on the Egyptians. The last plague was death. God
their sins and blessed little children. But the leaders protected all those who believed and were
of the Temple became jealous because many peo- obedient to Him, but the oldest son in all the other fam-
ple started listening to Jesus instead of following their ilies died. Only then did Pharaoh let the Israelites go.

Luke 2:41-52 • Matthew 3 - 4 • Matthew 9:35-36

18 Matthew 10:1-4 Exodus 3:1-10 • Exodus 7:14 - 12:42 7
 The Israelites • Moses Mary and Joseph • Jesus

So the Israelites set off for the land God had on earth. So the shepherds left their sheep and went to
promised Abraham, and Canaan would soon Bethlehem to see this miracle. And they found Jesus
be known as the Promised Land. As they traveled lying in a manger, just as the angels had said.
through the desert, God led them with a moving cloud
After this, some wise men in a country east of Judea
during the day and a pillar of fire at night. The Lord
saw a very bright star. The star, which was moving,
could have led the Israelites the shortest way to their
was a sign to them that a very
new home, but then they would have had to pass
important king had been born.
through an enemy nation and fight them. God didn’t
So the wise men followed it until
want them to become afraid and go back to Egypt, so
they came to the house where
He led them towards the Red Sea.
Jesus was. They laid very spe-
In the meantime, Pharaoh had changed his mind cial gifts at the feet of Jesus:
about letting the Israelites go. So he and his army gold, frankincense and myrrh.
chased after them. But God Then they returned home.
miraculously open a wide Meanwhile, King Herod, who had heard from them
path through the Red Sea for that a Jewish king had been born, felt threatened. So
the Israelites to walk through. he ordered that all the boys in the town of Bethlehem
As the Egyptian army chased up to the age of two years be killed.
after them, the walls of water
But an angel warned Joseph about Herod’s plan and
on either side came crash-
they escaped to Egypt, where they stayed for two
ing down on them, drowning
years. When Herod died, Mary and Joseph returned
Pharaoh and his whole army.

8 Exodus 13:17 - 14:31 Luke 2 • Matthew 2:1-18 • Matthew 2:19-23 17

 Mary and Joseph • Jesus The Israelites • Moses

The NEW TESTAMENT With the sea closed over behind the Israelites, they
could no longer return the same way to Egypt.
Then, one day, God sent an angel to a young,
unmarried woman called Mary. The angel told her the Although, at first, the Israelites were grateful that
good news that God was sending His Son to earth. God had rescued them from the Egyptians, they soon
The Holy Spirit would let her have this special child— started complaining about all sorts of things. But God
Jesus, the Son of God. was patient with them and gave them food and water.
He let special food flakes, called manna, fall from the
The Romans had conquered Judah some years before.
sky every night. In the morning, they would gather up
Judah became known as Judea and the Romans
the manna, which they could bake or boil. This is how
made the people pay tax. Then Caesar, the Roman
God fed them for forty years.
governor, ordered that everyone’s name be written
down in the town where their forefathers had lived. On their journey, the Israelites camped at a moun-
Although it was near the time when Mary was to have tain called Sinai. There God gave His people rules to
her baby, she and her husband Joseph had to leave live by—the Ten Commandments. These are laws that
their hometown of Nazareth and travel to Bethlehem. teach God’s people to honor Him and respect people.

While they were in Bethlehem, Jesus was born. Even though God had rescued the Israelites from
Because of the many people in Bethlehem at that time, Egypt, they wanted a God they could see. So while
there was no room for them to stay, so they spent the Moses was meeting with God on the mountain, they
night outside somewhere and laid the baby in a hay- collected everyone’s gold and made a golden calf.
box for animals. That same night, angels from heaven Then they bowed down and worshiped the idol. God
told a group of shepherds that Jesus had been born was very angry and punished the people for their sin.

16 Micah 6:4-13 • Luke 1 • Matthew 1:18-25 Exodus 15:22 - 16:31 • Exodus 20:1-17 • Exodus 32 9
 The Israelites • Moses Esther

God would speak to Moses like a friend, but the Meanwhile, back in Persia, there was a certain man
people didn’t have a close friendship with God. So who disliked God’s people so much that he thought up
God told Moses to build a very special place where a way to get rid of them. He persuaded the king to sign
He could come down to be with His people. It was a an instruction to kill every Jew. But God used Queen
big tent that could be taken down and put up again as Esther, an orphan from Judah, to help the king realize
they moved from place to place. The Tent, called the he had been tricked. So the king signed another law
Tabernacle, was a very holy place. Only priests could that allowed the Jews to protect themselves.
serve in the Tabernacle and offer sacrifices, and the
God had wanted the Promised Land to be a place
Lord’s presence and glory would come down on the
where all His people would be blessed and worship
Tabernacle in the form of a cloud.
Him. But they stubbornly went their own way instead
When they got near to Canaan, a place called Kadesh, of following God’s way, and they were more inter-
Moses sent twelve spies into the land. After forty days, ested in becoming rich than caring for the needs of
the spies came back and told them that the people others. And so, for four hundred years, God no longer
in Canaan were powerful, and their cities well-pro- spoke to them through the prophets, as He had done
tected. Then the Israelites became discouraged, and before.
they didn’t believe that God could help them conquer
the land. In fact, they wanted to go all the way back to
Egypt. Because of their unbelieving hearts, God kept
them in the desert for forty years, so that only their chil-
dren would enter the Promised Land.

Exodus 33:11 • Exodus 25:1-9 • Exodus 40

10 Numbers 13:1 - 14:4 Esther 2 • Esther 3:8-10 • Esther 5 - 9 15
 Daniel • Nehemiah Joshua • The Judges • Gideon

Then God allowed the king of Babylon to attack and After the forty years, Moses died, and Joshua became
conquer them. The Babylonians destroyed the Temple the new leader. Joshua led the Israelites into the
and took many Israelites back to Babylon as slaves. Promised Land and helped them conquer many
cities, like the city of Jericho. God told them to drive
Among those captured were Daniel and his
out the people from the land because the people who
friends. They loved God
lived in Canaan were evil and worshiped idols.
and were loyal to Him, even
when bad people planned Judges were chosen by the tribes to make sure
to kill them because of their that everyone was treated fairly. Some judges, like
faith. Daniel was thrown into Gideon, became brave, respected leaders that led
a den of lions, and his friends the Israelites into battle and protected the weak tribes
were thrown into a fiery when they were attacked. However, other judges, like
furnace. But God protected Samson, didn’t do such a great job.
them and saved them.
Though it took many years, God helped the
During this time, the Persians conquered Babylon. Israelites drive out the heathen people from the
After seventy years, God worked in the heart of the Promised Land, and eventually, there was peace. But
king of Persia. The king showed favor to God’s people the Israelites started to turn away from God, and
(now called Jews). He allowed those who wanted to they worshiped the man-made gods of the heathen
go back to Judah to do so. Many did. They rebuilt the nations around them. They also wanted a king like the
Temple, and Nehemiah helped them rebuild the wall other nations had—a human king instead of God their
around Jerusalem.

2 Kings 25:1-21 • Daniel 1:1-20 • Daniel 3 • Daniel 6 Deuteronomy 31:1-8 • Numbers 33:51-53 • Joshua 1:1-9
14 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 • Ezra 1 • Ezra 3:1-6 Joshua 6 • Judges 2:16, 18 • Judges 6 - 7 • Judges 13 -16 11
 Samuel • Saul • David Solomon • Elijah • Elisha

heavenly King. So God told Samuel (who was the last Eventually, Saul died in battle, and David became
judge) to let the people choose a king. And they chose king. David was a good king, although not perfect. He
Saul as their king. did something that was very wrong, which caused a
lot of problems in his family. After forty years, David’s
But Saul did not obey God and do what is right, and
son Solomon became king.
so God chose someone who would honor Him—
David, a shepherd. As a boy, David’s fearless faith Solomon built a Temple in Jerusalem where people
and love for the Lord got him to take on a giant could come and worship God and bring their offer-
Goliath who had dared to challenge God and the ings. It was a time of peace for the Israelites, and
army of Israel. David killed Goliath with a sling and Solomon became the wisest and the wealthiest king.
a stone, and King Saul
After Solomon died, the nation of Israel was divided.
made him a leader in his
Solomon’s son Rehoboam became king of Judah in
army. David won many
the South, while Jeroboam became king of Israel in
battles and became so
the North.
popular that Saul was jeal-
ous of him and wanted to The people of Israel and Judah did not follow God’s
kill him. So David and his ways and chose to worship the gods of the heathen
band of followers fled to nations. God sent many prophets, like Elijah, Elisha,
the desert of Judah, where Saul and his army tried to and Amos, to warn the people what would happen
track him down. Some of David’s psalms are about his to them if they turned away from Him. But the hearts
deep feelings and prayers while Saul was trying to kill of God’s people grew cold toward Him and they no
him. longer followed His ways.

1 Samuel 8:1-18 • 1 Samuel 10:17-25 • 1 Samuel 15:1-23 Psalm 25 • Samuel 5:1-10 • 2 Samuel 11 • 1 Kings 6
12 1 Samuel 16 - 17 • 1 Samuel 18:1-16 • 1 Samuel 19 1 Kings 11:42 • 1 Kings 12 • 1 Kings 17:1-6 • 1 Kings 19:19-21 13