In this article we invite you to familiarize yourself with the most famous biblical stories. It is known that biblical stories became the basis of many cultural works. Bible stories do more than just teach us wisdom, tolerance, and faith. Bible stories help us better understand culture and ourselves.
In this material we offer you biblical stories of the Old and New Testaments. Greatest prophets, kings Ancient World, the apostles and Christ himself are the heroes of epic biblical tales.
World creation.
The biblical story of the creation of the world is described in the Book of Genesis (Chapter 1). This biblical story is fundamental to the entire Bible. Not only does it tell how it all began, it also establishes the basic teachings about who God is and who we are in relationship with God.
The creation of man.
Man was created on the sixth day of creation. From this biblical story we learn that man is the pinnacle of the universe, created in the image of God. This is the source of human dignity and this is why we pursue spiritual growth, so we will become more like it. Having created the first people, the Lord commanded them to be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and have dominion over animals.
Adam and Eve - a story of love and the Fall
The story of the creation of the first people Adam and Eve and how Satan, under the guise of a serpent, tempted Eve to sin and eat the Forbidden fruit from the tree of good and evil. Chapter 3 of Genesis describes the story of the Fall and the expulsion of the first people from Eden. Adam and his wife Eve are in the Bible the first people on Earth, created by God and the ancestors of the human race.
Cain and Abel - the story of the first murder.
Cain and Abel are brothers, sons of the first people - Adam and Eve. Cain killed Abel out of jealousy. The story of Cain and Abel is the story of the first murder on the young Earth. Abel was a cattle breeder, and Cain was a farmer. The conflict began with a sacrifice to God made by both brothers. Abel sacrificed the firstborn heads of his flock, and God accepted his sacrifice, while Cain’s sacrifice - the fruits of the earth - was rejected due to the fact that it was not offered with a pure heart.
Great Flood.
Chapters 6-9 of Genesis tell the story of the Great Flood. God was angry at the sins of mankind and sent rains to the earth, which became the cause of the Flood. The only people Those who managed to escape were Noah and his family. God commanded Noah to build an ark, which became a shelter for him and his relatives, as well as for animals and birds, which Noah took with him into the ark.
Babel
After the Great Flood, humanity was united people and spoke the same language. The tribes that came from the east decided to build the city of Babylon and a tower to heaven. The construction of the tower was interrupted by God, who created new languages, which is why people stopped understanding each other and were unable to continue construction.
Abraham's Covenant with the Lord
In the Book of Genesis, several chapters are devoted to the post-flood patriarch Abraham. Abraham was the first person with whom the Lord God entered into a Covenant, according to which Abraham would become the father of many nations.
Sacrifice of Isaac.
The Book of Genesis describes the story of the failed sacrifice of Isaac by his father, Abraham. According to Genesis, God called Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac as a “burnt offering.” Abraham obeyed without hesitation, but the Lord spared Isaac, convinced of Abraham’s devotion.
Isaac and Rebekah
The story of Abraham's son Isaac and his wife Rebekah. Rebekah was the daughter of Bethuel and the granddaughter of Abraham's brother Nahor (Abraham, who lived in Canaan, decided to find a wife for Isaac in his homeland, in Harran).
Sodom and Gomorrah
Sodom and Gomorrah are two famous biblical cities that, according to the Book of Genesis, were destroyed by God for the sinfulness and depravity of their inhabitants. The only one who managed to survive was Abraham's son Lot and his daughters.
Lot and his daughters.
In the tragedy of Sodom and Gomorrah, God spared only Lot and his daughters, since Lot turned out to be the only righteous person in Sodom. After fleeing Sodom, Lot settled in the city of Zoar, but soon left there and settled with his daughters in a cave in the mountains.
The story of Joseph and his brothers
The biblical story of Joseph and his brothers is told in the Book of Genesis. This is the story of God's faithfulness to the promises made to Abraham, His omnipotence, omnipotence and omniscience. Joseph's brothers sold him into slavery, but the Lord directed their destinies in such a way that they themselves accomplished what they were so eager to prevent - the rise of Joseph.
Egyptian plagues
According to the book of Exodus, Moses, in the name of the Lord, demanded that Pharaoh free the enslaved children of Israel. Pharaoh did not agree and 10 Egyptian plagues were brought down on Egypt - ten disasters.
The Wanderings of Moses
The story of the forty-year exodus of the Jews from Egypt under the leadership of Moses. After forty years of wandering, the Israelites circled Moab and reached the bank of the Jordan at Mount Nebo. Here Moses died, appointing Joshua as his successor.
Manna from heaven
According to the Bible, manna from heaven is the food that God fed the people of Israel during their 40-year wanderings in the desert after the exodus from Egypt. The manna looked like white grains. The collection of manna took place in the morning.
Tencommandments
According to the book of Exodus, the Lord gave Moses ten commandments about how to live and relate to God and each other.
Battle of Jericho
The biblical story tells how Moses' successor, Joshua, asked the Lord to help him take the city of Jericho, whose inhabitants were afraid of the Israelites and did not want to open the gates of the city.
Samson and Delilah
The story of Samson and Delilah is described in the Book of Judges. Delilah is the woman who betrayed Samson, repaying her love and devotion by revealing the secret of Samson’s strength to his worst enemies - the Philistines.
The Story of Ruth
Ruth is the great-grandmother of King David. Ruth was known for her righteousness and beauty. The story of Ruth represents righteous entry into the Jewish people.
David and Goliath
Bible story about young man, who, led by faith, defeated the great warrior. Young David is the future God-chosen king of Judah and Israel.
Ark of the Covenant of God
Ark of the Covenant- greatest shrine Jewish people, in which the stone Tablets of the Covenant were kept, as well as a vessel with manna and Aaron's staff.
Wisdom of King Solomon.
King Solomon is the son of David and the third Jewish king. His reign is described as a wise and just reign. Solomon was considered the personification of wisdom.
Solomon and the Queen of Sheba
A biblical story about how the legendary Arabian ruler Queen of Sheba paid a visit to King Solomon, famous for his wisdom.
Golden image of Nebuchadnezzar
Nebuchadnezzar, who saw a golden image in a dream, could not shake off the desire to make a similar statue himself. huge size and of the purest gold.
Queen Esther
Esther was a beautiful, quiet, modest, but energetic woman who was passionately devoted to her people and her religion. She is the intercessor of the Jewish people.
Job the long-suffering
Biblical stories of the New Testament.
Birth of John the Baptist
Old Testament ends with the hope that God will send Elijah to prepare people for the coming of the Savior, the Messiah. Such a person turns out to be John the Baptist, who prepares people for the coming of the Messiah, telling them about repentance.
Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The biblical story is about the announcement by the Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary of the future birth according to the flesh from her of Jesus Christ. An angel came to the Mother of God and uttered the words that She had been chosen by God and had found grace from God.
Birth of Jesus
Even in the Book of Genesis there are prophecies about the coming of the Messiah. There are more than 300 of them in the Old Testament. These prophecies come true in the birth of Jesus Christ.
Gifts of the Magi.
The Three Wise Men bring gifts to baby Jesus at Christmas. In the Bible, the Magi are kings or magicians who came from the East to worship the baby Jesus. The Magi learned about the birth of Jesus by the appearance of a miraculous star.
Massacre of the innocents
The Massacre of the Innocents is a New Testament biblical tradition described in the Gospel of Matthew. Tradition speaks of the massacre of infants in Bethlehem after the birth of Jesus. Murdered babies are revered nearby Christian churches like holy martyrs.
Baptism of Jesus
Jesus Christ came to John the Baptist, who was near the Jordan River in Bethabara, with the goal of being baptized. John said: “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” To this Jesus replied that “we must fulfill all righteousness,” and received baptism from John.
Temptation of Christ
After his baptism, Jesus went into the desert to fast for forty days. In the desert the devil tempted Jesus. In Christianity, the temptation of Christ by the devil is interpreted as one of the proofs of the dual nature of Jesus, and His wounding of the Devil is interpreted as an example of the fight against evil and the grace-filled result of baptism.
Jesus walks on water
Jesus walking on the waters is one of the miracles performed by Christ to assure the disciples of His Divinity. Walking on water is described in three Gospels. This is a famous biblical story that was used for Christian icons, mosaics, etc.
Expulsion of traders from the temple
A biblical story describing an episode of the earthly life of the Messiah. On the Passover holiday in Jerusalem, Jews rounded up sacrificial cattle and set up shops in the temple. After entering Jerusalem, Christ went to the temple, saw the merchants and drove them out.
last supper
The Last Supper is the last meal of Jesus Christ with His twelve disciples, during which He established the sacrament of the Eucharist and predicted the betrayal of one of the disciples.
Prayer for the Cup
The Prayer of the Cup or the Prayer of Gethsemane is the prayer of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane. The prayer for the cup is an expression of the fact that Jesus had two wills: divine and human.
Kiss of Judas
Biblical story found in the three Gospels. Judas kissed Christ at night in the Garden of Gethsemane after praying for the cup. The kiss was a sign for the arrest of the Messiah.
Pilate's Court
The Trial of Pilate is the trial of the Roman procurator of Judea, Pontius Pilate, over Jesus Christ, described in the four Gospels. The Judgment of Pilate is included in the Passion of Christ.
Denial of the Apostle Peter
The Denial of Peter is a New Testament story that tells how the Apostle Peter denied Jesus after his arrest. Denial was predicted by Jesus during the Last Supper.
Way of the Cross
The way of the cross or carrying the cross is a biblical story, component The Passion of Jesus, which represents the path taken by Christ under the weight of the cross, on which he was subsequently crucified.
Crucifixion of Christ
The execution of Jesus took place on Golgotha. The execution of Christ by crucifixion is the final episode of the Passion of Christ, which precedes the burial and Resurrection of Christ. Jesus suffered on the cross next to the thieves.
Resurrection.
On the third day after death, Jesus Christ rose from the dead. His body was transformed. He came out of the tomb without breaking the Sanhedrin seal and invisible to the guards.
Even if we assume that there is no God, the Bible will still remain the most important book in the history of mankind. The culture, philosophy and laws of entire civilizations were based on it. For believers this is a sacred book, for non-believers it is a fascinating and large-scale epic, a collection of ancient myths with battles, dramas and miracles.
But there are myths not only inside the Bible - there are no less myths around it. Popular culture, folklore and theologians' interpretations have changed our understanding of biblical heroes and events beyond recognition. So the Bible does not say that...
…THE EARTH IS FLAT | Myth
Unlike the mythology of the ancient Indians or Scandinavians, the Bible does not describe fantasy world with giant elephants on turtles, snakes entwining the world or ash trees the size of a galaxy. It is only mentioned that God “sits above the circle of the Earth,” which is “hung above nothing.” This can be interpreted in different ways - either a disk, or a ball in outer space. Terms like “firmament” and “foundations of the Earth” that flash from time to time are also very vague.
The authors of the Bible considered the question of the structure of the Universe unimportant - fortunately for posterity. The vagueness of the formulations allows Christianity to remain flexible in its tricky questions Sciences. Is the earth spherical? The Bible never said otherwise.
…THE DEVIL IS A GOAT-FOOTED ANTI-GOD | Myth
Satan, as we see it today, is a mixture of several different negative biblical characters.
"Diavolos" - Greek translation the word "satan", which in Hebrew means "accuser" or "opponent". In the Old Testament it is used many times in these meanings, most often in relation to people.
In the Book of Job, God argues with a certain angel called “Satan,” but this is not a horned supervillain, but simply an “opponent in a dispute” who is by no means hostile to God. Likewise, the fallen angel Lucifer is known only from angry passages addressed to Tire and Babylon, which the authors of the Bible predicted would fall. The devil appears in person in the Gospels, but even there he is more of a tempter testing the will of Christ than “God with a minus sign.” The red skin and horns were apparently given to Satan by the Beast from the Book of Revelation. The rest, including the purchase of souls and hooves like a satyr, are folklore fantasies.
And by the way, the Serpent from the Garden of Eden, according to the Book of Genesis, is simply a cunning animal. Later, his theologians came up with the intriguing idea that the main villain of Christianity could pretend to be the Serpent.
…ANGELS ARE PEOPLE WITH WINGS | Myth
This image is the fantasy of artists and sculptors. The Bible describes God's helpers in a much more surreal way. The seraphim appearing in the Book of Isaiah actually have wings - as many as six, with two of which each angel covers his face so as not to burn others with his radiance. The cherubs (one of which was Lucifer) have four faces - a lion, a bull, an eagle and a man, their bodies are a cross between the bodies of these animals, and their eyes are on their wings. And the Ophanim from the Book of Ezekiel generally look like wheels within wheels, covered with eyes all over the rim.
It's a pity that in popular culture boring cupids entered. The real Bible is ready material for a Del Toro movie!
.. .HELL IS A TORTURE ROOM WITH BOILERS AND FORKS | Myth
The Old Testament says very little about hell and the afterlife in general. After death, the ancient Jews went to “Sheol,” a kingdom of shadows similar to the Greek Hades. Their posthumous life did not depend on their lifetime “karma.” The purpose of Jesus' sacrifice, according to the New Testament, was precisely to give people afterlife in heaven - only for the righteous, of course. Sinners are sent to “Fiery Gehenna” - the place of death of the soul. In reality, Gehenna (Ge Hinnom) is a valley near Jerusalem, considered an unclean place (supposedly sacrifices were made to Baal there in ancient times), and its name was used as a metaphor. Early Christians, who interpreted the words of Christ, decided to understand Gehenna as an anti-paradise, where the unworthy are sent after death.
As for devils with pitchforks, cauldrons and other popular images, we mainly owe them to folklore. And also Dante, who invented the nine circles of Hell, the distribution of sinners among them and the methods of their punishment. The fantasies of the author of The Divine Comedy are often mistaken for the real teachings of the Bible.
…ADAM AND EVE ONLY HAD SONS| Myth
This statement is usually followed by the question: “And how did humanity come from Cain and dead Abel?” But the writers of Genesis could not leave such plot holes. Adam and Eve had both sons and daughters, exact number which are not mentioned in the Bible. Only their third son Seth, the ancestor of Noah, from whom, according to biblical myth, they descend, is named. modern people. It’s just that nothing interesting happened to Seth and the other children, unlike Cain and Abel.
…SODOM AND GOMORRAH SUFFERED FOR HOMOSEXUALISM | Myth
In fact, according to the Book of Genesis. Sodom and Gomorrah received punishment based on the totality of their atrocities, about which their victims complained to God. The last straw was the attempt of the inhabitants of Sodom to attack the angels (in human form) who were visiting the house of the righteous Lot. That is, “sodomy” should not be called same-sex sex, but a violation of the laws of hospitality.
...MOSES WAS HORNED | Myth
This funny misconception existed during the Renaissance: the Old Testament prophet was depicted with horns, like a satyr. The great Michelangelo sculpted a horned statue of Moses for the Vatican. And conspiracy theorists later built versions that Moses was from the people of horned people or that his prototype was Pan.
In fact, according to the Book of Exodus, after meeting God on Mount Sinai, Moses' face emitted a radiance. The translator of the Vulgate, the Latin version of the Bible, mistook the word "karai" - "to shine" - for "keren" - "horn". Even knowing about the mistake, artists, in tribute to tradition, often depict Moses with two rays emanating from his forehead, like horns.
Contrary to another misconception, Moses was not a peaceful preacher like Jesus. The Old Testament describes how he killed an Egyptian overseer with his own hands, and, having become the leader of the Jews, often led them to conquests to other nations. So future movie Ridley Scott's Exodus: Kings and Gods hardly exaggerates in showing Moses as a warrior king.
BOOK OR BOOKS?
Those who think that the Bible is one book are mistaken. It's actually more of a book series. Both Old and New Testament They consist of many books by different authors, sometimes living in different millennia. By the way, contrary to another misconception, Christians do not claim that God himself wrote the Bible. They only consider its authors to be inspired by God.
…NOAH SAVED A PAIR OF EACH CREATURE | Myth
The prudent Noah took on the ark not two, but seven animals of each type, except for those considered “unclean” by the Jews, such as pigs. He really saved only two of the unclean ones. Why this was forgotten is not difficult to understand: in Christianity the idea of unclean animals does not remain. And in Russian, “there are pairs of each creature” also rhymes.
…JESUS WAS BORN ON DECEMBER 25 | Myth
Not a single Gospel says a word about the date of birth of Christ. The midwinter festival, now celebrated as Christmas, existed in Europe before the spread of Christianity and was called Yule or Zero. The day of veneration of Jesus was simply timed to coincide with this holiday.
By the way, there were... who knows how many Magi who brought gifts to the infant Christ. The version of the three wise men was born because they brought three gifts: gold, incense and myrrh.
…MARY MAGDALENE WAS A HARLON | Myth
Magdalene's profession is not mentioned in the Gospels. What is known is that Jesus cast out demons from her, after which Mary became his disciple and companion. And elsewhere in the Gospels there is a story about a harlot whom the crowd wanted to stone. Jesus stopped the crowd by perplexing them with the philosophical aphorism “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.” After this, the harlot immediately corrected herself and began to lead a virtuous life. Only in the 6th century did Pope Gregory I decide that the two legends were talking about the same woman. This version is considered canonical only by Catholics.
…JESUS CARRIED HIS CROSS ALONE | Myth
The image of Christ dragging a heavy cross to the place of execution became so iconic that it became a saying (“carry your cross”). It is all the more surprising that three of the four Gospels describe this episode completely differently: the cross was carried to the place of execution by the worker Simon of Cyrenia. Only the Evangelist John insists that Jesus himself carried the cross. Church tradition reconciles the dispute between the authors of the Bible: at first Christ carried the cross, and Simon was called to help when he became weak.
PRIESTS REWRITE THE BIBLE
A favorite topic of conspiracy theorists and marginal historians: supposedly the original text of the Bible was completely different, but cunning priests hid it. And the current Bible, they say, is the result of repeated rewriting by villains from the Vatican.
In fact, the oldest surviving manuscripts of the Gospel date back to the 2nd-3rd centuries AD. They are written in ancient Greek - anyone who knows this language can check what they say. The oldest copies of the Old Testament (part Scrolls of the Dead sea) and is completely older than Christianity by two hundred years. The Bible is not a Wikipedia article that can be corrected for all readers at once. It is impossible to rewrite all the handwritten copies that have been distributed over centuries throughout Europe and Asia and read by thousands of people. Anyone who has misrepresented Holy Bible would have been exposed by the owners of old books and declared a heretic. In the Middle Ages they burned for less. So there is no “secret real Bible,” no matter how much authors like Dan Brown might dream of it.
About the creation of the world
First God created heaven and earth, then light. He called the light “day” and the darkness “night”. On the second day, God created a firmament in the middle of the water, called it earth, and called the water the sea. Grass, cereals, and trees grew on the ground. Next, God created fish, reptiles, and birds.
About the first people Adam and Eve
And God created man in his own image and likeness, and gave him power over fish, birds, animals, and reptiles. It was day six.
God created man. And there was that man, Adam, completely serf. When he fell asleep, God took out his rib and created a woman from it, Eve. Adam and Eve lived wonderfully in the Garden of Eden. They were allowed everything except to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The devil in the form of a serpent seduced Eve - she tried the fruit of the forbidden tree, and also persuaded Adam to do it. God found out, got angry and kicked Adam and Eve out of heaven. Now they became mortal: Adam had to work hard all his life, and Eve had to give birth to children in pain. This is how the first people walked on earth and the first sin was committed.
O flood on earth
People sinned and did not listen to God’s instructions, so the Lord decided to punish them and destroy the human race through global flood. Only the pious Noah told him to build big ship- the ark, put his family there and took “every creature in a container” - animals, birds, various living creatures.
Noah did just that. It began to rain and continued for forty days and forty nights. Everything was flooded. The ship sailed for a long time water desert. Noah released a raven, it flew and flew and returned - there was no land. A week later, Noah released the dove, and it returned. A week later the dove brought a green twig. This meant that the earth was close. Noah came out onto dry land, and from him began new kind human, and from the animals that he released - their kind.
About the Tower of Babel
Many people lived on earth. Everyone spoke the same language, and they decided to build a high tower, reaching to the sky, to glorify themselves. God, seeing that people, for the sake of their pride, had taken on a task that was not pleasing to him, made it so that the builders began to speak in different languages, not understanding each other. They had to leave the building and scatter in different directions. The tower eventually collapsed, and the city was called Babylon, that is, “confusion.”
About Moses
The Lord gave one Israeli couple a son. To prevent the child from falling into the hands of the evil Egyptians, the mother initially hid her, and then was forced to weave a basket, put the baby in it and put her in the river. Her daughter watched where the basket floated. The basket landed on the shore where the Tsar's daughter was bathing. The good princess felt sorry for the boy, and she took him. And then a girl came up and said that she could find a nurse for the child. And she brought her mother. The princess ordered the woman to take the child, feed her, and when she grows up, bring her to her. The mother was very happy - now her son is not in danger. When the boy grew up, they took him to the princess, and she loved him like her own, called him Moses (“the one who was taken out of the water, from the basket”), taught him a lot, so he grew up to be an intelligent man.
One day, Moses, seeing that an Egyptian was mercilessly beating a Jewish worker, stood up for the poor man, and in the process killed the overseer. Pharaoh found out about this - and Moses had to flee. In a foreign land, he stood up for the daughters of the local priest, then married one of them
One day, Moses, while grazing sheep, saw a bush that was burning and was not consumed, then he heard the voice of the Lord, who ordered him to lead the Israelites out of slavery. Moses said that the people might not believe him. Then the Lord turned his rod into a snake, made a sick one from his healthy hand and vice versa, turned water into blood and said that Moses could show these miracles to the Israelites so that they would believe him as the messenger of God.
For forty years God led his people through the desert to the promised land. During this time, many of the Israelites became desperate and began to complain and scold Moses. When the travelers approached Mount Sinai, the Lord gave Moses his ten commandments, written on stone tablets, so that he would tell the people about them.
Ten Commandments of God
May you have no other Gods besides me. Love your neighbor as yourself! Do not make yourself an idol. Do not take the name of the Lord in vain. Remember the Sabbath day. Work six days, and give the seventh to the Lord. Honor your father and mother. Dont kill! Don't commit adultery! Do not steal! Do not bear false witness against your neighbor! Don't covet anything that doesn't belong to you, don't envy.
Parable of the Prodigal Son
One man had two sons. So the younger one asked his father to give him his share of the property. The father gave it away, and the son went to foreign lands, drank there, walked around and quickly spent all the money. He remained poor, hungry, and his “friends” disappeared. He became so poor that he was ready to eat pork feed. And I decided to go to to my own father even a farm laborer. He returned, and his father greeted him joyfully, gave him the best clothes and the best food. The elder brother was offended, because he did not wander anywhere, did not waste money in vain, worked conscientiously, but such a magnificent banquet was never arranged for him. Then the father said: “You are always with me, my child, and everything that is mine is yours! We must have fun and rejoice, because your brother was dead and came to life, he was lost and was found.”
Parable of the Sower
The sower went out to sow the seed. What fell on the edge of the road was trampled. What fell on rocky soil dried up without moisture. Several fell among the thorns and were drowned out by them. And what fell on the good earth was born a hundredfold.
The grain is the Word of God. The grains on the edge of the road are those from whom the devil took this word from their hearts. What is on the rocky ground are those who walked away during the trials. Those who are between thorns are those who forget the word of God in their daily troubles and wealth and do not bear fruit. The grains of the good land are those who will hear the Word and keep it in a sincere and kind heart.
Criticism, comments on the work, explanations (briefly)
The Bible is a collection of religious books created in different times. It consists of two main parts - the Old and New Testaments. This is one of the most popular books in the world, and not only because of the religious instructions it contains, but also because of its high artistic value, universal moral ideals personified in biblical images, in the image of Jesus Christ, in God's ten commandments.
The holy book of the two religions of the world - Christianity and Judaism - is the Bible. It was compiled by different people, prophets, priests and even rulers for centuries, and maybe even millennia. If we open and scroll through its pages, we will find there many texts that have completely different themes and meanings. Among them there are prophecies, teachings, historical reports, as well as biblical myths. It is the latter that people read most willingly, as practice shows. They are easy to understand, easy to compose and have vivid plot. Well, let’s touch on these myths and try to comprehend their sacred meaning.
Briefly about the contents of the Bible
It is known that the Bible is Holy Scripture, which is conventionally divided into two parts: the Old and New Testaments. The first tells how God created our land, how he led the sacred people - the ancient Jews - to prosperity and well-being. The pages of this part of the book contain the world's oldest biblical myths, which were mainly composed Semitic peoples. As for the New Testament, it was categorically rejected by the Jews. For them, the only Word of God is still what they call the Tanakh. And he already tells us about how Jesus Christ, that is, the Messiah, lived, what works he left behind and what he managed to teach his neighbors. It was on the basis of all these events that, so to speak, more modern biblical myths were compiled. Summary Each of them will be described below, which will give you an opportunity to understand exactly what this book can teach.
Brief description of sacred legends
The conditional separation of the Holy Letter into two parts is accompanied not only by the division of faith into Christianity and Judaism. Reading this book, you can clearly note the differences in style when moving from the first part to the second. We can say with full confidence that the biblical myths and legends that are located on the pages of the Tanakh are the most instructive and life stories. In addition, this part of Scripture contains many such tales. But the most important thing is that, alas, not every person is able to comprehend their truth. The New Testament contains biblical myths that are much easier to understand. They tell about holidays that are already familiar to us, about friendship, mutual assistance, about peace and relationships between people. These stories will be extremely useful for children at any age.
When there was nothing yet
As you guessed, the first biblical myth is about the creation of the world. Its meaning is known to everyone, even a child, so in order to put everything in order, we will simply list the days that became decisive for later life on the ground:
Adam and Eve. forbidden apple
The biblical story continues with a description of the life of the first people on the planet - Adam and Eve. Having created them, the Lord gave them everything they could dream of. They lived in the Garden of Eden, needed nothing and knew how to talk to animals. It was possible to eat the fruits of all trees except one - the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, or the Tree of Life. One day, the insidious Serpent persuaded Eve to eat fruit from a forbidden branch. She broke the ban and persuaded Adam to do so. Because of disobedience, God expelled people from paradise and cursed the Serpent. In addition, he doomed the woman to a painful birth, and the man to constant difficulties in obtaining food. The snake was doomed to constantly crawl on its stomach.
Cain's seal
The first children of Adam and Eve were two sons - Cain and Abel. The first was a farmer, and the second was a cattle breeder. One day they decided to sacrifice their gifts to God. Cain burned the fruits of his plants on the altar. And Abel sacrificed a lamb. The Lord did not even pay attention to the actions of the first brother, but the tribute in the form of an animal interested him. Out of envy, Cain killed his brother, which God soon learned about. For this, the elder brother was sentenced to be killed by the first person he met. In addition, the Creator put a seal on him. No one knows what exactly she was like.
Another God's punishment
One of the most interesting and exciting is the biblical myth of the flood. After humanity has spent a certain number of centuries on the planet, it has managed to fall into all serious sins. People stole, deceived, killed. For this, God decided to open all the windows of heaven and earth and release water from them in order to erase from the land everything that was alive on it. Only Noah and his family, who committed no sins, were ordered by the Almighty to build the ark. On board, this man, in addition to his sons and wife, also took “a pair of each creature.” These were animals, insects, birds, reptiles. After everyone climbed into the ark, God tightly closed its door and opened all the windows of heaven. The water completely covered the earth, and even the most high mountains remained under its thickness. From time to time, Noah sent a dove outside to find at least one piece of land, but the bird always returned to the ark. One day the dove flew away and did not return, which gave people the opportunity to understand that the land had begun to appear. Noah's entire family reached her, after which his sons left great offspring: the son Japheth became the ancestor of the northern peoples, Ham - the African ones, and Shem - the Semitic ones.
"You won't hear each other anymore..."
The biblical myth about can also be considered very important historical source. It all starts with the fact that after the descendants of Noah settled on land, they all spoke the same language. Gradually, people descended from the mountains to the plains and formed settlements. One of the most fertile lands at that time was the sandy valley that stretched between and the Euphrates, known to us as Mesopotamia. As biblical myths and legends say, it was on these lands that the first people on Earth settled (by the way, historians are also inclined to believe this). They built houses, cities, city-states and surrounding villages were formed. But one day people wanted to reach the heavens (we remind you that in the Bible the sky is defined as something solid), and they decided to build an incredible tower. All the workers of this region gathered at the construction site, and they managed to erect a very tall building, which had a stepped structure. God saw all this and, suspecting people of yet another stupidity, separated them. Everyone began to speak their own separate language, and the builders could no longer work together. The city in which they lived was named Babylon, which means “mixture.”
Teaching Children the Word of God
If you want to open the world of sacred knowledge to your child, then it is recommended to start reading to him biblical myths, which are contained in the New Testament. They are easier to understand, and also do not have such a global and large-scale semantic load as the ancient Semitic ones. The stories that are on the pages of the New Testament teach us humanity, friendship, love, and call us to understand our neighbor and help him. Therefore, below we will briefly describe biblical myths for children, which can be read to them simply as fairy tales. Gradually the child will absorb necessary information, and in the future it will become important for his worldview.
Temptations of Jesus in the desert
After the rite of baptism, the Messiah was thrown by the Holy Spirit into the desert so that he could overcome the devil's temptations. After staying there for forty days, Jesus felt hungry. Then the Devil appeared and said to him: “If You are the Son of God, turn stones into bread.” To which the answer came: “Man will not be satisfied with all kinds of bread, but with God’s Word.” After this, Satan lifted Jesus onto the roof of the temple and said: “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down and the angels will catch you.” The Messiah answered: “Do not tempt God.” In the end, Satan raised him above all the cities, gardens and fields and said that if only Jesus would worship him, he would receive all this into his possession. In response, he heard that there is only one for a person and only he will worship him.
Madman's Wealth
One of the most important sermons of Jesus was this: “Do not seek material wealth in this world, for your life does not depend on it.” This statement was followed by a parable. Its essence was that one rich man had good harvest in field. But he had nowhere to collect his fruits. He built bigger and bigger big houses, to store his wealth there, and did not think about anything else. One day the Lord appeared to him and said: “After you die, where will you put all your belongings? Who will they belong to now? From this it follows that one must enrich oneself not with money and gifts, but by God's word. And everything else will follow by itself.
Conclusion
We have presented to you only the most famous and accessible biblical myths. A brief summary of each of them is an opportunity to quickly understand God’s plan and discover something new and truly wise. Unfortunately, they do not reveal the full meaning of the Holy Scriptures. Reading the Bible itself is a much more productive activity, but it takes time.
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