SumBible - Bible Summary with Art - God's Biblical Story - Click the art

God created everything  good in a garden paradise,  mankind was to represent God and failed, so God begins the redemptive process  through the promise of seed to come from the promised nation of the family of Abraham. 

Abraham's family has grown into the nation Israel as promised, God selects Moses to free them from the bondage in Egypt and reveals His character to them in the Law,  God guides and provides for them .

God reveals more of His character through the Law regarding  relevant details of justice and mercy for numerous aspects of life including a sacrificial system of animals to cover sins.

The Israelites (except for a few) fear the enemies of the land more than God who gave them the land,  so God punishes them in love by numbering their days in the wilderness,  He will bring their children into the land.

This new generation is given the land so God repeats His character to them in the Law  including prophesies of their future failure and ultimate promises of reconciliation for the nation. 

Joshua is God's representative to rule the land,  they are to  follow God's unique guidance, not  common military tactics in conquering the land so the people  know to fear God over their enemies.

Judges are appointed as God's ordained representatives to rule according to the Law, they fail progressively more downhill as time in the book progresses doing "what is right in their own eyes". 

During  the time of judges a story about  a widow from Moab  who clings to God  in faith and marries a righteous man who connects the seed of God's promise from Perez to David.

God establishes a king to rule his people, the people choose Saul , Samuel (God's prophet) anoints David,  there is conflict between them,  David is to be God's conquering representative.

David becomes king yet fails and mirrors the sin of Eve with Bathsheba, God promises David his seed will sit on eternal throne as David's family fight among themselves.

God equips the kings in the line of David and they fail, the kingdom splits into Israel and Judah, God sends prophets to evaluate kings based on their following the Law .

Elisha follows Elijah as God's prophet to the nation, subsequent kings fail to rule for God ending with gentile king Nebuchadnezzar burning Jerusalem .

The genealogy of David's family is chronicled,  Jerusalem is conquered for God  to prepare for the temple to be built by David's son Solomon .

The decline of the kingdom under Solomon and then his sons is chronicled based on their lack of respect for the Law and the temple worship prescribed by God therein.

Two decrees by king Cyprus and Artaxerxes mark the return of  the restoration of temple worship then a return to covenant violation of the temple worship as in the past.

The rebuilding of the wall in Jerusalem is detailed  and described, this leads to the worship being compromised by the mixing with gentile worship practices

Esther is  a beautiful young orphaned Jewish woman who saves the Jewish people from annihilation by schemes of Haman under the rule of Medo Persian king Xerxes during Jewish exile.

Righteous Job faces hardships and 3 friends conclude Job is somehow wrong in an attempt to speak for God in error, then Elihu and God himself appear to Job  to explain God's ways are beyond explanations of man and must be submitted to trusted.

150 songs of worship praise God for who God is (Praise Psalms) or ask how long until God establishes His justice and rule permanently (Lament Psalms)

A naive young man is taught to seek the wisdom of God personified in the woman wisdom contrasted with following his lusts and desires which the adulterous woman appeal to.

The preacher points to the futility of man's actions as fulfillment of the curse from the garden of Eden, fulfillment cannot be achieved on earth outside of God's redemption.

A shulamite woman who is to be Solomon's wife is the demonstration of the beauty of marital love as God intended from Genesis 2.

Isaiah wrote a message to the people of Israel and others regarding two kings of Israel who didn't trust God, to remind the people that God will ultimately deliver them through His warrior servant/king to come.

Jeremiah is a prophet sent by God with a message of judgment to Israel who would not respond to his word as they proceeded into exile in Babylon,  the remnant is promised the protection of God and future forgiveness of sins.  

Jeremiah laments over the sins of Zion (Jerusalem) which has kindled the wrath of God as some of the horrors of the siege are described,  ultimately the prophet hopes in the refuge of God's mercy.

 During  Babylonian exile the prophet Ezekiel gives hope for a return to the city of Jerusalem where the land will be restored.

Daniel and other righteous Jews represent God in Babylonian exile , Daniel interprets the dreams of king Nebuchadnezzar that sees the future of Jews under four Gentile kingdoms until  final rule by the Son of Man.

God tells his prophet Hosea to marry a prostitute wife as a picture of the nation of Israel's unfaithfulness toward God, the nations sins are detailed.

The prophet Joel warns Israel of pending judgment, he sees locusts devastating the land as a picture of  invading nations, concluding with future restoration for Israel.

Judgment is pronounced on neighboring nations and then on both Israel and Judah because they have not returned to God,  a future reconciliation is also promised.

Obadiah prophesized the downfall of the nation of Edom (Esau's descendants) and the future reign of the descendants of Jacob (Jews).

God tells Jonah to condemn Nineveh,  Jonah disobeys, runs away is swallowed by a fish and then delivers this message, God graciously forgives the people of Nineveh and Jonah,  this embitters Jonah.  

   Judgment is pronounced on nations neighboring Israel, future reconciliation and rule is promised,  the future king is prophesied to come from  Bethlehem.

The creator of all God tells Nathan in a dream of the impending destruction of Nineveh in colorful detail because of the nations sin.

The prophet sees evil rewarded and the righteous suffer and questions God's timing,  God answers and assures that he is a holy God and  justice will prevail,  Habakkuk fears properly.

 God promises a thorough  judgment over the nation of Israel and all their surrounding neighbors and animals, with a promise of  restoration of a remnant who cling to God.

After exile God speaks to Haggai with a message to rebuild the temple even if it doesn't ascend to its former glory, God is still behind this work.

   God and His angels tell Zechariah with colorful visions that the oppressing Gentile neighbors will be subjected, and that Israel (who has now rejected God), will be personally restored by God culminating with future eternal Jerusalem kingdom.

    God tells Malachi that obedience to the covenant will be brought about by God personally who will refine the nation and cause it to repent. 

   Jesus is introduced as the long awaited Davidic Messiah (Christ) under Gentile rule, he dies for Israel (who rejected Him) and is resurrected, his message of imputed righteousness is for all who believe in Him.

 Jesus the servant of God comes to deliver Israel from Satan's dominion,  He is rejected, dies for the sins of this world, is raised again, He trains the disciples to carry forth the good news of the gospel as His act of service to all. 

 Jesus the Lord of the sabbath gives release to the downtrodden, enslaved, and captives, Jesus (rejected by Pharisees and Israel) is killed,  resurrected in Jerusalem, his disciples are to carry his message forth.

John gives the reader signs (partial fulfilmments) to prove that Jesus is the fulfillment and entire point of Old Testament , the new Moses (Deuteronomy 18) ,  the lamb of God who dies to take away the sins of the world.

 The ministry of Jesus is continued through 12 Jewish apostles, these eyewitnesses of the resurrection preach that Jesus is the Messiah from the Law, the nation Israel rejects this message and a new entity the church emerges and is defined solely by belief in Jesus .

 Paul argues that man's character is depraved with or without the Law and that trading this sin nature inherited from Adam for Christ's righteousness by imputation is the best deal ever, and the only truth worth living for.

Paul responds to divisions in the Corinthian church based on misinterpretations of his teachings that kingdom rewards are not evident  through gifts and success now,  but that  this is an age of suffering humbly for the gospel for future kingdom rewards.  

  Paul writes the Corinthians again to defend  his apostleship based on revelation (the scriptures) not worldly success so the ones who oppose him  might be forgiven, accept him and his gospel. 

 Paul is being accused of being two faced therefore under a curse by not requiring  circumcision for Galatians believers, Paul argues his gospel of imputed righteousness is the entire point of the Law fulfilled in Christ. 

 Paul writes the Ephesian believers so they include Gentile believers but not practice sinful Gentile traditions,   imprisoned under Gentile authority he instructs them to  follow all authorities for sake of  the gospel , this is God's plan, his imprisonment is furthering the gospel.

Paul writes the Philippian believers  to assure them of the joy in suffering for the sake of the gospel in prison, and warns against those who  elevate self, and attribute physical success for keeping the Law.

Paul writes to  Colossian believers and warns them against Jewish legalist who keep the Law to obtain righteousness, he tells them their righteousness is in Christ alone and to live holy for the sake of the gospel.

 Paul tells the Thessalonian believers to endure persecution in holiness because Christ will return to judge, countering claims that death ends all and there is no future judgment.

Paul and Timothy write the Thessalonian believers to remind them that only those who believe in Jesus are saved and escape the future judgment coming.

  Paul urges Timothy to  guard the apostolic doctrine  (imputed righteousness / holy living) and to teach it to others, countering false teachers who oppose based on self elevation under the Law misinterpreted. 

 Paul wrote Timothy to  tell him to be  faithful to the gospel, suffer persecution now for future kingdom reward, and visit imprisoned Paul, others are abandoning Paul based on their bad theology that imprisoned people aren't of God.

  Paul instructs Titus how to  appoint those who will teach the doctrine of imputed purity in Christ opposing Judaizers who advocate  keeping of the Law  for purity and are teaching this to the church. 

   Paul appeals to Philemon (slave owner who came to Christ under Paul) to forgive escaped slave Onesimus and graciously send him back to help Paul further the cause of the gospel .

 The author of Hebrews argues that Jesus perfectly fulfills the role of priest and every aspect of the Law using the Old Testament as proof, this new covenant underJesus changes everything and there is now no going back.

 James writes against a theology or "faith" that claims God blesses good Christians with riches and prosperity, James shows that God's wisdom always involves sacrificial mercy to others like God did for us in Christ.

 Peter instructs Jewish remnant believers to submit to God-established Gentile authority, without adopting their sinful practices, waiting for the return of Christ to rule. 

 Peter warns against  false teachers claiming there is no pending judgment or need for atonement influencing believers into the future, apostolic doctrine is clear, Christ will return again to judge. 

John argues that only those who believe in Jesus are righteous and the true children of God, others are claiming to be children of God but deny Jesus is the Christ and are therefore still in their sin. 

 John writes to warn a woman and her children to be on guard against deceivers who do not acknowledge Jesus as coming in the flesh,  anyone who does not have Jesus does not have God the Father.

John writes Gaius to warn him about  Diotrephes who does not accept John's teachings  (apostolic doctrine) and wrongly kicks people out of the church, John promotes Demetrius who holds to the apostles testimony.

 Jude warns the called about unbelievers creeping into their congregation  for personal gain and influencing the church, he reminds them with examples from scripture how God ultimately judges the wicked, and shows mercy to his own. 

 Jesus appears to John with instruction for 7 churches,  He assures that He will return to judge and rule, perspectives from heaven and earth with colorful imagery fulfilling scripture and concluding history are detailed with believers back in God's garden and unbelievers in lake of fire.