Young believer Bible : New Living Translation
The Young Believer BibleTyndale House Publishers, Inc.Copyright © 2003 Stephen ArterburnAll right reserved.ISBN: 0-8423-6197-9 Chapter OneINTRODUCTION TO GENESISBACKGROUNDWhen you tell a story, you usually start at the beginning,right? The Bible is the story of a relationship between God andthe people he made (including you). The book of Genesis startsat the beginning of everything, when there was God andnothing else. God made a universe out of nothing. He made theearth and the people, plants, and animals that live here. In thebeginning, everything was new and fresh. But then the first sinhappened. Suddenly, everything seemed spoiled and old. A newbeginning was needed. God had a plan that began with thebirth of the nation of Israel. Through this nation a Saviorwould someday come to make things right once more.As you get into reading God's Word, begin by checking out the"Aha! Moments" and "Believer Building" list at the beginningof each book. They'll give you the lowdown on believers andkey points of the book.AHA: MOMENTS Noah chooses to believe God and build a boat (6:1-22). Abraham trusts God and moves to a strange land (12:1-9). Jacob meets God and gains a new name-Israel 32:22-32). Joseph realizes that God brought good out of his brothers' evil plan (50:14-21).Believer Building God created me (1:26-27). Sin separates people from God (3:1-24). Our faith can affect other people (18:16-33). God keeps his promises (21:1-7). God works through imperfect people to carry out his plans (27; 37; 45).GenesisChapter 1The Account of CreationIn the beginning Godcreated the heavensand the earth. 2 The earthwas empty, a formless mass cloaked indarkness. And the Spirit of God was hoveringover its surface. 3 Then God said,"Let there be light," and there was light.4 And God saw that it was good. Then heseparated the light from the darkness.5 God called the light "day" and the darkness"night." Together these made upone day. 6 And God said, "Let there be spacebetween the waters, to separate waterfrom water." 7 And so it was. God madethis space to separate the waters abovefrom the waters below. 8 And God calledthe space "sky." This happened on thesecond day. 9 And God said, "Let the watersbeneath the sky be gathered into oneplace so dry ground may appear." Andso it was. 10 God named the dry ground"land" and the water "seas." And Godsaw that it was good. 11 Then God said,"Let the land burst forth with every sortof grass and seed-bearing plant. And letthere be trees that grow seed-bearingfruit. The seeds will then produce thekinds of plants and trees from whichthey came." And so it was. 12 The landwas filled with seed-bearing plants andtrees, and their seeds produced plantsand trees of like kind. And God saw thatit was good. 13 This all happened on thethird day. 14 And God said, "Let bright lightsappear in the sky to separate the dayfrom the night. They will be signs tomark off the seasons, the days, and theyears. 15 Let their light shine down uponthe earth." And so it was. 16 For Godmade two great lights, the sun and themoon, to shine down upon the earth The greater one, the sun, presides during the day; the lesser one, the moon, presidesthrough the night. He also madethe stars. 17 God set these lights in theheavens to light the earth, 18 to governthe day and the night, and to separatethe light from the darkness. And Godsaw that it was good. 19 This all happenedon the fourth day. 20 And God said, "Let the waters swarmwith fish and other life. Let the skies befilled with birds of every kind." 21 So Godcreated great sea creatures and every sort of fish and every kind of bird. AndGod saw that it was good. 22 Then Godblessed them, saying, "Let the fish multiplyand fill the oceans. Let the birdsincrease and fill the earth." 23 This allhappened on the fifth day. 24 And God said, "Let the earth bringforth every kind of animal-livestock,small animals, and wildlife." And so itwas. 25 God made all sorts of wild animals,livestock, and small animals, each ableto reproduce more of its own kind. AndGod saw that it was good. 26 Then God said, "Let us make people inour image, to be like ourselves. They willbe masters over all life-the fish in thesea, the birds in the sky, and all the live-stock,wild animals, and small animals."27 So God created people in his own image;God patterned them after himself;male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them and told them,"Multiply and fill the earth and subdueit. Be masters over the fish and birds andall the animals." 29 And God said, "Look! Ihave given you the seed-bearing plantsthroughout the earth and all the fruittrees for your food. 30 And I have givenall the grasses and other green plants tothe animals and birds for their food."And so it was. 31 Then God looked overall he had made, and he saw that it wasexcellent in every way. This all happenedon the sixth day.I believe God created theworld. Gen. 1:1Heard of the big bang theory? It'snot new. In fact, the Bible beginswith it. Not as a theory about theuniverse but as a fact. Bang-Godcreated! Our world isn't here byaccident. God had a purpose inmaking everything, includingeach person who would ever beborn. That includes you. Aren'tyou glad you have a reason forliving?2 Chron. 2:11-12, p. 577I believe God createdpeople and patterned themafter himself. Gen. 1:26-27Ever have a day when you said toyourself, I'm the biggest loser onEarth? Then think about this: Godmade people to reflect who he isand what he's like. That includesyou. He didn't make rocks or treesto show his character. He madeyou. That makes you prettyspecial.Song of Songs 4:8-11,p. 877Chapter 2So the creation of the heavens and theearth and everything in them was completed.2 On the seventh day, having finishedhis task, God rested from all hiswork. 3 And God blessed the seventh dayand declared it holy, because it was theday when he rested from his work ofcreation. 4 This is the account of the creation ofthe heavens and the earth.The Man and Woman in EdenWhen the Lord God made the heavens andthe earth, 5 there were no plants or graingrowing on the earth, for the Lord Godhad not sent any rain. And no one wasthere to cultivate the soil. 6 But watercame up out of the ground and wateredall the land. 7 And the Lord God formed aman's body from the dust of the groundand breathed into it the breath of life.And the man became a living person. 8 Then the Lord God planted a gardenin Eden, in the east, and there he placedthe man he had created. 9 And the LordGod planted all sorts of trees in the gardenbeautiful trees that produced deliciousfruit. At the center of the gardenhe placed the tree of life and the tree ofthe knowledge of good and evil. 10 A river flowed from the land of Eden,watering the garden and then dividinginto four branches. 11 One of thesebranches is the Pishon, which flowsaround the entire land of Havilah, wheregold is found. 12 The gold of that land isexceptionally pure; aromatic resin andonyx stone are also found there. 13 Thesecond branch is the Gihon, which flowsaround the entire land of Cush. 14 Thethird branch is the Tigris, which flows tothe east of Asshur. The fourth branch isthe Euphrates. 15 The Lord God placed the man in theGarden of Eden to tend and care for it.16 But the Lord God gave him this warning:"You may freely eat any fruit in thegarden 17 except fruit from the tree of theknowledge of good and evil. If you eat ofits fruit, you will surely die." 18 And the Lord God said, "It is notgood for the man to be alone. I willmake a companion who will help him."19 So the Lord God formed from the soilevery kind of animal and bird. Hebrought them to Adam to see what hewould call them, and Adam chose a namefor each one. 20 He gave names to all thelivestock, birds, and wild animals. Butstill there was no companion suitable forhim. 21 So the Lord God caused Adam tofall into a deep sleep. He took one ofAdam's ribs and closed up the place fromwhich he had taken it. 22 Then the LordGod made a woman from the rib andbrought her to Adam. 23 "At last!" Adam exclaimed. "She ispart of my own flesh and bone! She willbe called 'woman,' because she was takenout of a man." 24 This explains why a manleaves his father and mother and isjoined to his wife, and the two areunited into one. 25 Now, although Adamand his wife were both naked, neither ofthem felt any shame.Chapter 3The Man and Woman SinNow the serpent was the shrewdest of allthe creatures the Lord God had made."Really?" he asked the woman. "Did Godreally say you must not eat any of thefruit in the garden?" 2 "Of course we may eat it," the womantold him. 3 "It's only the fruit from the treeat the center of the garden that we are notallowed to eat. God says we must not eat itor even touch it, or we will die." 4 "You won't die!" the serpent hissed.5 "God knows that your eyes will beopened when you eat it. You will becomejust like God, knowing everything, bothgood and evil." 6 The woman was convinced. The fruitlooked so fresh and delicious, and itwould make her so wise! So she ate someof the fruit. She also gave some to herhusband, who was with her. Then he ateit, too. 7 At that moment, their eyes wereopened, and they suddenly felt shame attheir nakedness. So they strung figleaves together around their hips tocover themselves. 8 Toward evening they heard the LordGod walking about in the garden, so theyhid themselves among the trees. 9 TheLord God called to Adam, "Where areyou?" 10 He replied, "I heard you, so I hid. Iwas afraid because I was naked." 11 "Who told you that you werenaked?" the Lord God asked. "Have youeaten the fruit I commanded you not toeat?" 12 "Yes," Adam admitted, "but it wasthe woman you gave me who brought methe fruit, and I ate it." 13 Then the Lord God asked the woman,"How could you do such a thing?" "The serpent tricked me," she replied."That's why I ate it." 14 So the Lord God said to the serpent,"Because you have done this, you will bepunished. You are singled out from allthe domestic and wild animals of thewhole earth to be cursed. You will grovelin the dust as long as you live, crawlingalong on your belly. 15 From now on, youand the woman will be enemies, andyour offspring and her offspring will beenemies. He will crush your head, andyou will strike his heel." 16 Then he said to the woman, "You willbear children with intense pain and suffering.And though your desire will be foryour husband, he will be your master." 17 And to Adam he said, "Because youlistened to your wife and ate the fruit Itold you not to eat, I have placed a curseon the ground. All your life you willstruggle to scratch a living from it. 18 Itwill grow thorns and thistles for you,though you will eat of its grains. 19 Allyour life you will sweat to produce food,until your dying day. Then you willreturn to the ground from which youcame. For you were made from dust, andto the dust you will return." 20 Then Adam named his wife Eve,because she would be the mother of allpeople everywhere. 21 And the Lord Godmade clothing from animal skins forAdam and his wife. 22 Then the Lord God said, "The peoplehave become as we are, knowing everything,both good and evil. What if theyeat the fruit of the tree of life? Thenthey will live forever!" 23 So the Lord Godbanished Adam and his wife from the Gardenof Eden, and he sent Adam out to cultivatethe ground from which he had beenmade. 24 After banishing them from thegarden, the Lord God stationed mightyangelic beings to the east of Eden. And aflaming sword flashed back and forth,guarding the way to the tree of life.Chapter 4Cain, Abel, and SethNow Adam slept with his wife, Eve, andshe became pregnant. When the timecame, she gave birth to Cain, and shesaid, "With the Lord's help, I havebrought forth a man!" 2 Later she gavebirth to a second son and named himAbel. When they grew up, Abel became ashepherd, while Cain was a farmer. 3 Atharvesttime Cain brought to the Lord agift of his farm produce, 4 while Abelbrought several choice lambs from thebest of his flock. The Lord accepted Abeland his offering, 5 but he did not acceptCain and his offering. This made Cainvery angry and dejected. 6 "Why are you so angry?" the Lordasked him. "Why do you look sodejected? 7 You will be accepted if yourespond in the right way. But if yourefuse to respond correctly, then watchout! Sin is waiting to attack and destroyyou, and you must subdue it." 8 Later Cain suggested to his brother,Abel, "Let's go out into the fields." Andwhile they were there, Cain attacked andkilled his brother. 9 Afterward the Lord asked Cain,"Where is your brother? Where is Abel?" "I don't know!" Cain retorted. "Am Isupposed to keep track of him whereverhe goes?" 10 But the Lord said, "What have youdone? Listen-your brother's blood criesout to me from the ground! 11 You arehereby banished from the ground youhave defiled with your brother's blood.12 No longer will it yield abundant cropsfor you, no matter how hard you work!From now on you will be a homelessfugitive on the earth, constantly wanderingfrom place to place." 13 Cain replied to the Lord, "My punishmentis too great for me to bear! 14 Youhave banished me from my land andfrom your presence; you have made me awandering fugitive. All who see me willtry to kill me!" 15 The Lord replied, "They will not killyou, for I will give seven times yourpunishment to anyone who does." Thenthe Lord put a mark on Cain to warnanyone who might try to kill him. 16 SoCain left the Lord's presence and settledin the land of Nod, east of Eden. 17 Then Cain's wife became pregnantand gave birth to a son, and they namedhim Enoch. When Cain founded a city, henamed it Enoch after his son.18 Enoch was the father of Irad. Irad was the father of Mehujael.Mehujael was the father of Methushael.Methushael was the father of Lamech. 19 Lamech married two women-Adahand Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to a babynamed Jabal. He became the first ofthe herdsmen who live in tents. 21 Hisbrother's name was Jubal, the first musician-the inventor of the harp and flute.22 To Lamech's other wife, Zillah, wasborn Tubal-cain. He was the first to workwith metal, forging instruments ofbronze and iron. Tubal-cain had a sisternamed Naamah.Continues...Excerpted from The Young Believer Bible Copyright © 2003 by Stephen Arterburn. Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Prayers and devotions
xvi, 1676 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.
9780842361965, 9780842361972, 0842361960, 0842361979
56198918
The Young Believer Bible
Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
Copyright © 2003 Stephen ArterburnAll right reserved.
ISBN: 0-8423-6197-9
Contents
Books of the Bible..........................................................viiWhat's Up? A Guide to the Young Believer Bible..............................viiiA Note to Parents...........................................................xiIntroduction to the New Living Translation..................................xiiiNLT Bible Translation Team..................................................xvOld Testament...............................................................1New Testament...............................................................1209FULL-COLOR PAGESGoing His Way?Keep on Running!Looking Forward ... Looking BackNever Stop BelievingDon't Believe It!"I Believe" StatementsYa Gotta GrowIndexes.....................................................................1651The 52 "I Believe" Statements and Additional References.....................1653"Say What??" Glossary.......................................................1663Who's Who? Character Profile Index..........................................1675
Excerpted from The Young Believer Bible Copyright © 2003 by Stephen Arterburn. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Includes indexes