Table of Contents
Introduction 11
1 The Story of Adam 15
How Eating the Wrong Thing Wrecked Everything
2 The Story of Eve 25
The Lie That Broke God's Beautiful World
3 The Story of Cain 35
Wounded Pride Leads to Murder
4 The Story of Sarah 43
How a Ninety-Year-Old Gets Pregnant and Sets Tongues Wagging
5 The Story of Jacob And Esau 55
A Con Artist Gets Scammed
6 The Story of Shechem 71
A Despicable Revenge on a Despicable Prince
7 The Story of Tamar 81
A Widow and a One-Night Stand
8 The Story of Judah and His Terrible Brothers 91
When God Surprises Everyone
9 The Story of Miriam 101
How a Good Woman Falters
10 The Story Of Pharaoh, King Of Egypt 115
The Most Powerful Man on Earth Learns Who's Really the Boss
11 The Story of Rahab 133
She Told a Lie … and Saved the Day
12 The Story of Delilah 143
A Wicked Woman Betrays Her Lover
13 The Story of Naomi and Ruth 153
Two Desperate Women Look for a Home … and a Future
14 The Story of Hannah and Peninnah 163
The Lord Judges between Two Rivals
15 The Story of Saul 171
A King Falls into Despair
16 The Story of the Medium of Endor 185
A Fortune Teller Conjures the Dead
17 The Story of Michal 193
A Trophy Princess Falls Out of Love
18 The Story of David 203
The Godly Man with a Shadow Side
19 The Story of Bathsheba 219
How Bathing in Public Caused No End of Difficulty
20 The Story of David's Sons-Amnon, Absalom, and Adonijah 229
Three Men Who Would Be King
21 The Story of Jonah 247
How a Prophet Who Refused to Swallow His Pride Got Swallowed by a Fish Instead
22 The Story of Jezebel 259
A Bad Queen Learns It's Not Smart to Fight with God
23 The Story of Gomer 271
A Prodigal Wife Learns the Meaning of True Love
24 The Story of Herod the Great 281
How Fear Rules a King
25 The Story of Herodias and Salome 291
A Mother and Daughter Wreak Havoc at a Birthday Party
26 The Story of Herod Antipas and His Wicked Nephew Agrippa 301
How God Gets the Last Laugh
27 The Story of the Woman Who Wiped
The Feet of Jesus 311
A Prostitute Lets Her Hair Down, Scandalizing Everyone but Jesus
28 The Story of Judas Iscariot 321
The Man Who Lived with the Light but Chose Darkness Instead
29 The Story of Pontius Pilate 333
How a Terrible Dream Came True
30 The Story of Mary Magdalene 345
A Demon-Possessed Woman Becomes a Devoted Disciple
Acknowledgments 359
Notes 361
