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The Gospel Story Bible: Discovering Jesus in the Old and New Testaments
Can a Bedtime Story Actually Change Your Life?
It is easy to forget Jesus in the midst of frantic schedules, family squabbles, and conflicting priorities. But the truth is that he is the hero of every story—including these ordinary ones. This is why Marty Machowski puts God’s plan of salvation in Christ on continuous display in The Gospel Story Bible. The easy-to-read storybook introduces your family to many captivating people, places, and events from the Bible’s Old and New Testaments, showing how each one ultimately points to Jesus.
As you share these Bible stories, you will learn together the life-changing habit of recognizing Christ as the hero of every story. Vibrant illustrations by A. E. Macha, child-friendly discussion questions, and Scripture references accompany each narrative to help you lead your family in exploring the Bible. You will be delighted to discover how easily even a young child can understand the original text of a story that he or she has already come to love.
Ideal as a storybook for your preschooler, a devotional for your grade school student, a refresher for the adult believer, or an introduction for the new one—The Gospel Story Bible is also a companion to Long Story Short: Ten-Minute Devotions to Draw Your Family to God and the forthcoming Gospel Story Sunday School curriculum
It is easy to forget Jesus in the midst of frantic schedules, family squabbles, and conflicting priorities. But the truth is that he is the hero of every story—including these ordinary ones. This is why Marty Machowski puts God’s plan of salvation in Christ on continuous display in The Gospel Story Bible. The easy-to-read storybook introduces your family to many captivating people, places, and events from the Bible’s Old and New Testaments, showing how each one ultimately points to Jesus.
As you share these Bible stories, you will learn together the life-changing habit of recognizing Christ as the hero of every story. Vibrant illustrations by A. E. Macha, child-friendly discussion questions, and Scripture references accompany each narrative to help you lead your family in exploring the Bible. You will be delighted to discover how easily even a young child can understand the original text of a story that he or she has already come to love.
Ideal as a storybook for your preschooler, a devotional for your grade school student, a refresher for the adult believer, or an introduction for the new one—The Gospel Story Bible is also a companion to Long Story Short: Ten-Minute Devotions to Draw Your Family to God and the forthcoming Gospel Story Sunday School curriculum
328 pages, Hardcover
First published November 1, 2011
44 people are currently reading
380 people want to read
About the author
Marty Machowski
64 books125 followersMarty Machowski is a Family Life Pastor at Covenant Fellowship Church, a Sovereign Grace Ministries church in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, where he has served on the pastoral staff for more than twenty years. As leader of their children’s ministry, Promise Kingdom, he has worked for many years to develop curriculum and devotional material that connect church and home. His passion is equipping families to understand the Bible as one gospel story and help them share that with their children. He is the author of The Gospel Story for Kids series including Long Story Short: Ten-Minute Devotions to Draw Your Family to God (OT); The Gospel Story Bible; and the Gospel Story Curriculum: Finding Jesus in the Old Testament and the forthcoming Old Story New (NT): Ten-Minute Devotions to Draw Your Family to God and Gospel Story Curriculum: Following Jesus in the New Testament. He and his wife Lois and their six children reside in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
November 3, 2018
As the father of five daughters, I have had ample occasions to read Children’s Bible storybooks. The majority of such storybooks are quite simple and to the point. They don’t often interact with the story at a child’s level other than to make the tale more imaginative and seem more story-like. Few storybooks really serve believing parents well.
"The Gospel Story Bible" by Marty Machowski (New Growth Press, 2011) is much different. It is uniquely designed to help facilitate the parents’ task of teaching their children the Gospel, as they recount the various stories in the Bible. The stories include discussion questions at the end, and are usually presented in a fairly straight-forward, stick-to-the-text manner. Sometimes, however, a little more explanation is woven into the story. And each story wraps up with an application to the Gospel or to the flow of redemptive history. The book’s emphasis is on communicating the Gospel intent of the Bible stories rather than on wowing the children and parents with how imaginative a reshaping of the Scriptural story this new storybook can provide.
My children appreciate the sheer number of Bible stories covered by this book (78 stories from each testament) – many of which are not addressed in other, smaller Bible storybooks. And the vivid colors and interesting illustrations also enthrall their young minds. The illustration style is unique and more artistic than you’d expect. The intent is not to depict a true-to-life version of the story so much as to provide an intriguing image that illustrates it. For my part, I think this style is perfectly suited to the book’s overall feel with its bright and colorful pages. Sometimes the smaller font, which is often colored white against a dark color background, can be hard to read however. But the size of the font helps keep the stories at two pages in length, allowing the book to stay fairly compact even as it covers a large number of stories. The glossy hardcover makes the book attractive yet also keeps it sturdy and durable.
The author’s aim in producing this book is stated in its sub-title: “Discovering Jesus in the Old and New Testaments.” And the book dovetails well with a Sunday School curriculum covering both the Old and New Testaments that has also been developed by the author (and published by New Growth Press). This curricula along with the storybook, would also serve well in a homeschool setting, as children of a wide variety of ages will be blessed and instructed through this material.
I encourage Christian parents everywhere to pick up a copy of this book. Check out some sample pages and even explore the available SS material as well. We would be remiss not to add one more tool to our arsenal as we aim to teach our children the Bible. And of course just learning facts isn’t the key, we hope they learn and embrace the Gospel. And this is what makes "The Gospel Story Bible" so compelling. I highly recommend this book.
Disclaimer: This book was provided by New Growth Press for review. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.
"The Gospel Story Bible" by Marty Machowski (New Growth Press, 2011) is much different. It is uniquely designed to help facilitate the parents’ task of teaching their children the Gospel, as they recount the various stories in the Bible. The stories include discussion questions at the end, and are usually presented in a fairly straight-forward, stick-to-the-text manner. Sometimes, however, a little more explanation is woven into the story. And each story wraps up with an application to the Gospel or to the flow of redemptive history. The book’s emphasis is on communicating the Gospel intent of the Bible stories rather than on wowing the children and parents with how imaginative a reshaping of the Scriptural story this new storybook can provide.
My children appreciate the sheer number of Bible stories covered by this book (78 stories from each testament) – many of which are not addressed in other, smaller Bible storybooks. And the vivid colors and interesting illustrations also enthrall their young minds. The illustration style is unique and more artistic than you’d expect. The intent is not to depict a true-to-life version of the story so much as to provide an intriguing image that illustrates it. For my part, I think this style is perfectly suited to the book’s overall feel with its bright and colorful pages. Sometimes the smaller font, which is often colored white against a dark color background, can be hard to read however. But the size of the font helps keep the stories at two pages in length, allowing the book to stay fairly compact even as it covers a large number of stories. The glossy hardcover makes the book attractive yet also keeps it sturdy and durable.
The author’s aim in producing this book is stated in its sub-title: “Discovering Jesus in the Old and New Testaments.” And the book dovetails well with a Sunday School curriculum covering both the Old and New Testaments that has also been developed by the author (and published by New Growth Press). This curricula along with the storybook, would also serve well in a homeschool setting, as children of a wide variety of ages will be blessed and instructed through this material.
I encourage Christian parents everywhere to pick up a copy of this book. Check out some sample pages and even explore the available SS material as well. We would be remiss not to add one more tool to our arsenal as we aim to teach our children the Bible. And of course just learning facts isn’t the key, we hope they learn and embrace the Gospel. And this is what makes "The Gospel Story Bible" so compelling. I highly recommend this book.
Disclaimer: This book was provided by New Growth Press for review. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.
September 14, 2017
I read this once through to my youngest two children and now once through with a student. All of them were engaged with the big Gospel themes and enjoyed the book. In addition, I also enjoyed reading both times.
The best thing about this book is that it shows how the Gospel is tied to every Bible story.
The best thing about this book is that it shows how the Gospel is tied to every Bible story.
January 31, 2019
Went through this as morning devotions with my 4 year old. Loved the Old Testament stories with explicit gospel applications. It felt like the “next level” after having read Jesus Storybook Bible through about 100 times. But I was less happy with the New Testament and especially the epistles. There was a lot of explanation of history & setting which got repetitive and I felt like once we got to such explicit gospel application that the author might just let the Bible speak more for itself. So we switched to reading the actual Bible at that point.
September 13, 2022
4.5 stars. Very good, even if the last 20% or so of the book was a bit challenging and abstract for our oldest kids (4 and 6) with its lack of narrative and focus on the content of the NT letters. One of the best story-bibles we've read.
February 11, 2013
***This is one of the best Bible storybooks I've ever read or reviewed!***
Family Life Pastor, Marty Machowski believes Jesus is the hero of every story in the Old and New Testaments and also believes “bedtime stories” can change lives. Those two views fueled his passion to produce156 condensed stories, 78 from the Old Testament and 78 from the New Testament for this remarkable stand-alone Gospel Story Bible. The book is also a part of his Gospel Stories for Kids series used in Sunday school programs. He draws on the English Standard Version (ESV) Bible translation in addition to A.E. Macha’s original and clever colorful illustrations to enhance and animate each story.
The stories are presented in imaginative two-page spreads complete with a brief commentary that connects Jesus, the larger story, “…to God’s redemptive plan.” I especially liked the idea that the Old Testament points forward to Jesus, while the New Testament points to the cross and God’s plan of salvation. Narratives end with “Let’s Talk about It,” that includes three story questions to encourage family discussion…Full Review: http://tinyurl.com/a45jbrf
Family Life Pastor, Marty Machowski believes Jesus is the hero of every story in the Old and New Testaments and also believes “bedtime stories” can change lives. Those two views fueled his passion to produce156 condensed stories, 78 from the Old Testament and 78 from the New Testament for this remarkable stand-alone Gospel Story Bible. The book is also a part of his Gospel Stories for Kids series used in Sunday school programs. He draws on the English Standard Version (ESV) Bible translation in addition to A.E. Macha’s original and clever colorful illustrations to enhance and animate each story.
The stories are presented in imaginative two-page spreads complete with a brief commentary that connects Jesus, the larger story, “…to God’s redemptive plan.” I especially liked the idea that the Old Testament points forward to Jesus, while the New Testament points to the cross and God’s plan of salvation. Narratives end with “Let’s Talk about It,” that includes three story questions to encourage family discussion…Full Review: http://tinyurl.com/a45jbrf
June 15, 2020
Reading this each night with my two youngest daughters (age 7 & 9 when we started) feels like one of the best things I've done as a dad! We looked forward to it every night, and as we went along, the girls were clearly growing in their understanding and response to the message of Jesus in every story. They found the stories very engaging, and they are long enough to communicate the biblical stories in some detail. Each finishes with a paragraph linking the story to Jesus, which were great. There is only a single illustration per story, but good enough to hold the girls' attention. Each story has three simple questions which we answered each time - I think they helped us pay attention! Highly recommended: One of the best kids Bibles we've read.
July 27, 2020
I really liked how this story Bible included more stories than most, included selections from all parts of the Bible, and tied all of them to the gospel. The questions helped keep my kids engaged, and the illustrations are beautiful.
February 21, 2022
This has been fantastic to read with my kids over brekky each morning. They're 6 and 8 years old, and the reading level is probably bordering on too high for them... but still, the pictures and simple questions have helped us engage with the gospel and the Bible each day. Highly recommended.
October 29, 2014
If you love the true Gospel message that it is Jesus and only Jesus that makes us right with God, as opposed to good behavior (which is an understandable but heretic message communicated implicitly or explicitly by far too much of children's Christian literature), this is the story bible for you!
We LOVED the Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones, but after a few years, our kids practically have it memorized. And as our older kids have gotten even older, it became boring to them. The Gospel Story Bible is like the next step up, more advanced in reading level, many more stories from scripture, discussion questions, and similar to the Jesus Storybook Bible, interesting and different artwork, rather than the usual cartoonish and saccharine illustrations you commonly find.
Each story also includes how it relates or points to Jesus, which helps us all (adults included) understand the Bible as one story about God's great love for us, expressed through Jesus's life, death, and resurrection.
We find this the most usable of the story bibles we have encountered for Advent, Christmas, and Easter readings, as the stories are more in-depth and less condensed.
I would say the only "bad" thing I can say is that because each story is simply two facing pages, and therefore only one picture, and no page turns, it doesn't hold younger kids' interest well. Break out the Jesus Storybook Bible for that.
We LOVED the Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones, but after a few years, our kids practically have it memorized. And as our older kids have gotten even older, it became boring to them. The Gospel Story Bible is like the next step up, more advanced in reading level, many more stories from scripture, discussion questions, and similar to the Jesus Storybook Bible, interesting and different artwork, rather than the usual cartoonish and saccharine illustrations you commonly find.
Each story also includes how it relates or points to Jesus, which helps us all (adults included) understand the Bible as one story about God's great love for us, expressed through Jesus's life, death, and resurrection.
We find this the most usable of the story bibles we have encountered for Advent, Christmas, and Easter readings, as the stories are more in-depth and less condensed.
I would say the only "bad" thing I can say is that because each story is simply two facing pages, and therefore only one picture, and no page turns, it doesn't hold younger kids' interest well. Break out the Jesus Storybook Bible for that.
August 1, 2017
Several people have told me they thought this was one of the best Bible story book for kids. There are many Children’s Bible and Children’s Bible story books out there so I was skeptical when I first heard it until I discovered that the author told Old and New Testament stories in such a way as to point the readers back to Jesus and the Gospel. I thought that was what made this book unique among children’s book out there.
The book contained 156 stories which makes this ideal as something a parent can read through as part of family devotions or nightly reading before one’s child or children go to sleep. It is a beautiful hardback with glossy pages that certainly is attractive for little ones. Each story has an accompanying illustration. I appreciated how each story also contain Scriptural references beneath the story titles. I also appreciated the fact that after each story there’s a section underneath the picture titled “Let’s Talk About it!” in which the author gives us three questions concerning the story. These were helpful for me to ask my kids the questions to generate discussion to reinforce the story, tests for comprehension and also for further discussion that leads to greater understanding. Every story’s final paragraph always draw the connection to Christ and the Gospel and here I would say is the real gold of the book. I think the author Marty Machowksi pointed to Christ and the Gospel in such a way that few would disagree with despite the theological issue of Christ centered preaching and hermeneutics can be a contentious debates among adult Christians. Certainly the book having this format for a 156 stories from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22 is quite a feat and the author is to be commended.
In the beginning of the book there’s a page titled “Using the Gospel Story Bible” in which the author tells us how best to use this resource. While he mentioned the book can be used for preschoolers as a parent-read story book through young grade school students as a devotional and for the classroom, I must say its age is best ages three and up. I had this book since my second child was born and I was eager every year to read to my little ones this work but I found it was best for them beginning at age three. I must add though as a constructive criticism the book could have been better illustrated for younger kids’ sake. At times I thought the illustrations was too abstract, awkward or distracting though of course at times I thought the illustrator did a good job. If the book was illustrated differently in its style I think this book would certainly be a bigger hit.
I recommend this book and at the moment it is my favorite Bible story book for children.
The book contained 156 stories which makes this ideal as something a parent can read through as part of family devotions or nightly reading before one’s child or children go to sleep. It is a beautiful hardback with glossy pages that certainly is attractive for little ones. Each story has an accompanying illustration. I appreciated how each story also contain Scriptural references beneath the story titles. I also appreciated the fact that after each story there’s a section underneath the picture titled “Let’s Talk About it!” in which the author gives us three questions concerning the story. These were helpful for me to ask my kids the questions to generate discussion to reinforce the story, tests for comprehension and also for further discussion that leads to greater understanding. Every story’s final paragraph always draw the connection to Christ and the Gospel and here I would say is the real gold of the book. I think the author Marty Machowksi pointed to Christ and the Gospel in such a way that few would disagree with despite the theological issue of Christ centered preaching and hermeneutics can be a contentious debates among adult Christians. Certainly the book having this format for a 156 stories from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22 is quite a feat and the author is to be commended.
In the beginning of the book there’s a page titled “Using the Gospel Story Bible” in which the author tells us how best to use this resource. While he mentioned the book can be used for preschoolers as a parent-read story book through young grade school students as a devotional and for the classroom, I must say its age is best ages three and up. I had this book since my second child was born and I was eager every year to read to my little ones this work but I found it was best for them beginning at age three. I must add though as a constructive criticism the book could have been better illustrated for younger kids’ sake. At times I thought the illustrations was too abstract, awkward or distracting though of course at times I thought the illustrator did a good job. If the book was illustrated differently in its style I think this book would certainly be a bigger hit.
I recommend this book and at the moment it is my favorite Bible story book for children.
December 5, 2021
This is our second time reading this Bible all the way through. I love it! I do think sometimes the stories are a little long for my 6 year old, but my 8 and 10 year old handle it well. It is an excellent Bible to graduate to after the Jesus Storybook Bible or similar children’s bibles.
I love how every story, whether from the Old Testament or New Testament, points toward Jesus or our need for a savior.
I especially love that the Old Testament stories mention Jesus when wrapping up the end of the story. This is so important for kids who are gaining understanding about the scriptures and needing to see the connections between the old covenant and new covenant in Christ.
I love how every story, whether from the Old Testament or New Testament, points toward Jesus or our need for a savior.
I especially love that the Old Testament stories mention Jesus when wrapping up the end of the story. This is so important for kids who are gaining understanding about the scriptures and needing to see the connections between the old covenant and new covenant in Christ.
March 2, 2022
We finished this for family worship last week. It's okay. I think I felt obligated to finished once we started but I have two critiques. 1) it's too long for each section and trying to pack too much info into too little space. I think it would be more fruitful to just read a passage of scripture. 2) it inserted some bad theology at times for no apparent reason. For example, it asserted (out of the blue) that God looks in the future and knows who will love him and he saves people based off of this. Sigh. The best parts about the book was it's chronology (and including minor stories that other children bibles leave out) and the review questions. I would give it 3.5 half if I could.
October 25, 2021
Overall this is a very good children’s Bible that can be used for almost any age (with a bit of on the fly ad libbing). I wish there had been a few more verbatim Bible verses in there and the racially inaccurate artwork bugged me (I wish they’d either not drawn faces or Jesus at all, or at least have been more accurate). However, the author did a wonderful job of incorporating Christ and the gospel into each story, it was great to read with my kids at mealtimes, and I would recommend this book.
December 9, 2016
I read this book to see if it would work for our kids. The publisher lists the age range as 8-12, but I think that's for readers, not listeners. The stories are divided equally between the Old and New Testaments - 78 stories in each. Each story is just two pages, but they don't seem rushed or incomplete. Most importantly, there is a consistent thread of redemptive history that runs through all the stories, pointing us to Christ. I am excited about reading this with our kids next year.
September 24, 2022
Excellent children's Bible storybook! I like the fact that it covers the epistles and goes all the way to Revelation. My only complaint is that some of the color combinations are hard to read. The questions are a little too old for a toddler, but we'll read this again when she's older.
This book completely skips Esther and Job, which was a missed opportunity--Esther especially is rich with gospel foreshadowing!
This book completely skips Esther and Job, which was a missed opportunity--Esther especially is rich with gospel foreshadowing!
March 10, 2023
(5☆ Would recommend & would read again)
I really liked this children's version of the Bible. I like that it has more stories in it than most children's Bibles. My kids are currently 2 & 4, and I think they might be a little too young for this version, but I am excited to read it with them when they are a bit older. I am also excited to read the Old and New Testament devotionals that go with this Bible.
I really liked this children's version of the Bible. I like that it has more stories in it than most children's Bibles. My kids are currently 2 & 4, and I think they might be a little too young for this version, but I am excited to read it with them when they are a bit older. I am also excited to read the Old and New Testament devotionals that go with this Bible.
January 12, 2019
The best Bible for young readers. Once your children have outgrown the Jesus Storybook Bible, this is the next one you want. It has about five times the individual stories as the JSB and deals with more advanced themes, but always, ALWAYS points each story to the gospel. Perfect for a family devotion or for your young reader that isn’t ready for a full-sized Bible just yet.
March 26, 2020
We really enjoyed reading this story bible. Each story end with show how it ties into the gospel.
The only question my daughter had at the end of the book is why are there no white people in heaven? Through out the whole book their is diversity of people but in the last picture there are no white people in it.
The only question my daughter had at the end of the book is why are there no white people in heaven? Through out the whole book their is diversity of people but in the last picture there are no white people in it.
September 22, 2022
Just finished reading this aloud to my kiddos-- I appreciated how the author tried to tie every story to our salvation through Christ. However, there were times when this felt a bit repetitive.
The Egermeier Bible Story Book still remains my personal favorite for presenting the stories of the Bible to children.
The Egermeier Bible Story Book still remains my personal favorite for presenting the stories of the Bible to children.
March 1, 2021
We used this book for family devotions with our daughters 5&8. I highly recommend it for family Bible lessons. The narrative is well written and accessible and the discussion questions are well suited to generating gospel discussion.
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May 4, 2023I like that this has some of the stories left out of other children's Bibles--like Elijah, Rahab, Ruth, Esther. But otherwise it's not my favorite. The stories are a bit too long for the very young, the illustrations are weird...meh.
April 10, 2024
The last paragraph makes the connection! After giving a very typical summary of verses in kid language, the author explains how the story shows God’s character, our character or the way Jesus made the bridge between God and us. I really liked the uniqueness here.
June 3, 2025
Each story was grounded in the connection to the gospel. I thought it was good how the New Testament went through the different letter and didn't just end at the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John) like many children's bibles do and gave a summary of the background of the letter.
August 27, 2018
Wonderful.
February 25, 2019
Keeps the gospel front and center in fresh ways through the old and new testaments! Excellent discipleship tool for little ones!
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October 17, 2020Jesus in the Old Testament - Genesis to Malachi
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRBLx...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRBLx...
February 24, 2022
Absolutely loved this story Bible! It was engaging and true to scripture, didn't shy away from addressing sin and hard topics. Always brought each story back to the gospel. So lovely!
November 4, 2022
Not my favorite children's bible by a long shot. The writing style makes it hard to read but it also leaves out some key stories and key facts within stories. Did not feel gospel oriented
March 5, 2023
This is awesome material to do with your family or a children’s group. This helps them know the story of the gospel throughout the who bible. Highly recommend!
April 25, 2025
We read this for homeschool morning time, and really enjoyed it.
I'm looking forward to using the accompanying curriculum next season.
I'm looking forward to using the accompanying curriculum next season.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews