The fantastic illustrations in the two-volume The Kingdom of God Bible Storybook (KOGBS) are supported by text that presents the storyline of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. Both volumes are gorgeous, hardcover books with gilded page edges and permanent bookmarks. Both volumes ordered together come in a sturdy slipcase.
The KOGBS is divided into two books, covering the Old Testament and the New Testament. The 404-page Old Testament volume is slightly more than twice as long as the 200-page New Testament volume.
Written for ages four through twelve, the text is extremely abridged. Still, it draws from the most important stories and events of the Bible. It frequently quotes directly from the English Standard Version of the Bible, interweaving quotations with simpler language. For example, page 18 in the first volume reads:
God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable helper for him.”
So God put Adam to sleep and formed a woman from his rib.When Adam awoke, God brought the woman to him. Adam was delighted and declared, “This one, at last, is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh.”
She was made in God’s image, just like Adam!
Adam named her Eve. God united them in love, never to be separated.
Full-color artwork covers every page other than title pages and study guides, with the text overprinted. Illustrations often fill two-page spreads. The figures are cartoonish rather than realistic, but that approach allowed the illustrator to more easily portray things like Daniel’s dreams, such as the one that includes a lion with eagle’s wings and many of the illustrations for the book of Revelation.
The books are divided into chapters, all titled to include either “king” or “kingdom,” an emphasis that points repeatedly toward Christ and his kingdom.
A chapter might have several stories from a book of the Bible like Genesis. For instance, in the first volume, both Chapter 5: A Global Kingdom and Chapter 6: A Kingdom of Faith tell stories of Abraham, from God’s call for him to leave Ur through the sacrifice of Isaac. Even in these chapters, concepts from other books of the Bible are brought in. For instance, events in Abraham’s life are described with language from Hebrews 11, emphasizing that he followed God by faith. Some chapters draw from several books of the Bible. For instance, Chapter 6: The Upside-Down Kingdom (in the second volume), weaves together stories from three of the gospels to contrast the kingdom of God with the world’s expectations. It’s important to note that KOGBS doesn’t shy away from difficult stories like that of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac and everyone but Noah and his family being destroyed by the flood.
Beautiful as these books are, I wouldn’t be reviewing them if they were just storybook versions of the Bible. There are 30 chapters in the first volume and 15 in the second. At the end of each chapter is a one-page study guide that makes KOGBS a practical resource for family Bible study. Each study guide begins with a summary of the four key points covered in the chapter. Next is a set of three discussion questions. The questions are not superficial, even though they draw on what is in the text. For example, in the second volume, page 110 poses these questions:
1. Why did the Israelites demand that Jesus be crucified?
2. How did Jesus pay for our sins?
3. What was the significance of the veil in the Temple being torn?
Some questions might stretch beyond the thought level of four- and five-year-olds, but they can still participate in most of the discussions.
The questions are followed by “Gospel Glimpse,” where it briefly makes connections to other stories and concepts within the Bible. It often interjects doctrinal points here, such as on page 365 of the second volume where it says:
Jesus is the Son of Man who appears in Daniel’s vision (Revelations 1: 12-13). Because Jesus is both fully God and fully man, Jesus alone is worthy to approach the throne of the Ancient of Days and reign forever (Revelation 5:5).
A short prayer concludes each study guide.
The title page of each chapter includes an abbreviated timeline and Bible references telling from which books of the Bible the chapter’s stories are drawn. The timeline shows three events--the last two events covered in the previous chapter (with their approximate dates) and the opening event of this chapter. The timeline reflects a young-earth point of view.
KOGBS doesn’t get deep into theology, but a Protestant perspective is reflected in its descriptions of both baptism and the Lord’s Supper as symbols.
Note that coloring books are available for both volumes if you'd like to keep young hands busy while reading the stories aloud.
Summary
The Kingdom of God Bible Storybook is great for introducing children to the idea of the books of the Bible as a unified story that points to Jesus and the kingdom of God. In addition, the illustrations help children grasp more than they would without those visual aids. While children will probably want to look through both volumes on their own, the study guides make them easy to use for family Bible study.
