Israel demands a king in the book of 1 Samuel. The first king, Saul, fails and David is chosen as his replacement. He also kills someone named Goliath.

The book of Judges describes some terrible times in Israel. One of the better examples, though, is Deborah, a judge and prophetess.

The stories of conquering the promised land. Joshua is on display as an excellent leader.

Deuteronomy marks the end of the journey to Canaan and Moses’ life. It is also the Torah’s book of love, believe it or not. The story for this week is not in Deuteronomy (there are not many stories in this book), but it explains why Moses and Aaron did not enter into the promised land.

The Hebrew name of the book is “In the Wilderness,” and that is a much better description. This book is about the bad decisions that made Israel roam the desert for 40 years and kept Moses from the promised land. Also we look in depth at the story of the 12 spies in Canaan.

The book of Leviticus is all about how God is holy. While it does focus heavily on priestly duties, it also tells the people to love your neighbor, forgive debts and free slaves. Poem reading is Isaiah 61, which relates to the jubilee.

An overview of the book of Exodus and the story of the ten plagues (chapters 7-12). Also we read “The Song of the Sea,” a poem in Exodus chapter 15.

An overview of the book of Genesis and the account of creation. Also we read Psalm 148 which is a poem related to God’s creation. This is the first in a series of 40 lessons through the Bible in 2026. PDF of the slides below.