Bible Stories for the Young
Green triangles are narrated and fully illustrated and will have simple animation added along the way. Yellow triangles have narration, but the illustrations aren't done yet. Videos with red triangles are planned. New and updated videos will be added very often.
To download, right-click the download button above and select "Save Link As" or "Download Linked File"
After these things John looked, and he saw an opened door in heaven! And the trumpet voice said, “Come up here so that I can show you what’s going to happen next.” Immediately John was in the Spirit, and saw a throne in Heaven… and Someone was seated on it!
And that Someone looked like beautiful red-orange gemstone. And a rainbow looking like it was made of emerald encircled the throne.
In a circle around the throne were 24 other thrones, and sitting on those thrones were 24 shepherds (ones who had watched over God’s Family). They were dressed in white clothes and had golden crowns on their heads.
From the throne came out roaring and flashes of lightning and crashes of thunder. And in front of the throne was something like a sea of glass, like crystal.
Around the throne were four living creatures. One was like a lion; another like an ox; another had the face like a man’s; and the fourth looked like an eagle flying.
In the stories to come, John saw lots of creatures and beasts and many amazing things. John was seeing things in the unSeen world, and trying to explain it to us with seen-world picture descriptions. Not only do we not know how to draw these things, most of the time the creatures and women and cities are just pictures that represent something else anyway.
Just like how the in the previous stories the lampstands and stars represented other things, the beasts and cities represent other things too, like systems and powers. And sometimes God explained to John what the things represented, and sometimes He didn’t.
There are many people out there who like to guess what all these things mean. But, anyone who says they understand it all… is mistaken… because Jesus hasn’t yet unrolled the scroll on some of this to give meaning to it.
So watch and pray… and keep your eyes open for what’s to come.
Each one of the four living creatures had six wings. And those creatures never rest day or night. Day and night they say, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty — Other, Other, Other is the Lord… Who was, who is, and who is still to come!”
And when the living creatures give glory, honor, and thanks to the One who sits on the throne, the 24 shepherds drop to the ground and worship the One who lives forever and ever. They offer their crowns before His throne, saying,
“You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, since You created all things, and because You wanted it they existed and were created!”
Do you know what the word “worthy” means? It means Worth-It or Deserving.
So the 24 shepherds are crying out to God, “You are Deserving! You are Worth It!”
And why do you think they were dropping to the ground and throwing their crowns down? Because they are seeing God for all that He is. They’re saying, “I have a crown?! Are you kidding me? I don’t deserve a crown! You, You, You! Are the deserving One. You are the Worth-It One! You suffered in all the same ways I did, but You didn’t sin. Compared to You, I am conqueror of nothing. You are in a class by Yourself! Other! Other! Other You are! Holy, Holy, Holy! All crowns and trophies and rewards belong to You, God!
John saw in the right hand of the One who was seated on the throne — a scroll. It had writing on the front and the back and was sealed with seven seals. (That’s a wax stamp that seals a letter or a scroll.)
John saw a powerful angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to break its seals?” But no one in Heaven or on earth or under the earth was deserving enough to be able to open the scroll or even look into it.
So John began to cry hard because there was no one to open the scroll to see inside of it.
Then one of the shepherds said to John, “Don’t cry! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah has conquered, so He can open the scroll.”
Then John saw, standing in the middle, a Lamb.
Do you know who the Lamb is? Do you remember hearing about Jesus being the Sacrificial Lamb? The Passover Lamb? The one who died for our sins to wash us and make us clean. And who is that Lion of the tribe of Judah? Yes, Jesus. So this lamb and lion is Jesus.
Then He came and took the scroll from the One who was seated on the throne, and when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four Shepherds fell to the ground before Him. Each of them had a harp and golden bowls full of sweet-smelling spices (that’s the prayers of the saints).
They were singing a new song:
“You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals because You were killed, and at the cost of Your own blood You have purchased men for God — men and women from every tribe, race, language, culture, nation, and country.
“You have appointed them as a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”
Then John looked and heard the voice of many, many angels in a circle around the throne. There were thousands times thousands of them all singing in a loud voice:
“Worthy is the Lamb who was killed. Worthy to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and praise!”
Then John heard every creature — every creature in heaven, every creature on earth, every creature under the earth, every creature in the sea (that’s a lot of creatures!) — all singing:
“To the One seated on the throne and to the Lamb be praise, honor, glory, and ruling power forever and ever!”
Can you just stop and really try to picture this for a minute? Every. Single. Living thing. In Heaven, on earth, under the earth, in the sea. The giant squid. Your dog. Your goldfish. The little worm in the dirt outside your door. Every single living thing, in every single place — singing worship to God and Jesus, the Lamb. How awesome it that?!
And the four living creatures were saying, “Yes! Amen! Let it Happen!”
John watched as Jesus opened the first of the seven seals, and he heard one of the four living creatures saying with a thunderous voice, “Come!”
And there came a white horse! The rider had a bow, and was given a crown, and as a conqueror, he rode out to conquer.
When Jesus opened the second seal, the second living creature said, “Come!” And a fiery red horse came out, and the rider was given a huge sword.
When He opened the third seal, the third living creature said, “Come!” And out came a black horse! That rider had balance scales in his hand.
When Jesus opened the fourth seal the fourth living creature said — What’d he say? That’s right. — “Come!” And out came a pale green horse! And the rider was given authority to cause dying.
When Jesus opened the fifth seal, John saw all of those who’d been hurt by others because they declared the Truth of God and of all He’d done in their lives.
They cried out, “How much longer til judgment time, Sovereign Master, holy and true?”
They were told to rest, rest, rest for just a little longer, and each of them was given a long white robe.
When Jesus opened the sixth seal, a huge earthquake took place; the sun became black, and the full moon became red; and the stars in the sky fell to the ground. The sky was split apart like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was moving around from its place.
Everyone knew what was happening then. It was time — it was the Day of the God’s anger. People started trying to hide. The kings of the earth, the very important people, the generals, the rich, the powerful, and well… everyone tried to hide in the caves and in the mountains.
After this John saw four angels holding back the wind so that no wind could blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree. Then John saw another angel who was holding God’s special stamp. He shouted out with a loud voice to the four angels, “Do not damage the earth or the sea or the trees until we have put God’s mark on the foreheads of His servants.” Now John heard the number of those who had God’s mark — 144,000!
Then John looked, and there was an enormous crowd that no one could count, made up of men and women from every nation, tribe, people, and language. They were standing before the throne and before Jesus. They were dressed in long white robes and had palm branches in their hands.
They were shouting in a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”
And all the angels stood there in a circle around the throne, and they fell down with their faces to the ground and worshiped God, saying,
“Amen! Praise and glory, and wisdom and thanksgiving, and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”
Be sure to notice how in Heaven, God is being given the respect and glory and honor and worship that He deserves. It’s as if they’re trying to think of EVERY wonderful word they could possibly think of to love on Him and give Him honor. All Heaven Sees who God is and that they should drop to the ground and bow to Him. And one day, the whole world will know this and will bow to the King of kings.
Then one of the shepherds asked John, “These dressed in long white robes — who are they and where have they come from?”
John said to him, “My lord, you know the answer.”
Then he said to John, “Yes, these are the ones who have come out of the great troubles. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb, Jesus! Because of that, they get to be right there at the throne serving Him day and night. And He will shelter them with His Presence. They will never go hungry again, or be thirsty again, or be hot again because He will shepherd them and lead them to springs of alive water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”