Line #26 Heartwarming/TheBible


1	[[quoteright:310:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jesus_with_children_1003_1.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:310:''Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.'' ~ [[Literature/TheFourGospels Matthew 19:14]][[note]]Artwork by Brian Jekel[[/note]]]]
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5	[[folder:Books with their own pages]]
6	[[index]]
7	* ''Heartwarming/BookOfRuth''
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9	[[/folder]]
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11	[[folder:The Old Testament]]
12	* The end of the Deluge. God has just [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt wiped out all of humanity with a huge flood]] save for Noah and his family. After the flood ends, God makes a promise to never unleash such destruction again. To symbolize that promise, God creates the first rainbow.
13	* The almost-sacrifice of Isaac. God had promised Abraham a son. Then, out of the blue, God demands that he [[OffingTheOffspring sacrifice that son]], but just when Abraham is about to do it, God stops him, saying it was a SecretTestOfCharacter, and provides a ram to sacrifice instead. He subsequently declares that Abraham will have numerous descendants, and through his offspring, all nations would be blessed.
14	* [[Literature/BookOfGenesis Genesis 23]]. Abraham's wife, Sarah has died. Abraham asks the people of the land they've been living in for years, the Hittites, if he can buy some land to bury his wife in. The Hittites as a whole tell him, paraphrased, "You're basically a prince among us. You can have whatever land you want, free of charge." And Abraham ''insists'' on paying for the land.
15	* Jacob and Esau's reunion. Jacob had fled from Esau because the latter hated him for stealing his blessing. Many years later, Jacob returns to Canaan. When he hears Esau is coming to meet him, Jacob is terrified. His fear turns out to be unjustified, as Esau greets his brother with open arms.
16	* Similarly, there is the reunion between Jacob's son Joseph and his brothers. Joseph's brothers had sold him into slavery in Egypt. Through a series of events, Joseph rises to a position of power and helps Egypt prepare for a famine. When the famine strikes both Egypt and Canaan, Jacob sends his sons to Egypt, where Joseph has helped store food. When Joseph and his brothers first meet, they don't recognize him. When they realize who he is, they are afraid he might use his position of power to get revenge on them for selling him into slavery. Joseph, however, assures them he has forgiven them, saying that what they intended for bad, God had used for good.
17	** Going back a bit to when the brothers first plotted to kill Joseph, Reuben's actions. When he hears about his brothers' plans, he immediately intercedes and talks them down to just imprisoning Joseph in an empty cistern. He then goes to tend his duties to keep up appearances but has the express intention of secretly freeing Joseph later. When he returns to set Joseph free, however, and finds that his brothers sold Joseph into slavery, he is very upset. Not just a little sad, he is stated to be so overcome with grief that he tears his own clothes. Whether or not he was motivated by fear of repercussions or that he truly loved Joseph enough to go behind his brothers' backs, it stands to mention that Reuben saved Joseph's life, and was intending to save him fully from his brothers' clutches the second he could.
18	** Judah, pleading for Benjamin and offering himself in Benjamin's place. He knew what Benjamin meant to Jacob, and he himself had been through double the sorrow he and the others had put Jacob through. He knew that if anything happened to Benjamin Jacob might never recover.
19	*** What makes this better is that Judah was originally the one who suggested that they sell Joseph into slavery in the first place, and now he is pleading to take Benjamin's place. It shows he truly has changed.
20	*** Not quite, but the story is heartwarming for a reason: the other brothers just wanted to kill Joseph, but Judah noticed a passing caravan and suggested they sell him into slavery instead, giving him a fighting chance at survival.
21	** And then there's the reason Joseph was trying to get Benjamin away from the others in the first place: Benjamin was Joseph's full brother, and he was afraid the others would treat Benjamin as badly as they had him. Really, just all of the Joseph story.
22	* Jacob's devotion to Rachel. He fell in love with her and agreed to work seven years for her hand in marriage. These seven years seemed to Jacob "but a few days, for the love he had for her". However, when the seven years were complete and he asked for his wife, Laban deceived Jacob by switching Rachel's older sister, Leah, as the veiled bride. In the morning, when the truth became known, Laban justified his action, saying that in his country it was unheard of to give a younger daughter before the older. However, he agreed to give Rachel in marriage as well if Jacob would work another seven years. So what did Jacob do? He worked another hard seven years without any hesitation. He gave up 14 years of his life for her, and never once regretted it.
23	* A Rabbinic interpretation of how Leah's eyes became weak. According to this story, Leah was destined to marry Jacob's older twin brother, Esau. In the Rabbinic mind, the two brothers are polar opposites; Jacob being a God-fearing scholar and Esau being a hunter who also indulges in idolatry and adultery. But people were saying, "Laban has two daughters and his sister, Rebekah, has two sons. The older daughter (Leah) will marry the older son (Esau), and the younger daughter (Rachel) will marry the younger son (Jacob). Hearing this, Leah spent most of her time weeping and praying to God to change her destined mate. Thus the Torah describes her eyes as "soft" from weeping. God hearkens to Leah's tears and prayers and allows her to marry Jacob even before Rachel does.
24	** Another one for Leah, as TheUnfavourite compared to Rachel, When she bore Jacob's first three sons she would always lament that Jacob doesn't love her and hopes that with each son she bore that he would do so eventually. After giving birth to her fourth son Judah, all she said was “This time I will praise the Lord”. After this whenever Leah spoke (not much but still) she was always happy, meaning she either finally got some of Jacob's love or she decided that her faith in God was more important or both.
25	*** The story seems to show that while Leah was TheUnfavourite to Jacob, she was not that with God. In addition to giving Jacob 6 sons and 1 daughter, she also outlived Rachel and while Rachel's son Joseph is the main character in the final parts of Genesis, it was from Leah's son Judah that the line of King David and Jesus Christ would descend from, and to top it off she, not Rachel, is buried next to Jacob and his ancestors Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, and Rebekah in Cave of the Patriarchs.
26	* Jeremiah 30-33. Most of the Literature/BookOfJeremiah is concerned with the apostasy of the Hebrews and the consequent judgment from God. Chapters 30-33, on the other hand, foretell the future restoration of Israel. To illustrate his point, Jeremiah buys a field from his cousin while the Chaldeans are besieging Jerusalem. The passages are often understood to have a triple meaning-the return of the Jews to the region of the old kingdom of Judah in 538 BC, the founding of the present-day State of Israel in 1948, and the final reconciliation of Israel to God in the last days.
27	* In the Literature/BookOfJonah, God sends Jonah to Nineveh to foretell their destruction due to their living in sin. When the king hears this news, he immediately repents as do the rest of the citizens who put on sackcloths as a sign of their sorriness. God, seeing their HeelFaceTurn, decides to spare the city but Jonah is angry and adamant that the city be destroyed. While taking shelter from the heat under a tree, God sends a worm to kill it, which depresses him. God then delivers this line to a sulking Jonah: "You cared about a tree which grew overnight and died overnight, and which you did not work to grow. And should I not care about Nineveh, which has thousands of people who do not yet know their right from their left, and also much cattle!" It's quite touching in that God shows compassion towards a people other than the Israelites along with the animals in the city. The book is also one of the few books in the Bible that doesn't have anyone die.
28	* David and Jonathan's friendship. Jonathan is supposed to be King Saul's heir, but the prophet Samuel told Saul otherwise due to not following God and His instructions. And then David is now going to be king, especially with one great achievement of defeating Goliath. Jonathan, instead of being jealous of David, is happy for the lad; he loved him "as his own soul" to the point that he removed his robe and gave it to David, and his garments ''and his weapons, too''. Such friendship let Jonathan save the little lad from Saul's jealousy.
29	* The Literature/BookOfJob:
30	** At the beginning, God praises Job's righteousness. When Satan dismisses this as mere gratitude for wealth, health, and happiness, God trusts that Job can endure Satan's trials. And Job proves Satan wrong!
31	** Job has made a covenant to [[IgnoreTheFanservice not even look at a young woman with lust]]. That has gotta be [[SeductionProofMarriage insane devotion]] when you consider the circumstances (Rich men are often EstrogenBrigadeBait).
32	** The end of the book. The title character has suffered a [[TraumaCongaLine truckload of disasters]]. His [[WithFriendsLikeThese "friends"]] tell him it's punishment for some sin he committed. Much argument ensues. At the end, God rebukes Job's friends for [[KickThemWhileTheyAreDown the way they spoke to him]]. Job, however, brings an offering on their behalf and God forgives them.
33	** To boot, Job himself is generously rewarded for keeping his faith, getting back everything he has lost and more, and living on [[MethuselahSyndrome 140 more years]].
34	** Additionally, Job gets twice as much stuff as before. He accumulates twice as many sheep, camels, oxen, donkeys... but the same amount of children. Seems odd, [[FridgeBrilliance until you consider: this implies that Job does, in fact, have twice as many children.]] His first set of children are still living... [[{{Heaven}} with God.]] Kind of corny, but still something sweet to chew on.
35	*** That is until you realize children are not objects that can be replaced.
36	*** This works out pretty well for his children, too, when you take inheritances into account. Not only what was in Job's life, but Job's entire legacy was doubled over thanks to his faith.
37	* Elijah saving the widow's son.
38	** Elijah is on the receiving end of one when God shows up, not in anything spectacular or amazing, but in a still, small voice, to tell him "YouAreNotAlone".
39	--->''So He said, "Go forth and stand on the mountain before the LORD." And behold, the LORD was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, a voice came to him and said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"''
40	* Read the Literature/SongOfSongs sometime. It is quite possibly the most wonderful and heartwarming love poetry in existence; prose, but not purple, stirring but not cliched. And, somehow, reading it is like intruding on something private and sacred...
41	* The Promise. Adam and Eve have just fallen, mankind is doomed to be tainted by sin and suffer both spiritual and physical death, and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking snakes now have no legs]]. Yet even in this darkest hour, God promises the coming of a savior who will someday come and save believers from the fate of Hell.
42	* King Darius is in the midst of an enormous HeroicBSOD after having been tricked into throwing Daniel into the lion's den and spends all night worrying. The next morning, he personally goes to the den in hopes that Daniel is still alive and prepares to accept full responsibility for his actions. Daniel- who is still alive and forgiving him completely- responds with, "King Darius, may you live forever."
43	* While [[Literature/BookOfEcclesiastes Ecclesiastes]] can be rather nihilistic, the assurance that "To everything, there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven" can be quite a comfort indeed.
44	** It is also good to know that even someone like [[TheEeyore the Teacher]] found some closure for his long and worrisome life.
45	** There is also Ecclestiaticus 34:18, which tells us that anyone who sacrifices wrongfully gotten goods to God is wicked, and the Most High does not accept gifts from the wicked. In RealLife, the first human rights activist, Bartolomé de las Casas, was inspired by this exact quote to leave his slave-owning ways behind him and dedicating himself to abolishing slavery.
46	* The beginning of [[Literature/BookOfIsaiah Isaiah]] 43: "But now thus said the LORD— Who created you, O Jacob, Who formed you, O Israel: Fear not, for I will redeem you; I have singled you out by name, you are Mine. When you pass through water, I will be with you; through streams, they shall not overwhelm you. When you walk through fire, you shall not be scorched; through flame, it shall not burn you."
47	** Later on in the chapter: "Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert." Whatever is in your past, however, sin has affected you, God always has something new prepared for you and will protect you as He prepares you for it.
48	* Isaiah 25:6-9 (KJV) is a brief but poignant group of passages that serve as proof of God's love and mercy.
49	-->And in this mountain shall the LORD of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined. And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the vail that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it. And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.
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52	[[folder:Jesus]]
53	* "Jesus wept" and the resurrection of Lazarus.
54	** In the Greek it is stronger; basically, Jesus is ''enraged'' at what sin and Satan has done to his world and the people he loves. The Greek makes it clear that not only were there tears but Jesus was moaning in grief, the death of Lazarus had wounded his spirit. The act of resurrecting Lazarus is a preview of what he'll finish on the Cross, where death will have no more claim over the people Jesus loves anymore.
55	* The resurrection of Jairus' daughter.
56	** And in a story in that story, the woman who touched Jesus' robe because she believed that doing so would cure her hemorrhaging. And it did. And when she told Jesus, He said "Woman, your faith has saved you." It sure did.
57	* The fate of the "good criminal".
58	** He was crucified next to Jesus, and rebuked a fellow criminal who yelled at Jesus to take all three off their crosses. Jesus then promised the "good criminal" a life in heaven.
59	** According to Matthew and Mark's accounts, both criminals insulted Jesus, while Luke says the "good" criminal defended him. While this seems contradictory at first, if you take all three accounts as [[{{Pun}} gospel]], then this "good" criminal initially criticized Jesus. However, he eventually [[HeelRealization realized he was in the wrong]] ''while hanging on the cross'', and subsequently defended Jesus. ''And Jesus still forgave him!'' [[RedemptionEqualsDeath Last-minute redemption]], indeed.
60	** What is more, the 'good criminal' was not even expecting forgiveness. His only plea was that Jesus would remember him upon ascending; this was likely a man who did not have anyone in his life that considered him a loved one, so just being ''remembered'' by such a holy man was enough for him. And how does Jesus reply? "I won't have to, because you will be there with me."
61	** The 'good criminal' asked for Jesus to remember him. Wether he went to Heaven depends on your religion, but one thing is for certain: Though his exact name is unknown [[note]]Some texts call him Saint Dismas, meaning that he was not only forgiven by Jesus, but canonized as a saint[[/note]], ''2000 years later'' he is still remembered as a good and penitent man. In fact many Catholic chapels within prisons have two crosses on the altar: one for Jesus, and a smaller one to the side. Reminding inmates that there is always a chance to be redeemed.
62	* Jesus' saving of the alleged adulteress, and his Sermon on the Mount. Not only that but when he was on the Cross, he pleaded with God to forgive his murderers. That's pretty forgiving.
63	* In St. Julian's ''Revelation of Divine Love'' Jesus tells her that [[TearJerker It has been behooved that sin should exist. But, all will be well, and all manner of thing will be well]]. This, by the by, basically [[OlderThanTheyThink recreated the old Christian sect of Universalism]].
64	* "Woman, behold your son. Son, behold your mother."
65	* "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you." - John 15:13-15
66	* "[[YouAreNotAlone I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.]]" - Matthew 28:20
67	* "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away" - Revelation 21:4
68	* The entire purpose of Jesus on Earth. God was willing to sacrifice and forsake his OWN son (who [[SilentScapegoat willingly did so]] with [[TheDeterminator determination]]) just so that humanity - who were unworthy of salvation - could be saved. In other words, God himself pulls the ScrewDestiny trope for humanity.
69	* Simeon being able to meet Jesus as a baby before he dies. The Bible says that, ''Then he took him up in his arms , and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, While thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of thy people Israel.'' (Luke 2: 28-32). Not only does the guy get to die happy, but he also foretells the hope that Jesus will bring to God's people.
70	* The Parable of the Good Samaritan[[note]]There was mutual animosity between the full-blooded Jews and the Samaritans, part-Jew and part-Gentile on account of the Assyrian Empire's habit of mixing conquered peoples up.[[/note]] that ends with Jesus asking the lawyer of the three men who passed by the stricken man, who was his neighbor. When the Lawyer responds, "The one who helped him," Jesus simply responds, "Go and do the same."
71	* The Parable of the Lost [[SweetSheep Sheep.]]
72	* The Parable of the Prodigal Son.
73	** Even better if you are familiar with what the culture was like back then. When the Son asked his Father to give him his inheritance, he was basically saying [[TearJerker "You know what, Dad? You're pretty much dead to me; I don't need you anymore, so just give me my inheritance now so I can do things my own way."]] Can you imagine what a blow that must have been to the Father, hearing his own Son say things like that to him? And yet after the youth wastes his money on an unhealthy lifestyle (and to the Jewish audience, the hog-farming is a sign of extreme desperation), he realizes what a mistake he's made and decides that he wants to return to his Father again, if so only as a servant. But when the Father sees that his son is returning- just a ''glimpse'', that was all he needed- he didn't walk, but ''ran'' toward his son, embracing him with open arms, throwing a party in his honor and completely forgiving him for all the things he's done. That's God-given grace personified.
74	* Jesus washing the feet of his disciples, and the instructions he gives to them.
75	-->"You call me Master and Teacher, and thus I am rightfully so. Since I, the teacher and master, have washed your feet, you must wash each other's feet as well. I have given you a model to follow, and do I as I have done."
76	* Various things that happened during the Stations of the Cross (Christ's crucifixion) that prove [[RousseauWasRight not all humans are bastards]]:
77	** Simon of Cyrene carries the cross. In some interpretations, he was ordered to, but in others, he did it solely because he felt sorry for Jesus and wanted to ease His burden.
78	** Veronica wipes the face of Jesus. Veronica (now Saint Veronica) was moved with pity when she saw Jesus carrying His cross to Golgotha and gave him her veil that He might wipe His forehead.
79	** Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem. A group of women watched the crucifixion and wept because they knew Jesus and because He was fair with them. So Jesus urged those women not to weep for Him, but to weep over the sin taking Him to His cross.
80	* There is the final appearance of Jesus to his disciples, where He takes Peter aside, the man Jesus said who would deny any association with him after the arrest, to ask him one question three times: "Do you love me?" When Peter responds with "You know I do," with a growing understanding of this conversation's meaning, Jesus makes it clear that all is forgiven and Peter's place as the greatest of the original Apostles is assured.
81	* "My command is this: [[AllLovingHero Love each other as I have loved you]]. Greater love has no one than this: [[HeroicSacrifice to lay down one’s life for one’s friends]]. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you." John 15:12-15
82	* The fact that Jesus' disciples included Matthew (a tax collector for the Roman Empire) ''and'' Simon the [[LaResistance Zealot]]. Goes to show that educated, intelligent, godly, caring people ''can'' honestly differ on politics.
83	* Zacchaeus the tax collector. He really, really wants to see Jesus -- not even talk, just see -- to the point he actually climbs on a tree because he's too short to look above the crowd. Jesus' reaction when he realizes someone's perched into the tree is ''calling Zacchaeus by his name'', telling him to come down because Jesus wants to visit his house. The tax collector is so overwhelmed and happy he swears to immediately make amends with every people he ever wronged.
84	* "Doubting" Thomas, the token skeptic among the Apostles, refuses to believe in Jesus's Resurrection until he actually sees Him and touches Him. Rather than admonish Thomas for his lack of faith, Jesus simply appears to him and invites him to touch His body and examine His wounds. Thomas's skepticism is treated as a perfectly understandable thing, and Jesus does not hesitate to provide proof that his faith is justified. And Thomas does not hesitate to acknowledge Jesus as his Lord and God once he has that proof.
85	--> "You believe now that you have seen. Blessed are they who have not seen yet still believe."
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88	[[folder:New Testament Others]]
89	* The Centurion. He walks up and asks Jesus to heal his servant, and says he knows Jesus won't need to physically be there. Just talking will do it. Jesus is ''genuinely impressed'' and agrees saying, "He's better, go see him."
90	* When Paul's jailhouse broke around him freeing him from his prison he decided to stay. Seeing that his prison guard was fearful for his life he told him, "Do yourself no harm for we are still here." Overwhelmed by the situation the guard falls to his knees and asks quite plainly, "What must I do to be saved?" The answer given is, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved." On that day Jesus did save that man as he was converted by Paul's words.
91	* It's become a GeniusBonus since the end of the Roman Empire, but in the LongList of names that is [[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+16&version=NIV Romans chapter 16]] we see men and women, as well as city officials and slaves, working together as equals. That must have dropped a few jaws in AncientRome!

Context Heartwarming / TheBible