THE STORYTELLER’S BIBLE

 
Script by Bob Allen
 
Arranged for four voices. 
 
Voice two should be female.  The other voices can be either male or female.
Scene changes are indicated by numbers and should be marked by a pause, accompanied by a re-arrangement of the positions of the speakers.  Suggested staging and movements are included in the text. 
 
 
 
 
PART ONE: THE PENTATEUCH
 
Scene 1
 
3          2          1          4
 
VOICE ONE:              “In the beginning, God.”
 
VOICE TWO:             “In the beginning,” the creation of time.  The God who was  timeless set into motion the great time clock of the universe, a  totally new concept, a consciousness of events being related by past, present and future.
 
VOICE THREE:          “God, created the heavens,” the origin of space.  The God who was  limitless brought into existence the relationships of proximity and  distance.  And this God who already inhabited every part of the  past, present and future He had just created chose to identify  Himself with space and be everywhere present in His creation.
 
VOICE FOUR:            “God, created the earth,” the origin of matter.  The God who was  Spirit made something out of nothing, material out of immaterial,  touch and taste and sound and sight and smell.  And this God, who  immediately began to inhabit the environment of space and time,  made plans to one day take upon Himself the form of man and    share our material substance as well.
 
VOICE ONE:              “In the beginning, God.”
 
VOICE FOUR:            (STANDS)  God got up early that first morning of the creation  week.  
 
VOICE TWO:             (DIRECTLY TO # 4 IN ONSTAGE FOCUS)  Actually God didn’t "get up" at all because He is Spirit and not matter.
 
VOICE THREE:          (DIRECTLY TO # 4)  And it wasn’t early because time had not yet started.
 
VOICE ONE:              (DIRECTLY TO # 2 AND 3).  Wait a minute!   God gave us the  Bible in our own human language, and it’s the only language we  understand, so let’s talk about Him in human words, the way He  told us about Himself, agreed?
 
VOICE FOUR:            Agreed!  (OFFSTAGE FOCUS) God got up early that first  morning of creation week.
 
VOICE THREE:          Agreed!  (STANDING)  There was much to be done.
 
VOICE TWO:             Agreed!  (STANDING)   God planned in six days to create the  most beautiful, perfect composition that would ever echo through  the auditorium of the universe.
 
VOICE ONE:              (STANDING)  He began with rhythm, a single drumbeat marking  time.  One beat—then silence.
 
VOICE TWO:             A second beat, and the first beat created the past.
 
VOICE THREE:          A third beat in the present, and in the pregnant pause that followed,  the anticipation of another beat confirmed that future had also  taken shape.
 
VOICE FOUR:            With the pulse of the rhythm of time came sound.  The echo of the sound of the drum beat coming from somewhere, indicated that space, another great building block of the universe had sprung into existence. 
  
VOICE TWO:             And then, with a mighty flourish, God swung the baton of His creative power and the sources of sound and rhythm appeared.
 
VOICE ONE:              Water drummed a percussive beat on the tympani of a rocky  shoreline as matter joined with time and space as the tools from  which God would complete His great composition of creation.
 
VOICE FOUR:            Day after day God added orchestral elements.  A grand crescendo accompanied the stretching out of the sky over the expanse of the heavens.
 
VOICE THREE:          Wind whistled through newly created tree branches, rose buds popped open, and grasses brushed against the stems of sturdy flowers.
 
VOICE TWO:             A triumphant trumpet fanfare greeted the first appearance of the sun as it made a grand entrance over the horizon as emperor of the day.
 
VOICE ONE:              A chorus of oboes and flutes, ten million strong, serenaded the moon as it emerged to rule the night.
 
VOICE THREE:          Violins and violas exploded with pizzicato praise as two hundred billion, billion stars lit up the night sky for the first time.
 
VOICE FOUR:            The breathless hush at the beginning of the fifth day was broken by the sudden rush of thousands of beating wings simultaneously taking flight.  Schools of fish raced through the initial exploration of their novel environment like an orchestra of cellists playing double time.
 
VOICE ONE:              Then came God’s powerful finale: day six of creation. 
 
VOICE THREE:          The symphony swelled as all of the creatures of the field added  their distinctive sounds.
 
VOICE TWO:             The bull moose trumpeted his arrival supported by a mighty chorus  of French horns punctuating the forests with the triumphant calls of  elk and reindeer.
 
VOICE FOUR:            The entire universe was inundated with the woodwind honk of the geese,
 
VOICE TWO:               the percussive chatter of the squirrel,
 
VOICE THREE:          the brassy trombone blasts of the elephant,
 
VOICE ONE:              and the flute-like trill of the finch.
 
VOICE FOUR:            The music swelled to a great crescendo as all the heavens declared  the glory of God
 
VOICES FOUR AND TWO:              and all the firmament resounded with praise.
 
VOICES FOUR/TWO/ONE:              Glory to God in the highest.
 
ALL VOICES:             Our God is an awesome God!
 
VOICE ONE:              And then—silence!
 
VOICE TWO:             All creation paused and took a deep breath in eager anticipation of  the next great event in God’s creative repertoire.
 
VOICE THREE:          (STEP FORWARD)  Adam!
 
VOICE FOUR:            (STEP FORWARD)  A work of art.  A masterpiece by Elohim, the majestic tri-une God  who alone could say, “Let us make man in  our image.”
 
VOICE ONE:              And God saw that it was good!
 
VOICE TWO:             God made man to rule.
 
VOICE ONE:              And it was very good.
 
VOICE THREE:          God made male and female.
 
VOICE ONE:              And it was very good.
 
VOICE FOUR:            The morning stars were singing together and all the sons of God  were shouting for joy.  The birds of the sky, the fish of the sea, the beasts of the field, were blending their voices in perfect harmony.
 
VOICE THREE:          Time, space, and matter accompanied them with sweeping strings and resonating brass, gentle woodwinds and potent percussion.
 
VOICE TWO:             (STEP FORWARD)  A thunderous ovation of glory and praise  resounded from the farthest corners of the universal amphitheater.
 
VOICE ONE:              (STEP FORWARD)  God Himself joined in the applause, calling  out in a mighty voice to all that He had just made—
 
ALL VOICES:            That’s good!  That’s very good