Top 7 Best Biblical Novels

First of all, I have been an avid reader of Biblical novels in my youth, but more importantly, because I am the author of a Biblical novel (See # 5 in the list), and as such, I feel I am the best judge of what is good in a Biblical novel. Of course, I'm also making this page to help promote my newly revised, edited and re-published 3-Part Biblical novel. And, I'm actually making this page as the result of a "Squidquest" challenge to make a number book lens in any genre. Thank you, Squidoo for giving me the imputes.

First of all, you may want to check out this neat article I found on the importance of serious fiction, and then this other article I found on the quality of Christian fiction.

Just what is a Biblical Novel?

You might be wondering just what is a Biblical novel anyway? Is it a novel which at any point refers to the Bible or sites Biblical references? Not exactly.

A Biblical novel is actually a kind of historical novel - a type of historical fiction. It is a work of Biblical fiction, which is sub-genre of historical fiction. Thus a Biblical novel is actually a historical novel which takes place entirely in Biblical times or times at which the events recorded in the Bible took place and reflects one or more of these Biblical events to some extent. So, check out my list:

There are many novels based on Old Testament characters. I list only one here, as I see New Testament novels as more valuable in that they point to Christ the source of our salvation. Yet,I saw fit to include the bestselling Old Testament novel bellow as it is valuable for a different reason, as you will see by the synopsis.

[From Amazon:] Told in Dinah's voice, [the author] imagines the traditions and turmoils of ancient womanhood--the world of the red tent. It begins with the story of the mothers--Leah, Rachel, Zilpah, and Bilhah--the four wives of Jacob. They love Dinah and give her gifts that sustain her through childhood, a calling to midwifery, and a new home in a foreign land. Dinah's story reaches out from a remarkable period of early history and creates an intimate connection with the past.

Deeply affecting, The Red Tent combines rich storytelling with a valuable achievement in modern fiction: a new view of biblical women's lives.

There are also many novels which take place in New Testament times. Most of these point to Jesus Christ as the source of our salvation, either by depicting his substitutionary death on the cross for us, or looking back to it.

This is a novel about a Roman Soldier who was involved in the crucifixion of Jesus. It is a well written and intriguing story of the effect of the death of Christ on one of the Roman soldiers and on his servant, as well as on the woman the soldier falls in love with. But, the novel has one fault: it gives magical power to the robe Jesus wore. This goes against the clear teaching of the Bible. So, I don't recommend it, but if you really want to read it, you can find it online.

This is another well-written novel which takes place in the time of Christ. It is actually the sequel to The Robe (above). It deals specifically with the life of one of Jesus' disciples, namely, Peter. I don't find anything wrong with this one.

This is another well-written classic novel of the time of Christ, showing the effect His teachings and death had fictitiously on the lives of the main characters. This novel also poses an extra-Biblical miracle. The main character's relatives are miraculously healed by the blood of the dying Jesus. This opens the age-old debate as to whether or not there is healing in the atonement of Christ. Certainly, there is no mention in the Bible of anyone becoming physically healed through the blood of the crucified Christ. But it makes a nice story. So, if you really want, you can find it online.

This is the complete 3-part edition of my newly revised, fact-checked for historical accuracy, fine-tooth-comb edited, and re-published Biblical novel. Part I deals with the insurrection against Pontius Pilate and who may have really been behind it. Part II is about a resulting robbery attempt and covers the crucifixion and leads up to the resurrection, and Part III covers the start of the early Church through Acts 12.

This is another well-written novel of the early church and features Simon the Magician who, as the book of Acts tells us, sought to buy God's power. It's another well written Biblical novel although it does attribute some magical powers to the chalice, just as "The Robe" did to the robe.

This is novel of Dr.Luke, who accompanied Paul on his travels and wrote two books of the New Testament. This is another well written Biblical novel, with which I can find no fault.

Active Search Results Search Engine