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Believe It or Not

Bible stories you simply can’t miss. Click on the titles to learn all about these mind-boggling moments.

Featured Fascinating Fact of the Week

Ninety-Year-Old Mom: X
Abraham's wife, Sarah, was old enough to be a greatgrandmother twenty times over, but she still hadn't had even one kid–and now she was ninety! So when God told Sarah she'd have a son, she laughed. Turns out the last laugh was on her. God performed a miracle and Sarah got pregnant and had a boy. Abraham (apparently in a funny mood) named the kid Isaac. That's Hebrew for "laughter." (See Genesis 18:1-15; 21:1-7.) If they'd had a girl, what would he have named her? Giggles?

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Take Away the Bulls!: X
In Lystra Paul and Barnabas met another man who had been lame from birth. Paul said, "Stand up on your feet!" and again the man jumped up and began to walk. The crowds were so blown away that they thought Paul and Barnabas were gods. They brought bulls to sacrifice to them. (See Acts 14:8-18.) Now, that was weird.
Into the Water, into the Fire, Out of the Kid: X
A vicious demon once possessed a young boy and constantly threw him into the water or the fire, trying to kill him. When Jesus showed up, the boy fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. Gross! Jesus commanded the demon to leave and the spirit shrieked, convulsed the boy violently, and came out. Problem was, the boy looked so much like a corpse that people thought he'd died. ("Umm, killing him was not what we had in mind, Lord.") Relax. The boy was still alive. Jesus helped him to his feet. (See Mark 9:14-29.)
You Just Won a Forty-Year Supply!: X
About three million Israelites were in the desert for forty years, and during that time they ate manna three times a day—not including snacks. That's a lot of manna! Every person ate one omer (two quarts) of manna per day (Exodus 16:21-22). So how much manna did that crew chow down in forty years? To get a ballpark figure, multiply three million people times forty years times 365 days times two quarts, and you get nearly ninety billion quarts of manna (87,600,000,000 to be exact). Let's hear a big old burp!
Worst Storm in Egypt's History!: X
When Pharaoh refused to let the Israelites go, Moses warned that God was about to send the worst hailstorm in Egypt's history. He told the Egyptians to get all their livestock and workers to shelter. Since they'd just had six mega-plagues, some Egyptians feared God and rushed their slaves and cattle indoors. Unfortunately, most Egyptians ignored Moses' warnings. Not for long! Suddenly God sent a deafening plague of baseball-sized hail. As it fell, lightning flashed back and forth. The hailstones beat down all the crops, stripped every tree, killed the cattle, and slew the slaves. (See Exodus 9:17-26.)
A Question for Agrippa: X
Raising dead people back to life is a huge miracle. But like the apostle Paul asked King Agrippa, "Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?" (Acts 26:8). Yeah. Good question. Why should you? God is all-powerful. Raising the dead is no big deal for him. So get a grip, Agrippa.
Crippled Man Jumps!: X
One day this poor crippled guy was sitting in the temple gate begging. When he asked Peter and John for money, Peter said, "In the name of Jesus the Messiah of Nazareth, walk!" Peter grabbed his hand, pulled him up, and immediately the man began walking and jumping. Now, miracle number one was that his legs were made whole. Miracle two was that the guy was over forty years old and had never walked! Bet some of his jumps were pretty wild. Five thousand people saw him jumping and became Christians. (See Acts 3:1-4:4.)