The miniseries known as The Bible offers 10 episodes.
1) In The Beginning
God's favor shines on his servant Abraham so he makes a vow to make the man the father of a great nation. In obedience to God Abraham sets out with his nephew Lot, but issues between their camps cause Lot to go his own way. Abraham continues to have faith, but in a moment of doubt Sarah tells him to father a child with Hagar. When angels come to judge Sodom, which troubles Abraham because that is where Lot has gone, they promise Sarah a boy to be named Isaac. But God requires a sacrifice and he names Isaac as the offering.
-This episode covers all of Genesis: the creation, Adam & Eve, Cain & Abel, and the flood of Noah. These are covered very quickly (disappointingly so, especially with the story of Noah), and the story only slows down when it reaches Abraham. However, we get a good sense of what Abraham's life might have been like. Before it begins with the Bible it begins with an introduction speaking of the importance of the Bible on society and then previews what is coming in the later episodes.
2) Exodus
The Israelites have been enslaved in Egypt thanks to being driven there by famine. Moses has grown up on the house of the Pharaoh and doesn't even know his Jewish heritage until he is confronted by the Pharaoh’s jealous son. He is forced to leave the good life when he strikes down an Egyptian for beating a Jew. Exiled from his home he is called by God to return and demand the release of the Jews from slavery. The new Pharaoh will have none of this nonsense, but God will show His power through increasingly intense plagues. The Israelites are finally released but find themselves trapped against the Red Sea as the Egyptian army closes in on them.
-This is a much different take on the relationship between Ramases and Moses than Prince of Egypt. The plagues are mostly presented as a montage with only a couple being shown in any real detail. I was disappointed in the omission of the snake staff miracle. While we spend a lot of time with Moses we spend little time with Israel in the widerness. There is a brief mention of the 10 Commandments, but the passing of the torch to Joshua at the same time is out of place. The parting of the Red Sea is spectacular, and the angel of death taking the firstborn is creepy.
3) Homeland
Joshua is ready to take the Israelites against Jericho and sends in spies to scope it out. They find an unlikely source of help. After they take the land and settle in they become oppressed again by a rival society so God raises up a judge to aid them. Samson is a sight to behold taking down Philistines left and right until he is lured and betrayed by a woman. Eventually the Israelites tire of relying on judges to save them and approach the prophet Samuel to appoint a king.
-The jump from the story of Jericho to the story of Samson feels too rushed. We don't really see anything else of Israel taking the Promised Land nor of the time leading up to the judges. Then jumping from Samson to Saul feels jarring. This episode, perhaps more than any other, might have been improved more by slowing down in the overview of the larger history.
4) Kingdom
Saul is getting too full of himself as king to the point that God finally forsakes him in his disobedience. A new king is needed and Samuel chooses David. David proves his faith by killing Goliath. His popularity eventually sends Saul off the deep end so that he hunts David until his failure in battle finally gets the best of him, and David takes the crown. David brings the Ark back to Jerusalem then sets his eyes on Bathsheeba.
-While the relationship between David and Saul is brilliantly realized here, a couple of my biggest complaints about the series come from this episode. There is nothing of the selection process when Samuel chooses David. It almost looks like Samuel just sees some random kid with a slingshot killing a beast and says, “Hey, want to be a king?” Then when Nathan confronts David with this adultery, the scene is not what I expected from reading the story, and David's repentance is not nearly as intense as the scriptures portray it.
5) Survival
Israel refuses to listen to the prophet Jeremiah who now commands the king to submit to Nebuchadnezzar and face God's retribution. Daniel is among the prisoners taken to Babylon. He will become their leader there and makes a name for himself by interpreting dreams for the king. But Daniel is not the only one who will bow to worship only God, and those others are put in the fire for their faith. When King Neby dies a Persian king sweeps in, and the prophecies say he will set the Israelites free. His advisers fear the sway that Daniel gains upon him, and they plot a way to get rid of him by tricking the king into sentencing him to the lion's den. But seeing his God with him convinces the king to send the Israelites home.
-Neby is right creepy in this depiction; he's ruthless and brutal. There's a particularly good, tense scene with the warring kings facing off while the lives of young boys hang between them. The furnace scene is fantastic – visually and emotionally powerful.
6) Hope
Israel is now under Roman rule and tormented as they have never been. As they are beaten down young Mary is visited by an angel and told she will bear the child of God, but Joseph has a hard time accepting her words when she presents herself as pregnant out of wedlock. They eventually marry and set off for Bethlehem for the census. When an astrologer comes looking for the new king Harod knows nothing of him and begins hunting for the knowledge of the ancient prophecy. Harod's slaughter of the children sends Mary and Joseph fleeing to Egypt only returning once Harod has died. Once gown Jesus comes to John who is baptizing crowds with water. After being baptized himself Jesus sets off for the wilderness to be tempted. With that preparation completed it comes time for him to gather disciples.
-I found this a strange choice for the angel visitation to Mary. He comes at a moment of distress rather than peace. There are a number of omissions here that have bothered a number of viewers: there's no dove at the baptism, no mention of Jesus going to the synagog as a child, no setup of John's birth, and no angels appearing to shepherds the night of the birth. Even so, the story is stirring and more realistic than the typical nativity reenactment.
7) Mission
The Jewish religious leaders don't like the crowd leaving them to flock to Jesus. People want his miracles so much that some resort to ripping holes in ceilings to bring the sick to him for healing. But who is this man who presumes to forgive sin? He teaches people to pray and comes to the aid of sinners standing in judgment. People don't understand his mission here, but he uses the scriptures to open their eyes. He continues his ministry even resurrecting the dead.
-This has a wonderfully touching scene as Jesus tells the parable of the tax collector praying with none other than Matthew sitting right off to the side. It has a slightly different wording of the casting of the first stone than I'm used to though the effect is the same.
8) Betrayal
When Jesus arrives at Jerusalem the crowds gather en masse before him. He begins causing trouble when he turns the tables of the money changes over in the temple. The Pharisees plot to make a fool of Jesus. When that doesn't work they plot to stop him once and for all by whatever means necessary. Jesus prepares himself with a last supper with his disciples. He is arrested in secret and tried at night.
-This is an interesting look at the Pharisees. Many are not “evil” in the sense that they want to stop this man from telling people about God so much as they are worried that with the uprisings surrounding Jesus Pilate will close the temple and keep the Jews from being able to celebrate Passover. However, while their concerns are understandable they are still whitewashed tombs who can't see the truth when he stares them right in the face. Nicodemus is the exception. We follow him as he questions Jesus evermore impressed with the teacher's words until he is compelled to approach Jesus looking for real answers.
9) Passion
The high priest needs Pilate's involvement to successfully execute Jesus. Pilate has the rabbi beaten and decides to let the crowd decide who goes free and who gets executed. They cry to have Jesus crucified. The great teacher is brutally executed and entombed.
-There is no mention here of the Roman guards posted by the tomb which I've always seen as an important element. Just the same this is a brutal and moving crucifixion scene that can be hard to watch.
10) Courage
Three days have passed and crazy Mary comes running in ranting about Jesus being alive. When she finally convinces some of the disciples to check it out they find the tomb amiss. Jesus indeed returns and sends his disciples out into the world to preach before returning to to the heavens. The Spirit comes to the disciples and they begin performing miracles themselves. The religious leaders don't like it and try to strongarm the men into silence. Meanwhile, Saul (Paul) of Tarsus stands up against those who would preach and is given authority to hunt down and kill the followers of Jesus. As these men run from him Paul is chosen by Jesus himself to take the word to the world.
-Another hard to watch scene is Stephen getting stoned. The disciples are killed although the narrator points out that this is according to tradition and not actually scriptural. In addition to getting a brief but powerful synopsis of Paul's ministry we get a short focus on John writing Revelation and the promise that Christ will one day return.