A Father For
The Bible for the Jewish People
You are the people of the covenant — the people through whom the Scriptures came, and to whom the revelation of God as Father first arrived. Long before anyone else, your own prophets and psalms called Him "our Father." That tender Fatherhood is woven through the Tanakh, an invitation to know the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob not only as Sovereign, but as the One who loves you like a Father loves a child.
If you are Jewish, the God your own Scriptures reveal already calls Himself your Father. The covenant is yours, the prophets are yours, the Psalms are yours — and within them, again and again, the Holy One is named as Father. "You, O LORD, are our Father" (Isaiah 64:8). "As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him" (Psalm 103:13). Whether you searched "God as Father in the Hebrew Bible," "does God love His people," or "Bible verses about God's fatherly love," the answer is already written in the Tanakh. The Father's Heart Bible™ is a fresh English translation, free to read and listen to, that simply makes visible the Father-heart of God your own Scriptures already proclaim — not to replace what you treasure, but to honor the intimacy your prophets sang of.
By Kevin White — leading the Father’s Heart Bible™ translation · Last updated June 2026
Key takeawayThe God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob reveals Himself as Father in your own Scriptures — He longs to be known not only as Sovereign and Lawgiver, but as a Father who loves His children with everlasting compassion.
A God of awe — and of tender compassion
The God of Israel is rightly held in awe — transcendent, holy, beyond all naming. And yet the same Scriptures that command reverence also sing of His Fatherly tenderness. For many today, that nearness can feel distant. The numbers tell part of the story.
- ~15.7M
- Jews worldwide — the global Jewish population (Jewish Agency / DellaPergola, 2023)
- ~7.2M
- Jews living in Israel, the largest Jewish community in the world (Jewish Agency, 2023)
- ~7.5M
- Jews in the United States, the second-largest community (Pew Research, 2021)
- 26%
- of U.S. Jews describe themselves as Jewish by culture or ancestry, not by religion (Pew Research, 2021)
- 27%
- of U.S. Jews say religion is "very important" in their lives (Pew Research, 2021)
- 61%
- of recently married U.S. Jews (since 2010) have a non-Jewish spouse (Pew Research, 2021)
Behind every figure is a person and a people with a story unlike any other — a people who carried the Scriptures of the living God across millennia, through exile and return, through unspeakable suffering, through faithfulness that the world owes a debt of gratitude to. To be Jewish is to belong to the covenant people, the people of Torah, of awe, of remembrance and tradition.
And within that very heritage there is a tenderness sometimes easy to lose beneath the weight of law and transcendence. The Holy One is approached with reverence — rightly so — yet your own prophets insist He is also near: a Father who carries His child, who has compassion, who longs to be known intimately. For some, faith has grown distant or has become more cultural than personal; for others, the ache is simply to feel close to a God who can seem far above. The good news is older than any of us: the nearness you may long for is already promised in the words your people gave the world.
Sources: Pew Research — Jewish Americans in 2020Jewish Virtual Library — Vital Statistics: Jewish Population of the WorldThe Jewish Agency — World Jewish Population (DellaPergola)
A Father for the Jewish people
Here is something your own Scriptures say with stunning tenderness: the Holy One, blessed be He — the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob — is not only King and Judge and Lawgiver. He is also a Father. "Is He not your Father, who created you?" asks Moses in Deuteronomy 32:6. "You, O LORD, are our Father," cries Isaiah (63:16; 64:8). This is not a borrowed idea — it was first revealed to your people, in your books, in your prayers.
To honor the Fatherhood of God is not to leave the awe behind. It is to discover that the same transcendent One who thunders on Sinai also bends down like a father teaching a child to walk (Hosea 11:3). The God who is utterly holy is also utterly tender. Both are true, and your prophets held them together without contradiction.
So before the world ever spoke of God as Father, your Scriptures did. The Father's Heart Bible™ simply lets that nearness be heard clearly — a fresh English translation that brings out the Father-heart of God wherever your own Scriptures reveal it. It comes humbly, with deep respect, as an invitation: the God you revere from afar longs to be known up close.
Long before the world spoke of God as Father, your own prophets did. "You, O LORD, are our Father" — the nearness you may long for is already written in your Scriptures.
Photos via Pexels.
Bible verses for the Jewish people: the Father's voice
Nine verses — nearly all from the Hebrew Scriptures your people gave the world — where the God of Israel reveals Himself as a tender Father. Tap any reference to read and listen free.
“And yet, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are the potter — we are all the work of Your hand.”
Your own prophet names God as Father — the One who shapes His people with a maker's tender care.
Isaiah 64:8“As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him.”
The Psalter measures God's mercy by a father's tenderness — awe and intimacy held together.
Psalm 103:13“When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son.”
God remembers His people as a beloved child — His love for Israel began in tenderness, not in law.
Hosea 11:1“Is He not your Father, who created you, who made you and established you?”
In the Song of Moses, the Father-heart of God is declared at the very foundation of the covenant.
Deuteronomy 32:6“For You are our Father, though Abraham does not know us and Israel does not acknowledge us; You, O LORD, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is Your name.”
When every other comfort fails, Isaiah reaches for the deepest one: You are our Father.
Isaiah 63:16“With weeping they will come, and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back; for I am a Father to Israel, and Ephraim is My firstborn.”
God promises to gather His people home not as a distant ruler but as a Father leading His firstborn.
Jeremiah 31:9“Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us?”
The last of the prophets grounds the whole people's unity in one truth: one Father made us all.
Malachi 2:10“A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling.”
Even in His holy dwelling, the exalted God stoops to be Father to the ones with no one else.
Psalm 68:5“The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing.”
The God of awe is also the God who sings over His people — delight, not only judgment, is His heart.
Zephaniah 3:17What "our Father" offers you
Your Scriptures reveal a God who is both transcendent and tender. Here is what He offers His people — already written in your own books, free to read and hear.
A Father, not only a Sovereign
"You, O LORD, are our Father." In Isaiah 64, the prophet reaches past the throne to the heart — the same holy God you revere calls Himself the potter who shapes you with a father's care.
Compassion measured like a father's
Psalm 103 says God's mercy toward His people is like a father's compassion for his children — nearness offered without ever diminishing His holiness.
A love that began in tenderness
"When Israel was a child, I loved him." Hosea 11 remembers God teaching His people to walk, lifting them like a parent lifts a little one to His cheek — the covenant rooted in affection.
A Father to the ones with no one else
Psalm 68 calls God "a father to the fatherless" — the exalted One who dwells in holiness still bends down to defend, gather, and belong to His people.
Why the Father's Heart Bible™ for the Jewish people
It surfaces the Father-heart already in the Tanakh
The Fatherhood of God is not a new idea added on — it is in Isaiah, the Psalms, Hosea, Deuteronomy, Jeremiah, and Malachi. The Father's Heart Bible™ simply lets that nearness be heard clearly, revealing God as Father wherever your own Scriptures already do. Begin where it all begins, in Genesis 1.
Free to read and hear, for yourself
No account, no purchase, no app. Read it free online with audio on every chapter — listen to Isaiah, the Psalms, or Hosea in your own time, and weigh the words for yourself. It comes as an offering, never a demand.
It speaks to the longing for nearness
If God can feel far above, the same Scriptures that command awe also promise closeness. Explore our verses by topic or find words for prayer with our how-to-pray guide — the God of your fathers invites you to draw near.
The Father's heart, in their words
The Father your own Scriptures reveal longs to be known. The truth beneath every verse here — that the Holy One is named Father in the Tanakh — is the one these voices gave their lives to:
“Answered prayer is the interchange of love between the Father and His child.”
“The hardest, gladdest thing in the world is, to cry Father! from a full heart.”
“God tenderly invites us to believe that He is our true Father and we are His true children.”
Photos via Wikimedia Commons — Andrew Murray, George MacDonald, and Martin Luther (all public domain).
His Word will not return void
You may not feel everything the first time you read. That is alright. The nearness of God is not a passing feeling — it is a promise as old as your people, and promises take root quietly. Every verse you take in is a word from the God who has loved Israel from the beginning, planting something that endures.
"So shall My word be that goes out from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, but shall accomplish that which I purpose." — Isaiah 55:11
Be loved first
Open the Father’s Heart Bible™ free, with audio, on any phone — and soak in the love you were made for.
What your Father says over you
"I have loved you with an everlasting love; with unfailing kindness I have drawn you to Myself. Before the world began I chose your people, and I have not forgotten you for a single day. When you were a child I taught you to walk and lifted you to My cheek.
I am your Father. I am holy, and I am near. Do not think Me only distant, only Sovereign — I am the One who has compassion on His children, who gathers, who sings over those I love. You are precious in My sight. Come close, and know Me as the Father I have always been to you."
A prayer for the Jewish people
Our Father, we come to You with deep respect and gratitude for the Jewish people — the people of the covenant, through whom Your Scriptures came to the world, and to whom You first made Yourself known. We thank You for their faithfulness across the centuries, and we ask Your blessing, Your peace, and Your protection over them in every land.
You are the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Holy One who is also a Father to His children. We pray that the warmth of Your Fatherhood, already written in Isaiah and the Psalms and the prophets, would be felt close and personal — that those who revere You from afar would know the nearness You promised. Comfort those who grieve, strengthen those who feel distant, and let Your shalom rest on every home.
Father, let the words of Your own Scriptures speak life and tenderness, and draw every searching heart into the intimacy You have always offered Your people. May the God who sings over His own be known and loved.
In Jesus' name, amen.
Keep reading
Begin with the whole Bible free online with audio — read Isaiah, the Psalms, or Hosea for yourself — learn why the Father's Heart Bible™ exists, or get oriented with our Bible reading guides, including how to pray and verses by topic. Or explore the rest of the A Father For series.
More in this series
Frequently asked questions
Does the Hebrew Bible call God Father?
Yes. The Fatherhood of God is rooted in the Hebrew Scriptures themselves. Isaiah 63:16 and 64:8 say plainly, "You, O LORD, are our Father." Deuteronomy 32:6 asks, "Is He not your Father, who created you?" Malachi 2:10 says, "Have we not all one Father?" The God of Israel revealed Himself as Father long before the idea reached the wider world. Read these passages free, with audio, at fathersheartbible.com/read.
Is God a Father in the Old Testament and the Tanakh?
Very much so. Psalm 103:13 compares God's compassion to a father's compassion for his children. Hosea 11:1 recalls, "When Israel was a child, I loved him." Jeremiah 31:9 declares, "I am a Father to Israel." Psalm 68:5 calls Him "a father to the fatherless." The Tanakh holds God's awesome holiness and His Fatherly tenderness together. You can read all of these free at fathersheartbible.com/read.
Does God love His people?
The Scriptures of Israel answer yes again and again. "I have loved you with an everlasting love" (Jeremiah 31:3). Zephaniah 3:17 says God rejoices over His people and quiets them with His love. His love is described as everlasting, faithful, and tender — a Father's love for His children. Read these promises free, with audio, in the Father's Heart Bible™ at fathersheartbible.com/read.
What are good Bible verses about God's fatherly love?
From the Hebrew Scriptures: Isaiah 64:8 ("You are our Father"), Psalm 103:13 (a father's compassion), Hosea 11:1 ("When Israel was a child, I loved him"), Deuteronomy 32:6 ("Is He not your Father?"), Jeremiah 31:9 ("I am a Father to Israel"), Psalm 68:5 ("a father to the fatherless"), and Malachi 2:10 ("Have we not all one Father?"). Read and hear them all free at fathersheartbible.com/read.
Is there a free Bible with audio I can read online?
Yes. The Father's Heart Bible™ is free to read and listen to online — no account, no purchase, no app. Open fathersheartbible.com/read and read or hear any book, including Isaiah, the Psalms, Hosea, and the prophets. It comes humbly, as something to weigh for yourself.
What is the Father's Heart Bible™, and is it respectful of Jewish faith?
The Father's Heart Bible™ is a fresh English translation that brings out the Father-heart of God wherever Scripture reveals it — including throughout the Hebrew Scriptures. It does not aim to replace what the Jewish people treasure, nor to demand anything. It simply makes visible the tender Fatherhood your own prophets and psalms already proclaim, offered with deep respect as an invitation to know the God of your fathers more intimately.
How can I begin reading the Scriptures and drawing near to God?
Start small and start free. Open fathersheartbible.com/read and begin with a Psalm, or with Isaiah, where God is named as Father. Listen to the audio as you read. Our how-to-pray guide and verses-by-topic pages can help you find words for whatever you carry, and let the nearness your Scriptures promise become personal.
Photos via Pexels.
The Father your Scriptures reveal longs to be known
Watch the story behind the Father's Heart Bible™ — the translation that surfaces the Father-heart of God already written in Isaiah, the Psalms, and the prophets. Then start reading free, and meet the God of your fathers not only as Sovereign, but as Father.
A Father for every calling and season — a word from the Father, whoever you are. Browse the whole series →