What you’re referring to as “The Christian bible” is roughly 77% the Hebrew Bible (referred to as “the Old Testament” by Christians). There are a lot of stories

What you’re referring to as “The Christian bible” is roughly 77% the Hebrew Bible (referred to as “the Old Testament” by Christians). There are a lot of stories in the Hebrew Bible about The Lord “choosing” one people and bringing about the destruction of another. It sounds brutal and unjust (which, to me, are intriguing qualities to attribute to God—as opposed to a simplistic, purely benevolent God that a child might believe in) but the stories themselves are wonderfully interesting (e.g. Exodus). As someone who read the Bible as an atheist, I strongly believe that faith is not required to appreciate, and even be guided by, the Bible. Much in the same way one does not need to believe in orcs to appreciate and learn from Lord of the Rings.