Timeline of the Bible
Before we begin to look at each book individually, it is helpful to get a general timeline of the periods in which the biblical authors were writing. Remember, the Bible was not written in the order we read it today, and many of the books overlap one another.
Please note, that some of my placements of certain books on this timeline are controversial and contested. For this project, I have chosen to go with the general scholarly consensus and those with the most historical evidence and support; though I will not argue conclusively regarding some. For my own purposes, this is the timeline I have developed and use. If you disagree, that is fine, and I’d love to discuss! (Please also note, that as I continue to study and work through this handbook, I may make updates to the timeline included here. If this occurs, I will note those changes and give reason below.)
Timeline of the Old Testament
The Old Testament was written from around 1450 B.C. to just before 400 B.C., yet it covers a time period even longer. The following two charts give us a general timeline showing the approximate dates of when the historical events of each book happened. (The dates depicted are not exact.)
Timeline of Old Testament Prophets
As you may have noticed, the Prophets are not shown on the first chart. This is because all of the prophets were writing in a much smaller period, between around 800BC to 415BC.
The next chart zooms in, and shows the approximate times in which they wrote their books, relative to the kings ruling in their respective nations. (Some of the minor kings are left off the timeline.)
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Timeline of the New Testament
Between the Old Testament finishing with Malachi and the New Testament beginning with the birth of Jesus, there is a silent period of around 400 years, in which there is no written record of God’s prophetically inspired Word. Although there are other historical and apocryphal books written during this time, recounting Jewish life in Israel and even miraculous works of God, since the earliest church tradition these books have been excluded from being considered as scripture inspired by God.
The New Testament was written between 35AD and 90AD, covering as far back as the events leading up to Jesus’ birth. Here is an estimated timeline of which time periods are covered in each book.
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© Anthony Scott Ingram 2020. All Rights Reserved.
Photo by Carolyn V on Unsplash
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”