Bible timeline
The Bible story runs in this order: creation and the fall, the flood, the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph), Israel in Egypt and the exodus, the conquest of Canaan, the judges, the united kingdom (Saul, David, Solomon), the divided kingdom, the exile in Babylon, the return, about four hundred years between the Testaments, the life of Jesus, and the early church. Dates before about 1000 BC are approximate and debated.
This timeline puts the big eras of the Bible in order so you can see where each book and story fits. Each era lists the books that tell it and a verse to anchor it.
About the dates: the Bible gives many numbers (ages, reigns, 430 years in Egypt, 480 years from the exodus to the temple), but it does not give calendar years. The dates here are the conventional ones, marked about or traditional. Scholars differ, sometimes by centuries for the earliest eras, and the text itself gives no date at all for creation or the flood.
The eras of the Bible in order
Creation and the fall
God creates the heaven and the earth in six days, then Adam and Eve eat the forbidden fruit and are sent out of Eden. The Bible gives no calendar date; one traditional reckoning (Archbishop Ussher's) placed creation about 4004 BC, and many Christians read the timescale differently. Genesis 1-3.
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
Genesis 1:1The flood and the tower of Babel
Rain falls forty days and forty nights and only Noah's family and the animals in the ark survive. Later God confounds the language at Babel and scatters the nations. No date is given in the text. Genesis 6-11.
Genesis 7:12
The patriarchs
God calls Abram to leave his country, and promises the land to him, Isaac and Jacob. Joseph is sold into Egypt and rises to rule there. Conventionally placed about 2000-1800 BC. Genesis 12-50.
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
Genesis 12:1Israel in Egypt
Jacob's family goes down to Egypt and grows into a nation, then is enslaved. Exodus says the sojourning in Egypt was 430 years. Exodus 1.
Exodus 12:40
The exodus and the wilderness
Moses leads Israel out after the ten plagues, the law is given at Sinai, and the people wander forty years. The traditional date, from the 480 years of 1 Kings 6:1, is about 1446 BC; many scholars favor the 1200s BC. Exodus to Deuteronomy.
Numbers 14:33
The conquest of Canaan
After Moses dies, Joshua leads Israel over the Jordan and the land is divided among the tribes. About 1400 BC on the traditional dating, later on others. Book of Joshua.
Joshua 1:2
The judges
Israel cycles through sin, oppression and deliverance under judges from Othniel to Samson, and Ruth's story is set in these days. Roughly about 1350-1050 BC. Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel 1-7.
Judges 17:6
The united kingdom
Israel asks for a king. Saul, David and Solomon each reign over all twelve tribes, and Solomon builds the temple. About 1050-930 BC. 1 Samuel 8 to 1 Kings 11.
1 Samuel 8:5
The divided kingdom
After Solomon the ten northern tribes follow Jeroboam (Israel) and Judah stays with David's line. Prophets such as Elijah, Isaiah and Jeremiah speak in this era. About 930 BC; Assyria takes Samaria about 722 BC. 1 Kings 12 to 2 Kings 25.
1 Kings 12:20
The exile in Babylon
Nebuchadnezzar takes Jerusalem, burns the temple, and carries Judah away. Jeremiah foretold seventy years. Jerusalem falls about 586 BC. Daniel and Ezekiel are set in this time.
2 Kings 25:11
The return from exile
Cyrus king of Persia lets the Jews go home, about 538 BC. The temple is rebuilt (finished about 516 BC), Esther's story takes place in Persia, and Nehemiah rebuilds the wall in fifty-two days. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,
Ezra 1:1Between the Testaments
About four hundred years pass between Malachi and the birth of John the Baptist, traditionally called the silent years because no book of the Protestant Old Testament is set then. Persia, Greece and Rome rule the land in turn. Malachi closes with the promise of Elijah.
Malachi 4:5
The life of Jesus
Jesus is born in Bethlehem in the days of Herod the king, likely about 6-4 BC, begins His ministry at about thirty, and is crucified and rises again, about AD 30 or 33 on common reckonings. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John.
But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Galatians 4:4The early church
The Holy Ghost comes at Pentecost, the gospel spreads from Jerusalem to Rome, and Paul writes letters to churches. Acts closes with Paul preaching in Rome, about AD 60-62. Acts to Revelation.
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
Acts 1:8
Where the books fit
The Old Testament is not printed in time order. Genesis through Esther run roughly in sequence, but Job, Psalms, Proverbs and the prophets sit inside that story: Psalms mostly with David, Proverbs with Solomon, Isaiah and Hosea in the divided kingdom, Daniel and Ezekiel in the exile, Haggai and Zechariah in the return. In the New Testament, the Gospels and Acts tell the story, and the letters were written during the Acts era and after.
Why the dates differ
Different starting points give different answers. The traditional exodus date of about 1446 BC comes from counting back from Solomon's fourth year using the 480 years in 1 Kings 6:1. Many archaeologists prefer the 1200s BC. Kings' reigns sometimes overlapped, which also shifts totals. Dates from the divided kingdom onward, such as 722 BC and 586 BC, are much more settled, give or take a year.
But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Galatians 4:4 · KJV
How well do you know Bible timeline?
9 questions, every answer checked against the King James text. Play it here, then try a full book quiz.
Common questions
How many years does the Bible cover?
The Bible gives no single figure. Counting from Abraham to the early church is roughly two thousand years on conventional dates; how far back creation lies depends on how one reads Genesis, and Christians differ on that.
What is the order of events in the Bible?
Creation, the flood, the patriarchs, Egypt and the exodus, the conquest, the judges, the united kingdom, the divided kingdom, the exile, the return, the years between the Testaments, Jesus, and the early church.
When was the exodus?
The traditional date is about 1446 BC, based on 1 Kings 6:1. Many scholars place it in the 1200s BC. The text gives the interval to Solomon's temple, not a calendar year.
How long was the gap between the Old and New Testaments?
About four hundred years, from Malachi (traditionally about 430 BC) to the birth of John the Baptist.
Is the Bible in chronological order?
Not entirely. The story books mostly run in order, but the poetry and prophetic books are grouped by type and fit inside the story at different points.
The 52-Week Family Bible Trivia & Study Book
A Year of KJV Scripture Questions, Devotions & Answer Keys
If your family enjoys learning the Bible story together, the 52-Week Family Bible Trivia book has a year of weekly KJV questions, devotions and answer keys for game night.
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