In order to interpret the text of the Bible according to its authors' intentions, it is best to read through in the order the books were composed, as well as that can be determined. But it also helps to observe where the events fit historically. The Bible is intentionally not in chronological order, but it gives enough information to reconstruct when certain events took place. Some of the dates, especially before Abraham, are total conjecture. What follows is my presentation of biblical history, compared with other historical events.
See this Summary of Biblical History for a brief narrative overview of events in the Bible.
See my article on Debated Dates for explanations of the dates I've chosen, particularly where others disagree.
I consulted the following sources for dates:
| Before Abraham | The Patriarchs | Exodus and Conquest | The Judges | United Monarchy |
| Divided Kingdom I | Divided Kingdom II | The Kingdom of Judah | The Exile and Return | The New Testament |
| History Before Abraham (all dates B.C.) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Alt. Date | Event | Reference |
| 12.5 to 15 billion | 4174 | God creates the matter, energy, dimensions, and forces of the universe. | Gen 1:1 |
| 300,000 years later | N/A | the universe cools to 3,000 K, a temperature that allows atoms to form. | |
| 11 billion | N/A | quasars and galaxies begin forming. | |
| 5 billion | N/A | Earth's solar system forms. | |
| 4.5 billion | N/A | the developing Earth's gravity attracts asteroids and ice comets that affect its orbit, speed, and radius so as to place it exactly in the position required to support life. | |
| 4.2 billion | 4174 | interstellar dust cools the Earth, transforming the steam from geysers and crashed comets into a layer of surface water that helps solidify Earth's crust. A barrier of water vapor shrouds the Earth in darkness, conserves needed heat, and protects it from ultraviolet rays. | Gen 1:2 |
| 3.8 billion | 4174 | the sun's increasing luminosity clears away interstellar dust and illuminates the Earth's surface for the first time, but thick water vapor in the atmosphere obscures the light source. | Gen 1:3-5 |
| 3.8-3.6 billion | 4174 | God creates the first life: single-celled, algae-like bacteria. | |
| 3.6 billion | 4174 | moisture binds to dust particles and falls to the sea, clearing the atmosphere from the bottom up, creating an expanse of clean air with the lighter fog forming a high cloud layer. | Gen 1:6-8 |
| 3.6-3.0 billion | 4174 | God introduces photosynthetic life forms which begin producing oxygen | |
| 3.0-2.6 billion | 4174 | Earth's cooling results in a thickening of its crust and the formation of convection cells which push halves of the crust away from each other. The halves meet on the other side of the Earth, building up the continents. | Gen 1:9-10 |
| 3.0-2.0 billion | 4174 | early plant life covers the dry land as it rises above the oceans. | Gen 1:11-13 |
| 2.1 billion | 4174 | Earth's oxygen reaches 60% of its current level; the first oxygen-breathing life forms appear, and earth's atmosphere is now transparent. The sun, moon, and stars are visible from the surface. | Gen 1:14-19 |
| 550-505 million | 4174 | Cambrian explosion of life; nearly 70 phyla of life suddenly appear; the water teems with living creatures. | Gen 1:20-23 |
| 505-245 million | 4174 | God introduces fish, insects, amphibians, and reptiles onto the Earth over the rest of the Paleozoic Era. | |
| 245-65 million | 4174-1200? | Dinosaurs dominate Earth's life forms. | |
| 200 million | 4174 | the first flying vertebrates appear. | Gen 1:20-23 |
| 64.7 million | N/A | a catastrophe causes the mass extinction of most life on Earth. | |
| 50-20 million | 4174 | huge marine mammals and small land mammals dominate; God introduces more advanced mammals over time. | Gen 1:24-25 |
| 5.3 million | 4174 | most of the animal types known today now exist on Earth. | |
| 3 million?-100,000? | N/A | evidently, human-like animals now called hominids roam the Earth, perhaps preparing nature for the presence of man. | |
| 24,941? | 4174 | God creates Adam and Eve in His image and completes His work; their sin places their descendants in bondage to sin and under condemnation. | Gen 1:26-4:2; 5:1-2 |
| 24,941-24,011? | 4174-3244 | the life of Adam. | Gen 5:3-5 |
| 24,815? | 4074? | Cain murders his brother Abel. | Gen 4:3-18 |
| 24,811-23,899? | 4044-3132 | the life of Adam's son Seth. | Gen 4:25-26; 5:6-8 |
| 24,706-23,801? | 3939-3034 | the life of Seth's son Enosh. | Gen 5:9-11 |
| 23,801-22,891? | 3849-2939 | the life of Kenan. | Gen 5:12-14 |
| 22,891-21,996? | 3779-2884 | the life of Mahalalel. | Gen 5:15-17 |
| 21,996-21,034? | 3714-2752 | the life of Jared. | Gen 5:18-20 |
| 21,034-20,669? | 3552-3187 | the life and translation of Enoch. | Gen 5:21-24 |
| 21,000 | 3400? | the story of Lamech. | Gen 4:19-24 |
| 20,969-20,000? | 3487-2518 | the life of Enoch's son Methuselah. | Gen 5:25-27 |
| 20,782-20,005? | 3300-2523 | the life of Methuselah's son Lamech. | Gen 5:30-31 |
| 20,600? | 3118 | the birth of Lamech's son Noah. | Gen 5:28-29 |
| 20,120? | 2638 | God condemns mankind and gives warning to Noah. | Gen 6:1-8, 11-22 |
| 20,102-20,098? | 2620-2616? | the birth of Shem, Ham, and Japheth. | Gen 5:32; 6:9-10; 1 Chr 1:1-4 |
| 20,000? | N/A | the Vela supernova erupts; its radiation permanently damages Earth's ozone layer, resulting in a gradual decline in the human lifespan until it levels out at 70-120 years. | |
| 20,000? | 2518 | God destroys the entire inhabited world with a flood, saving only the eight members of Noah's family. | Gen 7:1-8:12 |
| 19,999? | 2517 | the flood subsides and God makes a covenant with Noah. | Gen 8:13-9:19 |
| 19,999-1500? | 2517-1500? | the descendants of Shem, Ham, and Japheth populate the Earth. | Gen 10:1-32; 1 Chr 1:5-23 |
| 19,998-19,560? | 2516-2016 | the life of Shem's son Arphachshad. | Gen 11:12-13 |
| 19,950? | 2500? | the cursing of Ham's youngest son, Canaan. | Gen 9:20-27 |
| 18,000-17,567? | 2481-2048 | the life of Shelah. | Gen 11:14-15 |
| 16,650? | 2168 | the death of Noah. | Gen 9:28-29 |
| 16,000-15,536? | 2451-1987 | the life of Eber. | Gen 11:16-17 |
| 14,498? | 2016 | the death of Noah's son Shem. | Gen 11:10-11 |
| 14,000-13,000 | N/A | the floor of the Hecate Strait rises, forming a land bridge between Siberia and Canada. | |
| 13,000? | 2400? | God confuses the universal language at Babel. | Gen 11:1-9 |
| 13,000-12,761? | 2417-2178 | the life of Peleg. | Gen 11:18-19 |
| 13,000-11,000 | 2400? | people migrate to the American continent | |
| 10,000-9,500 | N/A | sea levels rise, destroying the Hecate land bridge and widening the straits between the continents and islands. | |
| Before Abraham | The Patriarchs | Exodus and Conquest | The Judges | United Monarchy |
| Divided Kingdom I | Divided Kingdom II | The Kingdom of Judah | The Exile and Return | The New Testament |
For a concise statement of my beliefs about history, see my Declaration of Faith.
