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Brief Summary of Biblical History One of the nagging problems which keeps people from understanding the Bible is that many have heard a few episodes of Biblical history or a few doctrines, but they have no understanding of the general course of the story by which to orient each of the pieces. This study is a very brief summary of key elements which help you get the "big picture" of what is going on in the Bible - the central theme or plot, the method by which God deals with mankind in each age, and a chronological view of major eras, events, and people. The Central Plot of the Bible The basic plot of the Biblical story is established by the end of Genesis chapter three. God created the universe (Genesis 1:1 - 2:4), placed the first man and woman in a garden-like setting with only one restriction (Genesis 2:5-25), and responded to their disobedience (Genesis 3:1-13) with declarations of what He was going to do. To Satan, who had instigated human rebellion, God promises his humiliation and defeat through the "seed of woman" who would crush his head, although this coming champion would himself be wounded in the encounter (Genesis 3:14,15). While Adam and Eve will encounter new struggles in their temporary mortal lives (Genesis 3:16-19) and are evicted from the garden (Genesis 3:20-24), they now know that their hope lies in one coming through the woman.
The Messianic Genealogy - From this point on, the Old Testament continues to prepare for the Messiah's coming by recording the steps in the divinely stipulated lineage of the one promised - thru Eve (Genesis 3:20), thru Seth's lineage to Noah (Genesis 5), thru Noah's son Shem's lineage to Abraham (Genesis 9:26; 11:10-26; 12:1-3), thru Abraham's son Isaac (Genesis 17:19; 26:1-4), Isaac's son Jacob (Genesis 28:10-14), Jacob's son Judah (Genesis 49:10), and the family of David (2Samuel 7:8-17). The genealogies are not intended to be enjoyable reading, but they are one of the essential credentials for identifying God's appointed savior – he would have to be descended through a specific lineage.
A simple Outline of the Bible - The Old Testament Scriptures tell us that "Someone is coming" to deal with our separation from God. The Gospels tell us that the "Someone" has arrived. The New Testament letters tells us that the "Someone" is coming again and how we can be prepared to meet our God. God’s Method of Dealing with Humanity Without being familiar with the Bible, many have guessed at how God relates to humans. Some believe that God remains at a mysterious distance and some people are just more "tuned in" to God's wavelength or that He selectively "zaps" some people and they "get religion" all of a sudden. Some believe that God "touches" people emotionally and/or that the main concern for us is not absolute, objective truth, but just be "sincere” about whatever you believe. Some bounce through life in the belief that "God's will" is a mysterious secret that we will know when/if we fall in the right groove and everything goes sweet from that point on. Fortunately, we are not left helpless with only these options.
The Bible came to us through the Hebrews, and although their history is one of general disobedience to God's purposes, they were selected to be the avenue through which God revealed and worked out the final stages of His salvation for all humanity (Romans 3:1,2; 9:1-5). The Hebrews were not to try to interpret "omens" or physical situations to determine the will of deity, instead they received objective revelation at Mt. Sinai -the Law of Moses (Exodus 19:1 - 20:21). In response, the Hebrew viewpoint was not based on trying to decipher mysterious or secret things, but in obeying the revealed truths of divine revelation (Deuteronomy 29:29). Along with the revelation of objective truth, the relationship of God and man was based on "covenant-keeping." A "covenant" in ancient Middle Eastern thought was a solemn relationship between two parties that was inaugurated by passing between two halves of a slain animal and speaking an oath to keep the terms of the agreement and seek the welfare of the other. The God of the Bible does not deal with mankind whimsically, but established covenants with Abraham and his descendants (Genesis 12:1-3; 15), then the Israelites at Sinai (Exodus 24:3-8), and now through all who will swear allegiance to Jesus (Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 8:6; 9:15; 12:24). Even the Mosaic covenant with Israel was open to anyone who would accept the covenant (Exodus 12:42-48). "God's will" is not a cosmic secret, but is clearly revealed to us as the ongoing terms of the covenant recorded in the Sacred Writings (Ephesians 1:9; 5:17). The "do/do not" information in Scripture is the clear explanation of what God does/does not want His people doing (ex. 1Thessalonians 4:1-8; 5:12-18; 1Peter 2:13-15; 2Peter 3:9). Just be sure you are reading the material that pertains to the covenant that is currently in force. A Brief Summary of the Eras of Bible History Along with the promise of a savior coming through woman to defeat the ancient serpent in a direct confrontation (Genesis 3:15 - Jesus' first coming = Hebrews 2:14,15; 1John 3:8), there is also a discernable flow of Biblical history as the events unfold. Let's take a look.
I. PRE-FLOOD PERIOD - (Creation to the Flood; Genesis 1-8)
God created the universe and assigned mankind the responsibility of being stewards of this creation (1:1-2:4). Mankind lost its initial relationship with God through disobedience (2:5-3:24) and sin divided the original family as the line of Cain "left God's presence" and began to build for this life only (4:16-24), while Seth's line sought the Lord (4:25 - 5:32). The general course of man on his own is toward evil (6:1-6) and God determined to bring judgment (the great flood) and start over with Noah's family (6:7-8:22).
II. THE POST-FLOOD PERIOD - (After the Flood to Abraham; Genesis 9-11)
Following the flood, God gave instructions concerning repopulating the earth, meat for food, not eating blood, capital punishment as the best way of emphasizing the seriousness of homicide and promised to never destroy the world through a flood again (9). The linguistic/national divisions of Noah's descendants (10) are given, followed by a brief explanation of how the division came about - God's judgment on mankind's attempt to find greatness through worldly development, the Tower of Babel (11:1-9).
III. THE WANDERING OF THE PATRIARCHS - (the travels of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the 12 sons of Jacob; Genesis 12-50; ca. 2100-1800 B.C.)
God called a Shemite, named Abram, to leave his old life in Chaldea and set out on a journey to an unknown land. He made the journey and found the land already full of people, but God promised him that he would have many descendants, that they would eventually become a great nation, and would eventually inhabit the land of Canaan. Although only owning a small burial plot in Canaan during his lifetime, this man believed that God would fulfill His promises and became the "father of the faithful." The promises of a nation of descendants and an international blessing (Messiah) coming through his lineage were passed on from Abraham thru Isaac and Jacob (renamed "Israel" Genesis 32:28; 35:10), with Jacob's twelve sons destined to be the heads of the "twelve tribes of Jacob/Israel." All of these patriarchs "wandered" throughout their lives because they were nomadic herdsmen and it was not yet time for them to take possession of the land of Canaan. The patriarchal heads of Israel and their families, 70 in all, settled in Egypt (with Joseph’s help) because of famine and remained there for about 400 years.
IV. ISRAEL'S BONDAGE IN EGYPT - (from Israel's oppression in Egypt to the first Passover; Exodus 1-12; ca. 1800-1446 B.C.)
After some political changes took place in Egypt, the Israelites had become slaves and were put to hard labor. They cried out for deliverance and, when the time arrived, God protected and raised up a deliverer in Moses. This baby grew up in Pharaoh's house, but also led sheep in the Sinai peninsula in preparation for his job of delivering the Israelites and leading them in the Sinai wilderness. Although he balked at the first call (Exodus 3-4), Moses and Aaron were used by God to bring plagues on Egypt until they were released from Egypt.
V. THE EXODUS, RECEIVING THE LAW AT SINAI, & 40 YEARS OF WILDERNESS WANDERING (from the Exodus to the end of the 40 years of wandering toward Canaan; Exodus 13 - Deuteronomy; ca. 1445-1405 B.C.)
Humbled by the plagues, Pharaoh allowed Moses to lead Israel out of Egypt. They went to Mt. Sinai and camped there for about a year. During this year, Israel received the Law, built the Tabernacle, and showed their unwillingness to obey the covenant. They refused to enter Canaan at first (Numbers 13-14) and were punished by 40 years of wandering in the wilderness and conquering the Trans-Jordan area. During this time, the generation of Israelites above the age of 20 when they left Egypt raised their children and died outside the land of promise (cf. 1Corinthains 10:1-13). In his farewell address, Moses reminded the new generation of Israelites of what God had done for them so far (Deuteronomy 1-3), warned them about disobedience (Deuteronomy 4-7), the dangers of becoming complacent after they have settled down in Canaan (Deuteronomy 8), and that they don't deserve God's favor but were being given Canaan because of God's faithfulness to His promises to the patriarchs (Deuteronomy 7:7-8; 9:1-6).
VI. THE CONQUEST OF CANAAN - (Israel takes possession of the land of Canaan; Joshua; ca. 1405-1397 B.C.)
After the death of Moses, Joshua led the Israelites across the Jordan river and began the conquest of Canaan (Joshua 1-5). He destroyed Jericho & Ai and then proceeded up to Mts. Ebal and Gerizim where the covenant was re-confirmed (Joshua 6-8). Then they made peace with the Gibeonites (Joshua 9) and proceeded to secure their territory with a campaign into southern Canaan (Joshua 10) and then a northern campaign (Joshua 11). Lastly, the land of Canaan was divided amongst the tribes (Joshua 13-22) and Joshua gave them a farewell warning (Joshua 23,24)
VII. THE PERIOD OF THE JUDGES - (from Joshua's death to Israel's request for a king; Judges 1 - 1 Samuel 7; 1397-1050 B.C.)
After the death of Joshua, the tribes began to go their separate ways and left many areas unconquered (Judges 1:27-36). The key problem that allowed the next generation to turn aside from following YHWH was ignorance of God and what He had done (Judges 2:10). The cycle of apostasy and rescue that characterizes the period is summarized in Judges 2:10 - 3:4. The many rescues that followed during the period began as God's Spirit stirred some person to do God's will (Judges 3:10; 6:34; 11:29; 15:14). The final judge, Samuel, was raised by the Priest Eli and trained in the Tabernacle ministry, which he performed along with being a circuit judge (1Samuel 1-7). As the period of the judges continued, it was recognized that Israel had no central authority to provide order (Judges 17:6; 21:25) and the desire grew among the Israelites that they needed an earthly king (Judges 8:22,23). The book of Ruth not only connects David's lineage with the patriarchal era (Ruth 4:17-22), but also shows us that during the lawless era of the Judges, there were still some Israelites who tried to live by the Law and showed kindness to one another.
VIII. THE UNITED ISRAELITE KINGDOM - (the Israelite kingdom under Saul, David, and Solomon; 1 Samuel 8 - 1 Kings 11; ca. 1050-930 B.C.)
Because his sons were unfit to follow him, the elders of Israel approached Samuel with the request to establish an earthly monarchy (1Samuel 8). Both God (1Samuel 8:7,8; 10:18,19) and Samuel (1Samuel 12:12-20) made it plain that this was an evil request and a rejection of God as King, but the desire persisted. A Benjamite named Saul (1050-1010 B.C.) was chosen for his outward characteristics (1Samuel 9:1,2), but he rebelled in two major ways as he offered sacrifice (1Samuel 13) and did not follow orders in destroying the Amalekites (1Samuel 15) and God announced plans to replace him. Samuel was sent to Bethlehem where he anointed David (1Samuel 16) and David arose in prominence until Saul's jealousy and guilt forced David to flee and avoid Saul until he was killed in battle against the Philistines.
David (1010-970 B.C.) reigned in Judah for seven years while civil war raged with the northern tribes (2Samuel 2-4). Finally, David was able to unite the tribes again and rule over all for 33 years. Although a man of faith, David was unable to control his commander, Joab (2Samuel 3), his lust (2Samuel 11), or his children (2Samuel 13-14) and eventually lost his throne temporarily and brought on a civil war (2Samuel 15-20). While on his deathbed, another of David's sons tried to improperly grab the throne (1Kings 1).
Building on David's military success, Solomon (970-930 B.C.) built Israel into a great political and economical empire (1Kings 1-10), although he eventually disobeyed all of the major restrictions on Israelite kings (Deuteronomy 17:16,17; 1Kings 11) and introduced the idolatry which brought on both the initial division of the Israelite kingdom ca. 930 B.C. and the eventual destruction of both kingdoms in 721 and 586 B.C.
IX. THE DIVIDED ISRAELITE KINGDOM - (from the division of the kingdom under Rehoboam to the Babylonian exile; 1 Kings 12 - 2 Kings 25; ca. 930-586 B.C.)
Because of Solomon's sin, God had determined to divide the kingdom (1Kings 11:9-13) and this happened under Solomon's son, Rehoboam (1Kings 12:1-24). The northern ten tribes were given to Jeroboam, but he decided to attempt consolidation of his power through false religion (1Kings 12:25-33) and this initiated a spiritual problem that remained with the northern kingdom until its fall to Assyria in 721 B.C. The southern kingdom, comprising the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, lasted another century, but lack of faith in YHWH and attempts to preserve power through political alliances brought Judah's destruction at the hands of Babylon in 586 B.C.
X. THE BABYLONIAN EXILE - (Judah's 70 year exile in Babylon; 2 Kings 25, 2 Chronicles 36, Daniel, Ezekiel, Jeremiah/Lamentation; ca. 606-536 B.C.)
While God’s promises to the patriarchs caused him to delay Judah's fall (2Kings 13:23), the "final straw" was eventually loaded on (2Kings 23:26,27) and the Neo-Babylonian empire was used as Judah's disciplinarian (2Kings 25). They destroyed Jerusalem and Solomon's Temple in 586 B.C. and the captivity of Judah continued until the Persian conquest of Babylon and Cyrus' decree that displaced people could return to their homelands. While the time in Babylon was a time of sadness (Psalm 137), Jeremiah advised those who would hear to go ahead and settle down in Babylon and wait it out (Jeremiah 29:1-11). During the early part of this exile (606-573 B.C.), God had the prophets Jeremiah, Daniel, and Ezekiel strategically placed in Jerusalem, Nebuchadnezzar's court, and with the exiles in Babylon to coordinate His purposes for each area.
XI. RESTORATION FROM BABYLON - (the return of Jews to Judah and restoration of the Jewish Jewish Commonwealth in Canaan; Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi; ca. 539-400 B.C.)
Cyrus the Great allowed all displaced people to return to their homelands and this opened the way for Jews in Babylon to return to Judea (536 B.C.). Approximately 42,000 Jews returned ca. 536 B.C. under Zerubbabel and had the Temple rebuilt by 516 B.C. Another group of about 7,000 Jews returned under Ezra ca. 457 B.C. and the seeds of further apostasy are seen in the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Malachi.
XII. ISRAEL'S INTERTESTAMENTAL PERIOD - (Judah under the domination of Persia, Greece, and Rome; Daniel 2:39,40; 7:5-7; 8; 11; ca. 400-5 B.C.)
For about 400 years, Israel was without any prophetic voice aside from the books of the OT. During this time, Israel enjoyed peace under Persian rule (400-332 B.C.), then a period of increasing hostilities as the Syrian and Egyptian remnants of Alexander the Great's Greek empire fought over Palestine (332-142 B.C.), a brief period of self-rule under the Hasmonean priest-governors (142-63 B.C.), and finally Roman control after Pompey entered Jerusalem in 63 B.C. During this period, the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, Herodians, and synagogues develop, along with the emergence of a great deal of apocryphal and pseudepigraphical Jewish literature.
XIII. THE COMING OF THE FORERUNNER AND THE MESSIAH - (the lives & ministries of John and Jesus; Matthew, Mark, Luke, John; ca. 5 B.C. - 30 B.C.)
In the year 26 A.D., John the baptizer announced the coming of Messiah and pointed to Jesus of Nazareth as the long-awaited deliverer. In spite of a sinless life, wise teachings true to the spirit of the Mosaic Law, and countless miracles to authenticate his claims, Jesus was crucified at the insistence of Jewish leaders who were threatened by Jesus' popularity and the fear of Roman intervention. Jesus' apostles, filled with Jewish hopes of an earthly kingdom, laid low following the crucifixion and pondered what to do next. The Gospel accounts tell us that the resurrected Christ appeared repeatedly to the eleven apostles and He taught them further about the New covenant (Matthew 28; Lk. 24; Acts 1:1-8).
XIV. THE CHURCH AGE - (the period between Jesus' first and second coming; Acts – Revelation; ca. Pentecost 30/33 A.D. until Jesus returns)
The New Covenant Church began on the first feast of Pentecost after Jesus' death and resurrection under the direction of the Apostles. It spread throughout Judea, Samaria, Syria, Asia Minor, Greece, and at least as far as Rome during the lifetime of the Apostles. It was persecuted by Judaism (30-65 A.D.) and then occasionally by Rome (65-313 A.D.). Major Church centers were located in Alexandria, Antioch, Constantinople, and Rome until Islam conquered northern Africa and left only Rome and Constantinople to struggle for power as church hierarchies developed. These two centers officially split in 1054 A.D. and the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches have gone their separate ways ever since. Catholic "conquest" of Europe proceeded on the model that new areas were given the choice of battle or baptism and the "Holy Roman Empire" continued to consolidate power in Europe. The "power politics" of Roman Catholicism initiated the Crusades to recapture the Holy Land from Islamic control and the Inquisition to persecute heretics/reformers, witches, and unconverted Jews in Europe. The Renaissance (1300-1500 A.D.) opened the minds of many European thinkers and reform-minded men kept appearing until nationalistic-minded nobility were prepared to defend and support the efforts of men like Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli. The printing press made it easy to spread new ideas and soon Europe was in the grips of 150 years of religious wars which ended in 1648 with the recognition that Catholicism would have to share Europe with Protestant "state churches." Immigrants from many of these European "state churches" (Lutheranism, Presbyterianism, etc.) came to the New World and America became the land of religious freedom as a constitution was drawn up forbidding any one version of Christianity to get the official sanction of the federal government. Modern 20th century secularists have twisted this into calling for a complete separation of all religious (i.e. Christian) elements and influence from the public sector. Unless otherwise noted, all material produced by Charles E. McCoy All Scripture citations/quotations from the New American Standard Bible To send a question to Chuck: chuck@severnchristian.org
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