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Set the Bible in world history

Set the events of the Bible beside the nations they name: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome. Each event is dated three ways, so you can see where historians agree, where they don’t, and the ancient records that fix the dates.

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78 biblical events · 3 chronologies · 147 world events in 9 regions · 11 ancient records

The Bible beside the ancient world.

Each event is drawn once in each chronology’s row, and a thin line joins its dates. Where the line drops straight down, the chronologies agree: two of them from 853 BC, when Assyria’s records begin to fix Israel’s dates, and all three from the fall of Samaria in 722 BC.

Each colour dates the same events one way. Choose one to bring it forward.

Swipe the line sideways to see the rest.

Biblical events in three chronologies, beside the ancient world Ussher and the 1446 BC chronology put Abram's birth 170 years apart, and critical scholarship gives it no date. The 1446 BC chronology and critical scholarship agree from 853 BC, and all three from the fall of Samaria in 722 BC. 4000 BC 3000 BC 2000 BC 1500 BC 1000 BC 750 BC 500 BC 250 BC AD 1 AD 100 853 BC: Assyrian records begin to fix Israel’s dates 722 BC: all three within 12 years Early Dynastic Period of Egypt (1st–2nd Dynasties), 3150 BC–2700 BC Narmer, often credited with unifying Egypt, 3100 BC Old Kingdom of Egypt ('Age of the Pyramids'), 2700 BC–2200 BC Step Pyramid of Djoser, the first Egyptian pyramid, 2640 BC Great Pyramid of Giza built, 2600 BC–2560 BC First Intermediate Period of Egypt, 2181 BC–2055 BC Middle Kingdom of Egypt, 2040 BC–1782 BC Senusret III (Sesostris III), 1878 BC–1839 BC Second Intermediate Period of Egypt, 1782 BC–1550 BC Hyksos rule in Lower Egypt (15th Dynasty), 1650 BC–1550 BC Ahmose I founds the 18th Dynasty, 1550 BC New Kingdom of Egypt (18th–20th Dynasties), 1550 BC–1070 BC Hatshepsut, 1479 BC–1458 BC Thutmose III, 1479 BC–1425 BC Akhenaten and the Amarna period, 1353 BC–1336 BC Amarna letters (diplomatic archive), 1350 BC–1330 BC Tutankhamun, 1332 BC–1323 BC Ramesses II, 1279 BC–1213 BC Merneptah (stele naming Israel, c. 1208 BC), 1213 BC–1203 BC Third Intermediate Period of Egypt, 1077 BC–664 BC Shoshenq I, founder of the 22nd Dynasty, 943 BC–922 BC Kushite (Nubian) 25th Dynasty, 747 BC–656 BC Taharqa (biblical Tirhakah), 690 BC–664 BC Late Period of Egypt (from the Saite 26th Dynasty), 664 BC–332 BC Necho II, 610 BC–595 BC Cambyses II conquers Egypt, 525 BC Ptolemaic Kingdom, 305 BC–30 BC Cleopatra VII, last active Ptolemaic ruler, 51 BC–30 BC Uruk period: early cities in Sumer, 4000 BC–3100 BC Cuneiform writing in use, 3000 BC–50 BC Early Dynastic Period of Sumer, 2900 BC–2350 BC Sargon of Akkad, 2334 BC–2279 BC Akkadian Empire, 2334 BC–2154 BC Ur-Nammu founds the Third Dynasty of Ur, 2112 BC–2094 BC Third Dynasty of Ur (Neo-Sumerian Empire), 2112 BC–2004 BC Isin-Larsa period, 2025 BC–1763 BC Old Babylonian Empire (First Dynasty of Babylon), 1894 BC–1595 BC Old Babylonian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh written, 1800 BC–1701 BC Hammurabi of Babylon, 1792 BC–1750 BC Code of Hammurabi composed, 1753 BC Kassite rule in Babylonia, 1531 BC–1155 BC Middle Assyrian Empire, 1363 BC–912 BC Neo-Assyrian Empire, 911 BC–609 BC Shalmaneser III of Assyria, 859 BC–824 BC Battle of Qarqar (Ahab among the coalition), 853 BC Tiglath-Pileser III of Assyria, 745 BC–727 BC Sargon II of Assyria, 722 BC–705 BC Sennacherib of Assyria, 705 BC–681 BC Ashurbanipal of Assyria, 669 BC–631 BC Neo-Babylonian Empire, 626 BC–539 BC Fall of Nineveh, 612 BC Battle of Carchemish, 605 BC Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon, 605 BC–562 BC Nabonidus, last king of Babylon, 556 BC–539 BC Babylon falls to Cyrus, 539 BC Elam, 2700 BC–539 BC Median kingdom, 678 BC–550 BC Cyrus the Great, 550 BC–530 BC Achaemenid (Persian) Empire, 550 BC–330 BC Cambyses II, 530 BC–522 BC Behistun Inscription carved, 522 BC–486 BC Darius I, 522 BC–486 BC Persepolis, ceremonial capital, 515 BC–330 BC Xerxes I, 486 BC–465 BC Artaxerxes I, 465 BC–424 BC Battle of Gaugamela, 331 BC Seleucid Empire, 312 BC–63 BC Parthian Empire, 247 BC–AD 224 Kingdom of Ebla, 3000 BC–2240 BC Hittite kingdom and empire, 1700 BC–1200 BC Mitanni, 1600 BC–1260 BC Battle of Kadesh (Egypt and the Hittites), 1274 BC Egyptian–Hittite peace treaty, 1259 BC Sea Peoples raid Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean, 1200 BC Late Bronze Age collapse, 1200 BC–1150 BC Destruction of Ugarit, 1190 BC Philistines settle on the southern coast of Canaan, 1175 BC Phoenician alphabet in use, 1050 BC–150 BC Hiram I of Tyre, 980 BC–947 BC Hazael of Aram-Damascus, 842 BC–806 BC Carthage, from Phoenician colony to Roman destruction, 801 BC–146 BC Kingdom of Lydia, 800 BC–546 BC Croesus of Lydia, 585 BC–546 BC Minoan civilization on Crete, 3300 BC–1100 BC Mycenaean Greece, 1750 BC–1050 BC Eruption of Thera (Santorini), 1600 BC Greek Dark Ages, 1100 BC–850 BC Iliad and Odyssey composed (traditionally by Homer), 800 BC–601 BC Archaic Greece, 800 BC–480 BC First Olympic Games (traditional), 776 BC Solon, Athenian lawgiver (lifetime), 639 BC–559 BC Cleisthenes' democratic reforms in Athens, 508 BC Battle of Marathon, 490 BC Battle of Salamis, 480 BC Battle of Thermopylae, 480 BC Classical Greece, 480 BC–323 BC Parthenon built, 447 BC–432 BC Peloponnesian War, 431 BC–404 BC Trial and death of Socrates, 399 BC Alexander the Great, 336 BC–323 BC Hellenistic period, 323 BC–30 BC Founding of Rome (traditional), 753 BC Roman Kingdom, 753 BC–509 BC Roman Republic, 509 BC–27 BC Punic Wars (Rome and Carthage), 264 BC–146 BC Siege and destruction of Carthage, 149 BC–146 BC Pompey takes Jerusalem, 63 BC Assassination of Julius Caesar, 44 BC Battle of Actium, 31 BC Augustus, first Roman emperor, 27 BC–AD 14 Tiberius, AD 14–AD 37 Claudius, AD 41–AD 54 Nero, AD 54–AD 68 Great Fire of Rome, AD 64 Year of the Four Emperors, AD 68–AD 69 Romans destroy Jerusalem and the temple, AD 70 Eruption of Vesuvius buries Pompeii, AD 79 Trajan, AD 98–AD 117 Indus Valley (Harappan) Civilisation, 3300 BC–1300 BC Mature Harappan cities, 2600 BC–1900 BC Mohenjo-daro, 2500 BC–1700 BC Vedic period, 1500 BC–500 BC Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha (lifetime), 600 BC–401 BC Mahajanapadas (sixteen kingdoms and republics), 600 BC–345 BC Maurya Empire, 322 BC–185 BC Ashoka, 268 BC–232 BC Yangshao culture, 5000 BC–3000 BC Longshan culture, 3000 BC–1900 BC Xia dynasty (traditional; existence debated), 2070 BC–1600 BC Erlitou culture, 1750 BC–1500 BC Shang dynasty, 1600 BC–1046 BC Shang oracle-bone inscriptions (earliest Chinese writing), 1250 BC–1050 BC Western Zhou, 1046 BC–771 BC Spring and Autumn period, 771 BC–476 BC Confucius (lifetime), 551 BC–479 BC Warring States period, 476 BC–221 BC Qin dynasty unifies China, 221 BC–206 BC Han dynasty, 202 BC–AD 220 Caral–Supe (Norte Chico) civilization, Peru, 4000 BC–1001 BC Poverty Point earthworks, Louisiana, 1700 BC–1100 BC San Lorenzo, first major Olmec center, 1400 BC–900 BC Olmec civilization, 1200 BC–400 BC La Venta becomes the main Olmec center, 1000 BC–400 BC Olmec colossal heads, 900 BC Chavín culture, Andean highlands, 900 BC–250 BC Monte Albán founded (Zapotec), 500 BC Teotihuacan established, 100 BC Merneptah Stele (Israel Stele) Kurkh Monolith of Shalmaneser III Mesha Stele (Moabite Stone) Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III Tel Dan Stele Sennacherib's Annals (Taylor, Chicago and Jerusalem prisms) Babylonian Chronicle ABC 5 (Nebuchadnezzar or 'Jerusalem' Chronicle) Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7) Cyrus Cylinder Pilate Stone Delphi (Gallio) Inscription Creation Birth of Noah The Flood Tower of Babel and the dispersion Birth of Abram Abram leaves Haran for Canaan God's covenant with Abram Birth of Ishmael Birth of Isaac Abraham is told to offer Isaac Birth of Jacob and Esau Death of Abraham Birth of Joseph Joseph sold into Egypt Joseph made ruler over Egypt Jacob's family settles in Egypt Death of Joseph Birth of Moses The Exodus from Egypt The law given at Sinai The tabernacle set up Death of Moses and crossing of the Jordan Fall of Jericho Deborah and Barak defeat Sisera Gideon delivers Israel from Midian Samson judges Israel Saul made king Birth of David David king of Judah at Hebron David becomes king over all Israel and takes Jerusalem David dies and Solomon becomes king Solomon begins the temple Temple finished and dedicated The kingdom divides Shishak of Egypt invades Judah Omri builds Samaria Ahab's reign and Elijah's ministry Death of Ahab at Ramoth-gilead Mesha of Moab rebels against Israel Jehu seizes the throne of Israel Tiglath-pileser takes Galilee and Gilead Fall of Samaria Hezekiah becomes king of Judah Sennacherib's campaign against Hezekiah The book of the law found and Josiah's reform Josiah killed at Megiddo Daniel taken to Babylon Jerusalem surrenders and Jehoiachin is exiled Jerusalem and the temple destroyed Belshazzar's feast and the fall of Babylon Cyrus allows the exiles to return Return under Zerubbabel and the second temple founded Second temple completed Esther becomes queen Ezra comes to Jerusalem Nehemiah sent to Jerusalem Jerusalem's wall finished The Torah translated into Greek (Septuagint) Maccabean revolt and rededication of the temple Herod begins rebuilding the temple Birth of Jesus Visit of the Magi and flight into Egypt Death of Herod the Great John the Baptist preaches and Jesus is baptized Jesus's public ministry Crucifixion of Jesus The empty tomb and resurrection appearances Pentecost Conversion of Saul (Paul) Paul's first missionary journey Council of Jerusalem Paul's second missionary journey Paul in Corinth and his hearing before Gallio Paul's third journey and years in Ephesus Paul arrested in Jerusalem and held at Caesarea Voyage to Rome and shipwreck Paul under house arrest in Rome Death of Paul (tradition)

Divided Monarchy · fixed by an outside record

Sennacherib's campaign against Hezekiah

  • Ussher 713 BC (invasion); army destroyed 710 BC
  • 1446 BC chronology 701 BC
  • Critical 701 BC

All three chronologies agree within 12 years.

Read the event

Start with

The line stretches toward the centuries the Bible tells most fully: its first stretch covers 1,900 years, its last 100. The shaded column is 25 years either side of the chosen event, and the darker bars in it are elsewhere in the world at about that time. Select a mark to choose its event, or a diamond to read its record. With a mouse, point at anything to name it.

Divided Monarchy · fixed by an outside record

Sennacherib's campaign against Hezekiah

The Assyrian king takes Judah's fortified towns, including Lachish, and threatens Jerusalem; 2 Kings says he withdrew after his army was struck.

Read it: 2 Kings 18:13-19:37; Isaiah 36:1-37:38; 2 Chronicles 32:1-23

James Ussher (1650)

713 BC (invasion); army destroyed 710 BC

calculated within a named chronology

Hezekiah's 14th year in Ussher's count; written before the Assyrian records were known. Annals, para. 643, para. 669.

1446 BC chronology

701 BC

stated in a source

Assyrian date, taken as Hezekiah's 14th year (Isaiah 36:1).

Critical scholarship

701 BC

stated in a source

Sennacherib's annals and the Assyrian eponym chronology.

All three chronologies agree within 12 years.

Outside the Bible

Sennacherib's Annals (Taylor, Chicago and Jerusalem prisms) Sennacherib's own account of his campaigns. For Judah it says he took Hezekiah's towns, gave some to Philistine kings, and shut Hezekiah up in Jerusalem 'like a caged bird', then received tribute. It does not claim to have captured Jerusalem.

Elsewhere in the world at about this time

In all three chronologies 713 BC to 701 BC

  • EgyptKushite (Nubian) 25th Dynasty 747 BC–656 BC
  • EgyptThird Intermediate Period of Egypt 1077 BC–664 BC
  • MesopotamiaSargon II of Assyria 722 BC–705 BC
  • MesopotamiaSennacherib of Assyria 705 BC–681 BC
  • PersiaMedian kingdom 678 BC–550 BC
  • Anatolia/LevantKingdom of Lydia 800 BC–546 BC
  • Anatolia/LevantPhoenician alphabet in use 1050 BC–150 BC
  • GreeceIliad and Odyssey composed (traditionally by Homer) 800 BC–601 BC
  • GreeceArchaic Greece 800 BC–480 BC

Happening at about the same time is not the same as meeting or influencing: these are the worlds around the event, not its causes. They are the darker bars in the shaded column on the line.

Sources. Ussher, The Annals of the World (English text with paragraph numbers), StudyLight.org; Bible Gateway, Encyclopedia of the Bible: Chronology (Old Testament); Wikipedia: Assyrian siege of Jerusalem

Where the Bible meets other records

11 ancient records that name the Bible's people and events.

Each was written by another nation, carved or pressed into stone or clay. Each keeps the date of what it records apart from when it was made, and says how sure scholars are that it means the person or event in the Bible. They are the red diamonds on the line above.

Merneptah Stele (Israel Stele)

c. 1208 BC (some give 1207) · made c. 1208 BC (inscribed for the same campaign)

A victory hymn of Pharaoh Merneptah that lists peoples and towns he claims to have defeated in Canaan, including a group called Israel. Israel is written with the sign for a people rather than a city or land.

The Bible: The earliest known mention of Israel outside the Bible. It places a people called Israel in or near Canaan by the late 13th century BC; it says nothing about an exodus.

Found 1896, Thebes, by Flinders Petrie. Now Egyptian Museum, Cairo (JE 31408).

How sure? Reading as 'Israel' is accepted by most Egyptologists; a minority read 'Jezreel'.

The Exodus from Egypt

Kurkh Monolith of Shalmaneser III

853 BC · made c. 852 BC

An Assyrian royal inscription describing Shalmaneser III's campaigns, ending with the battle of Qarqar against a coalition of western kings. It credits 'Ahab the Israelite' with 2,000 chariots and 10,000 soldiers.

The Bible: The first mention of Ahab outside the Bible. It shows Ahab alive and ruling in 853 BC, which fixes a point on the timeline of Israel's kings. The Bible does not mention Qarqar.

Found 1861, Kurkh (Üçtepe), Diyarbakır Province, Turkey, by John George Taylor. Now British Museum, London (Wikipedia lists ME 118883 and ME 118884 for the two Kurkh stelae; the Shalmaneser III stela is ME 118884).

How sure? Widely accepted. Older challenges, such as a northwest Syrian king or a 'Jezreel' reading, are no longer widely held. Nadav Na'aman suggested the 2,000 chariots may be a scribal error for 200.

Ahab's reign and Elijah's ministry Death of Ahab at Ramoth-gilead

Mesha Stele (Moabite Stone)

about 850 BC (the mid-9th century) · made c. 840 BC (Lemaire allows as late as c. 810 BC)

A Moabite royal inscription in which King Mesha says that Omri, king of Israel, oppressed Moab, and so did his son, until Mesha, helped by the god Chemosh, threw off Israelite rule and took back towns.

The Bible: Names Omri and Israel and gives Moab's side of the revolt told in 2 Kings 3. Line 31 may read 'House of David', but that is disputed.

Found 1868, Dhiban (ancient Dibon), Jordan, by F. A. Klein; it was broken in 1869 and reconstructed from fragments and an earlier paper squeeze. Now Louvre, Paris (AO 5066).

How sure? Omri and Israel are secure. The 'House of David' reading in line 31 (Lemaire 1994; Langlois 2019) is disputed (Finkelstein, Na'aman and Römer 2019 propose Balak; Richelle and Burlingame 2023 call it uncertain).

Omri builds Samaria Mesha of Moab rebels against Israel

Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III

c. 841 BC · made c. 827–824 BC; erected c. 825 BC

A carved limestone monument from Nimrud showing rulers bringing tribute to Shalmaneser III. The second register shows a kneeling figure labeled 'Yaua son of Omri', usually read as Jehu.

The Bible: Commonly identified as Jehu of Israel paying tribute. Cohen and Kangas call it the only known portrayal of an Israelite or Judahite king in ancient Near Eastern art. Jehu was not descended from Omri; Assyrian records usually call Israel the 'House of Omri' or 'Land of Omri'.

Found 1846, Nimrud (ancient Kalhu), Iraq, by Austen Henry Layard. Now British Museum, London (ME 118885).

How sure? Generally accepted as Jehu. McCarter (1974) and Thiele (1976) raised objections, and some scholars propose Jehoram of Israel instead.

Jehu seizes the throne of Israel

Tel Dan Stele

c. 841 BC, as most scholars read it · made 9th century BC (earliest possible c. 870 BC; Mykytiuk: hardly later than c. 750 BC)

Fragments of an Old Aramaic victory inscription, probably set up by Hazael of Damascus, which mention a 'king of Israel' and the 'House of David' (bytdwd).

The Bible: Most scholars read it as the earliest reference outside the Bible to a dynasty descended from David. It refers to a dynasty, not to David himself, and it was set up long after the conventional date of his reign.

Found 1993 (fragment A) and 1994 (fragments B1 and B2), Tel Dan, Israel, by Avraham Biran's team; found reused in a later wall. Now Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

How sure? Most scholars read 'House of David'. Others propose a place name or a divine title. The author is probably Hazael but may be Ben-Hadad III (Athas) or another king. Claims of forgery are rejected by most scholars because the stele came from a controlled excavation.

Jehu seizes the throne of Israel David becomes king over all Israel and takes Jerusalem

Sennacherib's Annals (Taylor, Chicago and Jerusalem prisms)

701 BC · made Taylor and Jerusalem prisms 691 BC; Chicago (ISAC) prism 689 BC; Lachish reliefs carved c. 700–681 BC

Sennacherib's own account of his campaigns. For Judah it says he took Hezekiah's towns, gave some to Philistine kings, and shut Hezekiah up in Jerusalem 'like a caged bird', then received tribute. It does not claim to have captured Jerusalem.

The Bible: Parallels the campaign in 2 Kings 18–19, Isaiah 36–37 and 2 Chronicles 32. The two accounts differ on the outcome and on the tribute amounts. The Lachish reliefs in Sennacherib's palace show the siege of Lachish from the same campaign.

Found Taylor Prism reportedly found by Col. Robert Taylor at Nineveh, 1830; bought by the British Museum in 1855. Chicago prism bought by J. H. Breasted, 1919. Jerusalem Prism bought at auction, 1970.. Now British Museum (Taylor Prism); Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures, University of Chicago (Chicago prism); Israel Museum (Jerusalem Prism).

How sure? Secure: Hezekiah of Judah is named.

Sennacherib's campaign against Hezekiah Hezekiah becomes king of Judah

Babylonian Chronicle ABC 5 (Nebuchadnezzar or 'Jerusalem' Chronicle)

2 Adar, year 7 of Nebuchadnezzar = 16 March 597 BC · made Neo-Babylonian or later copy; Wikipedia's list caption gives 590 BC; bought in 1896 without a recorded findspot

A Babylonian year-by-year record of Nebuchadnezzar II's early reign. For his 7th year it records that he besieged 'the city of Judah', took it on the 2nd day of Adar, seized its king, appointed a king of his own choice and sent heavy tribute to Babylon. It also covers the battle of Carchemish.

The Bible: Matches the first capture of Jerusalem in 2 Kings 24:10–17. The chronicle does not name the kings; 2 Kings identifies them as Jehoiachin and Zedekiah.

Found Bought from a dealer in 1896; published by D. J. Wiseman in 1956. Now British Museum (BM 21946).

How sure? Secure for the 597 BC capture. No surviving chronicle covers 587/586 BC, so that date rests on the biblical synchronisms with Nebuchadnezzar's regnal years.

Jerusalem surrenders and Jehoiachin is exiled Daniel taken to Babylon Jerusalem and the temple destroyed

Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)

autumn (October) 539 BC · made Babylonian tablet, date of copying not established here

A Babylonian chronicle of Nabonidus's reign. For his 17th year it records Cyrus's victory at Opis, the capture of Sippar without battle on day 14, Ugbaru and Cyrus's army entering Babylon without battle on day 16, and Cyrus entering the city on 3 Arahsamna.

The Bible: Gives the Babylonian record of the fall of Babylon, the setting of Daniel 5 and the background to Ezra 1. It does not mention the Jews.

Found Published by Sidney Smith, 1924. Now British Museum (BM 35382).

How sure? Secure for the fall of Babylon.

Belshazzar's feast and the fall of Babylon Cyrus allows the exiles to return

Cyrus Cylinder

539 BC conquest of Babylon · made 539–530 BC (British Museum)

A clay foundation cylinder in Akkadian in the name of Cyrus. It denounces Nabonidus, says Marduk chose Cyrus, describes a peaceful entry into Babylon, and says Cyrus returned gods' images and displaced people to their home sanctuaries in Mesopotamia.

The Bible: Often compared with Cyrus's decree in Ezra 1:1–4 because it shows a policy of returning peoples and restoring temples. It does not mention Jews, Judah or Jerusalem; Kuhrt says its Babylonian context offers no proof of concern for Judean exiles.

Found March 1879, foundations of the Esagila temple, Babylon, by Hormuzd Rassam. Now British Museum, Room 52 (BM 90920).

How sure? It shows a general policy, not the biblical decree itself.

Cyrus allows the exiles to return

Pilate Stone

Pilate's prefecture AD 26–36 (or 37) · made 1st century AD, during Pilate's term

A damaged Latin dedication from Caesarea for a building called the Tiberieum, naming [Pon]tius Pilatus, [praef]ectus Iudae[ae] (prefect of Judaea). The bracketed letters are restored.

The Bible: The only inscription from Pilate's own time that names him. It confirms the official before whom the Gospels place the trial of Jesus, and gives his title as prefect.

Found June 1961, Caesarea Maritima, Israel, during Antonio Frova's excavation; reused as a step in a 4th-century building. Now Israel Museum, Jerusalem; replicas in Milan and at Caesarea.

How sure? Secure.

Crucifixion of Jesus Jesus's public ministry

Delphi (Gallio) Inscription

Gallio's proconsulship c. AD 51–52 · made AD 52

Nine fragments of a letter from Emperor Claudius to Delphi. It mentions 'my friend and proconsul' Junius Gallio and dates itself by Claudius's 26th acclamation as imperator.

The Bible: Acts 18:12–17 says Paul was brought before Gallio when he was proconsul of Achaia. Dating Gallio's term is the firmest fixed point in Paul's chronology.

Found Early 20th century, Temple of Apollo, Delphi, Greece (Fouilles de Delphes III 4:286; SIG II 801d). Now Delphi; Wikipedia's photo caption says the Delphi museum. Museum details not verified in this pass..

How sure? Secure: Gallio is named. The exact months of his term, and so of Paul's hearing, remain approximate.

Paul in Corinth and his hearing before Gallio Paul's second missionary journey

Why the dates differ

Same Bible, different arithmetic.

Ussher and the 1446 BC chronology add up the same numbers from the Bible, laid end to end, but start them from different places. Each bar is one stretch of years; the slanted lines join the same event in the two rows.

Ussher’s 430 years (Exodus 12:40) start when Abram leaves Haran, so they cover Canaan and Egypt; the 1446 BC chronology’s start when Jacob moves to Egypt. Both count the 480th year of 1 Kings 6:1 back from the temple, which they date 46 years apart. Critical scholarship dates neither Abraham nor the Exodus, and fixes the kings from 853 BC.

Abraham: 170 years apart

Ussher puts Abram's birth in 1996 BC, the 1446 BC chronology in 2166 BC. They read Exodus 12:40's 430 years differently: Ussher counts Canaan and Egypt together, the other counts Egypt alone. Historians outside the text have not established a date.

The Exodus: 45 years apart

Both count 480 years back from Solomon's temple (1 Kings 6:1). They differ because they date the temple differently. Many historians place any Exodus in the 13th century BC, or find no evidence to date it.

The kings: about 44 years apart, then together

Ussher added up the kings' reigns without Assyria's records, which had not yet been found. Thiele fitted them to Assyria's year lists, which an eclipse fixes on 15 June 763 BC. From 853 BC, when Ahab fought at Qarqar, Thiele's dates and critical scholarship agree within a few years; Ussher's stay about 44 years earlier until the fall of Samaria in 722 BC. From then on, the three differ by at most 12 years.

For study

Ideas for family and classroom study.

Younger learners · 20 minutes

Who else was there?

Choose the Exodus and then the crucifixion. For each, name one other nation from “Elsewhere in the world”. What do you know about them?

Ages 11–14 · 40 minutes

A king in two books

Open Sennacherib and Hezekiah. Read 2 Kings 18 and what Sennacherib's own prism says. What do they agree on, and what does each leave out?

Ages 15–18 · one or two sessions

Do the arithmetic

Using 1 Kings 6:1 and Exodus 12:40, work out a year for the Exodus and for Abraham yourself. Compare your answers with Ussher's and the 1446 BC chronology. Where did your choices change the result?

Make it your own

Build your own version.

All three lists are free in full: the 78 events with each chronology's year, date, kind and reasoning; the ancient world timeline; and the ancient records. Years are numbers for sorting: negative is BC.

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Sources and limits

Ussher's years are as printed in the English edition of his Annals of the World (paragraph numbers are in the data). The conservative chronology follows the Encyclopedia of the Bible (Exodus in 1446 BC, Thiele's kings), with Harold Hoehner for the AD 33 crucifixion. Critical scholarship and the ancient world are summarized from Wikipedia articles that cite it. Every date says what kind it is and why; dates before 853 BC are calculations within a chronology unless an outside record fixes them. Passages use the Berean Standard Bible's book names, and open in Follow a verse through the Bible.

What each record contains

Explore the dataset and its sources. These fields are in the complete download.

FieldHow to read it
Event The biblical event, as the passage tells it.
Era The part of the biblical story, from Primeval to Early Church.
Passage Where it is told, in the Berean Standard Bible's book names; several passages are separated by semicolons.
Summary What happens, in one sentence.
UssherYear The year in that chronology (negative = BC); blank where it gives none.
UssherEndYear The end of a range, when the date is a span or one of two options.
UssherDate The date in words, as that chronology gives it.
UssherDateKind Stated in a source, calculated within a named chronology, an approximate range, a disputed identification, or not established.
UssherBasis Why that date: the verses, records or reasoning behind it.
ConservativeYear The year in that chronology (negative = BC); blank where it gives none.
ConservativeEndYear The end of a range, when the date is a span or one of two options.
ConservativeDate The date in words, as that chronology gives it.
ConservativeDateKind Stated in a source, calculated within a named chronology, an approximate range, a disputed identification, or not established.
ConservativeBasis Why that date: the verses, records or reasoning behind it.
CriticalYear The year in that chronology (negative = BC); blank where it gives none.
CriticalEndYear The end of a range, when the date is a span or one of two options.
CriticalDate The date in words, as that chronology gives it.
CriticalDateKind Stated in a source, calculated within a named chronology, an approximate range, a disputed identification, or not established.
CriticalBasis Why that date: the verses, records or reasoning behind it.
Evidence How the event is dated overall: externally anchored, approximate, disputed, calculated within the biblical text, or no outside evidence.
Inscriptions Ancient records from outside the Bible that name or bear on it (see biblicalinscriptions).
TextNote About the text itself, kept apart from the event's date.
Sources Where each date comes from.

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