Key texts
The biblical passages that establish the era.
Explore the Story
Biblical Timeline
Follow the major movements of Scripture in sequence and see how each era prepares for what comes next.
How to use this hub
Start with sequence, then add detail.
The timeline is the backbone of Bible Building Blocks. It gives every person, place, kingdom, promise, and biblical book a position within the larger story.
The chart below shows all eleven eras at a glance. Each era page brings together its key texts, dates, places, people, and connections to the larger story.
Illustration. Dates are approximate and debated. Click an era to open its page.
The Creation date on the chart (about 4000 BC) is a traditional estimate; the Bible itself does not date creation. The Exodus date shown (about 1446 BC) is one of two main views; many scholars hold about 1260 BC. Book ranges on the chart (such as Genesis 1–2) are summaries; each era page gives the full range.
On a phone the chart is small. Use the era cards below, or view it full size.
Who Held the Stage
Empires across the eleven eras
Which empire ruled over the land of Israel in each era. The strip shows who held the stage over the land, not who was biggest in the world.
- 1 Creation
No datable empire
- 2 The Patriarchs
Egypt (in the background)
- 3 Exodus & Law
Egypt (Exodus about 1446 BC or about 1270–1250 BC)
- 4 Conquest & Settlement
Egypt, fading (to about 1150 BC) → No empire (after about 1150 BC)
- 5 United Monarchy
No empire
- 6 Divided Kingdom
Before Assyria (931–853 BC; Egypt’s Shishak raided about 925 BC) → Assyria (853–609 BC: contact from 853, empire ends 612, remnant to 609) → Egypt (609–605 BC: Necho holds Judah) → Babylon (from 605 BC)
- 7 Exile
Babylon (to 539 BC) → Persia (from 539 BC)
- 8 Return & Restoration
Persia (539/538–332 BC)
- 9 Intertestamental Period
Persia (to 332 BC) → Greeks (332 to 164/142 BC: Alexander, the Ptolemies, then the Seleucids) → Hasmoneans (164/142–63 BC) → Rome (from 63 BC)
- 10 The Gospel & Jesus Christ
Rome
- 11 The Spread of Christianity
Rome
Each era gets an equal column, as in the era list. Inside an era, widths follow the dates; a small triangle marks a handoff in the middle of an era. Era 4 uses the early-date framework. Hatched spans: no empire is named on the stage. The hatched “Before Assyria” span in era 6 (931–853 BC) is a drawing aid: our source table names no empire there, and Assyrian contact begins in 853 BC. The Hasmonean span is labeled 164/142 because sources differ on its start; the strip draws it from 142 BC.
The Big Picture
Eleven eras of the biblical story
These are navigation categories, not claims that every event can be assigned an uncontested date.
- 01Beginnings
Creation
Creation, human rebellion, judgment, and the preservation of God’s purpose for humanity.
- 02Promise
The Patriarchs
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and the covenant family through whom blessing is promised.
- 03Deliverance
Exodus & Law
Israel’s deliverance from Egypt, the covenant and law given at Sinai, and the formation of a people.
- 04Land
Conquest & Settlement
Israel’s entry into Canaan, settlement, repeated disorder, deliverance, and need for faithful leadership.
- 05Kingdom
United Monarchy
Samuel, Saul, David, Solomon, Jerusalem, the temple, and the promise of a lasting dynasty.
- 06Division
Divided Kingdom
Israel and Judah, their kings and prophets, Assyrian pressure, and the northern kingdom’s fall.
- 07Judgment
Exile
Jerusalem’s fall to Babylon, the destruction of the temple, and life in exile under foreign empires.
- 08Hope
Return & Restoration
The return from exile under Persia, rebuilding the temple and Jerusalem’s walls, and the last Old Testament prophets.
- 09Waiting
Intertestamental Period
The years between the last Old Testament prophet and the birth of Jesus: Persian, Greek, Hasmonean, and Roman rule. A short outline page.
- 10Fulfillment
The Gospel & Jesus Christ
The world of Jesus, his ministry, death, resurrection, and the Christian claim that Israel’s story reaches its center in him.
- 11Mission
The Spread of Christianity
Pentecost, the apostles, Paul, the spread of the gospel, persecution, and the formation of Christian communities. The era closes with Revelation’s vision of a new heaven and a new earth.
Build the Connections
Every era is read through the same five lenses.
Reading each era the same way makes the connections between them easier to see.
Time
Dates, sequence, and areas of chronological debate.
Place
Lands, cities, routes, terrain, and neighboring powers.
People
Individuals, families, nations, empires, and communities.
Story connection
How the era receives earlier themes and prepares for what follows.
Begin with the existing timeline material.
Downloadable timelines are available now.