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| − | Unlike many other "holy" books, the [[Bible]] contains a large amount of history.
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| − | This '''Bible history''' begins with the creation of the "heavens and the Earth" (i.e. everything) and concludes with [[Saint Paul|Paul's]] missionary journeys around AD 50.
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| − | From the beginning to the incident at the [[Tower of Babel]], this is effectively a history of the world.
| + | Four trolls named John, Luke, Matthew, and Marc decided to make up a book to make people think they are being watched by an invisible man in the sky. It is the best-selling fiction book of all-time. The trolls laughed at anyone who actually believed the stories it told and could only laugh harder when people began making religions about it. |
| − | After that, it is a history of the nation of Israel, culminating with the beginnings of [[Christianity]].
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| − | == Chronology ==
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| − | {{Main|Biblical chronology|Biblical chronology dispute}}
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| − | The Bible contains a number of [[chronogenealogies]] and other references to periods of time which can be used in many cases to determine how much time elapsed between two events.
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| − | Numerous scholars have derived absolute chronologies based on these, including the famous chronology by Archbishop [[James Ussher]].
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| − | This article uses Ussher's dates. "A.M." dates are ''Anno Mundi'', or ''year of the world''.
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''''Year:''''' 1 A.M./4004 B.C.</div>
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| − | == Creation ==
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| − | {{Main|Creation}}
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| − | The Bible begins with God creating the "heavens and the Earth", which is a [[merism]] for "everything", or in modern terms, the universe.
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| − | Creation proceeds over a period of six [[day]]s, culminating with the creation of the first two [[human beings|humans]], [[Adam]] and [[Eve]].
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| − | God provides a [[Garden of Eden|garden]] for Adam and Eve, with all its plants being available for food for them, except that he does not allow them to eat from one tree in the centre of the garden, with the punishment being that they will die if they do.
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| − | However, Adam and Eve do eat from [[Tree of knowledge of good and evil|that tree]].
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| − | As a result, God causes them to begin dying, although it will be 960 years before Adam is dead. In the beginning, God and His creation of man and woman had perfect spiritual fellowship. Because of sin, that spiritual fellowship was broken immediately, a separation occurred, and death resulted.
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| − | Adam and Eve have children, and the account includes details of various descendants, including a [[chronogenealogy]] for the line leading to [[Abraham]].
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 1656 A.M./2349 B.C. (beginning of flood)</div>
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| − | == The Flood ==
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| − | {{Main|Great Flood}}
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| − | By about one and a half millenia after creation the population is almost universally wicked, and God decides to destroy most of mankind and give it a fresh start.
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| − | There is one righteous man, [[Noah]], so he instructs Noah to build a large boat ([[Noah's Ark|ark]]), and prepare it for pairs of each kind of animal.
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| − | 120 years later, God sends a flood over the whole planet, destroying all air-breathing life except that on the ark, which includes Noah and his three sons and their wives, eight in all.
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| − | The flood lasts about one year.
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| − | When they disembark, they are told to "fill the Earth".
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 1762 A.M./2242 B.C.</div>
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| − | == The Tower of Babel ==
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| − | {{Main|Tower of Babel}}
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| − | However, the new population does not fill the Earth, but bands together in one place, and builds a large [[tower]] as a focal point of their new city, defying God in the process.
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| − | God disperses the group up by causing them to speak different languages.
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| − | One of the people in this era was [[Eber]], a great great grandson of Noah. His name is the source of the term ''Hebrew''.
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 2008 A.M./1996 B.C. (Abraham's birth)</div>
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| − | == Abraham and Isaac ==
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| − | {{Main|Abraham|Isaac}}
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| − | God calls Abraham, a resident of the city of [[Ur]], to leave his home and go to a new place that God will show him.
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| − | God also promises Abraham that he will be the ancestor of nations, and that through him the entire world will be blessed.
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| − | Abraham does what God instructs, although his faith that God will bless him with an heir is tested, and he has a child by his wife's maid.
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| − | However, this son, [[Ishmael]], is not the promised heir, and he later has [[Isaac]] by his wife, [[Sarah]].
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| − | (The [[Arab]] nations trace their ancestry back to Ishmael.)
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 2168 A.M./1836 B.C. (Esau's and Jacob's birth)</div>
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| − | == Jacob and Joseph ==
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| − | {{Main|Jacob|Joseph}}
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| − | Isaac has two sons, Esau and Jacob.
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| − | Jacob is given a new name by God, Israel.
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| − | He has twelve sons, and his descendants are collectively known as ''Israelites''.
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| − | They make up what was to become the nation of Israel.
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| − | One of Jacob's sons, Joseph, ends up in [[Egypt]] as the second-in-charge under [[Pharaoh]].
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| − | He invites his father and family to live in Egypt.
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| − | However, after several generations, the Egyptians grow wary of the Israelites living amongst them, and try to control them by making them slaves and killing all the newborn male children.
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 2433 A.M./1571 B.C. (Moses' birth)</div>
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| − | == Moses ==
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| − | {{Main|Moses}}
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| − | One of the children who was supposed to be killed was hidden in a floating basket on the river, where he was found by Pharaoh's daughter, who raised him as her own son.
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| − | She named him Moses.
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| − | When Moses was older, God called Moses to lead the enslaved Israelites out of Egypt, to the land of [[Canaan]], which God had promised to Abraham years earlier.
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| − | This journey, which took 40 years because the people disobeyed God, is known as the 'exodus'.
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| − | During the exodus, God gave Moses numerous laws for the emerging nation, including the famous [[The Ten Commandments|Ten Commandments]], which God wrote Himself on stone tablets.
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 2553 A.M./1451 B.C. (Israelites enter Canaan)</div>
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| − | == Time of the judges ==
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| − | {{Main|Judges of Israel|Twelve Tribes of Israel}}
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| − | The Israelites, in twelve separate tribes mostly corresponding to the twelve sons of Israel, settled in different parts of Canaan.<ref>One tribe, the Levites, were given no land, as they were the priests and were supported by the rest of the population. However, descendants of Joseph's two sons each made up a separate tribe, so that there were still twelve groups.</ref>
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| − | There was initially no central [[government]], but from time to time God appointed individuals, known as ''judges'' to lead the people.
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| − | However, the Israelites yearned for a [[king]] to rule over them, as surrounding countries had.
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 2909 A.M./1095 B.C. (Saul becomes king)</div>
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| − | == The Kings of Israel ==
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| − | {{Main|King David|Solomon}}
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| − | God gave the people what they wanted by appointing [[Saul]] as their king.
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| − | During his rein, Israel was challenged by the [[Philistines|Philistine]] army, and in particular by a [[giant]] named [[Goliath]].
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| − | The Israelite army was afraid of Goliath, but a shepherd boy, bringing supplies to his older brothers in the army, offered to take on Goliath.
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| − | This was [[King David|David]], and he used his sling to knock Goliath unconcious, then beheaded him.
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| − | David went on to fight other battles, and eventually succeeded Saul as King.
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| − | David also made [[Jerusalem]] the capital of the country.
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| − | David was succeeded by his son Solomon, and the [[monarchy|kingdom]] enjoyed its greatest prosperity.
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| − | Solomon constructed the first [[temple]] in Jerusalem.
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 3029 A.M./975 B.C. (kingdom divided)</div>
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| − | == The divided kingdom ==
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| − | {{Main|Kingdom of Judah|Northern Kingdom}}
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| − | After Solomon's death, his two sons divided the kindom in two.
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| − | The southern part, comprising the tribes of [[Judah (tribe)|Judah]] and [[Benjamin (tribe)|Benjamin]], became known as ''Judah'', whilst the northern part, comprising the other ten tribes, retained the name ''Israel''. (It is from the name ''Judah'' that we get the word ''Jew''.<ref>[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Jew Online Etymology Dictionary]</ref>)
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| − | In 721 B.C. Israel was taken by [[Shalmaneser V|Shalmaneser]], with many of the people taken back to [[Babylon]].
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| − | The people of the kindom of Israel lost their identity, intermarrying with their conquerors.
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 3416 A.M./588 B.C. (exile begins)</div>
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| − | == The exile ==
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| − | [[Nebuchadnezzar II|Nebuchadnezzar]], king of Babylon, invaded the southern kingdom, Judah, and Jerusalam was taken.
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| − | Many of the people were taken to Babylon, but in this case they remained separate and maintained their own identity.
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| − | In 3468 A.M./537 B.C. the Israelites in Babylon were allowed to return to their country and rebuild Jerusalem.
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| − | All modern [[Jew]]s trace their ancestry to these members of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin.
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| − | People descended from the northern ten tribes, no longer pure Israelites, were treated as outcasts.
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| − | This includes those known as [[Samaritan]]s.
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 4000 A.M./5 B.C. (Jesus' birth)</div>
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| − | == Jesus ==
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| − | {{Main|Jesus Christ}}
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| − | The Bible's history then jumps forward 400 years. | + | |
| − | During this time the [[Roman Empire]] conquered the land, and Israel (the former Judah) has become a vassal state of Rome.
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| − | Jesus is born to [[Mary (mother of Jesus)|Mary]], a resident of the [[Galilee|Galilean]] town of [[Nazareth]], but whilst she and her husband [[Joseph]] are in [[Bethlehem]] for a [[census]].
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| − | Joseph and Mary flee to Egypt to escape King [[Herod|Herod's]] [[holy innocents|slaughter of all the young boys of the area]].
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| − | They later return to Nazareth, where Jesus grows up, learning [[carpentry]] from his father.
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| − | Apart from an incident in the temple in Jerusalem when Jesus was 12, nothing else of his life is recorded in the Bible until he begins his ministry when he is 30 years old.
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| − | Jesus gathers a following of twelve [[disciple]]s, and travels around Israel teaching, forgiving sin, healing, and performing other miracles.
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| − | His implicit and explicit claims to be God and his flouting of the petty rules that have been introduced to the religion make the religious leaders his enemies.
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| − | The religions leaders petition [[Pilate]], the governor, to have him arrested and killed.
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| − | Pilate reluctantly agrees to their request, and Jesus is executed by the Romans by means of crucifixion.
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| − | Demonstrating his power over death, Jesus returns to life after being interred in a sealed cave.
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| − | He then continues his ministry for a short while, before ascending to heaven.
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| − | <div style="float:right; padding-top:1em">'''Year:''' 4038 A.M./A.D. 35 (Saul's conversion)</div>
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| − | == Paul ==
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| − | {{Main|Saint Paul}}
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| − | Saul, also known as Paul, was a Jew with Roman citizenship who was hunting down members of the new sect of followers of Jesus when was dramatically converted (Acts 9:1-19; 22:6-16; 26:14-18).
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| − | He subsequently became a leader of the new movement, or at least, the prominent character Luke writres about in his history, the Book of Acts. The followers of the Lord Jesus became known as ''Christians'' (Acts 11:26). He undertook several missionary journeys around the Roman Empire, preaching, debating, and starting churches. Paul's letters to individuals and churches make up much of the [[New Testament]]. He is known to have written Romans, Corinthians (First and Second), Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians (First and Second), Timothy (First and Second), and Philemon. Some think that he wrote Hebrews, but the evidence for that is disputed.
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| − | == References ==
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| − | {{reflist|2}}
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| − | [[Category:Bible]]
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