A Survey of Important Bible Events

Follow the flow of biblical history by memorizing symbols of major events and eras.

1.  Creation, Gen. 1–2. God created the heavens and the earth; everything was good; Adam and Eve, the first people, enjoyed happy fellowship with God.

2.  Original sin, Gen. 3. Satan, in a snake’s body, tempted Adam and Eve; they sinned and brought God’s curse on creation.

3.  Flood, Gen. 6–9. Men grew so evil that God drowned them, but saved Noah and his family in a huge boat.

4.  Babel’s High Tower, Gen. 11. Men multiplied and proudly tried to build a tower to heaven; God confused their languages and many nations were born.

5.  God’s agreement with Abraham, Gen.12 & 15. Abraham believed God’s promise that He would bless all nations through a descendant.

6.  Slaves in Egypt, Exo. 1–18. Abraham’s descendants went to the land of pyramid tombs; they multiplied and had to do painful slave labour.

7.  Passover lamb’s blood, Exo. 12–15. Plagues from God forced Egypt’s king to free the slaves. An angel slew all the firstborn, unless blood marked the door; God divided the Red Sea; the slaves escaped from Egypt’s army.

8.  Israel's Law, Exo. 18–20. God gave to Moses Ten Commandments on stone tablets at Mt. Sinai. These commands were the first words of Israel's ancient Law and its foundation. Israel disobeyed these commands, and God let the Israelites wander in a desert for 40 years.

9.  Conquest of Israel’s Land, Book of Joshua. Joshua led Israel’s army to conquer the land of Canaan that God had promised to give to Abraham’s descendants, Israel.

10.            Rule by Judges, Judges. When Israel disobeyed the Law, God let pagans oppress them. When they repented and obeyed God, He sent judges (warriors who obeyed His Law) to free them.

11.            Rule by Kings, 1 & 2 Samuel. The first kings were Saul, David and Solomon; they defeated Israel’s enemies and brought prosperity. God promised David that an heir would rule forever.

12.            King Solomon's Temple, 1 Kings. God blessed the new temple with the glory of His presence. Priests slew animals there as blood sacrifices to cover people's sins.

13.            Divided kingdom, 1 Kings 12. Israel's tribes rebelled against high taxes, and the northern tribes formed their own kingdom (called Israel), separate from the southern kingdom (called Judah). Both worshipped idols and grew weak.

14.            Captivity, 2 Kings 25. God sent prophets to warn the people of punishment for their sins. But the people rebelled, and God let foreigners take them captive to Babylonia.

15.            Reconstruction, Ezra..God’s people repented and He brought them back; they rebuilt Jerusalem’s walls; Malachi wrote the last Old Testament book in this era.

16.            Control by foreign powers. For centuries, the empires of Persia, Greece, Syria and Rome forced Israel to submit to their rule and pay heavy taxes. This era produced no Bible books.

17.            Jesus’ birth and life, Luke. Jesus overpowered demons, sin and illness; He told His followers to fish for men; He began a spiritual kingdom and let Rome control politically.

ᡄ"h

18.            Jesus’ Crucifixion, Luke 23. Religious leaders accused Jesus of blasphemy, because He had affirmed that He was the Son of God. Although Roman soldiers killed Him as a criminal, He willingly died for our sins and was laid in a tomb.

19.            Jesus’ Resurrection, Luke 24. Jesus rose from death the third day; He promised to raise all who repent and trust Him, starting the New Testament age.

20.            Jesus’ Ascension and coming of the Holy Spirit, Acts 2. Jesus ascended back to God the Father, who sent His Holy Spirit to live in believers as Jesus' representative. Believers who received the Holy Spirit on the feast of Pentecost saw tiny flames over their heads, and they proclaimed the Good News with power. 3,000 people repented. The apostles baptized them and added them to the first church that day.

21.            Spreading the Faith, Book of Acts. Filled with the Holy Spirit, believers spread the Good News; it multiplied like grain as Jesus said it would. All the rest of the books of the Bible were written during this era. Many believers died as martyrs.

 


Historical Events after all Bible Books Were Written

22.   Church and State Unite, (311 AD). Roman Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity; pagans came into the church without true faith.

23.   Christian Creeds. Facing false teaching, believers wrote beliefs that they agreed on. The Apostles’ Creed defined the basic gospel; the Nicene Creed affirmed the Trinity (Father, Son and Spirit).

ᡄ"h

24.   Decline of the Roman Empire, (6th and 7th centuries). Corruption, disunity and bad government caused the empire to crumble from within; it lost its power and ended.

25.   Rise of Rome’s Bishop. The Church of Rome claimed authority over all church officials and formed the Roman Catholic Church; Eastern Orthodox churches opposed this control.

26.   The Dark Ages (AD 600–1000). Education declined; people no longer read God’s Word and their leaders taught salvation by works; Christianity grew cold in Europe, except in monasteries, but it spread in Asia.

27.   Crusades against Islam. European armies tried to recapture the Holy Land (Israel) and other lands from Muslim invaders.

28.   Protestant Reformation (1500’s). Martin Luther and others translated the Bible into common languages, taught salvation by faith, and resisted the Roman Catholic Pope.

29.   Evangelical Awakening (1600-1900). Evangelicals urged people to be born again, putting their trust in Jesus and letting the Holy Spirit transform them.

30.   Rapid global expansion of the Faith (1900 to the present). Missionaries and others take the Christian Faith to almost every part of the earth.

 

傜#h

31.   Jesus’ return foretold, Luke 21; Revelation. Heaven’s trumpet will sound; Jesus will send woes on earth to punish rebels, destroy Satan and raise the dead, some to eternal life and others to judgment.

 


 

Practice repeating these events.

Practice recalling the symbols and the flow of history, how one event leads to the next, until you can recite the list from memory. You will see the entire Bible as one story. Help those that you teach to learn this summary of history, too.

 

Tick off an item in the list below, when you can recall the event that it signifies:

 

1 sun, moon

2 serpent

3 big boat

4 high tower

5 handshake

6 pyramids

7 blood, door

8 stone tablet

9 sword

10 scroll, sword

11 crown

12 big blocks

14 shackles

13 split crown

15 ruined city

16 whip

 

17 fish

18 cross

19 empty tomb

20 flames

21 sowing seed

22 sword, Bible

23 scroll & pen

24 broken sword

25 bishop’s hat

26 unlit candle

27 horse warrior

28 open Bible

29 Jesus, heart

30 globe

31 trumpet