In short
A chapter in the Bible can cover anywhere from a single day to hundreds of years.
Why it is important
We may not be Jews, but this is our story, and it needs to be real to us.
It’s the same reason we talked about the story of Israel last Tuesday. We can get lost in the details of the Bible and don’t always notice the forest.
Some milestones to remember
Three blocks of 2,000 years*
- Creation to Abraham – roughly 2,000 years
- Abraham to Christ – roughly 2,000 years
- Christ to now – 2,000 years
- Also, David reigned about 1,000 BC, which is another handy point of reference
Moses’ life in 40-year blocks
- Going back to the Jews – age 40
- Burning bush and the exodus – age 80
- Death – age 120
The first three kings of Israel each reigned 40 years
- Saul reigned 40 years
- David reigned 40 years
- Solomon reigned 40 years
- (Then the kingdom split up)
Footnote
*The blocks of 2,000 years are really approximate. The genealogies that people use to get to those dates quite possibly skip generations, so the time spans could be longer. Archaeology has a really firm date on David, though, and the kings after him.
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