Ancient History & Bible Integrated Timeline

An integrated timeline of ancient history and the Bible timeline that allows you to see events and characters side by side in one timeline.

When we started studying ancient history in our homeschool I really wanted to find a timeline of Bible and world history that integrated the two together. Our Story of the World curriculum did include various Bible characters and events, but I wanted to see the two timeline of both the Bible and ancient history running side by side. Even better, how about one timeline of ancient history and the Bible integrated together so I could really see how these events and characters interacted.

In our modern, and western, minds we often forget that Homer was a contemporary to the Biblical prophets. Most don’t question the preservation or translation of Homer’s Iliad, but do question the Biblical texts which are younger and more numerous. We don’t even realize that the Olympic Games stared long before Daniel ever met a lion, but actually around the same time in which Jonah was running from Nineveh. Is your mind blown?

How often do we think of the Bible happening BEFORE most of secular recorded history rather than zippered in with it. Sometimes the Bible strongly connects to what is happening in major civilizations of the world, and then for 400 years it’s completely silent.

I couldn’t find what I was looking for to bring these both together, so I created it…

Integrating the timeline of Bible and World History

I am so excited to share with you a timeline of ancient history and the Bible that is integrated to allow you (and your children) to study a timeline that puts both together. Biblical history is world history. Let’s put things in a proper context in our minds and memory.

The timeline I have created uses two major texts as the spine for its content. The Story of the World Volume 1 and the DK Illustrated Family Bible. These two books run side by side on a timeline and zipper together in the document. You will find the Story of the World in white, and the Illustrated Family Bible mapping in grey scale along the right side.

The biblical stories are grouped together by character and theme and alternate light and grey shading to show these groupings. Where they zipper together will show the Biblical and secular timeline characters in a column of alternating grey and white using the Homeschool in the Woods Historical Timeline Figures as the connectors between the two texts. Sometimes a Biblical character or story is part of both books, but it will always be shown in grey and linked to the Biblical timeline rather than the SOTW. A running timeline will continue along the left of the page giving you context for the approximate date for each topic.

The Silent Years

My favorite thing about this mapping was when I looked over the final product and noticed the 400 year “silent years” or “inter-testamental period” showing so prominently. There is a LONG gap (over a page) where we don’t see anything happening on the Biblical narrative. This 400 year time span really made an impact on me when I saw it laid out in this way. I hope you take a moment to notice it too.

Additional Chapter Mappings

For all the details on how I use the Story of the World Volume 1 in our homeschool check out my post SOTW Ancient Times Mapping which will link you to all the additional supplements and timeline resources you can use with this integrated ancient history and Bible timeline mapping.

You can also find the Illustrated Family Bible mapping with downloadable plans for tracking your IFB Bible reading on my Illustrated Family Bible Mapping post.

Making a Timeline Binder

As you make your way along the timeline, consider creating a timeline binder where you can compile all you have been learning in one place, and have it to look back on in the future. If you’re intrested in making a timeline binder for ancient and Biblical history you can find my post on Building a Timeline Binder HERE.

Looking for additional resources to supplement your study of the timeline of Bible and world history?

The Junior Wall Chart of History (ISBN 0880295716)

This resource is unfortunately out of print and doesn’t bring us all the way to modern times since it was published in the 1990’s, but it’s a excellent visual resource for seeing how different timelines of history run along side one another. Look for it on eBay or through used book outlets such as thriftbooks.com, abebooks.com, or betterworldbooks.com.

Note: Not all illustrations in this resource meet my standards. For example: there is an illustration of a woman with only her arm (mostly) covering her front on the cover of this book.

Then and Now Bible Maps Deluxe (ISBN 9781628628593)

This interactive book allows you to see ancient maps overlayed with modern counterparts to really gain an understanding of where these civilizations and empires lined up with modern day contries.

SOTW:IFB Integrated Chapter Mapping, Timeline, and Supplement PDF DOWNLOAD

Here it is! I’ve done all the hard work for you and now you can just open and go with your study of ALL the elements of ancient history.