Friday, March 7, 2014

comparative kings

Good kings, in terms of religious leadership or reforms
Good political leaders, but faulted for lack of commitment to God
Kings that showed mixed traits, with some good actions yet significant failures
Especially bad kings, as either political or religious leaders, or both
Kings assassinated or deposed
Kings with too little information or not evaluated
Underlined names are active links to Old Testament History articles.
The United Monarchy
Dates (BC) Kingdom of the Israelites
1020-1000 Saul
1000-961 David
961-922 Solomon
The Divided Kingdoms
Dates
(BC)
Israel (Northern)   Judah (Southern) Dates
(BC)
922-901 Jeroboam I   Rehoboam 922-915
Abijah 915-913
Asa 913-873
901-900 Nadab  
900-877 Baasha  
877-876 Elah   Jehoshaphat 873-849
876 Zimri Tibni  
876-869 Omri  
869-850 Ahab  
850-849 Ahaziah   Jehoram 849-843
849-843 Joram (Jehoram)   Ahaziah 843
843-815 Jehu   Athaliah (non-Davidic Queen) 843-837
815-802 Jehoahaz   Joash 837-800
802-786 Jehoash (Joash)   Amaziah 800-783
786-746 Jeroboam II   Uzziah (Azariah) 783-742
746-745 Zachariah   Jotham (co-regent) 750-742
745 Shallum   Jotham (king) 742-735
745-737 Menahem  
737-736 Pekahiah  
736-732 Pekah   Ahaz 735-715
732-724 Hoshea  
721 Fall of Samaria  
      Hezekiah 715-687
  Manasseh 687-642
  Amon 642-640
  Josiah 640-609
  Jehoahaz 609
  Jehoikim (Eliakim) 609-598
  Jehoiachin (Jeconiah) 598-597
  Zedekiah (Mattaniah) 597-587
  Fall of Jerusalem 587
This chart is based on the chronology of John Bright (A History of Israel, 3rd edition, Westminster, 1981). There are other chronologies of the Israelite kings that differ in some details, for example, that of J. Maxwell Miller in Harper's Bible Dictionary.
The problem of OT chronology is complicated by various factors:
1) some biblical numbers are symbolic or schematized;
2) variant manuscript readings differ;
3) various date references are given in different portions of Scripture;
4) little external verification to cross check dates;
5) different systems of dating;
6) problem of transferring lunar dates into solar dates;
7) different methods of figuring the regnal years of kings;
8) possibility of co-regencies of kings (we know of only one, that of Uzziah and Jotham), etc.
All of these factors make figuring a chronology of the Israelite kings much less precise than we are accustomed.
The purpose here is not to solve the historical debates but to provide a general relative time frame of Old Testament events for the purposes of biblical interpretation.  The reader should be aware that these dates are not absolute, and could change in light of new evidence.

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