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The following chart of Biblical events, beginning with the creation of the world, including Adam and Eve, is based upon my many hours of carefully and prayerfully studying the Holy Scriptures, and comparing verse with verse. Using God's Word in conjunction with secular history, similar to a number of other students of the Bible, I've arrived at the conclusion that the world, and mankind, may be just under six thousand years old. It is not millions or billions of years old as is purported by modern-day atheist scientists. Within modern Christianity, there exists a belief which is held by some people which we might refer to as the "one thousand years for a day" concept. This doctrine is based upon the following verse:

"But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day."


If there is any truth to this concept, then according to my findings, the six days may possibly be about over, and the seventh day of rest may be about to begin. I trust that the following information will serve as a useful and powerful tool in convincing others of the validity of the Bible, and to show how late it may really be. At this time, I believe that my overall results are accurate to within about one hundred years, and possibly closer than that. While I have made educated guesses and approximations in certain places where the exact ages of certain individuals is not known, overall, this chart is pretty accurate, because the dates and ages of the Earth are not based on the dates of those in-between events, but rather on the timing and dates of the major events, for which there is clear, verifiable evidence.

PATRIARCH AND EVENT:

BIBLE REFERENCE

EARTH AGE

Earth, Sun, stars, Adam and Eve and all life created in six literal days.	Gen 1:1-2:25, Exo 20:11, 31:17, Joh 11:9	6 days
Adam has Seth at 130 and dies at 930 years old.	Gen 5:3-5	130 yrs
Seth has Enos at 105 and dies at 912 years old.	Gen 5:6-8	235
Enos has Cainan at 90 and dies at 905 years old.	Gen 5:9-11	325
Cainan has Mahalaleel at 70 and dies at 910 years old.	Gen 5:12-14	395
Mahalaleel has Jared at 65 and dies at 895 years old.	Gen 5:15-17	460
Jared has Enoch at 162 and dies at 962 years old.	Gen 5:18-20	622
Enoch has Methuselah at 65 and walks with God at 365 years old.	Gen 5:21-24	687
Methuselah has Lamech at 187 and dies at 969 years old.	Gen 5:25-27	874
Lamech has Noah at 182 and dies at 777 years old.	Gen 5:28-31	1056
Noah has three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth at 500 and dies at 950 years old.	Gen 5:32, 9:28-29, 10:21	1556

NOTE: Based on Genesis 10:21, it seems that Japheth was the elder son actually born when Noah was 500 years old followed by Shem two years later, and then Ham. This explains why Shem would be 100 years old two years after the Flood instead of being 102 years old.

Thus, at the time Shem was born, the Earth's age was approximately . . .

1558

Shem has Arphaxad at 100 and dies at 600 years old, two years after the Flood occurs.	Gen 11:10-11	1658
Arphaxad has Salah at 35 and dies at 438 years old.	Gen 11:12-13	1693
Salah has Eber at 30 and dies at 433 years old.	Gen 11:14-15	1723
Eber has Peleg at 34 and dies at 464 years old.	Gen 11:16-17	1757
Peleg has Reu at 30 and dies at 239 years old.	Gen 11:18-19	1787
Reu has Serug at 32 and dies at 239 years old.	Gen 11:20-21	1819
Serug has Nahor at 30 and dies at 230 years old.	Gen 11:22-23	1849
Nahor has Terah at 29 and dies at 148 years old.	Gen 11:24-25	1878
Terah has Abram at 130 and dies at 205 years old.	Gen 11:26-32, Act 7:4	2008

NOTE: In Genesis 11:26-32, we are told that Terah had three sons -- Abram, Nahor and Haran -- beginning at the age of 70. With Acts 7:4 and Genesis 12:1-4, we see that Abram left Haran at the age of seventy-five after his father had died. With these facts, and the assumption that Abram's father's death was part of the motivating factor for Abram to leave Haran, we know that Terah was at least 130 when Abram was born.

Abram leaves Haran at the age of 75 to travel to Canaan.	Gen 12:1-4	2083
Abram has Ishamel by Sarah's handmaid, Hagar, at 86 years old in the 11th year of his sojourn from Haran.	Gen 16:16	2094
God makes the Covenant of Circumcision when Abram is 99 years old, at which time he is renamed Abraham and Sarai is renamed Sarah. It is at this same time that Sarah conceives Isaac when the Lord and two angels visit them in the plains of Mamre. Based on what Paul tells us in Galatians, it seems that the 430 years of sojourning followed by captivity, may begin at this time.	Gen 17:1-27, 18:1-15, Gal 3:17	2107
Abraham has Isaac at 100 and dies at 175.	Gen 21:1-5, 25:7-8	2108

NOTE: According to historical records, the time of Abraham was around 1900 B.C.

Isaac married Rebekah, the sister of Laban the Syrian at the age of 40.	Gen 25:20	2148
Isaac has Jacob and Esau at the age of 60.	Gen 25:21-26	2168
When Isaac is about 100 years old, Jacob goes to the house of Laban to seek a wife.	Gen 28:1-5	2208
When Jacob is about 40, he works for his uncle Laban for 7 years to get his first wife, Leah.	Gen 29:18-20	2215
Jacob works an additional 7 years for his second wife, Rachel.	Gen 29:26-30	2222
Levi, the great grandfather of Moses, and the third son of Jacob by Leah his wife may have been born when Jacob was about 60.	Gen 29:34	2228

NOTE: This age for Jacob and year of Levi's birth is based on the following possibilities:

1] Jacob was about 40 when he began working for Laban.

2] It appears that Jacob may have shunned Leah for the full 14 years since he was in love with Rachel and had been tricked by Laban.

3] It appears that the Lord closed up Rachel's womb and did not permit her to bear children until Jacob finally gave in to the Lord and began having children by Leah first:

"And when the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren. And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and she called his name Reuben: for she said, Surely the LORD hath looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me. And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Because the LORD hath heard that I was hated, he hath therefore given me this son also: and she called his name Simeon. And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons: therefore was his name called Levi. And she conceived again, and bare a son: and she said, Now will I praise the LORD: therefore she called his name Judah; and left bearing."


4] Based on one child every two years, Leah would have had her third child, Levi, about 5 or 6 years later towards the end of the twenty years that Jacob served Laban. By this time, Jacob had 11 children by Rachel, Leah and their two handmaids. He left Laban shortly after his eleventh son, Joseph, was born:

"And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb. And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach: And she called his name Joseph; and said, The LORD shall add to me another son. And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to my country. Give me my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service which I have done thee."


"This twenty years have I been with thee; thy ewes and thy she goats have not cast their young, and the rams of thy flock have I not eaten. That which was torn of beasts I brought not unto thee; I bare the loss of it; of my hand didst thou require it, whether stolen by day, or stolen by night. Thus I was; in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes. Thus have I been twenty years in thy house; I served thee fourteen years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle: and thou hast changed my wages ten times."


Thus, in my view, the above figures for Jacob's age, the year of Levi's birth, and the age of the Earth seem to be close to accurate.

Jacob has Joseph in his old age. I have estimated it to be about 90 based on other Scriptural references available.	Gen 30:22-24, 37:3	2258
Kohath, the grandfather of Moses, and the second of three sons born to Levi, may have been born when Levi was around 42.	Gen 46:11, 1Ch 6:1	2270
Joseph taken to Egypt at 17 years old and in Potiphar's house for some time.	Gen 37:2-3, 36, 39:1-2	2275

Note: According to historical records, the time of Joseph was about 1700 B.C.

Joseph is thrown into prison by his master Potiphar.	Gen 39:20-23	2286
Isaac dies at the old age of 180.	Gen 35:28-29	2288
Joseph interprets Pharaoh's dreams, is lifted out of prison, is renamed Zaphnath-paa-neah, is given Asenath for a wife, and becomes 2nd in Egypt at 30 years of age.	Gen 41:1, 41-46	2288
The seven good years begin.	Gen 41:47-56	2288
Joseph has his first son whom he names Manasseh, before the 7 years of famine begin. I estimate this to be when he is about 32 years of age.	Gen 41:50-51, 46:20, 48:5	2290
Joseph has his 2nd son whom he names Ephraim, before the 7 years of famine begin. I estimate this to be when he is about 34 years of age.	Gen 41:50, 52, 46:20, 48:5	2292
Joseph's brethren return to Egypt the 2nd time with Benjamin during the second year of the famine.	Gen 45:6, 11	2297
Jacob goes to Egypt with his family at 130 years old. Joseph is now about 40 years old.	Gen 47:7-11	2298
Jacob stays in Egypt 17 years, dies there at 147 years old.	Gen 47:28	2315
Amram, the eldest of four sons, and the father of Moses, is born to Kohath when he is around 80 years.	Exo 6:18, Num 3:19, 1Ch 6:2	2350
Joseph's brother, Levi, the great grandfather of Moses, dies at 137 years of age.	Exo 6:16	2365
Joseph dies at 110 years old after seeing the birth of his grandchildren.	Gen 50:22-26	2368
Egyptian bondage begins after rest of Joseph's generation dies off.	Exo 1:6, 8
Kohath, the father of Amram, and grandfather of Moses dies at the age of 133.		2403
Aaron, the elder of the two sons of Amram and Jochebed, the daughter of Levi may have been born in Goshen in the land of Egypt when Amram was around the age of 104.	Exo 6:20, 7:7, Num 26:59	2454
Moses, the younger of the two sons of Amram, may have been born in Goshen in the land of Egypt when Amram was around the age of 107.	Exo 2:1-10, 6:20, Num 26:59, 1Ch 6:3, 18	2457
Amram, the father of Aaron and Moses, dies at the age of 137.		2427
Israelites multiply in Egypt during their time of bondage.	Exo 1:9-12
Moses lives royally in Egypt 40 years, kills the Egyptian and flees to the the desert and becomes a shepherd.	Exo 2:11-15, Act 7:22-23	2497
Caleb the son of Jephunneh, of the tribe of Judah is born about two years after Moses flees Egypt.	Jos 14:7	2499
Joshua the son of Nun is born about two years after Moses flees Egypt.		2499

NOTE: This assumption that Caleb and Joshua were born about the same time is based upon a variety of factors shown later.

Moses spends his young adult life in the land of Midian where he marries Zipporah and has children.	Exo 2:16-22
Moses hears from God at Mt. Horeb and begins his ministry as the Deliverer.	Exo 3:1-22
Moses returns to Egypt and speaks to Pharaoh at 80 years old.	Exo 7:7	2537
After God sends the plagues, the 430 years of sojourning and Egyptian bondage ended.	Exo 12:41	2537

NOTE: This figure, 2537, is based on the 430 years beginning when Abraham consummated the Covenant with God through circumcision, when he was 99 years old. If we have the 430 years beginning 24 years earlier when Abram first left Haran at the age of 75, then the age of the Earth at the time of the liberation from Egypt would have been about 2513 years.

Children of Israel cross the Red Sea while Pharaoh's army is drowned	Exo 14:1-31	2537
Moses received the commandments on the top of Mount Sinai in the third month following their liberation	Exo 19:3-32:7	2537
Joshua was a young man of about 38 years at the time that Moses received the Commandments. Moses was 80, so in his eyes, describing Joshua as a "young man" might have been an appropriate description.	Exo 33:11, Num 11:28	2537
Two years after leaving Mount Sinai, Caleb, at the age of 40, assisted Joshua and ten other tribal leaders in spying out the Promised Land at which time the Earth's age was.	Num 1:1, 9:1, 10:11, Jos 14:6-7	2539
Children of Israel condemned to wander for forty years in the wilderness due to their murmuring and unbelief after they spied out the Promised Land for forty days. The Lord tells them that they will wander one year for each day that Joshua, Caleb and the rest were spying out the Promised Land.	Num 14:27-34	2539
Aaron, the brother of Moses, died at the age of 123 on the top of Mount Hor in the fortieth year just before they entered the Promised Land.	Num 33:38-39	2577
Moses died on top of Mount Nebo/Pisgah at the age of 120 years in the final fortieth year, just before entering the Promised Land.	Deu 34:1-12	2577
Children of Israel end their 40 years of wandering in the wilderness and enter the Promised Land, coming in through the East by Jericho. The Earth's age was approximately.	Jos 2:1, 5:6	2577

NOTE: Due to the fact that Moses was 80 when he appeared before Pharaoh, and that he died at 120, this indicates that the 40 years of wandering included the first two years when they were encamped at the foot of Mount Sinai.

Caleb received Hebron for an inheritance at the age of 85.	Jos 14:10, 13-14	2584
Following the above event, there is Scriptural evidence that another time period lapsed before Joshua died at the age of 110. If he and Caleb were born in the same year, this would be an additional 25 years.	Jos 21:44, 23:1, 24:29, Jud 2:8	2609
Period of the Judges begins in Israel (Gideon Deborah Baruk Samson etc.) perhaps 20 years later after the rest of Joshua's generation have died. The first Judge was Othniel, the son of Kenaz, Caleb's brother.	Jud 2:16, 3:9	2629
Samuel, the last Judge, anoints Saul, a Benjamite, as the first king of Israel.	1Sm 9:1-2, 21, 10:1, 24	2933
David, the future king, is born to Jesse, the son of Obed, of the tribe of Judah.	1Sm 17:12, Rut 4:17, 22	2943
Samuel, the aging Prophet, anoints young David as the 2nd king of Israel, possibly when David was 24. This would have been 430 years after coming out of Egypt.	1Sm 16:12-13	2967
Samuel the Prophet may have died during the final six years of Saul's reign. Saul used the witch of Endor to raise up Samuel from the dead the last day of his forty-year reign.	1Sm 7:15, 8:5, 25:1, 28:3-19	2973
Saul ruled 40 years and died in battle after being rejected by the Lord because of his disobedience.	1Sm 13:13-14, 15:10-11, 23, 31:3-4, Act 13:21	2973
David is anointed king a second time in Hebron by the elders of Israel. He began his reign at the age of 30.	2Sm 5:1-5	2973

Note: According to historical records, the reign of King David began in approximately the year 1010 B.C.

David reigned 40 years, 7 in Hebron, and 33 years in Jerusalem. He died at the age of 70.	2Sm 5:1-5, 1Kg 2:11, 1Ch 29:27	3013
Solomon, the young son of David, is anointed as the 3rd king of Israel by Zadok the priest and Nathan the Prophet in the sight of David.	1Kg 1:30-39, 1Ch 29:1, 22	3013

Note: According to historical records, David's reign would have ended, and Solomon's reign begun, around 970 B.C.

Beginning of construction of Solomon's Temple 480 years after coming out of Egyptian bondage, in the 4th year of Solomon's reign.	1Kg 6:1, 2Ch 3:1-2	3017
Temple construction ended after seven years in Solomon's 11th year as king.	1Kg 6:38	3024
Solomon died after reigning 40 years.	1Kg 11:42	3053

NOTE: The Book of Acts says that the period of the Judges continued "until Samuel the prophet". Thus, it seems that he should be included as the final judge/prophet in this 450-year period. These people served as both Judges and Prophets. A clear example is Deborah, as in this verse:

"And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time."


In 1 Samuel, we also see another indication that Samuel served as Prophet and Judge:

"And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places. And his return was to Ramah; for there was his house; and there he judged Israel; and there he built an altar unto the LORD."


Another indication that Samuel should be included as the final Judge/Prophet is in the way Paul associates him with others in Hebrews chapter eleven:

"And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:"


Paul seems to be including Samuel with David and the Judges, and then saying ". . . and of the prophets." The problem we face with all of the above information is that if Samuel was the final Judge, and even if he died in the last year of Saul's reign, that still only gives us 354 years for the period of the Judges, and not the "about 450" years which is claimed in the Book of Acts by Paul. With my current calculations, the only way to arrive at the full 450 years is to include the reigns of Saul, David, Solomon, Solomon's son, Solomon's grandson, and the beginning of the reign of his great grandson. In addition, Paul seems to be implying that the period of the Judges ended when Saul became the first king. It is because of these facts that no matter how we juggle the figures, it is impossible to reconcile the 450 years of the Judges, with the 480 years from the liberation from Egypt to the beginning of the construction of the Temple. If we trust the 450 years, this would bring us to the Earth age of 3079, instead of 3053. This has plagued Biblical chronologists for decades -- if not longer -- and there is no clear solution. For this reason, for now, I am going to accept the 3053 and continue the timeline from that point.

Solomon's son Rehoboam becomes king at 41 years and reigns 17 years in Judah.	1Kg 11:43, 14:21	3070
Rehoboam's son Abijam becomes king and reigns three years in Judah.	1Kg 14:31, 15:2	3073
Abijam's son Asa becomes king and reigns 41 years in Judah	1Kg 15:8, 10	3114
Asa's son Jehoshaphat becomes king at age 35 and reigns 25 years in Judah.	1Kg 15:24 22:42	3139
Jehoshaphat's son Jehoram becomes king at age 32 and reigns 8 years in Judah.	2Kg 2:16-17	3147
Jehoram's son Ahaziah becomes king at age 22 and reigns 1 year in Judah.	2Kg 8:26, 9:27	3148
At his death, Ahaziah's mother Athaliah reigns over Judah for six years.	2Kg 11:1-3	3154
Ahaziah's son Joash/Jehoash becomes king at 7 after his mother is slain and reigns 40 years in Jerusalem.	2Kg 11:12-16, 12:1	3194
After Joash's assassination, his son Amaziah became king at age 25 and reigned 29 years in Jerusalem.	2Kg 14:1-2	3223
After Amaziah's assassination, his son Azariah/Uzziah became king at age 16 and reigned 52 years in Jerusalem.	2Kg 14:21, 15:2	3275

Note: According to historical records, King Uzziah/Azariah died about 740 B.C.

Azariah's son Jotham became king at age 25 and reigned 16 years in Judah.	2Kg 15:32-33	3291
Jotham's son Ahaz became king at age 20 and reigned 16 years in Jerusalem.	2Kg 15:38, 16:2	3307
Ahaz's son Hezekiah became king at age 25 and reigns 29 years in Judah.	2Kg 16:20, 18:1-2	3336
Hezekiah's son Manasseh became king at age 12 and reigned 55 years in Jerusalem.	2Kg 20:21, 21:1	3391
Manasseh's son Amon became king at age 22 and reigned 2 years in Jerusalem.	2Kg 21:18-19	3393
After Amon's assassination, his son Josiah became king at the age of eight.	2Kg 21:23-22:1	3393
In the 13th year of Josiah's reign, Jeremiah begins prophesying against Jerusalem.	Jer 1:2-3, 25:3	3406

Note: According to the historical record, Nabopolassar -- the father of Nebuchadnezzar II -- was the first king of Babylon and ruled from about 626 B.C. to 605 B.C.

Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian empire, was prophesied against by the Prophet Nahum. According to the historical record, it was destroyed by the Babylonians in about 612 B.C.

Josiah reigned 31 years in Jerusalem and died in battle against Necho king of of Egypt.	2Kg 22:1, 23:29-30, 2Ch 35:20-24	3424
After Josiah dies in battle, his son Jehoahaz, a.k.a. Shallum, became king at 23 and reigned 3 months, after which Pharaoh of Egypt took him prisoner where he died. Pharaoh made Josiah's other son Eliakim -- who he called Jehoiakim -- king.	2Kg 23:30-36, Jer 22:11-12, 2Ch 36:1-5	3425
In the third year of Jehoiakim's reign, King Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem and took part of the Temple vessels and part of the royal seed to Babylon. In this group was the Prophet Daniel.	Dan 1:1-7, 2Ch 36:5-7	3428
In the first year of the reign of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon -- which was the fourth year of the reign of King Jehoiakim -- Jeremiah began writing his book, 23 years after he had begun prophesying. This may have been about 605 B.C.	Jer 25:1-3, 36:1-2	3429
In the second year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign, the Prophet Daniel described Babylon as the head of gold. Later he described Babylon as a lion with eagle's wings under King Belshazzar.	Dan 2:1, 2:32, 38, 7:1, 4	3430
It appears that Jehoiakim ended his eleven-year rule when the forces of Nebuchadnezzar attempted to bind him in chains to carry him captive into Babylon. This attempt may have resulted in his death because Jeremiah says he was buried outside of Jerusalem like an ass.	2Ch 36:5-6, Jer 22:18-19	3436
Jehoiakim died and his son Jehoiachin became king at age 18 and reigned 3 months when Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem. Nebuchadnezzar replaced Jehoiachin with his uncle Mattaniah whom he renamed Zedekiah. He began ruling at age 21.	2Kg 24:6-18, Jer 22:24-30, 52:1, 2Ch 36:8-10	3437

Note: We have two slightly different accounts concerning Jehoiachin, a.k.a. Coniah or Jeconiah. According to the account in Kings, he remained in Jerusalem while his uncle ruled in his stead. Seven years later, in what would have been his eighth year of reign, Jehoiachin was taken as a prisoner to Babylon where he died. According to Chronicles, he was taken prisoner to Babylon at the end of that very same year. I am going to use this second version, so that when he and his family, servants, etc., were taken to Babylon, the Earth's age was about 3,436 years old.

The Prophet Ezekiel, who was also taken captive, began receiving his visions from the Lord in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin's captivity in Babylon.	Eze 1:1-3	3442
In Zedekiah's final 11th year, which was Nebuchadnezzar's 19th year in power, Nebuzaradan invaded and tore down walls of Jerusalem after two years of siege, and took the remnant captive to Babylon. Gedaliah was made Nebuchadnezzar's puppet ruler, but was killed 7 months later	2Kg 25:8-12, 21-26, 39:1-10, 52:4-16	3448
The fall of Jerusalem occurred in the year 587 B.C. according to historical records. At this time, Jeremiah ended his forty years of prophesying.	Jer 1:2-3	3448
According to the historical record, Evil-merodach, a.k.a. Amel-Marduk, succeeded Nebuchadnezzar and ruled from about 561 B.C. to 558 B.C. In the first year of his reign, he freed Jehoiachin who had been in prison for 37 years.	2Kg 25:27-30, Jer 52:31	3474

Note: According to the historical record, Nergal-shar-usur succeeded Evil-merodach to the throne of Babylon in about the year 558 B.C.

According to the historical record, Nabonidus succeeded Nergal-shar-usur to the throne of Babylon in about the year 554 B.C.

According to the historical record, Belshazzar succeeded Nabonidus to the Babylonian throne in about 537 B.C. One source states that he was the son of Nabonidus; however, the Scriptures indicate that he was the direct son of Nebuchadnezzar.	Dan 5:11, 18, 22
Medo-Persia was a dual empire, but the Persians were the stronger of the two two kingdoms as depicted and prophesied by the Prophet Daniel.	Dan 2:32, 38-39, 7:5, 8:3, 20

Note: According to the historical record, Cyrus ruled as king of Persia from somewhere between 550 and 558 B.C., to 529 B.C. There appears to be some conflict as to when his reign actually began.

The 70 years of captivity ends in the first year of the reign of Cyrus, king of the Persian Empire, when he encourage the captives of Judah to return and rebuild the house of the Lord. They number 42,360 plus 7,330 servants and maids.	2 Chr 36:20-23, Ezra 1:1-3, 2:1, 64, 5:13
According to the historical record, Darius I ruled as king of Persia from 521 B.C. to 486 B.C. He was the son of King Ahasuerus of the Medes, who reigned with Queen Esther.	Dan 5:31, 9:1, Book of Esther
Temple construction begins in the 2nd year after captivity ends but is halted by Artaxerxes after sedition by the enemies of Israel until the 2nd year of the reign of King Darius.	Ezr 3:8, 4:19-24
The Prophets Daniel and Jeremiah both prophesied the defeat and death of Belshazzar, and his kingdom being given to Darius the Mede. Belshazzar means "Bel protect the king".	Dan 5:25-31, Jer 51:27-28, 44
In the second year of his reign, Darius orders that the Jews be left alone to build their Temple.	Ezr 6:6-12
The Temple is completed in the 6th year of the reign of Darius. Darius the Mede was around 62 years of age when he conquered Babylon.	Ezr 6:14-15

Note: According to the historical record, Xerxes I ruled as king of Persia from 486 B.C. to 465 B.C.

Ezra goes to Jerusalem in the 7th year of the reign of Artaxerxes and the king passes a decree regarding financing the construction of the 2nd Jewish temple.	Ezr 7:6-8, 11-26
In the 20th year of the reign of Artaxerxes, Nehemiah is given permission to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem.	Neh 2:1-9
Nehemiah is still acting as governor of Judah twelve years later.	Neh 5:14
Malachi, the last written Prophet, continues to preach against the sins of Israel during the same time frame as Ezra and Nehemiah.	Book of Malachi
Alexander the Great, King of Macedonia -- the Grecian Empire -- rules as prophesied by Daniel and dies in 323 BC according to historical records. His kingdom was then divided into four areas by his generals as prophesied by Daniel.	Dan 2:32, 39, 7:6, 8:5, 21-22, 11:2-4

Note: Following the Prophet Malachi, there was a period of 300+ years during which there were no recorded prophesies, in part because God was fed up with Israel, and also because at that time, the Jewish law and oral tradition was held in very high esteem by the Jewish religious leaders. As such prophesying was frowned upon and could result in excommunication from the temple. In short, Israel no longer wanted to listen to God. During this time was the reign of the family of the Maccabees. It was at this time that the Book of Jubilees was written. Judas Maccabeus died in 160 BC according to the historical record as well as the Apocrypha.

It was also in these last couple of hundred of "silent years" when the Romans came into power as predicted hundreds of years before by Daniel. According to the historical record, Tiberius Caesar lived from 42 B.C. to 37 A.D. and was in power when Jesus was crucified.

Dan 2:33, 40, 7:7, 23

Note: Due to the uncertainty and conflict between certain historical dates during the final six centuries before the time of Christ, it seems to me that if we take the latest possible age of the Earth based on the Scriptures, and add the possible historical date that it equates to, and then add our current date and the number of years since then to it, we will have a very close figure regarding the actual age of the Earth. In my view, this would be the final 37th year of the captivity of King Jehoiachin. At this time, based on my calculations, the age of the Earth was 3,474 years at that time. His freedom came twenty-six years after the fall of Jerusalem, since he had already been imprisoned for eleven years in Babylon.

At this point we have to trust the historical record to be accurate concerning the date of the final fall of Jerusalem to the forces of Nebuchadnezzar. As shown above, 587 B.C. seems to be the date which is agreed upon by a number of historians. This year equates to the Earth age of 3,448 years. If we subtract the twenty-six years from 587 B.C. to bring it up to Jehoiachin's release from prison, that brings us to the date 561 B.C. which agrees with the historical record. Thus, if we add 561 years to the Earth age of 3,474 when the king was freed from prison, that brings us to 4,035 years at what is normally referred to as the year "zero".

The rest of our math is simple. We add our current year of 2018 to the Earth age of 4,035 years at the imaginary year of 0 B.C./A.D. to give us the sum of 6,053 years for the approximate age of the Earth. It is important to note that this age is based upon placing the beginning of the 430 years of sojourning and bondage at the Earth age of 2,107 years when Abraham was ninety-nine years old and sealed the Covenant with God through circumcision. If we were to take the beginning of this 430 year period and place it twenty-four years before when Abraham first left Haran and began his sojourning, then we could subtract twenty-four years from the approximate Earth age of 6,053 and have the sum of 6,029 years.

If we also take into consideration my own human error or lack of perfect understanding in everything I have presented in this article, I think it is quite possible that the current age of the Earth might possibly be just under six thousand years. Trust me; researching and compiling all of this data from Genesis forward was not an easy feat. Thus, there is room for a small amount of error on my part. Please also note that while some people use other methods for determining the Biblical age of the Earth -- such as using Daniel's "Seventy Weeks" prophecy, or 490 years, to move from the Old Testament period into the New Testament period -- in the end, we still arrive at close to the same ballpark figure of around six thousand years being the age of the Earth.

As I stated at the beginning of this article, this presents some very exciting possibilities. Could it be that the symbolic "six days" of one thousand years each is about to come to an end, and the seventh thousand-year period may soon begin? If so, what can we expect?

If this is indeed the case, as this article and the current world situation seems to indicate, let us do as the Apostle Paul admonished his readers, and stand fast in the faith, for in due season we shall reap if we faint not, as we see by the following verses:

"Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong."


"Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved."


"And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."


With these thoughts, I will bring this article to a close. It is my hope that you have found it informative, enlightening, and I pray that it has been a blessing in your life as well. If you have an account with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or with any other social network, I would really appreciate if you'd take the time to click or tap on the corresponding link that is found on this page. Thanks so much, and may God bless you abundantly!

For additional information and further study, you may want to refer to the list of reading resources below which were either mentioned in this article, or which contain topics which are related to this article. All of these articles are likewise located on the Bill's Bible Basics web server. To read these articles, simply click or tap on any link you see below.

Adaptation, EVILution and the Six Days of Genesis
Amazing 430 Years: Bible is an Accurate Historical Record
Famous Forties: One of God's Special Numbers?
Fifty Days Which Changed the World
Is Science Better Than the Bible?
Keeping Things in Proper Perspective: ET, Where Are You?
Last Seven Years Chart
Noah's Ark and the Genesis Flood
Science and Technology: The Forbidden Knowledge?
The Only Credentials You Need!
The Wisdom of God Versus the Philosophy of Men

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