Timeline Before Life of Jesus - Palestine from 750 Years Before Jesus
Notable Aspects
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Jesus lived in a territory, Palestine, with a long-standing history of power struggle
(see map of 1st century Palestine)
Palestine is currently part of modern day Israel (see map of Palestine with modernday Israel)
Jesus' own people group, the Jews, were subject to enslavement and captivity of
various empires
Other than 80 years of self-rule that ended a half-century before Jesus' birth, the Jews
had not ruled themselves for three-quarters of a millennium
By the time of Jesus' birth, Roman rule had become entrenched in Palestine
Dates (BCE) Event / Stage
Details
750-612 Assyrian Empire
612-539 Babylonian Empire
539-331 Persian Empire
331-143 Greek Empire
Alexander the Great
331-198 BCE
Ptolemaic Rule:
Alexander's generals
divided the empire
with general Ptolemy
1 taking Palestine &
Egypt and general
Selecus taking Syria,
Babylon and a large
part of Asia Minor
(see map)
198-143 BCE Selucid
Rule: Syria's
Selucid's captured
Palestine (see map)
143-63 Jewish (Maccabean) Rule
63 Roman Empire
Jewish revolt for
independence lead by
Hasmonean family,
later called the
Maccabees (see map)
Under Julius Caesar,
Romans general
Pompey occupies
Palestine in 63 BCE
(see map)
40
37-4 Herod the Great as King (under Roman authority)
Neighbouring
Parthian's invade
Palestine installing a
local Jewish king,
Antigonus
Herod gets Mark
Anthony &
Octavian's (future
Augustus Caesar)
support to have
Roman Senate make
Herod king of Jews
in Palestine
37 BCE: Herod
recaptures Palestine
by force with Roman
support
20 BCE: To win
loyalty of the Jews,
Herod begins
reconstruction of the
Jewish Temple
6 BCE: Jesus is born
and Herod tries to
find and kill Jesus.
Jesus' family escapes
to Egypt until Herod
dies
4 BCE: Herod dies
4 BCE-39 Three sons of Herod divide up rule of Palestine (under
CE Roman Authority)
* Herod Phillip (4
BCE-34 CE) - ruler
of territories east of
Galiliee
* Herod Antipas (4
BCE-39 CE) - ruler
of Galilee and Perea:
He beheaded Jesus'
cousin (John the
Baptist) and
participated in
condemning Jesus to
death
* Archelaus (4 BCE-
6 CE) - ruler of
Samaria, Judea and
Idumea
Time Line During Life of Jesus - Lifetime Overview
Notable Aspects
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Date
Most of his life was spent as a carpenter in northern
Israel (see map of modern day Israel); ( see map of
1st century Palestine)
Jesus taught publicly for three years
Jesus made radical claims and attracted a following of
thousands.
Jesus was killed at the request of Jewish religious
leaders charging Jesus with "blasphemy" or claiming
to be God
Jesus' followers reported and recorded his live
appearances throughout forty days after his execution
Event / Stage
Birth (recent historians
push back date to coincide
6 BCE
with simultaneous
historical events)
6-4
Infancy
BCE
4
BCE- Youth
26 CE
Location
Israel: Bethlehem
Egypt
Israel: Nazareth
27 CE
Beginning of Jesus' public
ministry
Israel:
Jordan/Jericho/Samaria
27 CE
Rejection by his own
people in Nazareth
Israel: Nazareth
27-29
Ministry in Galilee
CE
29 CE
Ministry in Judea
/Jerusalem
29
Ministry in Perea
CE-
Israel: Capernaum, Sea
of Galilee
Israel: Judea, Jerusalem
Jordan: Perea
winter
30 CE Back to Judea/Jerusalem
Israel: Judea, Jerusalem
April Final Week in Jerusalem
30 CE (Trial/Arrest/Execution)
Israel: Judea, Jerusalem
April- Reported Return from the
May Dead and Final
30 CE Appearances
Israel: Judea (South),
Galilee (North)
Timeline After Jesus - Through 325 Years After
Notable Aspects
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Jesus' followers lived in relative obscurity for several
decades after Jesus
Paul was primarily responsible for expanding the message
of Jesus outside of the Jewish community
Followers of Jesus were persecuted and martyred from
immediately after Jesus
"Christianity" did not become a legally recognized religion
until a quarter millennium after Jesus' birth
300 years after the Romans executed Jesus, the Roman
Emperor Constantine became a follower of Jesus
Date
Event / Stage
(CE)
30 Jesus Executed on the Cross
Jesus' followers imprisoned and ordered not to speak
30 regarding Jesus' death and Jesus' resurrection from the
dead.
46 Paul begins missionary journeys
49 Jews expelled from Rome
62 Paul executed in Rome
64 Emperor Nero starts persecuting followers of Jesus
66 Jews begin revolt against Rome
70
Roman commander Titus captures Jerusalem and
destroys Jewish Temple
132 Jews revolt against Rome again
135
Rome squashes revolt and makes Jerusalem a Roman
city
Persecution of Jesus' followers intensified and continued
161by Roman Emperors Marcus Aurelius, Decious, Gallus,
260
Valerian
261
Emperor Gallienus's edict makes Christianity a legal
religion
Emperor Constantine embraces and supports
325 Christianity - making the church an institution of wealth
and power