[Chart on pages 464-466]

OUTSTANDING DATES During the Period of the Kings of Judah and of Israel

NOTE: This chart is meant to provide a helpful outline of key events in connection with the kings of Judah and of Israel. The Bible record of years that the kings of Judah ruled was allowed to govern when fixing other dates. The dates given for rulership of Judean kings extend from the spring of the stated year to the spring of the following year. Dates for the reigns of kings of the kingdom of Israel were coordinated with those for Judah. There are numerous synchronisms provided in the Bible, and these were taken into account in arriving at these dates.

High priests and prophets that are named in the Bible record in connection with the various kings are listed here. But the list is by no means complete. The Aaronic priesthood officiated first at the tabernacle and then at the temple apparently without a break in the line down till the time of the Babylonian exile. And the Bible indicates that, in addition to the prophets that are named, many more served in this sacred office.​—1Ki 18:4; 2Ch 36:15, 16.

THE TWELVE-TRIBE KINGDOM

Dates B.C.E.

SAUL began to rule as king over all 12 tribes (40 years)

Prophet: Samuel

High priests: Ahijah, Ahimelech

1117

Birth of David

1107

Samuel completed book of Judges

c. 1100

Samuel completed book of Ruth

c. 1090

Book of 1 Samuel was completed

c. 1078

DAVID began to rule as king of Judah at Hebron (40)

Prophets: Nathan, Gad, Zadok

High priest: Abiathar

1077

David became king over all Israel; made Jerusalem his capital

1070

Gad and Nathan completed 2 Samuel

c. 1040

SOLOMON began to rule as king (40)

Prophets: Nathan, Ahijah, Iddo

High priests: Abiathar, Zadok

1037

Construction of Solomon’s temple began

1034

Temple built by Solomon in Jerusalem was completed

1027

Solomon wrote Song of Solomon

c. 1020

Solomon wrote book of Ecclesiastes

b. 1000

KINGDOM OF JUDAH

Dates B.C.E.

KINGDOM OF ISRAEL

REHOBOAM began to rule as king (17 years); nation split into two kingdoms

Prophets: Shemaiah, Iddo

997

JEROBOAM began to rule as king over the northern 10 tribes, apparently first from Shechem, then from Tirzah (22 years)

Prophet: Ahijah

Shishak of Egypt invaded Judah and took treasures from temple in Jerusalem

993

ABIJAH (ABIJAM) began to rule as king (3)

Prophet: Iddo

980

ASA evidently began to rule (41), but his first regnal year counted from 977

Prophets: Azariah, Oded, Hanani

978

c. 976

NADAB began to rule as king (2)

c. 975

BAASHA assassinated Nadab and then began to rule as king (24)

Prophet: Jehu (son of Hanani)

Zerah the Ethiopian came against Judah in war

967

c. 952

ELAH began to rule as king (2)

c. 951

ZIMRI, a military chief, assassinated Elah and then ruled as king (7 days)

c. 951

OMRI, chief of the army, began to rule as king (12)

c. 951

Tibni became king over part of the people, further dividing the nation

c. 947

Omri overcame Tibni’s opposition and became sole ruler in Israel

c. 945

Omri bought the mountain of Samaria and built his capital there

c. 940

AHAB began to rule as king (22)

Prophets: Elijah, Micaiah

JEHOSHAPHAT evidently began to rule (25), but his first regnal year counted from 936

Prophets: Jehu (son of Hanani), Eliezer, Jahaziel

High priest: Amariah

937

c. 920

AHAZIAH, son of Ahab, ‘became king’ (2); evidently his father was still living;

Ahaziah’s years of rulership may count from c. 919

Prophet: Elijah

Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat became associated in some way with his father in the government

c. 919

c. 917

JEHORAM, son of Ahab, began to rule as sole king of Israel (12); but in at least one text the brief reign of his brother Ahaziah, who died sonless, also may have been credited to Jehoram

Prophet: Elisha

JEHORAM became official coregent with Jehoshaphat, from which time Jehoram’s kingship may be counted (8)

Prophet: Elijah

913

Jehoshaphat died and Jehoram became sole ruler

c. 911

AHAZIAH, son of Jehoram, began to rule (1), though perhaps anointed to kingship in c. 907

High priest: Jehoiada

c. 906

ATHALIAH usurped the throne (6)

c. 905

JEHU, a military chief, assassinated Jehoram and then began to rule (28); but it seems that his years of kingship counted from c. 904

Prophet: Elisha

JEHOASH, son of Ahaziah, began to rule as king (40)

High priest: Jehoiada

898

876

JEHOAHAZ began to rule as king (17)

c. 862

Jehoash evidently became associated in the kingship with his father, Jehoahaz

c. 859

JEHOASH, son of Jehoahaz, began to rule as sole king of Israel (16)

Prophet: Elisha

AMAZIAH began to rule as king (29)

858

Jehoash of Israel captured Amaziah, breached the wall of Jerusalem, and took treasures from temple

a. 858

c. 844

JEROBOAM II began to rule as king (41)

Prophets: Jonah, Hosea, Amos

Book of Jonah was written

UZZIAH (AZARIAH) began to rule as king (52)

Prophets: Hosea, Joel (?), Isaiah

High priest: Azariah (II)

829

Book of Joel was perhaps written

c. 820

Uzziah ‘became king’ in some special sense, possibly now free from domination of Jeroboam II

c. 818

Book of Amos was written

c. 804

c. 803

ZECHARIAH ‘began to reign’ in some sense, but evidently the kingship was not fully confirmed as his until c. 792 (6 months)

c. 791

SHALLUM assassinated Zechariah and then ruled as king (1 month)

c. 791

MENAHEM assassinated Shallum and then began to rule, but it seems that his years of kingship counted from c. 790 (10)

c. 780

PEKAHIAH began to rule as king (2)

c. 778

PEKAH assassinated Pekahiah and then began to rule as king (20)

Prophet: Oded

JOTHAM began to rule as king (16)

Prophets: Micah, Hosea, Isaiah

777

AHAZ evidently began to rule (16), but his first regnal year counted from 761

Prophets: Micah, Hosea, Isaiah

High priest: Urijah (?)

762

Ahaz evidently became tributary to Tiglath-pileser III of Assyria

c. 759

c. 758

HOSHEA assassinated Pekah and then ‘began to reign’ in place of him, but it seems that his control became fully established or possibly he received the backing of the Assyrian monarch Tiglath-pileser III in c. 748 (9 years)

HEZEKIAH evidently began to rule (29), but his first regnal year counted from 745

Prophets: Micah, Hosea, Isaiah

High priest: Azariah (II or III)

746

a. 745

Book of Hosea was completed

742

Assyrian army began siege of Samaria

740

Assyria conquered Samaria, subjugated Israel; northern kingdom came to its end

Sennacherib invaded Judah

732

Book of Isaiah was completed

a. 732

Book of Micah was completed

b. 717

Compiling of Proverbs was completed

c. 717

MANASSEH began to rule as king (55)

716

AMON began to rule as king (2)

661

JOSIAH began to rule as king (31)

Prophets: Zephaniah, Jeremiah, the prophetess Huldah

High priest: Hilkiah

659

Book of Zephaniah was written

b. 648

Book of Nahum was written

b. 632

JEHOAHAZ ruled as king (3 months)

628

JEHOIAKIM began to rule as king, tributary to Egypt (11)

Prophets: Habakkuk (?), Jeremiah

628

Book of Habakkuk was perhaps written

c. 628

Nebuchadnezzar II makes Jehoiakim tributary to Babylon

620

JEHOIACHIN began to rule as king (3 months 10 days)

618

Nebuchadnezzar II took Jewish captives and temple treasures to Babylon

617

ZEDEKIAH began to rule as king (11)

Prophets: Jeremiah, Ezekiel

High priest: Seraiah

617

Nebuchadnezzar II invaded Judah again; siege of Jerusalem began

609

Walls of Jerusalem were breached on 9th day of 4th month

607

Jerusalem and temple were burned on 10th day of 5th month

607

Last Jews abandoned Judah about middle of 7th month

607

Jeremiah wrote book of Lamentations

607

Book of Obadiah was written

c. 607

NOTE: After Samaria was captured, the ten tribes of the kingdom of Israel were taken into exile. But the land was not left desolate, as was the case with Judah following the destruction of Jerusalem in 607 B.C.E. The king of Assyria moved people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim into the cities of Israel to dwell there. Their descendants were still there when the Jews returned to Jerusalem in 537 B.C.E. to rebuild the temple.​—2Ki 17:6, 24; Ezr 4:1, 2.

From 997 B.C.E. to desolation of Jerusalem. A helpful guide to the overall length of this period of the kings is found at Ezekiel 4:1-7 in the mimic siege of Jerusalem that the prophet Ezekiel carried out at God’s direction. Ezekiel was to lie on his left side for 390 days to “carry the error of the house of Israel,” and on his right side for 40 days to “carry the error of the house of Judah,” and each day was shown to stand for a year. The two periods (of 390 years and of 40 years) thus symbolized evidently stood for the length of Jehovah’s forbearance with the two kingdoms in their idolatrous course. The Jewish understanding of this prophecy, as presented in the Soncino Books of the Bible (commentary on Ezekiel, pp. 20, 21) is: “The guilt of the Northern Kingdom extended over a period of 390 years ([according to the] Seder Olam [the earliest postexilic chronicle preserved in the Hebrew language], [and Rabbis] Rashi and Ibn Ezra). Abarbanel, quoted by Malbim, reckons the period of Samaria’s guilt from the time when the schism took place under Rehoboam . . . until the fall of Jerusalem. . . . The right [side, on which Ezekiel lay] indicates the south, i.e. the Kingdom of Judah which lay to the south or right. . . . Judah’s corruption lasted forty years beginning soon after Samaria’s fall. According to Malbim, the time is reckoned from the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah . . . when Jeremiah began his ministry. (Jer. i. 2).”​—Edited by A. Cohen, London, 1950.

From the division of the kingdom in 997 B.C.E. to the fall of Jerusalem in 607 B.C.E. was 390 years. While it is true that Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom, had already fallen to Assyria in 740 B.C.E., in Hezekiah’s sixth year (2Ki 18:9, 10), it is probable that some of the population fled into the southern kingdom before the Assyrians’ advance. (Note also the situation in Judah following the division of the kingdom as described at 2Ch 10:16, 17.) But, more important, the fact that Jehovah God continued to keep the Israelites of the exiled northern kingdom in view, the messages of his prophets continuing to include them long beyond the fall of Samaria, shows that their interests were still represented in the capital city of Jerusalem and that its fall in 607 B.C.E. was an expression of Jehovah’s judgment against not Judah alone but the nation of Israel as a whole. (Jer 3:11-22; 11:10-12, 17; Eze 9:9, 10) When the city fell, the hopes of the nation as a whole (with the exception of the few who maintained true faith) suffered collapse.​—Eze 37:11-14, 21, 22.

In the chart that follows, this 390-year period is adhered to as a sound chronological guide. A summation of the years listed for all the reigns of the kings of Judah from Rehoboam to Zedekiah gives a total of 393 years. Whereas some Biblical chronologers endeavor to synchronize the data concerning the kings by means of numerous coregencies and “interregnums” on the Judean side, it appears necessary to show only one coregency. This is in the case of Jehoram, who is stated (at least in the Masoretic text and some of the oldest manuscripts of the Bible) to have become king “while Jehoshaphat was king of Judah,” thus giving some basis for assuming a coregency. (2Ki 8:16) In this manner the overall period comes within the 390-year limit.

The chart is not intended to be viewed as an absolute chronology but, rather, as a suggested presentation of the reigns of the two kingdoms. The ancient inspired writers were dealing with facts and figures well known to them and to the Jewish people then, and the different chronological viewpoints adopted by the writers at certain points presented no problem. Such is not the case today, and hence we may be satisfied with simply setting out an arrangement that harmonizes reasonably with the Biblical record.