Customer Reviews

The Chronology of the Old Testament

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

While the other reviewer is correct, that printing the charts is quite difficult without the proper tools, the wealth of information included in this volume are worth twice the price even without printed charts. Some of the problems solved in this book I had been looking at for years without a feasible solution. Some of the problems solved, I didn't even know were problems.

Dr. Thomas has degrees in mathematics, geology, chemistry and education. He is an ex-evolutionist. He relies on the King James Version of the Bible, and the texts from which it was translated. Highly recommended for anyone who is beginning to doubt the veracity of God's Word.

The Chronology of the Old Testament by Floyd Jones is true to God's pure and preserved Word, the authorized version (King James Version) of the Bible. It is difficult to trust other chronologies that do not start with the solid foundation that God has given us a Bible with no mistakes or errors. This reason alone was all I needed. What's more, the book is very thorough and easy for me to read and wrap my head around some of the more difficult concepts of Biblical Chronology.

Before you buy though, consider thinking through the following... The software to view the charts is included on a CD fixed to the inside back cover. However, the author and I highly recommend being able to look at the charts as you read through the book. There are at least three options that I am aware of for viewing the charts.

1) Read the book next to your desktop/laptop computer. Since I like do my reading on the sofa without a computer, this does not work for me.

2) Print the charts using the above software. Being in a time crunch and for several other reasons, I chose this option. Based on experience, printing the charts is no easy task. For instance, Chart 5 measures ten inches by ten feet. Yes, that was ten feet (as in 120 inches). Unless you have a really long piece of paper, you will use up about 25 8-1/2 x 11 letter-sized sheets of paper. The good news is that printing the wall-sized charts can be done with the included software. Simply zoom in, print, pan right, print, pan right, print, etc. I then used a paper trimmer to match the right side of the current page with the left side of the next page. I then proceeded to use an entire roll of clear scotch tape to join the pages together. Place the tape across the front of the first joint and across the back of the second joint alternating until all sheets are combined. Upon completion, I ended up with a foldable frugal full-sized chart.

3) Buy full-size prints of the charts. The charts are $39.95 (US) plus shipping and handling. They are available from the Digital Vault at A&E - The Graphics Complex. They can be contacted in any of the following ways:
Telephone: 713-579-1234
Toll Free: 888-621-0022 (ask for the Digital Vault)
Fax: 713-966-8525
E-Mail: vault@aecomplex.com
Mail: Attn: Digital Vault
A&E - The Graphics Complex
P.O. Box 27286
Houston, Texas 77227
Reference "Floyd Jones Charts" when ordering. Each chart is printed on 11" wide, bright white 20# bond, folded at 8-1/2" intervals so that each chart folds and stacks to a size no larger than 8-1/2 x 11".

Although the the charts presented on CD ROM can not be printed with the standard Adobe Acrobat Reader (.pdf files), they CAN be printed if you have Adobe Acrobat Professional. This is available for a free 30 day trial from Adobe, and I have been able to print the charts very easily (they are perfectly readable as the can be printed at full size, shrunk or enlarged as you wish).
The book is an exceptional purchase and is very interesting to read, particularly if you are interested in the Bible. The charts encourage searching the Scriptures.
Easily worth 5 stars... maybe 10 stars ;)

There is little doubt Biblical chronology is a difficult undertaking. I credit the author for thoroughly researching the issues and understanding the primary issues confronting one seeking to understand the Bible calendar. I also give the author credit for his organization and presentation of his views on this material.

Some of the problem areas in this book are the following:

1) the author uses Ezekiel 4:1-12 as his springboard into the Biblical calendar (from his historical tie in point, the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in ~586 BC). The problem is these verses are quite unclear, and in fact, the author rather admits that, conceding that there is no concensus on what event terminates the 390 years. He also, like others, completely ignores the 40 years mentioned in Ezekiel 4, not having any idea how to fit that into a chronology. He then begins to lambast Edwin Thiele for asserting a schism date 931BC (instead of the authors date of 976BC), saying Thiele was giving preference to Assyrian data over Biblical data. He further faults Thiele's reliance on archaeological evidence to determine Biblical dates, while himself doing the same in accepting 586 BC (a date also based on archaeological evidence). The author's disdain and disrespect for Thiele's work is both obvious and troublesome, given the difficulty of the task at hand. The author is also very quick to assign fault to anyone not seeing things the same way he does, often commenting that they have been speared by Satan's 3 pronged trident.

2) the author arrives at a date of 4 BC for the birth of Christ and 26AD for the Messiah's baptism, dates that require some playful gymnastics with how to understand Luke 3:1 and the 15th year of Tiberius Caesar. He further supports these dates using John 2:20, where the Jews of Jesus day commented that it took 46 years (for Herod) to re-build and enlarge the temple. It should be noted that nowhere in these verses does it say that Jesus was baptized 46 years after the temple building began, only that it took 46 years for this to be done. Thus, such a verse in no way support the idea Jesus was baptized in 26AD, 3 years earlier than is commonly recognized.

3) the author, like Bishop Ussher and others, fails to properly read Exodus 12:40-41 in order to understand that Israel was in Egypt for 430 years, not 215 years. His decision to seek confirmation of 215 years by reliance on the (extra text added in the) Septuagint is disappointing, seemingly giving up a trust in the Masoretic Hebrew text. This, combined with a poor reading of Galatians 3:16, failing to realize God reiterated the covenant to Jacob just before he entered Egypt for 430 years (Genesis 46:2-4). The author also uses the Septuagint to explain away the differences between Genesis 11:12 and Luke 3:35-36, where the Luke account includes the name Cainan.

4) the author again resorts to playful gymnastics in order to make the reigns of the kings of Israel/Judah fit his chronology.

5) the author seems to give great weight to the commentary of Sir Isaac Newton, often citing him, almost as a proof text, when his writings agree with the authors.

Overall, the book is a disappointment as far as accuracy goes, in fact, you might just save yourself the trouble and purchase Ussher's chronology given that the results of this one are virtually identical. An additional benefit of Ussher's chronolgy is that it does not include the verbal abuse and belittling of other chronologists seeking to sort out the chronology of the Bible as this book does. However, if you want a more thoughtful Bible chronology you might try:

http://www.familyradio.com/graphical/literature/calendar/calendar.pdf

While this material is certainly very useful, it is useful in a different way than may be immediately obvious. It is a CD with a book as supplementary material, not the other way around. You can not sit down and read the book by itself, because the book largely refers to charts that are on the CD, which you will need to look at in order to see what the book is talking about.

The CD itself contains a great deal of informative charts that give a detailed visualization of Old Testament chronology, including timelines for the events of Genesis, the Exodus, Judges, and the line of kings for Israel and Judah. If you have the resources to print full-size charts, they would probably be even more useful(I think a local printing shop may be able to do this, such as a FedEx Office Print & Ship Center).

All in all, I have to give this four stars because it's a CD that comes with a book, not a book that comes with a CD, which makes it a bit less useful for most people who don't want to zoom into on a computer screen image, which can be a hassle. Still, very very useful.

I purchased the first version of this book several years ago after reading one of Dr. Jones' other books "Which Version is the Bible?". Dr. Jones is a careful thinker and his works have been very useful in my studies. I recently wanted to get my pastor a great book and when I saw that there was an updated version of this work, I ordered two (one for myself). This book has helped me better understand some simple and yet often incorrectly taught subjects.

One of the first notable items was incorrectly believing that Jacob waited (as apposed to just serving) 7 extra years before marrying Rachel. I had heard this sermon/teaching many times over the years. Using chronology, Dr. Jones explains away this myth and shows how such a belief makes the ages of his children unreasonably young during the events of their lives.

Additionally, my wife and I were watching a nativity movie this past December and started to discuss when it was the Wise Men came to see Jesus. She had heard (a popular) teaching stating that it was roughly 2 years after His birth and I thought otherwise. The answer was fairly simple (not two years later) but it isn't hard to see why people can get the wrong ideas when checking other resources. The "Holman Book of Biblical Charts, Maps and..." incorrectly shows the presentation of Jesus in the Temple before visit of the Wise Men (supposedly 2 years later).

Dr. Jones again breaks it down and shows how The family was visited by the Wise Men, went to Egypt (during which Herod dies) and returned to the Temple in time (less then 40 days) to present Jesus in the Temple after Mary's days of purification were complete. After that, they returned to their home in Nazareth and not Bethlehem where Joseph was warned to flee to Egypt.

There is obviously more detail to the above examples but hopefully you the reader get the idea that this book is very much worth your while if you want to understand and most importantly BELIEVE everything you read in your Bible.

One of the better if not THE best book on the subject. Dr Floyd does not scare away from attacking the theories of collegues if his studies show that an error has slippped in. The book answers many questions that were not or barely treated in the past. His effort to stick to the KJV text at all cost is very laudable per se but negates the advantages of more modern translation techniques. This book is a must for all who are seriously interested in the subject. Not only for professionals.
Beautiful presentation. Easy to read but in a bit of a classroom teacher style.

The Chronology of the Old Testament, by Dr. Floyd Nolen Jones, is a history of the ancient world relying primarily on the most complete, detailed, consistent, and verifiable text known to man, the record of the Hebrew peoples as found in their Scriptures. Beginning with a commitment to the sufficiency and perfect reliability of the Old Testament, the chonologer establishes a timeline of history comparable to Ussher's famous work.

The first section establishes periods of history whose lengths are defined by specific verses in the Old Testament, including the genealogies leading up to the flood, and from the flood to Abraham; the duration of Israel's sojourn in Egypt; the period of the Judges; and then the dates of the kings of Judah and Israel. This last comprises the majority of the work, as Dr. Jones treats the various accounts of the kings' ascensions, reigns, ages, and associations with each other particularly as found in the books of Kings and Chronicles. He refutes the compromise position of Dr. Thiele, whose dates for that era have been considered standard in conservative evangelical study.

To close the principal manuscript, a study is done of the kings of Assyria, Babylon, and Media-Persia particularly as they compare to the 70 weeks prophecy of Daniel 9, predicting the exact year at which Messiah was to be expected. I was especially interested in the identification of the kings Darius, Ahasuerus, and Artaxerxes (of Ezra-Nehemiah).

Though necessarily long, The Chronology of the Old Testament is one of the smoothest narratives of history that I have ever read. Showing care, comprehensive understanding, and a desire to communicate to an audience ranging from the novice to the studied skeptic, each technique of chronology and every theory of dates and history is presented in a way that is easy to understand and, from the perspective of this novice, unquestionable. Along the way like an enthusiastic tour guide the author revealed the little discoveries he had made, unsuspecting, and the significance we miss when we do not appreciate the precise chronology and its implications. For example, we learn that Jonathan son of Saul was actually decades older than David, yet they were dear friends.

Dr. Jones is honest about the limitations of his science, confident in His God (who preserved the record for us), and firm in his stand against giving historical precedence to the Assyrian, Babylonian, Egyptian, or Greek histories since, even from a secular viewpoint, they are less complete, immediate, obvious, and consistent than the Hebrew Bible. They are acknowledged, however, as useful tools in corroborating the testimony of the Scripture and of placing the internal timeline of the Bible into its place in our modern calendar system. Some space is given to discrediting the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament proceeding from Alexandria and containing multiple errors and contradictions. Also discussed are worldviews, and the King James translation of the Bible into English. The author is avidly loyal to this translation, and occasionally vehement in his criticism of those whose opinion differs.

A CD-ROM is included with the book containing most of the charts and timelines discussed (the rest of the charts are alongside the narrative).

The Chronology of the Old Testament is an impressive, helpful book that I would even consider employing as a history book for homeschool children. I enjoyed the book, learned things, and was corrected in some points which I had believed. (One point that comes to mind is the arrival of the magi to visit Jesus. Formerly I had been convinced that they arrived months or even years after Jesus' birth, while the family was residing in Bethlehem. However, the account of Jesus' presentation at the temple in Luke precludes this possibility.) The detailed harmony of the various Old Testament books was brought forth in a broad way I had never before envisioned. My only concerns are these: the strength of his personal criticisms in some places for weakness in understanding or imagination (resulting, I grant, in slighting the authority and accuracy of the Bible); and the incomplete understanding that remains about the events and timeline of Esther. Without reservation, however, I would recommend this book.

To God be all glory,

Lisa

Dr. Floyd Nolan Jones was trained originally as a mathematician (PhD), then as theologian (ThD). He has done the most thorough-going and precise chronology available. It includes intricate treatments and calculations in regard to Old Testament passages and time periods. His treatment of the periods of the judges and kings are especially valuable, and complete with detailed charts available as PDFs. His focus is on the Biblical data, but he also includes astronomical data to confirm the dates. Jones' analysis is so good that I have used his results as the basis of an on-line One-Year Parallel Chronological Bible {see it at [...]} that I have constructed. I highly recommend this book as a main resource of Biblical chronology data, as well as Jones' Analytical Red Letter Harmony of the Gospels.

Honestly, this would be an invaluable resource for any bible student, scholar or home learning family. The Chronology of the Old Testament has over two hundred pages of intense, biblical chronology including various historical documentation, notations and charts.

A priceless companion to Ussher's Annal's of the World, but make the addition of Adams Map of History along with a biblically based history curriculum, and you would have a serious, solid foundation for history ~ perfect for all ages.