According to Jewish historian Josephus, the Judean king of Idumean descent, Herod the Great (74/73 BC-4 BC) decided to build a magnificent temple of God in the 18th year of his reign (listed as 20 BC on the Biblical Timeline). He proposed an expansion of the original second temple (one built under the leadership of Zerubbabel) first built during the time of the Achaemenids and continued during the time of the Macedonians. Herod spoke to the people of Jerusalem about this idea, but they were not enthusiastic at first because they feared that Herod might tear it down again. After he had reassured them that he would not tear it down, the people agreed to this magnificent building project.
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As much as ten thousand workmen were chosen to help build the temple, according to Josephus, and it was one of the biggest construction projects at the time. It was located on the northern portion of Mount Moriah and dominated the Kidron and Tyropoeon Valleys. The retaining walls were made of large cut stone blocks that were skillfully put together so well that they can still be visited today. However, the inner courts and temple themselves were destroyed many years ago. The inner portion of the walls were enclosed with porticoes or cloisters.
“Model of Herod’s Temple”
It had the same dimensions as that of Solomon’s temple which measured 60 cubits long, 20 cubits wide, and 40 cubits high. The courts were divided into four: one for priests, one for Jewish males, one for women, and the last one for Gentiles. Four storage chambers were built at each corner of the women’s courtyard: the Chamber of Lepers, Chamber of Wood, Chamber of the Nazarites, and the Chamber of Oils.
Herod enlarged the length of the temple area, but not its width and according to Josephus and the Mishnah, had several gates that led to the outer court. It had an inner court which led to the sanctuary where the altar was located and where non-Jews were forbidden to enter. The enclosure had nine gates: four on the northern wall, four on the southern wall, one on the eastern wall, and none on the western portion. Two were reserved for women (one on the north and one on the southern end) while six were reserved only for men. Next to the women’s courtyard was the Gate of Nicanor, the largest gate leading to the temple, which measured 50 cubits high and 40 cubits wide.
The temple itself towered up to 15 stories high and divided into the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. The Holy Place contained the altar of incense, the seven-branched golden candlestick, and the table of the shewbread. It led to an inner sanctuary called the Holy of Holies, which the Jews considered as the dwelling place of God. The Ark of Covenant was located inside, and divided from the Holy Place by a curtain or veil. The magnificent decorations of the temple were covered in with silver, gold, and bronze.
According to John 2:20, it took forty-six years for the temple to be completed, but it was only completed during the procuratorship of Albius. Which means it took more than eighty years to complete the temple. It was destroyed by fire less than a decade later by the Romans when Jerusalem was besieged by Titus.
References:
Picture By Berthold Werner – Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5333254
“JewishEncyclopedia.com.” TEMPLE OF HEROD –. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 May 2016
Cerros started out as a small village of farmers and fishermen on the coast of the Corozal Bay. Its access to the sea made it a significant trading port in ancient coastal Belize. As a result, its population grew steadily. This Maya city became a major trade, culture, and religious center during the Late Preclassic Period. This was marked by magnificent structures such as the step pyramids, ball courts, and acropolis. Cerros was home to many people at its peak but it all changed many years later when it was completely abandoned by the people who lived there. This happened close to the time of Christ’s Birth according to the Biblical Timeline with World History.
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Many Maya urban centers experienced a decline during the last years of the Late Preclassic Period including Cerros. The population of the city gradually became smaller and important sites were eventually abandoned. Monuments were neglected and the Mayas did not make new ones during this period. The rainforest then slowly took over the farms and structures the people built in the past.
“Cerros, Corozal, Belize”
There are different possibilities why Cerros was abandoned completely. One explanation is the climactic changes the region experienced which resulted in droughts. Soil erosion and deforestation also made matters worse. The scarcity of food brought about by these changes may have driven the Mayas (in Cerros and other sites) to look for a more hospitable environment where they can grow food.
As it was one of the major Maya cities during the period, overpopulation and diseases also played a part in its decline. Cerros, in addition, relied heavily on sea trading routes in its early years. As Tikal and other Mesoamerican cities grew, the trade routes were disrupted from the waterways to further inland which reduced the city’s significance. A few families remained around Cerros, but it would never regain its past glory as one of the most important Maya cities.
References:
Picture By HJPD – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6640093
McKillop, Heather Irene. The Ancient Maya: New Perspectives. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2004
Foster, Lynn V. Handbook to Life in the Ancient Maya World. New York: Facts on File, 2002
The road to kingship over Egypt was not easy for Ptolemy. However, he successfully established his authority in 305 BC. This started the Ptolemaic Dynasty, which lasted until 204 BC according to the Biblical Timeline with World History. Despite this, his family ruled Egypt for almost 300 years with the famous Cleopatra VII as the last queen of Egypt in 30 BC. All of them were Macedonians, and all male rulers used the name Ptolemy (with variations such as Philadelphos, Eurgetes, etc.) while the female rulers used either Arsinoe, Berenice, or Cleopatra as their names.
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Alexander the Great in Babylon threw his large empire into chaos when he died without an heir. Although he had an unborn child by his wife Roxana, his empire, which spanned from Greece to the borders of India, were divided among his trusted generals (diadochi): Seleucus I over Asia, Cassander over Macedonia and Greece, Lysimachus over Trace and Asia Minor, and Ptolemy I over Egypt.
Before Ptolemy ruled Egypt, Alexander first appointed the unpopular Cleomenes of Naucratis as governor of Egypt. Perdiccas, upon Alexander’s death, stood as regent for Philip III (Alexander’s half-brother who had mild learning difficulties). Perdiccas appointed Ptolemy as governor over Egypt instead. When Perdiccas sent Alexander’s remains from Babylon to Macedonia, Ptolemy prevented its return. He then diverted Alexander’s remains to Egypt as a way to legitimize his rule. This made Perdiccas angry, and he raised an army to invade Egypt. He was was unsuccessful in this quest after he was killed by his own officers.
“Antony and Cleopatra, by Lawrence Alma-Tadema”
It was the practice of the Ptolemaic dynasty to marry within their own family as it was the tradition of the native Egyptian pharaohs. It started with Ptolemy II (Philadelphos) who married his sister Arsinoe II. This practice continued until Cleopatra VII’s reign. The Macedonian rulers used the Egyptian religion and culture to legitimize their rule over the territory. They allowed the native Egyptians freedom to worship their own gods and styled themselves as gods after the Egyptian practice. Their queens were even proclaimed as goddesses after their death.
What made the Ptolemaic dynasty unique was that they allowed women to rule either alone or as coregent with their husbands. They also gave lands to Greek and Macedonian veterans so they could settle in Egypt. Many of them married native Egyptians, but they set themselves apart by using the Greek language, laws, and culture. The Ptolemies even refused to learn the Egyptian language which made them unpopular with the people.
The native Egyptians were not influential during this period, and the country was plagued with rebellions against the Macedonian rulers. The Ptolemies also dealt with conflicts within their own family. This started between Ptolemy VIII and Ptolemy VI and spilled over to mother and daughter who were both named Cleopatra. Finally, a civil war broke out between Ptolemy VIII and Cleopatra II.
The Ptolemaic dynasty continued to rule Egypt until it became a Roman province in 30 BC. The last monarch from the Ptolemaic dynasty was Cleopatra VII, who died from a bite from an asp after Octavian (Augustus) defeated her and her lover, Mark Antony.
An attempt to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem was made after Artaxerxes I of Persia became king (465-464 to 424-23 BC). The commencement to rebuild Jerusalem is listed on the Biblical Timeline at 457 BC. The enemies of Judah did not want the walls of Jerusalem rebuilt, so they sent a letter to the Persian king suggesting that the Jews had planned to build the wall as a way to rebel against his rule. Artaxerxes ordered the people to stop the reconstruction when the letter reached him (Ezra 4:2-23).
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The walls were not rebuilt until the time of Nehemiah. He served at the court of Artaxerxes I as a cup-bearer. Nehemiah requested the king to send him to Judah so he could help rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Luckily, this request was granted by the king. He went to Judah and encouraged the people to start the reconstruction of the city walls under his leadership. However, they had to deal with strong opposition from the Ammonites, Arabs, and Ashdodites who lived near them. The Jews were in fear for their lives after they were warned that they would be killed if they continued, but Nehemiah appointed guards to protect them.
The threat against them was so great that Nehemiah was forced to divide the men as workers and guards. They worked in shifts so that when some men worked in rebuilding the walls, others stood guard over them. They also defended themselves by carrying weapons whenever they worked (Nehemiah 1-4).
After killing his father-in-law Servius Tullius, the Etruscan king Tarquinius Superbus killed many senators to gain more power. He brutally reigned the kingdom for years. This ended when his son Sextus raped the noblewoman Lucretia Junius Brutus. This resulted in a revolt of the population of Rome against his father which ended in Superbus’ exile along with his family. This revolt was led by Lucretia’s kinsman Lucius Junius Brutus, a member of a patrician family whose father and brothers were executed by Superbus years ago. This brought about the end of the Roman Kingdom as well as the monarchy in 509 BC and started the establishment of the Roman Republic soon afterward. This is listed on the Biblical Timeline with World History almost to 1 AD.
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Tarquinius Superbus executed many senators whose loyalty to him could be not assured and did not bother to fill in the positions of those he executed. After his reign, Lucius Junius Brutus and Lucretia’s husband, Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus, were elected as the first consuls of the new republic. One of the first reforms Brutus made was to replace the senators killed by Superbus. He appointed 300 senators who mostly came from the equites. These were men initially members of the cavalry, but they were later elevated to a political and administrative class who were influential in the voting assembly.
Three Branches of Government
A king used to rule over the Romans during the time of the Kingdom, but the power is now shared by many people in three branches:
The Consul
The Senate
The Curiate and Centuriate Assembly
The highest among these positions was the consul which was shared by two people to ensure that abuse of power would not happen. Each was elected through the assembly and the power of each consul was equal to that of kings. The difference, however, is each consul’s power is checked by the other consul and the term is limited to only one year. He should also be 42 years old by the time of election and a person who came from a patrician family. The consul was not allowed to have successive terms and was free to use imperium domi (power that is not absolute while in the city of Rome) as well as imperium militiae (unrestricted power in the field).
A dictator could also be nominated by the consul during times of crises. He was a temporary magistrate with limited powers with an even limited term of six months. His nomination was endorsed by the Senate and confirmed by the popular assembly. Julius Caesar was one of those famous dictators of Rome.
An example of the most enduring legacies of the Romans was the Senate which served as an advisory council for Rome’s consuls. While the consuls held office for only one year, the Senate’s office was permanent. At the end of their terms, consuls may become Senators which was a process that became common as the Republic evolved. As an advisory council to the consuls, the Senators initially had limited powers. But two-hundred years later, the Senate had the upper hand and more powerful than the consuls in the area of legislation, finance, religion, and foreign policy.
Although the patricians held considerable power by exclusively occupying the first two branches of government, the more populous plebeians also had a say in the Republic but in a more limited form. They were allowed to form two assemblies: the centuriate assembly which voted on military matters and the non-military tribal assembly that exercised power in civil life.
Law of Twelve Tables
By 451 BC, the Law of Twelve Tables were drafted and inscribed on bronze tablets which were displayed in the Roman forum. This code of law covered every aspect of Roman life including procedure for courts and trials, settling debts, inheritance, land rights, family, public, and more.
Wars and Expansion
Rome was plundered in 390 BC by the Gallic tribe Senones led by Brennus who caught the Romans by surprise. Although the Romans raised a small army in defense, they were easily routed at the Battle of Allia. The Romans retreated into their city; men of fighting age took refuge in the citadel and most of the citizens fled from the city. The Gauls, founding the city almost empty, proceeded to destroy and plunder it. Negotiations between two parties were conducted later on and the Gauls demanded a ransom of 1000 pounds of gold.
The time of the Roman Republic was also a time of expansion within and outside of the Italian peninsula. Rome gained control of most of their territories through conflict which included the Latin, Samnite, Pyrrhic, and Punic wars. The Romans also wrestled territories from the declining Seleucid empire established hundreds of years before by Alexander the Great which included Macedonia, Egypt, and the Levant.
Fall of the Republic
There were several factors that contributed to the gradual decline of the Roman Republic which would eventually give way to the rise of the Roman Empire. First was the inequitable distribution of the spoils of war between the patricians and the plebeians with the upper class getting much of the wealth. As the possibility of profiting from war increased, many tried to be elected or appointed in high offices which lead to bribery and abuse of power.
“Being a soldier in Rome was not exactly the most rewarding”
As wealth increased, excessive consumption by the ruling class and the rich landowners took its toll on Rome. In addition, the Republic was involved in a series of foreign wars where it was victorious. As victors, Roman soldiers would destroy a whole city (such as in the case of the Battle of Carthage) leaving the survivors as homeless captives. Naturally, Rome and neighboring cities would absorb these captives of war into their society as slaves, creating a surplus population in the city. The life of a slave was not easy and they had little to no rights in the Republic. Masters were free to do anything they wanted with their slaves and some were prone to inhumane treatment. This, combined with a stagnant economy, set the stage for the series of Slave Wars.
Another war that contributed to the fall of the Republic was the Social War. Being a soldier in Rome was not exactly the most rewarding of occupations and because of this, many of the possible soldiers evaded drafts. To fill in the gap, the government decided to draft soldiers from Italic allies who, however, had little citizenship rights and privileges. Marcus Livius Drusus capitalized on this and pushed for reform, but was later killed because of this unpopular stance. This ignited the Social War when the Italian allies revolted after his assassination.
As Rome conquered cities around the Mediterranean and beyond, the financial burden of supporting an empire took its toll. Add to that the greed of the tax collectors and a revolt was inevitable.
By the time of the rise of the First Triumvirate led by Pompey, Crassus, and Julius Caesar, Rome was politically unstable and wracked with revolts. The three worked together to help Caesar attain the position of Roman consul and oppose legislation that might not work in their favor. Crassus was killed in Mesopotamia during a battle with the Parthians and Pompey became Caesar’s enemy. He was later defeated by Julius Caesar and killed while in Egypt. Caesar became Rome’s dictator but was assassinated in 44 BC. Competition erupted between Caesar’s heir Mark Antony and Augustus after Caesar’s death. Following a loss in the Battle of Actium which resulted in Mark Antony’s suicide, Augustus won and was proclaimed “emperor” by the Roman senate.
The library of Nineveh was compiled by the last of the Assyrian’s greatest kings, Ashurbanipal (668-627 BC). It is recorded as preserved around 600 BC on the Biblical Timeline with World History. Ashurbanipal was one of Assyria’s most scholarly kings and boasted that he could read Sumerian and Akkadian cuneiform scripts. After removing his brother Shamash-shum-ukin from the Babylonian throne, Ashurbanipal himself took over and ruled the territory. He now had access to the temple archives and after building a citadel in Nineveh, he undertook the task of building his collection of scholarly texts gathered from all over the Assyrian empire.
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After his death, his son Ashur-etel-ilani succeeded him as king and the vast Neo-Assyrian Empire started its decline. Nineveh was destroyed in 612 BC and much of its treasures was looted or destroyed by the Chaldean, Medes, Scythian, and Cimmerian armies. They burned Ashurbanipal’s palace, but this act that was meant to destroy Ashurbanipal’s legacy luckily preserved the clay tablets of his great library.
“They burned Ashurbanipal’s palace, but this act that was meant to destroy Ashurbanipal’s legacy luckily preserved the clay tablets of his great library.”
Contents of the Great Library
The Great Library of Ashurbanipal contained a large collection of administrative, scholarly, historical, medical, lexical, literary, and legal texts. Clay tablets of correspondence between officials and kings were also recovered at the site, as well as fascinating records of the Near East hemerology, incantations, rituals, and omens.
Some of the most important clay tablets that were excavated and translated include:
* Epic of Gilgamesh – an epic poem and one of the oldest surviving works of Mesopotamian literature.
* Azekah Inscription – an inscription about Sennacherib’s campaign against Hezekiah, king of Judah.
* Treaty of Esarhaddon with Ba’al of Tyre – appointment of Ba’al as ruler of Dor, Byblos, and Akko.
* Sargon II Prism A – an inscription of Sargon II’s campaigns
* Venus Tablet of Ammisaduqa – an astronomical record of Babylonian king Ammisaduqa.
* Enuma Elish – ancient Babylonian epic of creation
* Poor Man of Nippur – an Akkadian story
Ashurbanipal’s Library Unearthed
Interest in Assyrian culture was revived thousands of years later in Europe. In 1820, Englishman Claudius Rich of the East India Company in Baghdad made initial surveys in Nineveh, and the small collection of tablets he recovered were later sold to the British Museum by his widow.
Paul Emile Botta, a French doctor, and naturalist, was appointed consul at Mosul. He found little in the area of Koyunjik (Nineveh) so he went to Khorsabad (Dur-Sharukkin) where he found Sargon’s palace. The reliefs and cuneiform inscriptions he recovered in Dur-Sharukkin were sent to France in 1847 and are now housed in the Louvre Museum.
Austen Henry Layard, an English art historian who lived and traveled in the Middle East, was sent by the British ambassador in Constantinople to further explore Assyria. This project was financed by the British ambassador, and he made excavations in Koyunjik and Nimrud between 1845 and 1851. In 1850, his worker Toma Shishman found the library tablets in Rooms 40 and 41 while Layard was away.
Hormuzd Rassam, a native Assyrian, who worked with Austen Henry Layard during his first and second expeditions, continued the work of the Englishman in 1852 to 1854. He discovered a large group of clay tablets from the library in the north palace in Koyunjik. The clay tablets of the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Sumerian flood story were among those Hormuzd Rassam recovered.
Later archeologists such as Reginald Campbell Thompson made important discoveries in Nineveh during the 1920s and 1930s. Further excavations were made by Iraqi crews from the University of Mosul and British teams between the 1950s and 1980s.
Ezekiel, whose name means ‘God strengthens,’ was born in Jerusalem during a time of great upheavals caused by the invading Babylonian army. He can be found on the Biblical Timeline at the end of 600 BC. Ezekiel is introduced in the first chapter as ‘the priest, the son of Buzi’. He received one of his first fantastic visions of four-faced and winged creatures as well as ‘the appearance of the likeness of the glory of God’ while living in exile near the Kebar river in Babylon. His ministry started seven years before the final destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. and covered the events between 590 B.C. and 571 B.C. He was already working as a priest when he was captured and taken to Babylon in 597 B.C.
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Daniel and Ezekiel were roughly the same age, although Daniel was already established in his prophetic ministry in Babylon by the time Ezekiel arrived (Ezekiel 14:14 and 20, 28:3). Ezekiel was married, the death of his wife is recorded in Ezekiel 24:15-27.
The Book of Ezekiel
“Biblical illustration of Book of Ezekiel Chapter 37”
Destruction of Jerusalem
Ezekiel’s prophecies are divided into three parts:
the condemnation of Judah and the total destruction of Jerusalem (chapters 1-24)
the prophecies against foreign nations (25-39)
the plans for rebuilding the new temple (40-48)
The first part consists of a series of prophecies concerning Judah. He was called by God to prophesy against the people by eating a scroll with laments written on it (2:8-10; 3:1-3). The prophecies of Ezekiel about the fall of Jerusalem were full of symbolism which included
* The drawing of a map of Jerusalem under siege on a clay tablet (4:1-3).
* Lying on his left side for 390 days for each year of Israel’s sins and 40 days on his right side for each year of Judah’s sins (4:4-8).
* The ration of bread baked with cow dung as fuel to symbolize scarcity and Israel’s impending captivity into the land of the Gentiles (4:9-17).
* The divine razor used by Ezekiel in cutting up his hair into three parts which symbolized the people who will die of famine and disease in the city, those killed outside the city walls, and those who will be scattered (5:1-13).
The last prophecies against Jerusalem can be read on the 24th chapter, while the 25th chapter up to the 32nd is series of messages against Judah’s neighbors. Those who received condemnation were the Ammonites, Moabites, Edomites, Philistines, the Phoenicians of Tyre and Sidon, and Egyptians.
Promise of Restoration
Ezekiel is not all gloom and doom. The last parts of his prophecies were promises of restoration. His fantastic vision of a valley full of dry bones connecting with each other and coming back to life is a symbol of hope for the people of Israel who will be freed from captivity and will return to Jerusalem in due time (37:1-14). He received a vision as early as the 14th year from the fall of Jerusalem (40:1) about God’s detailed plans for a new temple. Ezekiel also received instructions on the new borders and divisions of the land for each tribe. A sacred site will be allotted between Judah and Benjamin as the place where the new temple will stand. A river of healing will flow out from the temple to the Dead Sea.
The Passover Feast, or Pesach, celebrates the deliverance of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, as recorded in the Book of Exodus. During Passover, Jews also commemorate the birth of the Jewish nation after being freed by God from captivity. Today, the Jewish people not only remember a historical event on the first Passover but also celebrate in a larger sense, their freedom as Jews. The first Passover, according to the Biblical Timeline, occurred on May 4, 1451 B.C.
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The Hebrew word Pesach means, “to pass over.” During the Passover celebration each year, Jews take part in a meal known as the Seder, which features the retelling of the story of Exodus and God’s liberation from their slavery in Egypt. Each partaker of the Passover Seder experiences in an individual way, a national celebration of freedom through God’s divine intervention and deliverance. Hag HaMatzah or the Feast of Unleavened Bread and Yom HaBikkurim or Firstfruits are both mentioned in Leviticus 23 as separate feasts. However, today Jews observe all three feasts as part of the eight-day Passover celebration.
Today, Passover begins on day 15 of the Hebrew month of Nissan, which falls in March or April and continues for 8 days. In Biblical times, Passover began at twilight on the fourteenth day of Nissan, and then the next day, day 15, the Feast of Unleavened Bread would begin and continue for seven days.
The Passover Story
“With the final plague, God promised to strike dead every first-born son in Egypt”
Joseph, the favored son of Jacob, after being sold into slavery in Egypt, was protected by God and greatly blessed. Ultimately he was put into a high position—second-in-command to Pharaoh. In time, Joseph moved his entire family to Egypt to be near him and help them. This happened in 1706 B.C. By the time of the Exodus, 215 years later, the Israelites had grown into a people numbering over 2 million. In fact, there were so many Jews in Egypt that the new Pharaoh, who had no memory of what the good Joseph had done for his land, was afraid of their power. To retain a feeling of control, he forced the Israelites into slavery, oppressing them with harsh labor and brutal treatment.
However, God had a plan to rescue his people, through a man named Moses. At the time Moses was born, Pharaoh had ordered the death of all Hebrew males, but God spared Moses when his mother hid him in a basket along the banks of the Nile River. Pharaoh’s daughter found the baby and decided to adopt him. Later Moses fled to Midian after killing an Egyptian he had witnessed brutally beating a Hebrew slave.
There God appeared to Moses from within the flames of a burning bush and said:
“And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;” Exodus 3:7-10 KJV
And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Now, therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt
After making some excuses, Moses finally obeyed God and confronted Pharaoh.
Moses and Aaron repeatedly appeared before Pharaoh to demand in the mighty name of God:
“Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness”
However, Pharaoh continued to refuse. Moses sternly warned him that God would smite Egypt. Pharaoh remained unyielding. God begins to send a series of horrific plagues upon the Egyptians. In the midst of each plague, Pharaoh promises to let the Children of Israel go, always with some conditions, but he retracts the offer once the affliction has ended.
All the waters throughout Egypt turn to blood.
Swarms of frogs overrun the land.
Lice infest all the men and beasts.
Hordes of wild animals invade the cities.
An epidemic kills the domestic animals.
Painful boils afflict the Egyptians.
Fire and ice combine to descend from the skies to form a ravaging hailstorm.
A devastating swarm of locusts demolishes all the crops and greenery.
A thick, tangible darkness shrouds the land.
All the firstborn of Egypt are killed at the stroke of midnight of the 15th of the month of Nissan.
With the final plague, God promised to strike dead every first-born son in Egypt at midnight on the 15th day of the month of Nissan. However, to Moses, the Lord provided instructions so his people would be spared. Each Hebrew family was to take a Passover lamb, slaughter it and place some of the blood on the doorframes of their homes. When the destroyer passed over Egypt, he would not enter the homes covered by the blood of the Passover lamb:
“Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.
In addition, they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side-posts and on the upper doorpost of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. In addition, they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs, they shall eat it. Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof. And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire. And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD’s Passover.”
The first nine plagues only served to dishearten the Pharaoh briefly but were unable to make him completely submit to the will of God. Finally, God ordered the Hebrew slaves to make a sacrifice of a lamb and mark their doors with the blood of the lamb, as an indication to the God to ‘pass over’ their houses while slaying the first-born males of the Egyptians. The Hebrews followed the word of God and thus, their first-born males were saved from the tenth plague. ‘Pesach’ means ‘passing over’ or ‘protection’ in Hebrew. This final calamity was a final blow to the Pharaoh, and he ordered Israelites to be set free immediately and allow their passage put of Egypt.
In their hurry to finally be able to live free lives, Israelites did not even wait to let their dough rise and bake bread but took raw dough instead to bake in the hot desert sun as hard crackers called Matzos on their journey. Moses led them through the desert. The angry Pharaoh changed his mind and led his army to chase after and kill them all. However, through the divine grace of God, the Jews managed to reach the Red Sea, where they seemed trapped by the vast stretch of water. Moses called upon God for help, and all of a sudden, the Red Sea parted to give way to the Israelites, and thus, they safely passed over to the other side on dry land. They were protected forever as the waves closed over the shocked army of the Pharaoh and drowned the whole army at once.
Important World Leaders and Events During This Time
Egypt is the undisputed world power during this time.
Egyptian bondage and oppression increase, especially towards the Hebrew people.
This period saw the beginning of the Hurrian conquests.
Hittite King Mursilis I fought the Hurrians on the upper Euphrates River.
The Cretan palaces at Knossos and other centers flourish despite disasters.
The city of Mycenae, located in the northeast Peloponnesus, comes to dominate the rest of Achaea, giving its name to Mycenaean civilization.
Cecrops I builds or rebuilds Athens following the great flood of Deucalion and the end of the Golden age. He becomes the first of several Kings of Athens whose life account is considered part of Greek mythology.
Cecrops I, legendary King of Athens, dies after a reign of 50 years. Having survived his own son, he is succeeded by Cranaus.
Egypt started to conquer Nubia and the Levant.
The element Mercury had been discovered in Egyptian tombs dating from this period.
Settlers from Crete, Greece move to Miletus, Turkey.
There is evidence of the Mayan civilization developing in Belize.
The Biblical female name Miriam is of Hebrew origin and is considered to be an older version of the name Mary. It means “wished for child,” or perhaps even a quite different meaning, which is “bitter” or “rebellious.” There is also a very similar Egyptian name, based on the word myr, meaning “beloved” or mr meaning “love.”
By consulting our Biblical Timeline, we can determine that Miriam was born in 1576 B.C.
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Miriam was the daughter of Amram and Jochebed, and the older sister of Moses and Aaron, all of whom were Levites. We first learn of Miriam as she and her three-year-old brother, Aaron, are welcoming a new child into the family.Unfortunately for that time, the baby was a boy, and there is a decree that all Hebrew baby boys be killed. Miriam had godly parents who trusted the God of Israel, however, Egypt’s Pharoah hated her people. Miriam would have been only about 5 years old when this baby, Moses was born.
Her mother hid him for three months, but when she could no longer do so, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it to make it waterproof. Then she placed Moses in it and hid it along the bank of the Nile river. Miriam then watched to see what would happen to him.
When the Pharaoh’s daughter went down to the river to bathe, she noticed the basket and sent a slave girl to get it. After she opened it and saw the baby, she fell in love with him. At that moment, Miriam bravely stepped forward and offered to find a Hebrew woman to nurse the baby for the princess, who had decided to keep the baby as her own. And so it was, that Moses’ own mother was paid to care for him until he could be weaned and then given over to the Princess to be raised as an Egyptian.
Just from this one incident, we can glean from Miriam’s life that she was already caring, competent, and certainly brave. It would have taken quite a bit of courage to be so forthright with the Pharaoh’s daughter. She must have also been very obedient, because although the Bible doesn’t tell us, it would seem as though her mother had left her to watch over Moses, and see what would become of him.
Then one day, perhaps Miriam received the news that Moses had killed an Egyptian, and had fled to the desert, in fear for his life. Our Bible timeline shows he would have been 40 years old by then, and it would be another 40 years until they would meet again.
During that long period of Moses’ absence, the Pharaoh, who wanted Moses killed, dies himself. The Hebrew children groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help went up to God, Who heard their afflictions and remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Therefore, God looked on His towards children who were still in bondage in Egypt and was troubled over them.
It was God’s perfect time to deliver the Israelites, and He knew who He was going to use to accomplish His will. It would be Moses, who had by now made a completely new life for himself in the land of Midian, with a wife, two sons, and a career of tending his father-in-law’s flocks.
Moses returns to Egypt, and with Aaron as his spokesman, they delivered God’s commands to Pharaoh. Miriam watched God confirm their message with the great miracles they performed.
At long last, the treasured night came when the Israelites were allowed to leave Egypt with the mourning cries of the Egyptians resounding in their ears. Every home with children was grieving the death of a firstborn.
Miriam was there when this immense number of people came to the seemingly impassable barrier of the Red Sea. Miriam was right there when they looked behind them and saw the chariots of the Pharaoh and all his armies chasing after them, since he had changed his mind about letting them leave, and was determined to take them back to Egypt or to kill them on the spot. She witnessed the miracle when God opened a path through the sea, allowing the children of Israel to walk across on dry land. Again, she was there on the other side when Pharaoh’s chariots and horses stepped in to follow along the same path, and the massive walls of water that had stood so secure for the Israelites dissolved and filled in that whole dry bed, and drowned the mightiest army of that time.
“Miriam the prophetess”
The Israelites were free from Egypt’s brutal captivity, and Miriam had seen it all! It was a time for rejoicing, and a time for singing. Exodus 15 records the first song in the Bible, which was from Moses, and that is not without significance. It is a song of praise from a redeemed people.
Here is Miriam’s response to what the LORD had accomplished:
And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.” Exodus 15: 20&21
Miriam was a leader among the Hebrew women, and she was gifted musically. She took the place of leadership that the LORD gave her, and used it to direct the woman to praise the Lord. She was a godly influence in their lives.
Notice that Miriam was one of God’s special gifts to the people of Israel. In fact, the Bible tells us that in Micah 6:4:
“For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of servants; and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.”
She was a gift from God, and that is why she was so influential, however, at some point about 2 years into their journey, things begin to change in Miriam’s heart. The protective sister, the prophetess, the woman’s worship leader, the woman who supported Moses, became his rival and critic.
Moses had the final word on everything, and Aaron was the high priest. She was a prophetess. However, the people of Israel were not being governed by a committee of three. Miriam wanted more power, more authority, and began to speak even against Moses with Aaron because of his Cushite wife.
She was actually being driven by pride, jealousy, and envy at this point and even began to criticize Moses’ wife, and then question that he was not the only one God spoke to.
The Lord finally disciplines Miriam with leprosy for a week. Perhaps this brought her great shame and humiliation, even long after the week had passed. She lived thirty-eight more years under Moses’ authority, and never questioned it again. In fact, the Bible never mentions her after that, until she is about 130 years old, and the children of Israel are on the border of the Promised Land for the second time. It is now the first month of the fortieth year of their travels, and she dies, never having entered into the Promised Land.
Important World Leaders and Events During This Time
Egypt is the undisputed world power during this time.
Egyptian bondage and oppression increase, especially towards the Hebrew people.
This period saw the beginning of the Hurrian conquests.
Hittite King Mursilis I fought the Hurrians on the upper Euphrates River.
The Cretan palaces at Knossos and other centers flourish despite disasters.
The city of Mycenae, located in the northeast Peloponnesus, comes to dominate the rest of Achaea, giving its name to Mycenaean civilization.
Cecrops I builds or rebuilds Athens following the great flood of Deucalion and the end of the Golden age. He becomes the first of several Kings of Athens whose life account is considered part of Greek mythology.
Cecrops I, legendary King of Athens, dies after a reign of 50 years. Having survived his own son, he is succeeded by Cranaus.
Egypt started to conquer Nubia and the Levant.
The element Mercury has been discovered in Egyptian tombs dating from this period.
Settlers from Crete, Greece move to Miletus, Turkey.
There is evidence of the Mayan civilization developing in Belize.
The Olmec people lived in the south central part of Mexico, the states of Vera Cruz and Tabasco. The Olmec heartland is considered to be where the land is fertile and surrounded by rivers. They were known to the Aztec people (in their Nahuatl language) as the ‘rubber people’ because they harvested rubber from rubber trees and used it in their ceremonial ball games. The Olmecs flourished in 1400 B.C. and disappeared around 400 B.C. Their uniting of Mesoamerica is recorded on the Biblical Timeline with World History between 829-804 BC.
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Quickly See 6000 Years of Bible and World History Together
Unique Circular Format – see more in less space. Learn facts that you can’t learn just from reading the Bible Attractive design ideal for your home, office, church …
The Olmec culture is considered as the mother culture or sister culture of Mesoamerican civilizations including the Maya and the Aztec. They are known for their legacies which include the writing system in the form of glyphs (similar to Egyptian hieroglyphics), realistic stone carvings, and a pyramid at La Venta. The colossal heads discovered in the Olmec heartland of Veracruz and Tabasco are spectacular pieces of art that rise up to 10 feet and weigh as much as 20 tons. The heads feature helmets, wide noses, thick lips, square jaws, and wide faces.
“Olmec Head No.1, 1200-900 BCE”
The Olmecs were also master craftsmen. They carved jade face masks with almost the same features as the colossal heads, although the purpose of these masks is still unknown. Other stone statues discovered by archeologists include a life-like wrestler figure, identical statues of twins facing a Jaguar recovered at El Azuzul, giant carved stone altar thrones, chubby baby statuettes, and carvings of were-jaguar sacrifices. Their design of their plazas and their ceremonial ball games were retained later on by the Maya and the Aztec peoples.
The Olmec civilization gradually disappeared around 400 B.C. for reasons still unknown.
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