Resources for a Biblical Worldview
Section: Keywords ⋅ Controversial Topics ⋅ Complex Topics ⋅ Connecting the Dots ⋅ Differentiations ⋅ Closer Looks ⋅ Revelation ⋅ All Book Summary ⋅
(See Answers in Genesis for a graphical depiction of the timeline of the Bible.)
| 4000 | Creation (GE 1-2) |
| 2400 | Global flood (GE 6-9) |
| 1500 | Israelites exodus from Egypt (EX 5-14) |
| 1100 | Kings David & Solomon |
| 600 | Exile to Babylon for 70 years (DA) |
| 0 BC | Jesus' birth (BC = Before Christ) (LK 1-2) |
| 33 AD | Jesus' death & resurrection (AD = Anno Domini, which is Latin for "in the year of the Lord") (MT 26-28, MK 14-16, LK 22-24, JN 18-20) |
| 300 | Septuagint (Greek translation of the Old Testament) (wikipedia.org, septuagint.net) |
| 313 | Emperor Constantine I begins the "Peace of the Church" (term from the Old Catholic Encyclopedia describing the Roman empire's move from persecution to toleration and eventual adoption of Christianity) (wikipedia.org, catholicity.com) |
| 325 | The Nicene Creed was agreed upon at the First Council of Nicea (wikipedia.org) |
| 380 | Emperor Theodosius I declares Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire and orders other religions to be called heretical (wikipedia.org) |
| 397 | Final cannon of the protestant New Testament decided at the third Synod (Council) of Carthage (ref 1, 2) |
| 476 | Western half of the Roman Empire disintegrates when the last emperor is deposed and not replaced (Eastern half remains as the Byzantine Empire until 1460) (wikipedia.org) |
| 590 | Vulgate published (Latin translation) (wikipedia.org) |
| 900 | Oldest surviving copy of Masoretic Text (Hebrew version of the Old Testament used as reference when translating some Bibles) (wikipedia.org) |
| 1054 | Catholic church splits (Roman/Latin and Eastern/Greek Orthodoxy) (wikipedia.org) |
| 1095 | The Crusades begin and last almost two centuries (wikipedia.org) |
| 1205 | Chapters added to original texts by Stephen Langton, a professor in Paris who later became Archbishop of Canterbury (Fuller Seminary) |
| 1382 | John Wycliffe is credited to the first English translation of the Bible, though many other partial translations preceded (wikipedia.org) |
| 1439 | Johannes Gutenberg makes his printing press. One of his first projects was a Bible. |
| 1448 | Verses added to Old Testament by Rabbi Isaac Nathan (bibleinfo.com, wikipedia.org) |
| 1517 | Martin Luther's letter on the door (the 95 theses) and "knock heard round the world," sparking the protestant reformation (wikipedia.org) |
| 1526 | William Tyndale's translation of the New Testament is first version to be mass produced by the printing press. (wikipedia.org) |
| 1551 | Verses added to New Testament by Robert Estienne, a Parisian book printer (Fuller Seminary, wikipedia.org) |
| 1560 | The Geneva Bible printed, the first "study bible," the first to use all the verse numbers, and the translation that was used by pilgrams a half century later (wikipedia.org) |
| 1611 | King James Version translation published (wikipedia.org) |
| 1620 | The European pilgrimage to the new world begins with the Plymouth Colony settlers (wikipedia.org) |
| 1947 | Dead Sea Scrolls found (1,800 year old copies of the books of GE, EX, LEV, DT, JDG, SA, EZR, PS, ISA and other non canonical books: wikipedia.org) |
| 1948 | Israel declares independence after the United Nations approves the recreation of the Jewish state (wikipedia.org) |
| 1978 | New International Version translation published (second edition published in 1984) (wikipedia.org, niv.org) |
| 1996 | New Living Translation published (second edition published in 2004) (wikipedia.org, newlivingtranslation.com) |
Translations
Certainly the original text is best, but how many of us can read Hebrew, Greek or Aramaic? Not many, so we are stuck with translations. Here is what I have found to be the high level difference between some of the more common translations we will find in a random Christian bookstore today. My favorite example passage to use when comparing translations is The Lord's Model Prayer, in MT 6:9-13. Here are links to a couple webpages that compare parallel translations side by side: Bible Gateway or Bible Hub.
| Abbreviation | Full Name | Publisher/Copyright | Translation Intent |
| NIV | New International Version | International Bible Society | Clarity, literary quality, readability in style and international in scope. Scholars from five English speaking countries contributed. |
| NLT | New Living Translation | Tyndale Charitable Trust | "Dynamic equivalence" (thought by thought basis, not necessarily word by word) Based on Kenneth Taylor's Living Bible, first published in 1971, also by Tyndale House. |
| KJV | King James Version | Public Domain | In 1604, King James I authorized a new translation of the Bible for official use by the Church of England. This avoids paraphrasing. |
| NKJV | New King James Version | Thomas Nelson, Inc. | Updates the language of its predecessor. |
| NASB | New American Standard Bible | The Lockman Foundation | "To adhere as closely as possible to the original languages of the Holy Scriptures, and to make the translation in a fluent and readable style according to current English usage." (From the forward.) |
| Revised Standard Version | National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA | Thirty scholars sought to express the meaning of the scriptures in language meant for use in worship, with emphasis on the style that gave "the KJV a supreme place in English literature." | |
| MSG | The Message | NavPress Publishing Group | A paraphrase by Eugene Peterson designed as a reading Bible that can give us a fresh perspective on a familiar phrase or passage. |
Terminology
| Apocrypha: | books of the Bible that are included in the Vulgate and Septuagint versions of the Catholic Bible, but not in the Protestant Bible or the Hebrew canon, technically referred to as "deuterocanon" (try an Internet search for "why does the Catholic Bible have" for some interesting reads) |
| Apostasy: | turning away from, typically with criticism, our former religion |
| Apologetics: | proving the truth of Christianity |
| Begotten: | (past tense of beget) to cause to exist/be born (in biological context this refers to the father, not mother) |
| Believe: | to act as if it is true |
| Bethany: | house of bread (especially interesting as birthplace of the "bread of life") |
| Blaspheme: | disrespecting God or sacred things |
| Boredom: | lack of purpose, not lack of activity |
| Canon: | the foundational, definitive and authentic scriptures of a religion |
| Catacomb: | an underground cemetery with passages, tunnels and rooms |
| Catechesis: | oral religious instruction given before baptism or confirmation |
| Courage: | absence of self, not absence of fear |
| Covenant: | a formal/legal agreement/contract |
| Culture: | the norms and traditions that characterize a group of people and are passed from generation to generation non-genetically |
| Decalogue: | the ten commandments |
| Deuteronomy: | Greek for "repetition of the law" |
| Dogma: | religious belief |
| Dogmatic: | prone to expressing strongly held beliefs and opinions |
| Dogmatist: | somebody who expresses strongly held opinions, sometimes new, expecting them to be accepted without question |
| Doxology: | a hymn of praise to God |
| Echelon: | a level in a hierarchy or a tiered formation |
| Eschatology: | a doctrine about death and the afterlife |
| Ethereal: | belonging to the heavens or the celestial sphere |
| Ethics: | application of morals in a business environment |
| Etymology: | the origin and historical development of a word, expression, or other linguistic element |
| Euphemism: | an non-offensive replacement for an offensive expression |
| Exegetics: | theological study & interpretation of scripture |
| Faith: | believing that what God says is true |
| Fornication: | consenting sex but not married |
| Hermeneutics: | a science/methodology/theology of interpreting and explaining texts, especially religious texts/concepts, especially the Bible |
| Holy: | set apart |
| Humility: | putting others before yourself |
| Hyperbole: | deliberate and obvious exaggeration used for effect |
| Indignant: | anger/annoyance at unfairness/unreasonableness |
| Interlude: | a relatively short period of time between two longer periods, during which something happens that is different from what happened before and what will follow |
| Love: | (when we love someone we care about what they care about, and it's always demonstrated by commitment) |
| Malachi: | Hebrew for "messenger" and is not necessarily (but still possibly) a name |
| Maturity: | the speed at which we're willing to do what we know we're supposed to do |
| Masochist: | tendency to invite and enjoy misery of any kind, especially in order to be pitied by others or admired for forbearance |
| Metaphor: | a figure of speech where a description is applied to something but is not literally applicable in order to highlight a comparison |
| Miracle: | an event that appears to be contradictory to the laws of nature, totally amazing and extraodinary |
| Moral: | what is good/just/right or wrong based on conscience |
| Ontology: | the study of being in general, or of what applies neutrally to everything that is real (the science of being) |
| Narcissist: | excessive self-admiration/self-centeredness and the need for the same from others |
| Proselyte: | gentile believer (convert to Judaism) |
| Proselytize: | to convert someone to our belief |
| Purgatory: | a spiritual holding ground before we get to heaven (assuming we aren't going to hell) |
| Sacred: | dedicated/devoted to God or a religious purpose and not to be disrespected |
| Sacrosanct: | extremely sacred, above & beyond criticism or change |
| Sin: | doing wrong (either knowingly or unknowingly) typically as informed by God (note by definition all sin is wrong regardless of current cultural norms) |
| Sovereign: | self-governing, having complete power |
| Sup: | to drink small amounts at one time |
| Superstition: | an improper connection between cause and effect |
| Syncretism: | combining different belief systems that are contradictory or even opposing each other |
| Tithe: | literally means "tenth" in Hebrew |
| Testament: | something that shows that another thing exists/is true, or a formal statement of beliefs |
| Theocracy: | a form of government where God (or a deity) is the supreme civil ruler |
| Unity: | ability to work together despite differences, not to be confused with uniformity |
| Visceral: | motivated by instinct rather than reasoned thinking |
| Witness: | to make Jesus real |
Trivia
- Adam is the name of the first man, who was formed out of the ground, and his name comes from the Hebrew word 'Adamah', which means 'ground'. In ancient times it was common for peoples' names to reflect the situation of their birth. (GE 2:7, GE 3:20, GE 25:25-26,27:36, GE 26:20-22, GE 29:32-30:24, GE 41:51-52, EX 2:10, EX 18:2-4)
- Marriage is not explicitly defined but divorce is. (Marriage is implied in GE 2:18-24.)
- The Tower of Babel is only mentioned in GE 11
- The label Hebrew means people from Hebron (GE 13:18,37:14)
- Jacob had 12 sons, but he also had 1 daughter (GE 30:21). The sons get the whole Bible and the daughter gets GE 34, and she's never mentioned again after GE 46:15.
- The tablets of the 10 commandments were written on front and back (EX 32:15)
- In the tabernacle, the lamp stand alone was made of 75 pounds of gold (EX 25:39)
- First & second Kings were originally one book but were split so they'd fit on two normal sized scrolls.
- There's a second Goliath in 2SA 21:19.
- The last 2 verses in 2 Chronicles are also first 3 verses in Ezra (2CH 36:22-EZ 1:3).
- MIC 4:1-3 is almost identical to ISA 2:2-4 but isn't exlicitly a quote.
- The word "hope" isn't found in NIV84 until the book of Ruth.
- Nehemiah is an excellent model leader, especially his dedication to prayer.
- The word "God" is not found in the books of Esther nor Song of Solomon.
- The term "Jew" is first found in the book of Esther, and starting here the term "Hebrew" is not used again except in Pauline letters or as a language (rather than a people).
- Job is found after Ester in the canon but likely takes place chronologically in the middle of Genesis.
- Joel does not name the sin he is appealing to the people to repent of.
- Nahum is Jonah part 2.
- Jonah, Nahum and Obadiah are prophets to the gentiles.
- Haggai is a contemporary (same time & place) as Ezra.
- Only 2 angels are identified by name in Scripture: Gabriel (DAN 8:16,9:21) and Michael (DAN 10:13,21, JUDE 9, REV 12:7)
- There is a 450 year gap between the last book of the Old Testament and the first book of the New. Keep in mind the USA wrote their Declaration of Independence less than 250 year ago.
- The Old Testament has 78% of the chapters (929 compared to 260 in the New).
- The Old Testament takes place over 98% of the timeline of the Bible (less than 70 years in the New and perhaps a little over 4,000 in the Old). Keep this in mind when comparing God's supposed personality differences between the two testaments (love vs wrath, etc.)
- There are 68 references to synagogues in the New Testament (NIV) but none in the Old.
- Jude mentions 2 events from Old Testament times not mentioned in the canonical Old Testament (JUDE 1:9, 1:14-15).
- The name Jesus is an English translation of the Greek name Joshua.
- There is disagreement over whether angels sing because of the interpretation of the original Greek in Luke 2:13. In all the angelic interactions, they're never described as walking, though presumably it happens in Acts 12:7-10.
- Matthew is the only gospel to use the word 'church' or phrase 'kingdom of heaven', the other 3 use 'kingdom of God'.
- (Humorous) Jesus's opinion on your favorite TV show: MK 13:37
- James & Jude (Judas) could be Jesus' brothers (MT 13:55, MK 6:3)
- The temple tax was only for men 20 or older (EX 38:26) but Jesus only tells Peter to get two people worth of tax money (MT 17:24-27) some disciples lived long after Jesus so perhaps most of them were only teenagers! This would allow MT 4:18-22 and MT 19:10 to make much more sense.
- Stephen is the first recorded martyr for the sake of Christ (AC 7:59-60)
- Antioch is the first recorded place to use the word "christian" (AC 11:26)
- The fourth commandment is the only one not explicitly repeated in the new testament?
- All Paul's letters are followup except Romans.
- All Paul's letters include an expression of gratitude in the introduction except Galatians.
- The order of how Paul's letters appear in the Canon was decided as by length (longest to shortest).
| Shortest verses: | JOB 3:2, LK 20:30, JN 11:35, 1TH 5:16, 1TH 5:17 (2 words each, NIV 2011) or MT 23:14, MK 9:46, LK 17:36 (0 words each in NIV) |
| Shortest chapter: | PS 117 (2 verses) |
| Shortest books: | 2JN (13 verses), 3JN (14/15 verses), OB (21 verses in OT) |
| Longest verses: | DA 5:23 (74 words, NIV), ES 8:9 (72 words, NIV) |
| Longest chapter: | PS 119 (176 verses), (runner up?) |
| Longest book: | PS |
| Chapters with over 99 verses: | ? |
Maps
(I am only listing the Biblical locations that still seem to be on the map today, thanks to Google. My friend's brother made biblemap.org and someone else did something similar with Google here and here. For actual ancient maps we could visit http://www.bible-history.com/maps/. Google links: reverse address finder & address to coordinate converter.)
External Links
Biblically Correct Tours - One man's recommendations on how to tour secular museums etc. and reinforce a Biblical Worldview.
Biblical Research Reports - Someone else's version of a Biblical Worldview webpage (theirs is a whole site though)
BreakPoint - A ministry of Prison Fellowship out of Washington DC.
Christian Answers - Providing biblical answers to contemporary questions for all ages and nationalities.
GotQuestions.org - The Bible has answers, they provide them for us
Project Biblical Worldview - A resource of Northwest Christian Academy in Miami, Florida.
Nehemiah Institute - PEERS (politics, economics, education, religion & social issues) worldview testing. This is basically the most popular form of Christian standardized test, not designed to see how much we know but what we believe.
Sonic Light - A free in-depth Bible commentary.
Summit Ministries - A Biblical worldview training organization (sample).
Timeline of the Bible
Worldview Academy - Two week camps around the country each summer
Biblical Research Reports - Someone else's version of a Biblical Worldview webpage (theirs is a whole site though)
BreakPoint - A ministry of Prison Fellowship out of Washington DC.
Christian Answers - Providing biblical answers to contemporary questions for all ages and nationalities.
GotQuestions.org - The Bible has answers, they provide them for us
Project Biblical Worldview - A resource of Northwest Christian Academy in Miami, Florida.
Nehemiah Institute - PEERS (politics, economics, education, religion & social issues) worldview testing. This is basically the most popular form of Christian standardized test, not designed to see how much we know but what we believe.
Sonic Light - A free in-depth Bible commentary.
Summit Ministries - A Biblical worldview training organization (sample).
Timeline of the Bible
Worldview Academy - Two week camps around the country each summer
Last Modified: Saturday, December 05, 2020
