Nelson's Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts, 3rd Edition

Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts copyright 1996, 1993 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

All rights reserved.

The Bible Version used in this publication is The New King James Version. Copyright 1979, 1980, 1982, by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Note to the Reader: Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts—Revised and Updated Edition is intended for nonprofit, noncommercial use in classrooms and seminars. Photocopies made for such settings should be limited to 1,000 units and cannot be sold or used for any profitable enterprise. Questions about usage should be directed to Thomas Nelson.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps & Charts. Old and New Testaments, Third Edition

p. cm.

Includes indexes.

ISBN 9781418541712

1. Bible—Handbooks, manuals, etc. 2. Bible—Geography—Maps. I. Thomas Nelson Publishers.

[BS417.N448 1996]

220.9’022’3—dc20

95–50465

CIP

1 2 3 4 5 — 14 13 12 11 10

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CONTENTS

Introduction

THE OLD TESTAMENT

THE PENTATEUCH

Genesis

Exodus

Leviticus

Numbers

Deuteronomy

THE HISTORICAL BOOKS

Joshua

Judges

Ruth

1 Samuel

2 Samuel

1 Kings

2 Kings

1 and 2 Chronicles

Ezra

Nehemiah

Esther

WISDOM LITERATURE

Job

Psalms

Proverbs

Ecclesiastes

Song of Solomon

THE PROPHETIC BOOKS

Isaiah

Jeremiah

Lamentations

Ezekiel

Daniel

Hosea

Joel

Amos

Obadiah

Jonah

Micah

Nahum

Habakkuk

Zephaniah

Haggai

Zechariah

Malachi

INTERTESTAMENTAL PERIOD

THE NEW TESTAMENT

THE FOUR GOSPELS

Matthew

Mark

Luke

John

Acts

THE EPISTLES OF PAUL

Romans

1 Corinthians

2 Corinthians

Galatians

Ephesians

Philippians

Colossians

1 and 2 Thessalonians

1 and 2 Timothy

Titus

Philemon

THE GENERAL EPISTLES

Hebrews

James

1 Peter

2 Peter

1 John

2 and 3 John

Jude

Revelation

Indexes

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts, Third Edition. We hope that by compiling into one book the maps and study charts used in many of Nelson’s Bibles and reference books, we will be providing every Christian with an essential tool which can enhance the study of God’s Word. Designed to be easy to use and quickly referenced, Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts, Third Edition offers a visual overview of the geography, politics, and thematic issues of Scripture.

The maps and charts follow the order of the books of the Bible and are placed in conjunction with short passages of text that give pertinent historical or thematic background explanations. The charts are often a summary of events or themes in the Bible, allowing the reader to get a quick grasp of a subject before or after reading the Bible passage, while the maps can add to an understanding of the politics and geography of the Bible. The At A Glance charts, for instance, present a summary of each book, showing the focus and topics discussed, the location and time of the events, and gives the text references for each division. The maps detailing Paul’s missionary journeys show the incredible distances this remarkable man traveled in order to spread the Gospel and minister to the faithful.

Charts can also help the reader understand themes that extend over several books, link seemingly unrelated elements of the text, or summarize extrabiblical ideas about the text. Temptation: The Two Adams Contrasted, for instance, shows the different ways that Adam and Jesus Christ handled temptation, while New Testament Women gives references for the actions of some of the most outstanding characters of the New Testament. Three Synoptic Gospel Source Theories visually demonstrates three of the theories which explain the literary similarities of Matthew, Mark, and Luke.

Biblical maps and charts can be helpful not only to the reader but to the teacher as well. Anyone who has struggled with conveying the meaning or history behind a biblical passage knows how useful a visual aid can be. For this reason, many of the charts and maps in this book are on individual pages for easy copying. You are invited to copy those pages as visual aids for your personal use or for use by study groups. All of the maps and charts are also available for free downloading at www.nelsonfree.com. Intended for use in the classroom or seminar, such copies make excellent handouts or can be easily projected onto a screen.

Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts, Third Edition is not intended as a reference book just for the shelf. It is intended to be a supplement to other curriculum material for the classroom, seminar, or sermon. We hope it will prove to be so beneficial that it will become a standard resource for your personal or group Bible study.

THE

OLD

TESTAMENT

Sea fortress

in Sidon

OlD TESTAMENT OVERVIEW

THE PENTATEUCH

The first five books of the Bible—Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy—are called by the Jews the Torah, a Hebrew term meaning law or teaching. The translators of the Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) called this grouping the Pentateuch, that is, the fivefold book (from the Greek penta, five, and teuchos, volume).

Traditionally, conservative Jews and Christians have held that Moses was in large measure responsible for the Pentateuch. Both the Old and New Testaments ascribe to Moses the authorship of this body of literature (Josh. 1:7; Dan. 9:11–13; Luke 16:29; John 7:19; Acts 26:22; Rom. 10:19), and there was general agreement regarding Moses’ role until the eighteenth century.

In the modern period, however, it has often been asserted that behind the Pentateuch as we now have it are four separate documents (referred to as J, E, D, and P) which stem from a variety of periods in Israel’s history and which were pieced together late in the Old Testament era. This theory (known as the Documentary Hypothesis) arose in part to explain a number of questions about the text of the Pentateuch which are particularly apparent in Genesis. These include stories that seem to be virtual duplicates of each other, the use of particular divine names in certain portions of the text, sudden changes in style from one incident to another, and so forth.

It is doubtless the case that the Documentary Hypothesis owed much to naturalistic and evolutionary presuppositions regarding the development of ancient human society. Furthermore, little lasting agreement among scholars has emerged regarding the precise character and extent of the documents and sources which are alleged to lie behind the Pentateuch as we have it. It can now also be shown that many of the features which formerly seemed so strange are typical of other literatures from the ancient period. While not every problem has been fully explained, there are no compelling reasons to abandon Mosaic authorship.

While each book of the Pentateuch is concerned with God’s covenantal relationship with His people, each book is, nevertheless, distinct and has its own particular subject matter.

The Pentateuch constitutes the first part of a major sequential biblical narrative extending from Genesis through 2 Kings. In this first section the accounts of creation and humankind’s early history (Gen. 1–11) are linked to events in the lives of the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph (Gen. 12–50). Those stories, in turn, are linked with accounts of Israel’s greatest prophet, Moses. They include conflict with Egypt’s pharaoh (Ex. 1–11), the rescue of Israel by God from Egypt (Ex. 12–15), Israel’s rebellion and forty years of wandering in the wilderness (Ex. 16—Num. 21), and their arrival at the entrance to Canaan, the Land of Promise (Num. 22—Deut. 34).

The first book of the Pentateuch, Genesis, covers the vast period of time from creation to the journey into Egypt. The remaining four books, Exodus—Deuteronomy, cover a period of only about forty years.

THE PENTATEUCH

CHRONOLOGY OF ISRAEL IN THE PENTATEUCH

GENESIS

Today the modern city of el-Khalil (Hebron) is built up around the site of Machpelah. The cave was once protected by a Christian church but is now marked by a Muslim mosque.

As the title indicates, Genesis is a book of beginnings (the word Genesis comes from the Greek term meaning origin, source, birth, or beginning). In its description of God’s creation of the world, the fall of man, the origins of the peoples of the earth, and the beginnings of God’s covenant relationship with His chosen people Israel, the Book of Genesis provides the context and sets the stage for the rest of Scripture.

AUTHOR

Although the Book of Genesis does not name its author, Scripture and much of Church history ascribe the book to Moses. Both the Old and New Testaments repeatedly testify to the Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch (e.g., Josh. 1:7; Dan. 9:11–13; Luke 16:29; John 7:19; Acts 26:22; Rom. 10:19), and Mosaic authorship was not seriously questioned until the eighteenth century. Conservative Christians and Jews continue to acknowledge Moses as the author on the basis of the testimony of Scripture and the absence of plausible alternatives.

DATE

In writing the Book of Genesis, Moses doubtless utilized older written sources and oral traditions, as well as material directly revealed to him by God (Num. 12:8). Trained in the wisdom of the Egyptians (Acts 7:22), Moses had been providentially prepared to understand and integrate, under the inspiration of God, all the available records, manuscripts, and oral narratives. The composition of the book was probably undertaken during the wilderness exile of Israel (c. 1446–1406 B.C. ).

THEMES AND LITERARY STRUCTURE

The literary structure of Genesis is built around eleven separate units, each headed with the word generations in the phrase These are the generations or The book of the generations: (1) Introduction to the Generations (1:1—2:3); (2) Heaven and Earth (2:4—4:26); (3) Adam (5:1—6:8); (4) Noah (6:9—9:29); (5) Sons of Noah (10:1— 11:9); (6) Shem (11:10–26); (7) Terah (11:27—25:11); (8) Ishmael (25:12–18); (9) Isaac (25:19—35:29); (10) Esau (36:1—37:1); (11) Jacob (37:2—50:26).

Genesis is the first chapter in the history of the redemption of man. In this work, four great events and four great people are emphasized.

Chapters 1–11 are dominated by four momentous events which form a basis for all subsequent biblical history.

(1) Creation: God is the sovereign creator of matter and energy, space and time. Human beings are the pinnacle of this creation.

(2) Fall: Though originally good, this creation became subjected to corruption through the sin of Adam. In spite of the devastating curse of the Fall, God promises hope of redemption through the seed of the woman (3:15).

(3) Flood: As humanity multiplies, sin also multiplies until God is compelled to destroy the human race with the exception of Noah and his family.

(4) Nations: Though we are all children of Adam through Noah, God fragments the single culture and language of the post-flood world and scatters the peoples over the face of the earth.

Chapters 12–50 deal with four great people (Abraham and his descendants Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph), through whom God will bless the nations. The calling of Abraham (ch. 12) is the pivotal point in the book. The covenant promises God makes to Abraham are foundational to God’s program of bringing salvation to all peoples.

GENESIS AT A GLANCE

OUTLINE OF GENESIS

Part One: Primeval History (1:1—11:9)

Part Two: Patriarchal History (11:10—50:26)

THE SIX DAYS OFCREATION

According to the Book of Genesis, God created the world and all that is in it in six days. Then He declared it all to be very good (1:31). The Creator rested on the seventh day (2:1–3).

While there were other creation stories among the pagan nations of the ancient world, the biblical account is unique in that God existed before creation and called the physical world into being from nothing (1:1, 2; John 1:2, 3). These pagan nations, particularly the Babylonians, believed the material universe was eternal and that it brought their gods into being. But Genesis describes a God who is clearly superior to the physical world.

God began organizing a shapeless and barren earth (1:2), providing light (1:3–5), and separating land from water (1:6–10). The creation of plant and animal life followed, including creatures of the sea, air, and land (1:11–25). Man and woman were created on the sixth day (1:26–28), before the Creator’s Sabbath rest (2:1–3).

Scholars disagree about the length and character of the creation days. Some believe these were actual twenty-four-hour days, some believe they were periods of undetermined length, while others see the six-day creation sequence as a literary framework. Regardless of the length of these days, the biblical writer declares that God created the world in orderly fashion as part of a master plan. The world did not just evolve on its own or by accident.

The gap theory, advanced to reconcile the biblical account of creation with geology, holds that creation in Genesis 1:1 was followed by catastrophe (1:2), then succeeded by God’s re-creation or reshaping of the physical world (1:3–31). But this theory reduces God to a weak being with little control over His own creation. The powerful God who created the world also presides over its destiny.

Man and woman are the crowning achievements of God’s creative work (Ps. 8:5). As free moral beings who bear the image of God, they were assigned dominion over the natural world (1:27, 28). They alone among the living creatures of the world are equipped for fellowship with their Creator.

GOD’S CREATIVE WORK

Though some scholars interpret the creation narratives of Genesis 1:1—2:3 and 2:4–25 as evidence for the presence of two different and inconsistent creation accounts, 2:4 does not introduce a new creation account but is rather an expansion of 1:26–27. The second chapter presupposes the first, and the differences are complementary and supplementary, not contradictory.

THE GARDEN OF EDEN

The Garden of Eden was the first home of Adam and Eve, the first man and woman (2:4—3:24). Eden is a translation of a Hebrew word which means Delight, suggesting a Garden of Delight. The garden contained many beautiful and fruit-bearing trees, including the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (2:9).

Pinpointing the exact location of the Garden of Eden is difficult, although the best theory places it near the source of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in the Armenian highlands (see map on p. 9). A major catastrophe, perhaps the Flood of Noah’s time, may have wiped out all traces of the other two rivers mentioned—the Pishon and the Havilah (2:11). But modern space photography has produced evidence that two rivers, now dry beds, could have flowed through the area centuries ago.

God commanded Adam and Eve not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (2:17). They fell from their original state of innocence when Satan approached Eve through the serpent and tempted her to eat of the forbidden fruit (3:1–5). She ate the fruit and also gave it to her husband to eat (3:6, 7). Their disobedience plunged them and all of the human race into a state of sin and corruption.

Because of their unbelief and rebellion, they were driven from the garden. Other consequences of their sin were loss of their innocence (3:7), pain in childbearing and submission of the wife to her husband (3:16), the cursing of the ground and the resultant hard labor for man (3:17–19), and separation from God (3:23, 24).

The apostle Paul thought of Christ as the Second Adam who would save the old sinful Adam through His plan of redemption and salvation. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive (1 Cor. 15:22).

The Garden of Eden may have been located near the Tigris River, which the Bible calls Hiddekel (2:14).

THE TWO ADAMS CONTRASTED

Genesis 3:15 contains the promise of redemption, a promise fulfilled with the coming of Christ. The New Testament portrays Christ as the Second Adam whose obedience and sacrificial death on the cross undo Adam’s disobedience (Rom. 5:12–21; 1 Cor. 15:45). As the Second Adam, Jesus triumphed over the same sort of temptation to which the first Adam succumbed.

TEMPTATION: THE TWO ADAMS CONTRASTED

AGES OF THE PATRIARCHS

The curse brought about by the Fall of Adam resulted in death for Adam and his posterity. Though lifespans were initially quite long (averaging over nine hundred years), they rapidly declined after the Flood.

Biblical genealogies (e.g., in Genesis, 1 Chronicles, etc.) are not necessarily sequential in the precise sense. In keeping with ancient genealogical practices, names are sometimes omitted within the list. The Hebrew term translated begot may also be translated became the ancestor of.

HOW OLD WERE THE PATRIARCHS?

The patriarchs who lived before the Flood had an average lifespan of about 900 years (Gen. 5). The ages of post-Flood patriarchs dropped rapidly and gradually leveled off (Gen. 11). Some suggest that this is due to major environmental changes brought about by the Flood.

SPIRITUAL DECLINE IN THE PATRIARCHAL AGE

NOAH’S ARK

The ark was a vessel built by Noah to save himself, his family, and animals from the flood sent by God (6:14—9:19). The ark was about 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high, with three decks. Scholars have calculated that a vessel of this size would hold more than 43,000 tons.

After almost a year on the water, the ark came to rest on Mount Ararat in what is now Turkey. Numerous attempts across the centuries to find the remains of the vessel have been futile. Shifting glaciers, avalanches, hidden crevices, and sudden storms make mountain climbing in the area extremely dangerous.

The ark reveals both the judgment and mercy of God. His righteous judgment is seen in the destruction of the wicked, but His mercy and care are demonstrated in His preservation of Noah, and, through him, of the human race. The ark is a striking illustration of Christ, who preserves us from the flood of divine judgment through His grace.

From the ancient world there are several other flood stories that are remarkably similar to the biblical account in many details. In the most famous of these, Utnap-ishti, the Babylonian Noah, constructed a boat, which was about 180 feet long, 180 feet wide, and 180 feet high—hardly a seaworthy design. In stark contrast to these stories, the Book of Genesis presents a holy and righteous God who sends the flood in judgment against sin and yet mercifully saves Noah and his family because of their righteousness.

In the New Testament, Jesus spoke of the Flood and of Noah and the ark, comparing the days of Noah with the time of the coming of the Son of Man (Matt. 24:37, 38; Luke 17:26, 27). Other references to the Flood include Hebrews 11:7; 1 Peter 3:20; and 2 Peter 2:5.

DOES THE BIBLE REALLY SAY THAT?

Common Sayings from Genesis—Many popular sayings have their roots in the Bible. Yet people often use these phrases without recognizing their biblical origins. Here are several common sayings or phrases that can be traced to the Book of Genesis.

THE TOWER OF BABEL

The Tower of Babel was built on the plain of Shinar, a site probably in ancient Babylonia in southern Mesopotamia, some time after the great flood of Noah’s time. A symbol of man’s sinful pride and rebellion, the structure was built to satisfy the people’s vanity: Let us make a name for ourselves (Gen. 11:4).

The pyramid-like tower was expected to reach heaven. These people were trying to approach God on their own self-serving terms, but they learned that the gates of heaven cannot be stormed. Men and women must approach the holy God in reverence and humility.

This tower was built of bricks and mortar, since no stones were available on the flat plains of southern Mesopotamia. The Babel Tower appears to be similar to the ziggurats the ancient inhabitants of southern Mesopotamia built as places for the worship of their gods. Both Assyrian and Babylonian kings prided themselves on the height of these pagan temples, boasting of building them as high as heaven.

One such tower, built in Ur, Abraham’s ancestral city in southern Mesopotamia, about 2100 B.C., was a pyramid consisting of three terraces of diminishing size. The temple was climbed by converging stairways. The uppermost part of the tower was an altar devoted to pagan worship.

God intervened to prevent the builders of Babel from partaking of the power and glory that belongs only to Him. The language of the builders was confused so they could no longer communicate with one another. In their frustration, they abandoned the project. Then the prideful builders were scattered abroad (11:7, 8). How small and weak this tower was in comparison to God’s power! Humankind’s misguided efforts at self-glorification brought on confusion and frustration and their dispersion throughout the world.

ABRAHAM’S FAMILY

The genealogy of Shem (11:10–26) serves to introduce the figure of Abraham, a native of the Mesopotamian city of Ur. God’s redemptive plan now focuses on the family and descendants of one individual. Abraham’s role in Scripture is foundational to the rest of Scripture: all of God’s subsequent redemptive dealings with humanity are related to the covenant God made with Abraham.

THE ABRAHAMIC COVENANT

The Abrahamic Covenant is unconditional, depending solely upon God who obligates Himself in grace to bring about what He has promised. The covenant was first given in broad outline and was later confirmed to Abraham in greater detail (13:14–17; 15:1–7, 18–21; 17:1–8).

THE ABRAHAMIC COVENANT

The Abrahamic covenant was foundational to other covenants:

• The promise of land in the Palestinian Covenant (Deut. 30:1-10)

• The promise of kingly descendants in the Davidic Covenant (2 Sam. 7:12–16)

• The promise of blessing in the Old and New Covenants (Ex. 19:3-6; Jer. 31:31–40)

ABRAHAM'S JOURNEYOF FAITH

Abraham’s 1,500-mile journey was fueled by faith. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, ... for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God (Heb. 11:8–10).