{"id":3943,"date":"2024-07-29T07:14:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-29T11:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/learn\/?p=3943"},"modified":"2026-05-22T14:00:42","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T18:00:42","slug":"kings-prophets-israel-judah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/learn\/topics-themes\/explainers\/kings-prophets-israel-judah\/","title":{"rendered":"Guide to the Kings and Prophets of Israel and Judah [Chart]\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Some years ago, a Bible Gateway-associated blogger named Craig T. Owens created a detailed chart of all of the kings and prophets of the united and divided kingdoms of Judah and Israel mentioned in the books of Samuel<\/a>, Kings<\/a>, and Chronicles<\/a>. It\u2019s remained one of our most popular posts ever since. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s easy to see why. When I was researching my article on chronological ordering of the Bible<\/a>, navigating the timeline of these books was by far the most complicated part. (You\u2019ll notice, if you review that post, that I decided to simplify the task: while I did put the books and prophets in chronological order, I grouped them by United Kingdom, Divided Kingdom, and Exile rather than match them up verse-for-verse.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Owens did the work, though, breaking down the complete timeline into incredible detail. Here\u2019s what he had to say about it<\/a>: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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One challenging point in history is the divided kingdoms of Israel (the 10 northern tribes) and Judah (the 2 southern tribes). What makes it challenging when reading straight through the Bible [in chronological order] is that the history is covered in 1 and 2 Kings and then again in 1 and 2 Chronicles. In the midst of these kingdoms, several prophets are sent by God. Some of these prophets only have their words recorded in Kings or Chronicles, while others have their words recorded elsewhere in the Bible (usually the book name is the prophet\u2019s name). 

In trying to keep all of these people and messages clear in my mind, I have put together a list of all the kings and prophets during the period of the divided kingdom (roughly 931-586 BC). <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In honor of the seventh anniversary of the completed form of Owens\u2019 chart, I decided to republish it and break it down into a heavily expanded text format as another way to digest the information.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, I\u2019ll share the chart again, which packs a ton of information into a super-compact graphic. Then I\u2019ll go through and expand on some of the information, and provide links to the relevant passages. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Banner<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Note that all dates are approximate and contested due to the lack of a consistent calendar during this time (as throughout the ancient world).  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chart of Israel\u2019s and Judah\u2019s Kings and Prophets <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First, the chart itself: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Chart<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Got all that? Now, let’s dig in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The United Kingdom, ca. 1050-930 BC <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This was the \u201cgolden age\u201d of the Israelite\u2019s presence in the holy land throughout the Old Testament. It began with Saul establishing his kingdom after being anointed by the prophet Samuel, progressed through his army captain David\u2019s ascension to the throne (also with Samuel\u2019s blessing), and then through David\u2019s son Solomon\u2019s inheritance and consolidation of the kingdom. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saul (r. 1050-1010)<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n