Biblical Timeline
Key events from Creation to the Early Church
Return & Restoration
538-445 BCE
Cyrus's Decree — Return from Exile
Cyrus the Great of Persia conquered Babylon and issued a decree allowing the Jewish exiles to return to Jerusalem and rebuild their Temple. The Cyrus Cylinder confirms his policy of restoring displaced peoples. Isaiah had prophesied Cyrus by name approximately 150 years earlier (Isaiah 44:28).
Second Temple Completed
Under the leadership of Zerubbabel and the encouragement of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, the returning exiles completed the reconstruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Though smaller than Solomon's Temple, it became the center of Jewish worship for the next 585 years.
Ezra Returns to Jerusalem
The priest and scribe Ezra led a second wave of returning exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem, carrying authorization from the Persian king Artaxerxes to teach the Law of God and establish judges.
Nehemiah Rebuilds Jerusalem's Walls
Nehemiah, cupbearer to the Persian king Artaxerxes, received permission to return to Jerusalem and rebuild its walls. Despite opposition from Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem, the walls were completed in just 52 days.
4 events · Sources: Genesis, Exodus, Joshua, Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Daniel, Jeremiah, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts