HISTORYOF THE OLD TESTAMENT CANON
CENTURY NATIONAL EVENTS CANONICAL BOOKS PROBABLE HISTORY OF THE
MANUSCRIPTS & COPIES
1500 B.C. Original Pentateuch Original Pentateuch Scrolls Stored in
Job? the side of the Ark of the Covenant
Joshua added
1400 B.C.
1300 B.C.
1200 B.C.
1100 B.C. Shiloh Destroyed By Philistines Judges & Ruth added New Copies Made From Original
and Tabernacle Moved Scrolls (?)
1000 B.C. Davidic Psalms written
Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Samuel, David, & Levites Distribute
Song of Solomon, Copies Throughout Israel
I & II Samuel added
900 B.C. Obadiah Copies Brought To Northern
Joel Kingdom During Elijah’s Ministry (?)
800 B.C. Assyrians Capture Samaria Jonah Kings Written By A Succession Of
Amos Prophets & Collected & Put Together
Hosea By Jeremiah (?)
Micah
Isaiah Copies Obtained By Priest At Order
Of Sargon II (II Kings 17:27-28)
700 B.C. Nahum Book Of The Law Recovered
Habakkuk In The Temple
Zephaniah
600 B.C. Ezekiel, Etc. Taken Captive Ezekiel Copies Brought To The People From
Jerusalem Destroyed Jeremiah, Lamentations Jerusalem During Josiah’s Reform
Cyrus Captures Babylon I & II Kings (II Chron. 34:6-9, 21) (?)
Temple Rebuilt Daniel
500 B.C. Haggai & Zechariah Copies Taken To Samaria At Time
Esther, Ezra, Nehemiah, Of Nehemiah’s Exclusion
Ezra Returns To Jerusalem I & II Chronicles (Neh. 13:28-30) (?)
400 B.C. Malachi
300 B.C. Septuagint Translated
200 B.C. Greek Old Testament
100 B.C.
1st Century Septuagint Quoted By New
A.D. Testament Writers
Dead Sea Scrolls Hid (A.D. 70)
Fall Of Jerusalem (A.D. 70)
Jewish Council Of Jamnia States
What Was Already Accepted Before
Christ That The 39 Books That Make
Up Today’s Old Testament Are
Canonical (A.D. 90)