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Dates In The Book of Acts

Dates in the Book of Acts

Reading Acts often has people trying to figure out the timeline. When did this happen? There are a few indicators that are pretty solid and then you have to guestimate the rest. I would suggest doing this once and then writing the dates in the margin of your bible for future reference

There are a few known dates (by looking at what we know from world history).

Acts    Date            Event

1          30              Pentecost

9          37              Aretas IV, King of Damascus

11        44-48           Famine under Claudius

12        44               Death of Herod Agrippa I

18        52               Gallio, proconsul in Corinth

23        52-58/59       Felix proconsulship

24        57/60           Festus becomes Governor of Judea

64                          Rome burned

 

Hence a good guess at events: Chapter - Dates - Events

Chapters  Date      Event

1-8            30-34     Early Events

9                34          Conversion of Paul

                                   (3 years before his escape from Aretas)

9                37          Escape in Damascus

10-11         37-40    Cornelius and Gentiles

11              40-42    Paul to Antioch

11              44          Famine under Claudius 11.28

12              44          Death of Herod Agrippa II

13              45-48    First Journey

15              51          Meeting in Jerusalem

15-18         51-54    Second Journey

                                  [52 Gallio was proconsul in Corinth]

19-21         54-58    Third Journey

21              58          Paul's Arrest

                                  [Felix governor - Festus replaced 59/60]

24              58          Paul before Felix

                                   [kept for Festus -- ]

25-26         60          Before Festus / Agrippa

27              60          Trip to Rome

28              61-63     First Imprisonment in Rome

 

Take all dating with a grain of salt, but they are close. Hugh DeLong