Q: #272. In what order were the books of the Old Testament written?
A: There are a total of 39 books in the Old Testament. They were written over a period of about 1500 years from approximately 2000 B.C. to 425 B.C. There is much more controversy over when the Old Testament books were written vs the New Testament books. The date range for each book can vary from one scholar to another by as little as a few years, to as much as 100 years (or more). In making my chart below, I wrote out estimates from NUMEROUS scholars on a paper. I then took what I considered about the average consensus (tossing out way above average highs or lows), and made a date range for each book. Because of this, and some overlap, the books may not be laid out in perfect order. In addition, the date ranges I have for some of these books may be a bit wider than other sources you might find, but this is on purpose to include as many opinions as possible.
Job 2000 – 1800 B.C.
Genesis 1450 – 1405 B.C.
Exodus 1450 – 1405 B.C.
Leviticus 1450 – 1405 B.C.
Numbers 1450 – 1405 B.C.
Deuteronomy 1450 – 1405 B.C.
Psalms Each One Written Between 1440 – 450 B.C.
Joshua 1405 – 1385 B.C.
Judges 1100 – 1043 B.C.
Ruth 1100 – 1010 B.C.
Song Of Solomon 971 – 950 B.C.
Proverbs 950 – 700 B.C.
Ecclesiastes 936 – 925 B.C.
1 Samuel 1040 – 930 B.C.
2 Samuel 1040 – 930 B.C.
Obadiah 1040 – 930 B.C.
Joel 835 – 796 B.C.
Jonah 785 – 760 B.C.
Amos 760 – 750 B.C.
Hosea 750 – 710 B.C.
Micah 742 – 687 B.C.
Isaiah 740 – 680 B.C.
Nahum 663 – 612 B.C.
Zephaniah 640 – 621 B.C.
Habbakkuk 615 – 588 B.C.
Ezekiel 593 – 570 B.C.
Lamentations App. 586 B.C.
Jeremiah 627 – 570 B.C.
1 Kings 580 – 538 B.C.
2 Kings 580 – 538 B.C.
Daniel 538 – 530 B.C.
Haggai App. 520 B.C.
Zechariah 520 – 470 B.C.
Esther 483 – 450 B.C.
Ezra 460 – 444 B.C.
1 Chronicles 450 – 425 B.C.
2 Chronicles 450 – 425 B.C.
Nehemiah 445 – 432 B.C.
Malachi 450 – 424 B.C.
The reason the books of the Old Testament were not placed in the chronological order in which they were written is because they were grouped by category instead. These categories are:
Law: 5 books (Genesis-Deuteronomy)
History: 12 books (Joshua-Esther)
Poetry: 5 books (Job-Song Of Solomon)
Prophecy: 17 books (Isaiah-Malachi)
It should also be noted that the content of some of the books can fit chronologically into another book. For example, Isaiah and Micah ministered at about the same time, during the time period mentioned in the book of Kings. Therefore, content in those “prophetic books” can fit into the “historical book” of Kings. The content of other “prophetic books,” as well as “poetry books,” (the Psalms, as mentioned above, were written over a period of about 1000 years) can also be interwoven into the “historical books.” Keeping this in mind, I strongly suggest taking the time to purchase and read a “chronological Bible” at some point. These Bibles attempt to put everything in the historical order in which it was written. It is very interesting to read the Bible this way.