My reckoning of the chronology of mankind is based on Scripture and history. From the biblical and historical records, I determined that the creation date was 3960 BC. See my article at https://www.raptureready.com/2021/07/04/chronology-of-mankind-6000-years-of-history-pt-1-by-randy-nettles/ for more information. As I stated in a previous article, I believe I could have a margin of error of .133% or an eight-year deficit, which, if true, would make the creation date 3968 BC. I believe these eight years could be accounted for in the time of the Antediluvian and post-flood patriarchs up to the time of Abram.
The first two millennia of my chronology are determined by scripture only, as determined from the genealogies listed in Genesis 5 and 11 (the patriarch fathers begetting sons). I believe these genealogies record only “rounded off” years (whole years) for the age of the patriarchs when their sons were born. I highly suspect these 19 patriarchs (from Adam to Terah) sons weren’t all born on their father’s birthdays, so there had to be some extra months (and weeks, days) involved. This could account for the purported missing eight years. Of course, this is just a theory and can’t be proven, but it isn’t improbable.
The chart below shows six millennia from the “ideal” date/year for creation until the start of the Millennial reign of Christ. The 3968 BC date is “ideal” because that would make the year 2033 AD the 6000th year since the creation of Adam. Of course, 2033 would also be the 2000th year since Jesus was crucified, resurrected, and ascended to heaven in 33 AD (IMO). It was also the year the Church was born.
The Bible says that a thousand years is as one day with the Lord. “Don’t forget this fact, dear friends: with the Lord, a single day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a single day” (2 Peter 3:80). “For a thousand years in Your sight are like yesterday when it is past. And like a watch in the night” (Psalm 90:4).
Regarding these 2000 years or two days for the Lord (IMO), the Old Testament prophet Hosea had this to say, “Come and let us return unto the Lord: for he has torn, and he will heal us; he has smitten, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.
Jesus came the first time as the “latter rain.” The latter rain comes to Israel during the spring season (during the time of the first three Feasts of the Lord), and the “former rain” comes during the fall season. The reason for this is that Israel has two calendars, the ecclesiastical and civil calendars. Regarding the former rain, Hosea is referring to the civil calendar, which begins in the fall (Tishri 1). Jesus will return to the Earth during the former rains that occur during the last three fall Feasts of the Lord.
With the 3968 date for the creation of mankind, Jesus would have been crucified on the exact “fourth day” (4000 AM) in 33 AD (3967 BC years + 33 AD years = 4000 AM). He would return on the exact “sixth day” (6000 AM) in 2033 AD (3967 BC years + 2033 AD years = 6000 AM).
Interestingly, God made the sun, moon, and stars on the fourth day of creation. “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years” (Genesis 1:14). These heavenly “lights” were primarily made for man to keep up with time, by way of calendars. They were to divide the light from the darkness. Isn’t this exactly what Jesus, “the light of the world,” does spiritually?
Of course, we know that man, who was made in the image of God, was made on the sixth day, and God gave him dominion over all of the other created beings (the animals) of the earth. 1 Corinthians 15:45 calls Jesus the “last Adam.” Just as Adam was made on the sixth day of the creation week, the “last Adam,” Jesus, will return to the earth on the sixth day (6000 AM) where his reign and dominion will be absolute.
The Shemitah year was first introduced to the children of Israel during the exodus from Egypt (in Exodus 23:10) and expounded upon on Mt. Sinai in Leviticus 23:1-7. “And the Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a sabbath to the Lord. Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and gather its fruit; but in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a sabbath to the Lord” (Leviticus 23:1-4).
The seventh-year rest (for the land, people, and work animals) was to be implemented after the Israelites entered Canaan. This Shemitah year (and Jubilee) was unique to Israel as far as the Bible is concerned. Nowhere else is it mentioned. However, I believe God used a seven-year cycle (and multiples of 7) throughout mankind’s history long before the children of Israel entered Canaan. God used this seven-year cycle as a calendar to highlight certain biblical and/or historical events and the duration between two or more biblical events. I will call these cycles “Hepta weeks.” Hepta is the Greek word for seven. The Hepta week cycle began at creation.
The Shemitah weeks/cycles and Sabbath years of rest (and Jubilee years) were for God’s chosen people and the land of Israel (previously known as Canaan) and were to be used by them as a type of multi-year calendar by counting seven and forty-nine year periods. On the other hand, the Hepta week cycles were used by God as a millennia calendar with the number seven and its multiples as reference points in time.
It is my opinion that the start of the Shemitah week cycle for Israel doesn’t exactly align with the Hepta week cycle in 1406 BC. I believe the children of Israel didn’t start the Shemitah cycle until several years later when they had a brief respite from war. See Sevens :: By Randy Nettles – Rapture Ready. The Hepta week cycles start on the first day of the fall calendar, which would be Tishri 1 on the Jewish calendar. I believe the first day of creation began on the first new moon of the fall season.
In this Hepta Week Timeline, there are 6000 years between 3968 BC and 2033 AD. There are 5999 years or 857 Hepta weeks (seven-year periods) from 3968 BC to 2032 AD. Several years are highlighted in the chart below. The chart is incomplete as I am only concentrating on certain biblical events (for now), and it would be too long to list all 6000 years in this article. The first date highlighted is 3968 BC (1 AM). This is the year Adam was created and placed in the Garden of Eden.
The next highlighted years range from 2979-2974 BC (989-994 AM). Sometime within these five years, the rapture of Enoch occurred. The scripture in Genesis 5 records this event occurring at 987 AM (from creation). See the Nettles’ chronology link above. However, in this speculated “ideal chronology,” we are not rounding off numbers in the genealogy of the Antediluvian patriarchs as the Bible has surely done with the generations of fathers begetting sons. I suppose God could have arranged for all 19 sons (from Seth to Abraham) of the pre and post-patriarchs to be born on their fathers’ birthdays, but highly unlikely, in my opinion.
Since we are adding months to the whole years of when the patriarchs fathered sons, the average for the 19 father-son lineage (Adam-Seth, Seth-Enos, Enos-Cainan,…Terah-Abram) would amount to approximately 5.05 months for each generation. This would give us the extra 8 years needed for our 3968 BC year of creation.
For example, instead of Seth being born when Adam turned 130 years old, Adam could have been 130.42 years old. If the remaining Antediluvian patriarchs (until the birth of Methuselah) averaged the same 5.05 months past their birthdays for when their son was born, then the total would amount to an extra 2.95 years. So, if we added 2.95 years to 987 AM (scriptural year for Enoch’s rapture), we would get 989.95 years from creation (2979-2978 BC).
With this method of adding a certain amount of months (or weeks/days), on an average basis, to the genealogies, it is hard to pinpoint the exact year for Enoch’s rapture, so we are speculating that Enoch’s rapture occurred between 2979-2974 BC (989-994 AM). This is about 6-11 years shy of the 1000-year (one day for the LORD) mark of mankind.
From the creation of Adam in 3978 BC to Enoch’s rapture in 2974 BC (potentially) is 994 years. 994 AM is equivalent to 142 sevens (Hepta weeks). Enoch was 365 years old at the time God “took him” (Genesis 5:21-24). The antediluvians normally lived approximately 10 times longer than we do today. He would have been the equivalent of a 36.5-year-old man at the time of his departure. This is about the same age as Jesus was when he was crucified (IMO).
After adding our extra (averaged) 5.65 months to the remaining antediluvian and post-flood patriarchs, by the time Abraham was born, our eight extra years would be completely added in. The Nettles’ chronology (see link above) has Abram’s birth in 2009 AM (from creation). 2009 years are the total of the 20 patriarchs’ genealogy from Adam to Abram’s birth as determined from Genesis 5 and 11.
Since we are adding 8 years to our chronology for the reasons stated above, the AM date for Abram’s birth would now be 2017 AM (2009 AM + 8 years = 2017 AM). If our BC date for creation is now 3968 BC, then the BC date for Abram’s birth is 1951 BC (3968 BC – 2017 AM = 1951 BC). This is the same BC date for Abram’s birth as what I have recorded in the Nettles chronology. Only the AM date has changed.
Although the AM dates are now different, we are back on track with my original Nettles chronology BC/AD dates from this point on. Abraham would still have entered the land of Canaan in 1876 BC. Isaac would still have been born in 1851 BC. Jacob and his family would still have moved to Egypt in 1661 BC. The children of Israel would still have left Egypt in 1446 BC, etc.
The next highlighted date is 1407-1406 BC (2562 AM). Nisan 10, 1406 BC was the date the children of Israel entered the “Promised Land” of Canaan. From Enoch’s rapture in 2974 BC (estimated) to the children of Israel entering Canaan in 1406 BC is 1568 years or 224 sevens. If you add the previous 142 sevens or Hepta weeks (from creation to Enoch’s rapture) to 224 sevens, you get a total of 366 sevens. So, from the creation of Adam to the children of Israel entering Canaan, there are 2562 years or 366 sevens.
The next highlighted date is 854-853 BC (3114-3115 AM). This was the year the prophet Elijah was raptured during the reign of King Jehoram (Joram). As we don’t know the month, the exact year of Elijah’s rapture is not known. I believe it occurred sometime between Tishri 1, 854 BC, and Tishri 1, 853 BC. From the children of Israel entering Canaan in 1406 to Elijah being raptured in 853 BC is 553 years or 79 sevens. If you add this to the previous 366 sevens, you get 445 sevens. So, from the creation of Adam to Elijah’s rapture, there are 445 sevens.
The next rapture, the rapture of the Church, is to occur soon. I believe the seven-year Tribulation will begin in 2026 AD and end in 2033 AD. 2033 AD will be 2000 years (2 days for the LORD) since Christ’s crucifixion in 33 AD (IMO). If the Rapture occurred on Shavuot/Pentecost in 2024 and 2025, it would leave approximately 856 or 477 days between the Rapture and the start of the Tribulation in 2026. See chart and note 1 below.
From Elijah’s rapture in 854-853 BC (3114-3115 AM) to the possible “high watch day” years for the Rapture in 2024-2025 AD (5991-5992 AM), is 2877 years or 411 sevens. If you add the previous 79 sevens (from the children of Israel entering the Promised Land to Elijah’s rapture) to 411 sevens, you get 490 sevens or 3430 years. So, there are 490 sevens from when the children of Israel entered Canaan in 1406 BC to the possible “high watch day” date for the Rapture of the Church in 2024-2025 AD. 490 (7 x 7 x 10) is a very significant number biblically.
If you want to reckon only the three raptures, it would look like this: From the rapture of Enoch in 2975-2974 BC to Elijah’s rapture in 854-853 BC is 2121 years. That looks about right, doesn’t it? Two consecutive 21’s (3 x 7). Yes, God loves his sevens. 2121 years divided by seven is equal to 303. So, there are 303 sevens between these two raptures.
Then, from Elijah’s rapture in 854-853 BC to the potential rapture in 2024-2025 AD is 2877 years or 411 sevens. If you add the previous 2121 years to 2877 years, you get 4998 years or 714 sevens. Do you see how seven and multiples of seven are so important to God? Now, since we are speculating on the exact year of Enoch’s rapture, it could have occurred in 2977-2976 BC (instead of 2975-2974 BC), so that would give us exactly 5000 years from Enoch’s rapture to the Church’s rapture (potentially) in 2024 or 2025. 5000 years is as 5 days for the LORD.
From the creation of Adam in 3968 BC to the potential rapture date of the Church in 2025 AD is 5992 years or 856 sevens. If you notice in the chart, 2024-2025 is the last year of the Hepta week of 856. Ironically, or not, there are 856 days between Pentecost/Shavuot in 2024 (another possible high watch day for the Rapture) to Yom Kippur 2026 (the possible start of the Tribulation).
The start of the Tribulation in this scenario is within the first year of the 857th Hepta week. The seventh and last highlighted year, 2033 AD, is the end of the Tribulation (otherwise known as Daniel’s 70th seven) and the return of Jesus Christ to the Earth. 3968 BC to 2033 AD is 6000 years of mankind or 857 sevens + 1 year.
Have you ever noticed there is always a +1 year or day following a Sabbath in the timeline of God? Pentecost consists of seven Sabbaths being completed (49 days), and then the next day, the 50th day, is Pentecost. The Jubilee consists of seven years x seven years (49 years), and then the next year (which follows a Sabbath year), the 50th year, is the Jubilee.
THE HEPTA WEEK CYCLE OF THE SIX MILLENNIA TIMELINE FOR MANKIND
BC/AD Calendar
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1) 3968-3967 3967-3966 3966-3965 3965-3964 3964-3963 3963-3962 3962-3961
2) 3961-3960 3960-3959 3959-3958 3958-3957 3957-3956 3956-3955 3955-3954
3) 3948-3947
4) 3941-3940
5) 3934-3933
6) 3927-3926
7) 3920-3919
8) 3913-3912
9) 3906-3905
10) 3899-3898
11) 3892-3891
12) 3885-3884
13) 3878-3877
14) 3871-3870
70) 3479-3478
140) 2989-2988
141) 2982-2981
142) 2981-2980 2980-2979 2979-2978 2978-2977 2977-2976 2976-2975 2975-2974
210) 2499-2498
236) 2317-2316
237) 2316-2315 2315-2314 2314-2313 2313–2312 2312-2311 2311-2310 2310-2309
238) 2303-2302
280) 2009-2008
297) 1890-1889
298) 1883-1882
299) 1876-1875
350) 1519-1518
360) 1449-1448
361) 1448-1447 1447-1446 1446-1445 1445-1444 1444-1443 1443-1442 1442-1441
364) 1421-1420
365) 1414-1413
366) 1407-1406
367) 1406-1405 1405-1404 1404-1403 1403-1402 1402-1401 1401-1400 1400-1399
368) 1399-1398 1398-1397 1397-1396 1396-1395 1395-1394 1394-1393 1393-1392
437) 910-909
444) 861-860
445) 854-853
483) 588-587
484) 587-586 586-585 585-584 584-583 583-582 582-581 581-580
507) 420-419
563) 28-27
566) 7-6 BC
567) 6-5 5-4 4-3 3-2 2-1 1BC-1AD 1-2 AD
571) 29-30
572) 30-31 31-32 32-33 33-34 34-35 35-36 36-37
577) 64-65 65-66 66-67 67-68 68-69 69-70 71-72
637) 491-492
707) 981-982
777) 1471-1472
846) 1948-1949 1949-1950 1950-1951 1951-1952 1952-1953 1953-1954 1954-1955
847) 1961-1962
848) 1962-1963 1963-1964 1964-1965 1965-1966 1966-1967 1967-1968 1968-1969
854) 2010-2011
855) 2017-2018
856) 2024-2025
857) 2025-2026 2026-2027 2027-2028 2028-2029 2029-2030 2030-2031 2031-2032
858) 2032-2033
Note 1: In Shavuot, Pentecost, and the Rapture :: By Randy Nettles – Rapture Ready, I wrote about the gap period between Pentecost and Yom Kippur 2026 over the next three years, 2024, 2025, and 2026. I mostly wrote about the 120 days between 2026 Pentecost and 2026 Yom Kippur, as 120 is a very significant number. I didn’t see anything significant in the number 856 or 477 at the time, but as I researched it more, the numbers are somewhat significant. The gap period between Pentecost/Shavuot 2024 and Yom Kippur 2026 is 856 days, as I have already mentioned.
There are 477 days between Pentecost/Shavuot 2025 and Yom Kippur 2026. 477 is a very interesting number. As I said in The Day of the Dead and the Great Flood :: By Randy Nettles – Rapture Ready, 1908 years is the time between Abram entering the Promised Land (1876 BC) of Canaan and the crucifixion of Jesus (AD 33). 1908 divided by 4 = 477.
From 1876 BC to 1399 BC is 477 years. 1399 BC was when Joshua divided up the land of Canaan between the 12 tribes of Israel. From 1399 BC to 922 BC is 477 years. 922 BC was the eighth year of Rehoboam’s (son of Solomon and Naamah, an Ammonitess) reign. It was during his reign that Israel was divided into two kingdoms. He was obedient to the LORD for three years and then turned to pagan gods after that. It was during his fifth year that the LORD allowed the king of Egypt to sack Jerusalem and take the treasures from the house of the LORD and the king’s house. Something significant probably occurred during his 8th year.
From 922 BC to 445 BC is 477 years. 445 or 444 BC (scholars are divided on the exact year) was the last decree of the Persian king Artaxerxes regarding the Jews. This decree was given to Nehemiah and the Jews to rebuild the walls and city of Jerusalem. In my opinion, it was the beginning of Daniel’s prophecy of 70 weeks. From 445 BC to 33 AD is 477 years (with 69 Shemitah years). Of course, we know all the great events of 33 AD.
So, will the Rapture occur on Pentecost? if the Rapture does occur on a future Feast of Pentecost, will it occur in 2024, 2025, 2026, or none of these? Will there be a 120-day, 477-day, or 856-day gap period between the Rapture and the start of the Tribulation, or none of these? So many questions, and yet so few answers. However, I believe one thing is sure. The number seven will somehow be involved.
Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Randy Nettles