Here are 10 of the best Bible Mapper Atlas maps released in 2024, based purely on the author’s personal opinion:
10. Sodom and Gomorrah Are Destroyed
9. Hagar Flees from Sarai
8. Hezekiah Strengthens Judah
7. Nomadic Range of Ishmael’s Descendants
6. The Covenant Is Renewed at Shechem
5. Kadesh-Barnea and Its Surroundings
4. Jacob Travels to Southern Canaan
3. The Israelites Conquer Ai
2. The Kenites at Jabez
1. Edom and the Land of Seir
As the book of Acts attests, Paul was no stranger to imprisonment, and he catalogued his incarcerations among his many credentials of suffering that affirmed his legitimacy as an apostle to the Corinthians (2 Corinthians 6:4-5). The first mention of Paul being imprisoned is when he and Silas were arrested in Philippi after exorcising a spirit of divination from a slave girl (Acts 16). Paul’s actions angered the girl’s owners, since the men were no longer able to make money off of the girl’s fortune telling abilities. Later in his letter to the Corinthians, Paul notes that he had already suffered multiple imprisonments (2 Corinthians 11:23), making it clear that not all of Paul’s imprisonments and other sufferings were recorded in Scripture. The next imprisonment explicitly mentioned in Scripture is when Paul was arrested in the Temple in Jerusalem at the end of his third missionary journey (Acts 21:27-34). Soon after this Paul was sent to Caesarea on the Mediterranean coast, where he remained in prison for two years (Acts 23-26; see “Paul Is Transferred to Caesarea” map). This may be where Paul penned the letters commonly known as the Prison Epistles (Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon). At the end of this time Paul appealed his case to Caesar and was sent to Rome, where he spent another two years under house arrest awaiting his trial before Caesar (Acts 28:16-31). If Paul did not write his Prison Epistles while he was at Caesarea, then it is likely that he wrote them from Rome during this time. The next time we hear of Paul being imprisoned is likely several years later in his second letter to Timothy (2 Timothy 1:8-17; 2:9; 4:9-21). Though it is not certain, the tone of Paul’s writing during this time of imprisonment, which seems markedly more somber than the optimistic outlook he seems to have about his incarceration during the writing of the Prison Epistles (e.g., Philippians 1:21-26; Philemon 1:22), suggests that this incarceration was not the same as his house arrest. If so, then it is possible that between his first and second incarcerations in Rome Paul fulfilled his intention to travel to Spain to continue spreading the gospel (Romans 15:22-28). Just prior to his second incarceration in Rome, Paul had informed Titus that he planned to spend the winter in Nicopolis northwest of Achaia and asked him to meet him there (Titus 3:12). Perhaps it was around this time or soon after that he was arrested once again and brought to Rome. Paul’s ultimate fate is not noted in Scripture, but tradition (Clement, Dionysius, Eusebius, and Tertullian) attests that this final imprisonment of Paul took place at what is now called Mamertine Prison. During Paul’s time this was the only prison in Rome and was called simply “the Prison,” and it was not typically used for long term incarceration but rather for holding those awaiting imminent execution. There, during the reign of Nero, Paul met his earthly death by the sword and was received into eternal life by his loving Savior, whom he had served so faithfully.
⤓ download hi-res file 🔍 see in TimeGlider
2 Kings 23:19-25:30; Jeremiah 39
The final collapse of the southern kingdom of Judah as an independent nation came at the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon in 586 B.C. Judah had already become a vassal of Egypt in 609 B.C. when King Josiah was killed by Pharaoh Neco at Megiddo (see “Josiah Battles Neco” map). Then in 605 B.C., after Egypt and Assyria were defeated by Nebuchadnezzar at Carchemish, Judah’s vassal loyalty transferred to Babylon. At that time, some of the Judean nobility were sent into exile, including Daniel and his friends (Daniel 1:1-7). Several years later in 597 B.C. a second exile occurred in retaliation for King Jehoiakim’s refusal to continue paying tribute to Babylon, and this likely included the prophet Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1:1-3). Finally, in 586 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar conquered many of the fortified towns throughout Judah and destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple after King Zedekiah refused to submit to his Babylonian overlords any longer. Nebuchadnezzar began this campaign into Judah by heading south along the Great Trunk Road and dividing his forces near Aphek, sending some of them to Jerusalem from the north and others from the southwest. At some point during his siege of Jerusalem, King Hophra of Egypt advanced toward Judah to support Judah’s rebellion against Babylon, and Nebuchadnezzar lifted the siege to confront Hophra (Jeremiah 37:5-8). It is unclear exactly what transpired between Hophra’s forces and Nebuchadnezzar’s forces, but apparently Hophra’s forces returned to Egypt, and Nebuchadnezzar’s forces returned to finish besieging Jerusalem. When the Babylonians finally breached the main northern wall, it became clear that all hope was lost, and King Zedekiah and his sons fled on horseback through a gate at the southeastern corner of Jerusalem (see “Jerusalem during the Early Old Testament” map). They followed the Ascent of Adummim toward Jericho, perhaps seeking to escape to Ammon, but the Babylonians captured Zedekiah and his sons on the plains of Jericho and sent them to Riblah. There they killed Zedekiah’s sons, blinded Zedekiah, and sent him to Babylon to die in exile. After completely destroying Jerusalem and the Temple, the Babylonians sent many other Judean nobles and their families to Babylon (see “Judah Is Exiled to Babylon” map) and appointed a Judean named Gedaliah as governor over the region at Mizpah, thus bringing an end to the independent kingdom of Judah. Around this time it also appears that the Edomites took advantage of Judah’s vulnerable situation and captured territory for themselves in the Negev. In response, the prophets Obadiah and Ezekiel pronounced blistering curses upon the Edomites (Obadiah 1:1-21; Ezekiel 25:12-14).
Joshua 15:13-19; Judges 1:11-15; 3:8-11
Though Scripture affords Othniel son of Kenaz a mere six verses to detail his accomplishments, the significance of what he accomplished should not be underestimated. Othniel is first mentioned during the initial conquest of the land, and it is noted that he was the son of Kenaz, the younger brother of Joshua. As the Israelites were seeking to capture Kiriath-sepher (later renamed Debir), Caleb offered the reward of his daughter Achsah (Othniel’s cousin) as a wife for whoever could take the town. Othniel took the town and received Achsah as his wife, and Caleb also granted him the nearby springs. After this, the writer of Judges recounts how the Israelites lived among the pagan inhabitants of the land, intermarried with them, and worshiped their gods. Therefore the Lord became angry with them, and he allowed them to be dominated by King Cushan-rishathaim of Aram-naharaim, who ruled over most of northwest Mesopotamia. This was the same land where Abraham lived before journeying on to Canaan (Genesis 11:27-31; also see “The World of the Patriarchs” map), the homeland of Isaac’s wife Rebekah (Genesis 24:10), the land to which Jacob fled to escape the wrath of his twin brother Esau (Genesis 28; also see “Jacob Goes to Paddan-Aram” map), and the homeland of Balaam son of Beor (Numbers 22:4-5; also see “Balaam Blesses Israel” map). As the first judge of Israel, Othniel led Israel from about 1374-1334 B.C., so it is likely that the kingdom of Cushan-rishathaim was the Mitanni kingdom, which ruled Aram-naharaim from about 1600-1260 B.C. If this is true, it is likely that Cushan-rishathaim was Eriba-Adad I, who ruled Mitanni from about 1390–1366 B.C. The name Cushan-rishathaim, meaning “Cush of the two wickednesses,” may have been an intentional corruption in Hebrew of an otherwise unknown name of Eriba-Adad I. By Othniel’s time, the Mitanni kingdom was beginning a period of decline, so their oppression of the newly established Israelite tribes may have been an attempt to reestablish their dominance throughout the region. Scripture succinctly notes that “the spirit of the Lord came upon [Othniel],” and he waged war against Cushan-rishathaim and defeated him, and the land of Israel had rest for forty years (Judges 3:10-11). Othniel’s bravery during this early period of Israel’s settlement in Canaan ultimately led the nation to victory and survival during a very vulnerable period of their history. And although the Mitanni kingdom continued to rule Aram-naharaim for another century, Othniel’s actions undoubtedly contributed to its continued decline and eventual collapse.
⤓ download hi-res file 🔍 see in TimeGlider
A new photographs feature has been added to most maps and articles in the Bible Mapper Atlas! To see all photographs available for locations shown on a map, just click on the hyperlink beneath the map that says, “photos of map locations,” and a dialog box will appear listing all locations on the map that have photographs. Then click on each location in the dialog box to view all photographs for it. Please be sure to consult the copyright and citation information provided for each photograph before including it in other works.
Here is an example of how it works from “The Battle at the Pool of Gibeon” map:
