66 Books – Perfect Order

The takeaways from this one verse are numerous.

There was a beginning, before anything else existed, and God was already there, and He was the Creator.

Later, John 1 tells us that God and His Word are one and existed before time and through the Word all things were created.

The verse shows God created two spheres of dominion in the beginning: the heaven and the earth.

Interestingly, about eighty per cent of our Bible talks about one of the dominions, earth, and only about twenty per cent talks about the other dominion, heaven. And that’s where most people make a serious error.

We learn very early in Genesis 1:28 that God wanted man, whom He had created, to multiply and have dominion over the earth. Man was to be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth and subdue it.

Notice: replenish the earth and subdue it.

He says that again in Genesis 9:1 to Noah,

AND God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.

 

So, we see that these direct commandments from God within the first nine chapters of the Bible were focused on the earth, replenishing it and having dominion over it.

Even early stories—Eden, the Ark—are not children’s tales but divine judgments and lessons.

The flood was not a happy event, even though the kids’ colouring-in books often depict it as if it was. It was God’s destruction of a corrupt world. Beneath those waters was the entire population of the earth except for eight people: Noah, his wife, their three sons and their wives. Yet after the flood, Noah continued God’s command to replenish the earth.

In Genesis 11, mankind again rebelled at Babel, saying,

“Let us build a tower whose top may reach unto heaven.”

This was humanity’s first attempt to invade heaven, contrary to God’s earthly purpose. God confused their language and scattered them “upon the face of all the earth.” The lesson: man’s calling was earthly, not heavenly.

 

In Genesis 12, God chose one man—Abram—and one nation through whom He would work. He told Abram, “Get thee out… unto a land that I will show thee.”

God promised Abraham land, nation, and blessing—all earthly.

These promises are repeated in Genesis 13, 15, 17. The covenant God made with Abraham centres on land and seed, not heaven.

 

Abraham’s descendants reveal a pattern of divine selection.

Though Abraham had two sons, Ishmael and Isaac, God’s covenant continued through Isaac—the child of promise, as Genesis 17:19 shows.

Isaac likewise had two sons, Jacob and Esau; again, God chose Jacob. This shows that God’s promises don’t automatically pass to all physical descendants. He works through a chosen line.

Romans 9 later explains this principle: “In Isaac shall thy seed be called.”

God’s purpose is selective, not universal, even within Abraham’s family.

 

These early chapters form the foundation of the earthly program—God’s dealings with mankind through a chosen nation on the earth. Each event—creation, flood, Babel, Abraham’s call—fits into that unfolding plan.

When viewed together on a chart, they reveal God’s consistent purpose: to establish His dominion on earth through a people of faith, while reserving the heavenly realm for a later revelation.

 

So, from Genesis through Abraham’s covenant, we see what we could call the “earthly thread of Scripture”.

God’s Word divides between heaven and earth, promise and fulfilment, faith and unbelief. Understanding this division is the key to rightly dividing the Word of truth and seeing how each part of the Bible fits within God’s grand design for both realms.

 

In Genesis 32:28, God renames Jacob, marking a major turning point in His earthly program.

The promises given to Abraham and Isaac now pass to Jacob, whom God now calls Israel:

And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.

This is not just a story—it’s the moment God claims Jacob as His own and identifies him with the nation that will bear His name.

 

Later, in Genesis 46:2–3, God speaks to “Israel” in a vision, saying, “Fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation.”

The promise of land and nation continues, but now Israel’s family of seventy enters Egypt, where they grow into a great people.

By Exodus 1:1–7, the promise is fulfilled—they have become a nation, though they’re enslaved under the Egyptian Pharaoh.

 

In Exodus 2:23–25, Israel cries out under bondage, and God “remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.”

He raises up Moses to deliver them.

From this point, God no longer speaks directly to all His people but through one man—Moses—His chosen mediator. Exodus 6:2–8 shows God commissioning Moses to communicate His covenant to Israel. Through Moses, God leads them out of Egypt in Exodus 13 and across the Red Sea.

 

A crucial milestone comes in Exodus 19, where God formally establishes the Old Testament covenant. Exodus 19:3–6 record His offer:

“If ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me… and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”

This is the contract, and it’s conditional on their obedience. The covenant previously made to Abram, Isaac, and Jacob was not conditional; it was a promise to them by God.

Israel accepts in Exodus 19:8, saying,

“All that the Lord hath spoken we will do.”

They sign the covenant, agreeing to become God’s holy nation and priestly people mediating between Him and the world.

From Exodus 19 through the book of Deuteronomy, God gives the detailed terms of this covenant—the Law.

Israel understands that keeping it is their righteousness: Deuteronomy 6:25 says,

“It shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments.”

Their standing before God depends on obedience.

On the chart, this section marks the beginning of Israel’s national covenant—the foundation of the earthly program.

The books from Joshua through to Esther record Israel’s chronological history under that covenant, showing how they lived out God’s law and promises. These books trace the nation’s journey from Moses to the time before Christ.

Though Job appears next in the Bible, it likely occurred earlier in history, but it’s grouped with the poetic and prophetic writings that follow for good reason.

The Book of Job is a poetic story that wrestles with why people suffer, how God is just, and what faithful trust looks like in hard times.

Job—a righteous man—loses his wealth, family, and health when God allows Satan to test him, yet Job refuses to curse God. Through dialogues with friends who insist suffering must be punishment, Job wrestles with the mystery of God’s ways. God eventually answers—not with explanations, but with a revelation of His power and wisdom—showing that His purposes extend beyond human understanding. Job is restored, but the book’s central message remains: God is just, even when His workings are hidden, and the faithful are called to trust Him through suffering.

By the time we reach Psalms through to Malachi, we’ve covered roughly one‑third of Scripture and the full development of Israel’s covenant relationship with God.

From Abraham’s call to Israel’s covenant, the chart reveals God’s consistent earthly plan—forming a nation to represent Him on earth, governed by His law, and destined to be a kingdom of priests. This sets the stage for the next phase of His unfolding purpose.

The next section of the chart covers Psalms through Malachi, which contain the writings of the prophets.

These books were written during the same historical period covered in Joshua through Esther, but instead of recording Israel’s ongoing history, they preserve God’s messages delivered through His chosen spokesmen.

When God communicated with Israel during this era, He did so through the prophets, and their writings reveal five major prophetic promises that shape the rest of Scripture.

1. God promised Israel a King.

In 2 Samuel 7:12–16, God tells David that He’ll raise up a Son from David’s line and establish His throne forever, and He will be God’s Son.

This is the promise of Israel’s everlasting King. The prophetic sign of this King is given in Isaiah 7:14:

“A virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”

On the chart, this marks the future arrival of Israel’s promised Messiah.

2. God promised Israel an everlasting Kingdom.

Psalm 145:13 declares, “Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.”

The prophets describe what this kingdom will look like. The sign of its arrival is found in Isaiah 35:5–6—the blind seeing, the deaf hearing, the lame leaping, and the mute singing.

These miraculous healings signal that the kingdom is near.

3. God promised Israel a New Covenant.

Israel repeatedly failed to keep the Old Covenant given in Exodus 19, and their history from Joshua to Esther shows the consequences of breaking it. Through the prophets, God promises a new covenant in Jeremiah 31:31–33—a covenant written in their hearts, where God will be their God, and they will be His people.

Ezekiel 36:26–28 expands on this promise. The sign of the New Covenant is given in Joel 2:28–32: the outpouring of the Spirit, dreams, visions, and supernatural signs.

So far the chart shows three prophetic promises—King, Kingdom, and New Covenant—each with a clear sign Israel could watch for: virgin birth, miraculous healings, Spirit‑empowered signs.

4. God promised His wrath.

Alongside blessings, the prophets also warn of a coming period of divine judgment.

Isaiah 13:11–13 describes God punishing the world for its evil and shaking heaven and earth in His fierce anger.

Isaiah 66:15–16 speaks of fire, fury, and many slain. This wrath falls on unbelieving Israel and the nations.

It is part of God’s prophetic program, and that’s why it’s included on the chart.

5. God preserving a remnant of believing Israel.

The prophets have already revealed four major elements of Israel’s program—King, Kingdom, New Covenant, and Wrath—each with its sign. But if wrath is coming on the world and on unbelieving Israel, how will the promised blessings be inherited?

God answers this through the prophets: He will preserve a remnant who will survive His wrath and enter the promised kingdom.

Psalm 7 begins describing how God’s wrath will be revealed, preparing Israel to recognise when judgment is approaching. David cries, “Arise, O Lord, in thine anger… awake for me to the judgment thou hast commanded.”

This connects God’s wrath with His rising to act on behalf of the righteous. It seems obscure at first, but becomes crucial as the prophetic program unfolds.

These five prophetic promises form the backbone of Israel’s expectation from Moses to Christ. On the chart, they show how God’s earthly program unfolds through the prophets and prepares the way for the arrival of Jesus in the Gospels.

Isaiah makes the remnant promise explicit. In Isaiah 11:11–12, God says He will “set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people,” gathering them from the four corners of the earth.

Even though wrath will fall, God will not abandon His promises. He’ll gather believing Israel—those still obeying His instructions—and bring them safely into the kingdom.

Isaiah 37:32 reinforces this: “Out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant… the zeal of the Lord shall do this.”

God Himself guarantees their survival.

The remnant is essential because without them the promises of the King, Kingdom, and New Covenant would have no one to receive them.

The sign of the remnant promise is found in Jeremiah 9:16: before God gathers them, Israel must first be scattered among the nations. Scattering is the indicator in prophecy that the remnant will soon be refined and recovered.

This scattering also reflects the refining imagery that’s often spiritualised today to mean God “trying” His people through fire. In its original context, it refers to believing Israel enduring tribulation so they may enter the kingdom purified.

With this, the chart has now covered Genesis through to Malachi:

• God created two dominions (heaven and earth).
• He established an earthly nation (Israel) through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
• He gave them the Old Covenant in Exodus 19.
• Their history (Joshua–Esther) shows repeated failure.
• The prophets (Psalms–Malachi) reveal five promises—King, Kingdom, New Covenant, Wrath and the Remnant, each one accompanied by a sign.

By the time we reach Matthew, we’ve already covered more than half the Bible and the entire foundation of Israel’s prophetic, earthly program.

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John simply continue Israel’s history. They’re not the beginning of something new. The “New Testament” page that was inserted by publishers creates confusion, and Jesus Himself corrects it in Matthew 5:17–18, saying He did not come to destroy the Law or the Prophets but to fulfil them. He also shows in numerous verses how He came to Israel in His earthly ministry, particularly Matthew 15:24,

“I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

The Gospels show the prophetic promises beginning to unfold.

Each Gospel presents Jesus from a different angle—Matthew as King, Mark as Servant, Luke as Man, John as God—but all continue the same earthly program God began with Israel.

Jesus affirms this again in Matthew 23:2–3, acknowledging the authority of Moses’ seat.

Nothing new has begun; the prophetic program is simply moving forward toward its fulfilment.

So in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—four accounts of the same period—we watch the prophetic signs begin to unfold.

The virgin birth appears in Matthew 1:18–23. The kingdom signs appear as Jesus heals “all manner of sickness” in Matthew 4:23–24. These healings prepare Israel to become the promised kingdom of priests, requiring ceremonial cleansing. Water baptism fits perfectly with the priestly washings of the Law.

At the cross, Jesus dies and rises again, yet still commands His disciples in Matthew 28:20 to continue everything He taught.

In Acts 2, Peter announces Joel’s sign of the New Covenant.—the Spirit poured out—quoting Joel 2.

Israel’s prophetic program continues exactly as it was supposed to.

In Acts 7, Holy Spirit filled Stephen rehearses Israel’s whole history as outlined in our chart so far, and he sees Jesus standing—the sign of coming wrath as we saw in Psalm 7:6 but Israel’s leaders reject the message again. In their anger and unbelief, they stone Stephen to death.

Acts 8 shows the remnant sign: Israel is scattered. According to prophecy so far, all that God had revealed through the prophets, the next events should be wrath, the remnant preserved, and the kingdom established.

But instead we have Acts 9.

God interrupts the entire prophetic program because of Israel’s continued and final rejection of God’s Word, the Kingdom and the Holy Spirit and saves the chief persecutor of those who believe that Jesus was the promised Messiah, Saul. This is salvation purely by grace, something never revealed before. Peter preached things “spoken since the world began”, as Acts 3:21 says. Paul preaches the mystery kept secret since the world began, as Romans 16:25 says. A new dispensation begins—not the earthly kingdom, but the revelation of the Body of Christ.

From Genesis 1:1 through to Acts 8, everything in Scripture has focused on God’s earthly dominion—His purpose to establish a nation on the earth, give them a covenant, promise them a King and a Kingdom, a New Covenant, wrath, and a preserved remnant. All five prophetic promises were clearly laid out and their signs identified.

By Acts 8, every sign has begun to appear: the King is born, the healings of the Kingdom have begun, the Spirit has been poured out, Jesus has stood (sign of wrath), and Israel has been scattered (sign of the remnant). According to prophecy, the next event should be God’s wrath, the remnant preserved, and the Kingdom established.

But Acts 9 interrupts everything.

Paul’s salvation is unprecedented.

Up to this point, righteousness came through obedience to the covenant. Yet God saves Saul—a murderer—by grace, something never revealed before.

Again, to emphasise the importance, Peter preached that everything he taught had been “spoken by the prophets since the world began”, as we’ve just seen in Acts 3:21, but Paul’s message is “the revelation of the mystery which was kept secret since the world began” Romans 16:25.

This contrast is the key point of the chart.

Israel’s program concerns the earth; Paul’s mystery concerns the heavenly places.

Through this dispensational change, even though it would not have been ushered in if Israel had believed Jesus and accepted that the kingdom was at hand, God now fulfils His plan for the heavens while temporarily setting aside the completion of his plan for the earth.

The mystery was hidden before the world began and revealed only to Paul.

His epistles, Romans through to Philemon, explain God’s new purpose: forming the Body of Christ for heavenly dominion.

This is in stark contrast to everything from Genesis through to Acts 8, which dealt with Israel’s earthly calling.

After Paul’s letters come the books of Hebrews through to Revelation.

These books are not part of the mystery program. They return to the earthly program, which resumes after this intermission to prophesy; the dispensation of grace has ended. It will end with the catching away of the church, the Body of Christ, from the earth.

The audience of Hebrews to Revelation is once again Israel.

Hebrews is written to “the Hebrews”, as we see in Hebrews 2:3–4. James writes “to the twelve tribes scattered abroad”, as we see in James 1:1—the same scattering seen in Acts 8.

Peter writes to “strangers scattered” in 1 Peter 1:1 and continues addressing the earthly kingdom in 2 Peter 3:1–2. First John, Jude, and Revelation all align with Israel’s covenant, law, and kingdom promises.

Revelation completes the five prophetic promises:

• Remnant – Revelation 7:1–4
• Wrath – Revelation 6, 8, 13
• New Covenant – Revelation 22:14
• Kingdom – Revelation 21:2–3
• King – Revelation 19:11–16

These passages match perfectly with the chart’s outline of Israel’s program.

Revelation is written for the remnant who’ll live after the dispensation of grace ends, when Israel’s program resumes and God fulfils His earthly promises.

So the chart shows the entire Bible clearly:

• Genesis 1–Acts 8: God’s earthly program for Israel.
• Acts 9–Philemon: God’s heavenly program revealed through Paul—the mystery.
• Hebrews–Revelation: Israel’s program resumes after the mystery ends, leading to the fulfilment of all five prophetic promises.

In Ezekiel 37, we have what’s known as the vision of dry bones, which shows that God can raise Israel physically to complete His earthly program.

Resurrection is no obstacle for God. This matters because the prophetic timeline—King, Kingdom, New Covenant, Wrath, Remnant—had already begun unfolding by Acts 8, but was halted when God introduced the mystery in Acts 9. The people originally destined to enter the Kingdom died long ago, yet God can restore them.

As Jesus said in Luke 12:32, “It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

The twelve apostles were promised twelve thrones in Matthew 19:28. If they were not to enter the Kingdom, those promises would fail along with God’s entire Word. Resurrection ensures they will.

The concept of a remnant is not new. Isaiah 1:9 says, “Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom.”

God has always preserved a believing portion—Noah’s family, Isaac instead of Ishmael, Jacob instead of Esau. This “cutting away” theme runs from Genesis through the prophets and into the Gospels, where Jesus preached to all Israel but only a portion believed.

Israel expected everlasting life on earth, not in heaven.

Job speaks for all Old Testament believers when he says the incredible words of Job 19:25-27

For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:

And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:

Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.

He anticipated standing on the earth with his Redeemer.

David expected resurrection. Their hope was physical restoration in an earthly Kingdom where God dwells with man again. Revelation 21:2 shows the New Jerusalem descending from heaven to earth—Israel’s Kingdom, currently in heaven, but destined to come down to earth. So the souls of believing Israel are preserved with God until He resurrects them to inherit the earthly Kingdom.

Confusion often arises because people imagine heaven as some sort of floaty place up in the clouds. Scripture presents something different: the Kingdom of God is God’s entire dominion—heavenly and earthly. Israel’s earthly Kingdom is one part of that dominion. The Body of Christ belongs to the heavenly portion; Israel belongs to the earthly portion. Both are under God’s rule, but their programs differ.

Context matters in Scripture.

We need to define the what, when, who and where of Scripture. If we don’t get context right, we’ll be led off into error and confusion. An example would be the word baptism—people mostly assume water, yet Scripture shows many baptisms, most without water. Context defines meaning. Likewise, “kingdom” must be understood in its correct context: Israel’s earthly Kingdom is distinct from the heavenly calling of the Body of Christ.

Where are the souls of Israel’s remnant now?

Paul says in Ephesians 4:8–10 that when Christ ascended, He, quote, “led captivity captive,” implying He first descended into “the lower parts of the earth.”

Many believe this refers to Old Testament saints being brought out.

Luke 16 shows a divided realm—Paradise and torment—indicating that righteous souls are preserved until resurrection, but Scripture doesn’t give a detailed explanation.

We can look at possibilities and speculate, but we can’t teach specifics where God hasn’t clearly spoken.

What we do know is enough: God promised Israel’s faithful a future resurrection and a place in the earthly Kingdom, and He’ll keep that promise.

Speculation about where their souls are now is unnecessary. Their bodies died, but their souls live, awaiting resurrection—just as Job expected to stand on the earth with his Redeemer, and Revelation 21 shows New Jerusalem descending to earth.

God will place Israel’s remnant exactly where He intends when their program resumes after the dispensation of grace.

Our task is not to speculate about unseen, unspecified things but to trust what God has revealed and rest in His faithfulness.

So the chart holds:

• Israel’s prophetic program paused at Acts 8.
• The mystery began in Acts 9.
• Israel’s remnant will be resurrected to complete the earthly Kingdom after the dispensation of grace ends.
• God’s promises stand—He will fulfil both His earthly and heavenly purposes exactly as revealed.

This framework demystifies the whole Bible.

Once someone sees the two programs—earthly and heavenly—they know where every doctrine belongs.

It becomes clear why some teachings apply to Israel and others to the Body of Christ.

With this chart, we can walk someone through the entire Bible in an hour and give them a foundation strong enough to sort out every passage they encounter.