However, God enabled Joseph to interpret their dreams. Joseph was taken to Egypt and sold to a man named Potiphar.Īfter being falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife Joseph was sent to prison. One day they sold Joseph as a slave and told their father Jacob that Joseph was dead.

Their father’s favoritism made the other brothers jealous. Jacob had 12 sons but Joseph was his favorite. Finally, Jacob returned to Canaan with his two wives and his livestock and was reconciled with his brother. A blessing was legally binding.įearing his brother would take revenge Jacob fled to his mother’s brother Laban. They also believed that once a blessing was given it could not be withdrawn.

He would inherit a double portion of his father’s property. At that time people believed that if a father blessed his son that son would become the leader of the family after his father’s death. When they grew up Jacob, with help from his mother, disguised himself as Esau and tricked his father Isaac into blessing him. When he grew up Isaac married Rebekah.Ģ006 BC Jacob and his brother Esau were born to Isaac and Rebekah Abraham faithfully obeyed.Ģ066 BC Abraham and Sarah had a son called Isaac. However, Abraham and his father Terah, and his wife Sarai (Sarah) moved to the city of Haran in northern Iraq.Īfter Terah died God told Abraham to leave his homeland (modern-day Iraq) and go to Canaan (modern-day Israel).

Hundreds of years before Abraham was born the Sumerians had become highly civilized. Ur was a city-state and it was part of an ancient culture called the Sumerian. ( The dates for the Old Testament are traditional but not everyone agrees with them ).Īccording to the Bible Abraham was born in the great city of Ur in what is now southern Iraq.

Bible and history timeline