Chronological History

Sometimes we speak of world history as though it belongs to people. It doesn't—it belongs to God, and though people play prominently within the historical narrative, it always remains under God's auspices and control. The problem with losing the right perspective isn't that we'll get the facts wrong, it's that we'll fail to understand what they mean, what the purpose of past events is, and what we can look forward to.

Human history began all at once in the same place: the Garden of Eden, where God made Adam and Eve as the crown of all Creation. He told them to fill the earth and take dominion of it, and He also told them not to eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. They ate the fruit anyway, and mankind was removed from paradise and introduced to tension, pain, and resistance.

The story of the world is in many ways simply the story of adversity. For the enemies of God, it's adversity in the form of the failure and futility of purely human endeavor; for God's people, it's the story of fighting for the truth against secular philosophies, fighting for holiness despite the pervasiveness of sin, and fighting for the Gospel in the face of persecution and death.

Jesus Christ is our only hope. He is the Prince of Peace, the defeater of Death, and the King of the Universe, the saver of souls and the punisher of wickedness. His kingdom is the restoration and glorious fulfillment of the paradise from which Adam and Eve were removed, and we work, wait, hope and pray for the quick fulfillment of His will in all things.

This is our framework for history. While it's important to study things like the Renaissance, the Industrial Revolution, and the ancient Near East, it's only important when investigated through the lens of God's ultimate sovereignty and plan. The story of mankind is the story of redemption, and only when we analyze battles, kings, treaties, and catastrophes from God's perspective can we truly make sense of them.

Otherwise, it's all fairly irrelevant and useless. Sure, there's Napoleon's dictum that those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it, but a quick survey of the past will show that each successive generation does repeat the sins of their fathers, and that without Christ's real physical life on Earth as a centering point, there's no real cause for optimism or hope of any kind.

Christ's love not only makes the trajectory of history cause for hope; it reveals the truly great moments of the past, events that to the secular eye seem insignificant or even pernicious. We're speaking of the progress of the true Church, of course, and of each soul that God calls and makes His own through the agency of His Holy Spirit. These are the milestones we look for and celebrate.

We carry a lot of world history products. Because it's the story of God's work in the world and our human responses, we believe it's important to know and understand. Not everything we carry is Christian; there are plenty of secular resources here. We encourage you to use whichever ones work best for your situation, but that you do so with a view to understanding the will and work of the One who made history in the first place.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

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71 Items found Print
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Adventures of Munford: The American Revolution
by Jamie Aramini
1st edition from Geography Matters
for 2nd-4th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
Adventures of Munford: The Klondike Gold Rush
by Jamie Aramini
1st edition from Geography Matters
for 2nd-4th grade
in Gilded Age (1865-1918) (Location: HISA-19GI)
AIO Imagination Station Book #14
by Marianne Hering, Nancy I. Sanders
from Focus on the Family
for 1st-3rd grade
in Imagination Station (Location: SER-AIO)
$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #19
by Marianne Hering
from Focus on the Family
for 1st-3rd grade
in Imagination Station (Location: SER-AIO)
$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #20
by Marianne Hering
from Focus on the Family
for 1st-3rd grade
in Imagination Station (Location: SER-AIO)
$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #21
by Marianne Hering
from Focus on the Family
for 1st-3rd grade
in Imagination Station (Location: SER-AIO)
$5.99
AIO Imagination Station Book #22
by Marianne Hering & Sheila Seifert
from Focus on the Family
for 1st-3rd grade
in Imagination Station (Location: SER-AIO)
$5.99
Akiak: A Tale From the Iditarod
by Robert J. Blake
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
All-of-a-Kind Family Downtown
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #2
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Beth & Joe Krush
from Lizzie Skurnick Books
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.95
All-of-a-Kind Family Uptown
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #4
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Mary Stevens
from Lizzie Skurnick Books
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.95
American Army of Two
On My Own History
by Janet Greeson
Reprint from First Avenue Editions
for 1st-3rd grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Angel Knew Papa and the Dog
by Douglas Kaine McKelvey
from Rabbit Room Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.99
Apprentice
by Pilar Molina Llorente
Reprint from Sunburst Book
for 2nd-4th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99 $5.00 (3 in stock)
Arctic Son
by Jean Craighead George, illustrated by Wendell Minor
from Disney-Hyperion
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Balto and the Great Race
Totally True Adventures
by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel
1st Printing from Random House Books for Young Readers
for 1st-3rd grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$5.99
Baseball Saved Us
by Ken Mochizuki
from Lee & Low Books
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.95
Big-Enough Anna
by Pam Flowers
No Edition Stated from Alaska Northwest Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
Book About Christopher Columbus
by Ruth Belov Gross, Illustrated by Syd Hoff
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Boy of Old Prague
by S. Ish-Kishor
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-5th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$3.99
Bracelet, The
by Yoshika Uchida
from PaperStar Books
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Captive Treasure
by Milly Howard
from Bob Jones University Press
Realistic Fiction for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.99
Clearing Weather
by Cornelia Meigs
Repint from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
1929 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Earthquake!
by Kathleen V. Kudlinski
from Scholastic Inc.
for 2nd-5th grade
in Titanic & 20th Century Disasters (Location: HISW-20DIS)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Egyptian Cinderella
by Shirley Climo & Ruth Heller
from HarperCollins
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in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Erie Canal
by Peter Spier
from Doubleday & Company
for 2nd-6th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
F is for Freedom
by Roni Schotter
from Scholastic Press
for 1st-3rd grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Favorite Greek Myths
by Mary Pope Osborne
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
Gilgamesh the King
by Ludmila Zeman
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-4th grade
$8.95 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Gods and Goddesses of Olympus
by Aliki
from HarperCollins
for 1st-3rd grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
$7.99
Greek Myths
by Marcia Williams
from Walker Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$8.99
Hanna's Cold Winter
by Trish Marx & Barbara Knutson
from Purple House Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$11.95
Holling Clancy Holling's Stories from Many Lands
by Holling Clancy Holling
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
$14.99
In Search of the Lost Colony
Outer Banks Animals Adventure Series
by Mary Maden
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in New World Colonization (Location: HISA-17NW)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Johnny Appleseed
by Steven Kellogg
from HarperTrophy
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Journey West on the Oregon Trail
by Cecile Alyce Nolan
from Rain Dance Publishing
for 2nd-7th grade
in Oregon Trail (Location: HISA-19OR)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Keep the Lights Burning, Abbie
by Peter & Connie Roop
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
Historical Fiction for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Kirsten's Cook Book
American Girl
by Jodi Evert
from Scholastic Inc.
for 2nd-5th grade
in Cooking for Kids (Location: COOK-KID)
$2.40 (1 in stock)
Kitchen Knight
by Margaret Hodges; illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman
from Holiday House
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for
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$8.99
Kitchen Knight
by Margaret Hodges
from Holiday House
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Last Quest of Gilgamesh
by Ludmila Zeman
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-4th grade
$8.95 $6.00 (2 in stock)
Lotus Seed
by Sherry Garland
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Making of a Knight
by Patrick O'Brien
from Charlesbridge
Picture Books/Historical Fiction for 2nd-6th grade
in Middle Ages (Location: HISW-MID)
$7.95 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Medieval Feast
by Aliki
from HarperCollins
for 2nd-5th grade
in Middle Ages (Location: HISW-MID)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Meet Rebecca
American Girl
by Jacqueline Dembar Greene
from American Girl
for 2nd-5th grade
in American Girl (Location: SER-AMGIRL)
Meet Samantha
American Girl
by Susan S. Adler
from American Girl
for 2nd-5th grade
in American Girl (Location: SER-AMGIRL)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Mieko and the Fifth Treasure
by Eleanor Coerr
from Puffin Books
for 2nd-4th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$5.99
Miranda the Great
by Eleanor Estes
1-Simul from Sandpiper Books
for 2nd-5th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$7.95
More All-of-a-Kind Family
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #3
by Sydney Taylor
from Lizzie Skurnick Books
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.95
My Book of Little House Paper Dolls
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperFestival
for 2nd-6th grade
in Little House Materials (Location: LIR-LHM)
$12.99
Paul Bunyan
by Steven Kellogg
from William Morrow & Company
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Penny for a Hundred
by Ethel Pochocki
from Bethlehem Books
for 2nd-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.95
Persian Cinderella
by Shirley Climo & Robert Florczak
Reprint from HarperCollins
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Pilgrim Stories
by Margaret Pumphrey
from Beautiful Feet Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Pilgrims at Plymouth (Location: HISA-17PIL)
$11.95
Player King
by Avi
from Atheneum
for 2nd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99
Polar Bear Son
by Lydia Dabcovich
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Ranch of the Golden Flowers
by Constance Lindsay Skinner
from Bethlehem Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.95
Revenge of Ishtar
by Ludmila Zeman
from Tundra Books (NY)
for 1st-4th grade
$8.95 $6.00 (2 in stock)
Riding the Pony Express
by Clyde Robert Bulla
from Avyx, Inc.
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Romulus and Remus
Ready-to-Read Level 2
by Anne Rockwell
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 1st-3rd grade
in Ready-to-Read (Location: EAR-R2R)
Samantha Learns a Lesson
American Girls
by Susan S. Adler
from American Girl
for 2nd-5th grade
in American Girl (Location: SER-AMGIRL)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Sea Beggar's Son
by F. N. Monjo, illustrated by C. Walter Hodges
from Inheritance Publications
for 2nd-5th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Sky Boys
by Deborah Hopkinson
from Dragonfly Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Story of Ruby Bridges
by Robert Coles, Illustrated by George Ford
Rep Anv Sp from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Story of Ruby Bridges
by Robert Coles, Illustrated by George Ford
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.50 (2 in stock)
Tacky the Penguin
by Helen Lester
from Sandpiper Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Thanksgiving Story
by Alice Dalgliesh
from Simon and Schuster
Historical Fiction for 1st-3rd grade
1955 Caldecott Honor Book
in Pilgrims at Plymouth (Location: HISA-17PIL)
$8.99 $5.50 (2 in stock)
Three Names
by Patricia MacLachlan
from HarperCollins
for 2nd-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
True Story of Pocahontas
A Step into Reading Book Level 3
by Lucille Recht Penner
from Random House
for 1st-3rd grade
in Step into Reading (Location: EAR-STEP)
$5.99
War Horse
by Michael Morpurgo
from Scholastic Press
for 2nd-6th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$7.99
What You Know First
by Patricia MacLachlan
from HarperCollins
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.99
Young Robin Hood
by George Manville Fenn
from Salem Ridge Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)