I really like Logos’ resources, however, they are still incomplete. I have searched for timelines for kings for specific empires outside of Israel, but there very few....or they are incomplete. They are also hard for me to find. I cannot just search for a timeline, from what I have seen. I have to go to the Library. I would like to suggest a quicker and easier way of getting to all Timelines....just through either Tools, or make some sort of Timeline Guide.
The Timelines for the Intertestamental Period are very incomplete. That needs to be fixed. The Persian Period starts with Darius I, not Cyrus the Great, who in fact shows up in Scripture, Isaiah and Ezra-Nehemiah. So all Persian Kings need to be in the Timeline, all Greek Kings need to be in the Timeline (not Just Alexander the Great), and Roman Emperors ought to be in the Timeline for the Intertestamental Period. I would also like to see more Governors for the Roman Period, specifically in the cities that are mentioned in Acts and the Pauline Epistles. I would also like to have Assyrian, Babylonian, and Egyptian Pharaohs in a Timeline. I would also like the ability to compare any timeline with the other, such as have the Mesopotamian Archaeological Period, the Canaanite Archaeological Period, and the Egyptian Archaeological Period so I can do comparisons for the the different histories, and have the ability to map out when certain events occurred in Scripture, such as when Abraham lived, the two different dating suggestions for the Exodus and infiltration of Canaan of the Israelites, the Judges, the Kings of Israel, the Prophets, the Return from Exile, and compare all of those major events with the timelines of other kingdoms, nations, and other major historical events that happened outside of Israel, but what definitely affected Israel or the Patriarchs or the Kings or Judges of Israel. It would be helpful to have such timelines and the ability to put more than one timeline with another one so that good comparisons can be made. I know this is a huge suggestion, but it would be very helpful to any sort of in depth Bible study for Scholars, Teachers, Pastor, and Students of the Word of God. Many of those suggestions to add to Logos are because neither Logos NOR Accordance has those Timelines. So if added, it would mean I’d have something else that Accordance users would not have. I would also like to see a timeline for the Maccabean Period, when the Maccabees where winning battles and in control.
For Maps, I’d like to see completely mapped out the Persian Period, Greek Period, Roman Period, and I would like to see other Maps with other Empires throughout history so I can do comparisons for study and for teaching in class. I would also really like to see maps of the City of David as it was throughout the years and Jerusalem. It would be good so I could give size comparisons of Jerusalem during different time periods. A professor of mine has maps of the City of David and Jerusalem during David’s time and the different expansions, such as under Ezra-Nehemiah, Herod, the walls of the city as the Muslims had built it, and how it looks today for a Projector. He can overlay the base one (which is the topography of the Jerusalem area) and then put how each of them looked over the topographical map. I would like something similar for Logos Maps. I would like the ability to have a topographical map with the City of David and Jerusalem during those same time periods to show the actual size of the city. This would be to give me and any one I teach a better perspective. That way it becomes harder and harder for me and them to impose our 21st century understanding of cities on ancient ideas of cities. I would also like to see more pictures of Citadels within a city and even some sort of 3D (not exactly of course, since that would be a HUGE project) of what some Citadels within specifically Israel looked like, especially what would have been found in a city taken over by the Greeks and the Romans. It would be good to give people perspectives on what each of the different major cities might have looked like during bible times. I would also like to see a map of the different battles that took place throughout Scripture, even those that are not found in Scripture, in Israel or around Israel. I would especially like Mapped out the Maccabean Kingdom, and a timeline of Maccabean leaders.
I would also like the ability to see the different sizes of the Temple throughout its history: the Temple when Solomon built it, the Temple when Nehemiah rebuilt it, and the Temple when Herod renovated/rebuilt it. It is not enough to just read the sizes in our English system (or Metric system if outside of USA), it is better to actually see it on a map with the actual sizes and dimensions of the Temple. I’d like to see more cities and towns on the maps that are actually found in the bible and Josephus/Philo, the Pauline Epistles, and the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and the Apocrypha....and any other resource that can be added to Logos. I am one of those visual people who love actually being able to see things and put things into perspective. If possible, I’d like to see topographical maps of Israel (and any other major country mentioned in Scripture) would also be useful so I (and others, such as teachers, pastors, students, scholars) can put Scripture and the lands in Scripture into perspective. Many of us will not be able to actually travel there to see it for ourselves.
I would also like to suggest adding “Ancient Texts for the Study of the Hebrew Bible: A Guide to the Background Literature” by Kenton L. Sparks (found at http://www.amazon.com/Ancient-Texts-Study-Hebrew-Bible/dp/0801047730/ref=pd_ybh_11?pf_rd_p=280800601&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_t=1501&pf_rd_i=ybh&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0YYE935PHEWMW6C3P5PC), and “Ancient Texts for New Testament Studies: A Guide to the Background Literature” by Craig A. Evens. (found at http://www.amazon.com/Ancient-Texts-New-Testament-Studies/dp/0801046173/ref=pd_ybh_10?pf_rd_p=280800601&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_t=1501&pf_rd_i=ybh&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0YYE935PHEWMW6C3P5PC). (My Bible School’s Reference Library has a copy of each.)
