Welcome to the May 2026 Blog folks! This month we will view a history of the Greco-Persian Wars, focusing on the Persian side from a Biblical perspective, starting with a line of Persian Kings from Darius–son of Ahasuerus-Spouse of Queen Esther, to rebuilding the Walls and Temple at Jerusalem. This fell into the times of the Matching Eclipses of 480-469BC, as they reflect in Repeating Eclipses of 2024-2034 AD. This matching of Luni–Solar Eclipses mirrors the rebuilding of the Walls and Temple of Jerusalem in the time of Ezra-Esther-Nehemiah, that align with aspects of the end times before Christ’s Return to assemble the Church of the Body of Christ at the Gathering Together of his spiritual body. The preparation of Christ’s Spiritual Body, of which he is the Head, includes Messianic Christian Jews with the Born Again Saints in Christ, who is our Peace-has made both One, having broken down the middle wall of Partition; has abolished in his flesh the emnity, even the dogmatic legalism of Commandments contained in ordinances in order to make of the two, one new man in himself, so making Peace. Eph. 2:16 “And that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. 17 And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
Christ Our Cornerstone in the Temple
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 Having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the Chief Cornerstone, 21 In whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy Temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. [Eph. 2:14-22]
As we expand on re-building and dedication of the physical Temple–and walls of Jerusalem, so we must be cognizant of Christ building of his body-and his Spiritual Temple, [Jn. 2:19] as enemies of these spiritual works resist, so we stand together against their hostility, even as our spiritual enemy opposed the rebuilding of the Walls and Temple of Jerusalem in the days of Nehemiah-Ezra. The following Biblical Structure of Ezra chapt. 4-6; lays out a structural context related to these activities in Nehemiah.
The context of the Structure of Ezra 4, is from E.W. Bullinger’s Companion Bible for Ezra 4:1-6:22, seen below, is an Extended Alternation;#1
The Temple Building & Dedication
F1; Ezra 4:1-6:15 Building
G:Ezra 4:1-2; Adversaries/ Temptation
H:Ezra 4:3; Obedience to God’s Word
J:Ezra 4:4-16; Opposition Letter to Cyrus
K:Ezra 4:17-22; King’s Answer-success of plot
L: Ezra 4:23-24; Work Cessation
M: Ezra 4:24; Duration of Cessation
G: Ezra 5:1; Helpers-Prophets-Exhortation
H: Ezra 5:2; Obedience to God’s Word
J: Ezra 5:3-17; Opposition Letter to Darius
K: Ezra 6:1-12; King’s Answer-Defeat of plot
L:Ezra 6:13-14; Work Recommencment
M:Ezra 6:15; Date of Completion
The section reflected below relates to J:Ezra 4:4-16; 6:15– Opposition Letter to Cyrus; in the above Structure.
Here we find Darius as son of Ahasuerus, while below in Ezra 4:6-7, we see Ahasuerus and Artaxerxes being used as a synonymous repetition for the same king, as Darius’ Father. As in a Biblical sub-Structure of these verses based on related & corresponding a,b,c lines as follows; “A“ link to “A,” “B” to “B,” and “C” to “C.” “A” In the reign of Ahasuerus links to “A” in v. 6-7; “in the days of Artaxerxes.” To whom & when. “B“; enemies of Judah and Benjamin wrote… “C” contents of letter. “A” The days of Artaxerxes. “B” to Artaxerxes- king of Persia. “B2” Judah’s enemies con’t. “C” Letter’s contents to the King Artaxerxes from your servants.#2
Ezra 4:6-11 [A] In the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, [B] they wrote an [C] accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem. 7 In [A] the days of Artaxerxes also, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabel, and the rest of their companions [B] wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; [see Neh. 2:1,19] and the letter was written in Aramaic script, and translated into the Aramaic language… [B2] Judah’s enemies con’t.-v. 9-10–9 From Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their companions-representing the Dinaites, Tarpelites, Apharsathchites, the people of Persia and Erech and Babylon and Shushan, the Dehavites, the Elamites, 10 and the rest of the nations whom the great and noble Osnapper [Ashurbanipal] took captive and settled in the cities of Samaria and the remainder beyond [g]the River and[h] so forth. 11
[C] This copy of a letter sent him. To King Artaxerxes I from your servants, the men of the region beyond the river, and so forth: [Ezra 4:11-16]
Three individuals are named as “Governor of Babylon and Across-the-River” between 535 – 486 BC [Stolper1989].#2a Xerxes I came to throne as the Great King in 486 BC. One of these three has been identified in both Persian and Biblical records of Ezra, “Tattenai, governor on this side the river” (Ezra 5:3; 6:6,13), in Ezra 6:13 below, his office administered portions of Asia Minor and the coastal zone all the way to Egypt; “in this province was all Phoenicia, and part of Syria called Palestine, and Cyprus.” [Herodotus, Histories 3.91].#3
The Temple Completed and Dedicated
Ezra 6:13-15 13 Then Tattenai, governor [#6347-6, prefect Ez. 5:3] of the region beyond the River, Shethar-Boznai, and their companions diligently did as stated by what King Darius had sent. 14 So the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built and finished it, according to the commandment of God of Israel, & according to the command of Cyrus, Darius, & Artaxerxes king of Persia. 15 Now the Temple was finished on the third day of the month of Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.#3a [structure of Ez. 4-6 and rebuilding of the Jerusalem Temple]
Xerxes the Great; c. 518 BC – 465 BC)[5] was a Persian ruler who reigned as the fourth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, via conventional histories reigned from 486 BC until his assassination in 465 BC, but we are favoring an alternate date in 475 BC for the death of Xerxes I, below. He was son of Darius the Great and Atossa– daughter of Cyrus the Great. Xerxes’ father was Darius the Great (r. 522–486 BC), the monarch of the Achaemenid Empire, albeit not kinsman of Cyrus the Great, the founder of the Empire.[8][9] Xerxes‘ mother-Atossa, was a daughter of Cyrus.[10] Darius and Atossa married in 522 BC,[11]
and Xerxes I was born near 518 BC.[12] #3b
The title of King of Kings at times appears in inscriptions of kings of Urartu.[2] It’s possible the title was also used by the rulers of the Median Empire, since its rulers borrowed much of their royal symbolism and protocol from Urartu and elsewhere in Mesopotamia. The Achaemenid Persian variant of this title,
Xšāyaθiya Xšāyaθiyānām, is Median in form, implies Persian Achaemenids may have taken it from the Medes, rather than Mesopotamia.[2]
Xerxes’ co-regency is challenged because he only wrote an inscription (while his brothers Hystapes and Arsames were still alive): King Xerxes says: Darius had other sons, the good pleasure of Ahuramazda was that Darius my father made me greatest after him. As Darius my father left the throne, with Ahuramazda, I became king on the throne of my father (XPf §4)10. However, several carved reliefs at Persepolis show that Xerxes was designated as crown prince, years prior to Darius’ death. According to a conventional representation of kings, it appears the king on his throne was Darius before Xerxes; Crown prince, 11 see the bas relief taken from Persepolis below. What is difficult to separate in World history, can be easier in Biblical reckoning, when for example: the Bible counts Princes as kings if exerting royal authority during Co-regency-or during the Senior King’s Reign. This appears to be the case with Belshazzar-a key type who was called Crown Prince, [Assyrian Term] during Nebuchadnezzar’s reign.
We also find in Dan. 9:1 below;
Dan. 9:1 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans— 2 in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of years specified by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
In our recent OT History Seminar-Ren Manetti lays out 15 prophecies of Dan. 8:20- in reference to the future Antichrist through Dan. 11:2, with another 40 prophecies-in Dan. 11:1-19 that blend in seamlessly with the Persian historic headlines. All the revelation from God, given to Daniel here is addressed to Daniel, and interpreted by an angel or angels, who insured Daniel grasped what was divinely imparted to him. Dan. 11:1 refers to a 1st year of Darius “the Mede.”#4
Dan. 11:2 says; “Also in the first year of Darius the Mede, I, even I, stood up to confirm and strengthen him.) 2 And now I will tell you the truth: Behold, three more kings will arise in Persia, and the fourth shall be far richer than them all; by his strength, through his riches, he stirred up all against the realm of Greece.
In Greek history 3 kings rose prior to “Darius” the first 2 were; 1. Cambyses, then a missing #2nd. Artaxerxes, not recorded in history, only in Scripture-next #3. was Darius 1-“the Mede,” who was the Father of Xerxes 1, who rose as the 4th king whose riches exceeded them all; and by his strength, through his riches he was “far richer than them all; by his strength, via his riches stirred he up all against the realm of Greece.”#5 This kingly line matched Darius & Xerxes I’ history and royal geneology, that Herodotus says their “ancestry reigned for 22 generations covering a period of 505 yrs.” #6 Darius’ father [Hystapses] and Grand-dad [Atraxerxes] were alive as he became king, in a shared co-regency as Hystapses’ declared–heir appeased a fractured nobility. Darius‘ had rule of military forces opening the first Persian War in 490BC, as Hystapses ruled the Political Administration behind the scenes. So, the 1st Grecian wars opened as Darius 1 was defeated in a 1st Persian invasion of the 490BC-Battle of Marathon.
In his 2017 “Analysis of the Prophecies of Daniel at the Hope “Mini-Summit” in Tampa, Fl, Rev. Jon Nessle said: in reference to the 70 weeks or “sevens” are weeks of years, or Sabbatical Years which makes the span 490 years. “Most chronologer’s take a starting point of the count in Artaxerxes I’s 20th year, when they say Nehemiah was given the Governorship of Judea so that he could accomplish his goal of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. Rev. Nessle disagreed with this, since Xerxes I was NOT the husband of Esther, as most historians suppose. Darius I had to be Esther’s Husband because of the age of Mordecai. A Xerxes I scenario makes Mordechai an impossible minimum of 124 years old in the 12th year, when he was appointed Grand Vizier.”#7
In support of this, Mordecai appears among exiles deported from Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, [Est. 3:5] but that deportation occurred 112 years before Xerxes became king, explaining why Darius had to be in power as Esther’s husband during this time.
[Via the Athenian historian– Thucydides, who also served as a General for Athens during the war, his account of the conflict is widely considered to be a classic, and renowned for his high chronological accuracy. It’s deemed as one of the earliest scholarly works of history; (The Peloponnesian War I:98;137).
Thucydides was born in 471 BC as a defeated Athenian general who turned to writing history after he was relieved of command. As a younger contemporary of Artaxerxes I, his History of the Peloponnesian War recounts the warfare between the rival alliances led by Sparta and Athens through the year 411 BC. Thucydides has been called the father of “scientific history” due to his strict standards of evidence-gathering and analysis of cause and effect with-out reference to intervention by the gods.#7a
According to Plutarch (Life of Theseus §§35,36), in a meeting of Themistocles with Artaxerxes I, who had succeeded Xerxes, his father, just after the fall of Naxos that occurred after the fall of Skyros, dated starting in the archonship of Phaedo in 476 BC, this meeting with Themistocles would thus have occurred soon after 475 BC, not 465. The present Achaemenid chronology comes mainly from official Babylonian king lists, that ignore co-regents and usurpers. This official version is contradicted by contracts dated in “year, month, day” proving the existence of frequent co-regencies and usurpers. In addition, according to an astronomical tablet referenced BM 32234, the death of Xerxes was dated 14/V/21 between two lunar eclipses, one dated 14/III/21 (26 June 475 BC), that was total, and a 2nd dated 14/VIII/21 (20 December 475 BC), that was partial. [see Comparison Chart #3 of Repeating Matching Eclipses below]. Thus, the death of Xerxes had to be dated 24 August 475 BC. Likewise, Artaxerxes I’s death was fixed precisely by Thucydides (The Peloponnesian War IV:50-52) just before a partial Solar Eclipse (21 March 424 BC) that implies an absurd co-regency of Darius II with a dead king for at least one year! In support of this fact, Plutarch and Justinus validly show a long co-regency of Artaxerxes, but with his first son Darius B (434–426).#8
Further support of the 475-474 BC date appears reasonable for Artaxerxes’ 20th year, as his first year in office of Persian “Governor beyond the River,” but not as the “Great King.” As Governor, he was a “king” (Basileus) over the Persian dominions of present day Cyprus, Turkey, Lebanon, and Israel. As Governor, Artaxerxes I would have direct administration of Jerusalem; so, the 20th year of Artaxerxes (Nehemiah 2:1) ruling over Jerusalem was in 454 BC. Both Persian and the Greek records speak of “kings” in reference to one holding governing authority, but still subject to the “Great King.“ Since both Artaxerxes and his father, the Great King Xerxes were alive, a harmonized reading of apparent conflicting histories over the last two millennia comes to the surface. #9
The arrangement of the intercalary months in a chronology without coregency has several anomalies, especially the presence of two months Ulul in a single cycle. By contrast, in a chronology with co-regency, has two distinct cycles, the abnormal intercalary month in year 30 of Darius (Persepolis) links to another cycle ending in year 4 of Xerxes. The titulature of Xerxes (496–475) in Egypt and the data of Diodorus confirm the co-regency of 10 years w/ Darius (522–486), as do Elephantine papyri with many double dates both in civil and lunar calendars.#9a
Rev. Nessle continues: “This fact moves the time of the Jews influence in the Persian State back, and adversely affects any starting point for the 490 year option for Daniel’s Prophecy. The 2nd Temple construction was re-started in Elul 519BC and was finished in Adar 515BC, during Darius 1, Ezra arrived in Jerusalem soon after. Mordechai’s appointment as Grand Vizier and Purim occurred in the winter of 509 BC. The Jewish influence in the Court of Persia persisted eventually involving the appointment of Nehemiah–a known Jew, to a high position as Chief of Security. Rev. Nessle’s belief is that in 501 BC-the 20th year of Darius I, the wall was built. Tishri 1 fell on Sept. 19th, 522BC during a time when the Hebrew Lunar Calendar and months, were synchronous with Babylonian & Persian calendar. Darius assasinated an imposter contending for the throne; Smerdis/Gaumata [?] on Sept. 29th and became king shortly there- after. Therefore his Accession Year was from Tishri 1, 522BC to Tishri 1, 521BC.
So Nisan in his 20th year would have been in 501 BC. If the starting point for the 490 years was the King’s Appointment of Nehemiah for that task, it ends in 11BC, which is not significant for anything. Nehemiah’s King cannot be Xerxes 1, because Nehemiah mentioned him reigning in his 32nd year, [Neh. 5:15]. Xerxes’ reign was only 20 years. If Artaxerxes 1’s 20th year, then 490 Jewish Tishri years results in 44AD.” Rev. Nessle quotes Daniel 9:20-27 here, where he defers to his Appendix from “The Path to Eternity,” where there’s an Introversion structure signaled by a repetition of [seal] in verse 24. This is the only thing that fits. #10
“Counting 490 years from the 20th year [501BC] of Darius [Sept. 522BC to Nov. 486, yields 11BC, no significance. Counting 490 years from the 20th year [4454 BC] of Artaxerxes I [465-424] yields 44AD– no correlation. #11 However, with an alternate date of Xerxes I’s death given by Thucydides and others in 475BC, this puts the start of the reign of Artaxerxes 1 in the same year of 475BC, and issued forth a word starting in the 20th year of Persian King “Artaxerxes 1,” according to Nehemiah 2:1-6.
Nehemiah 2:1-6 And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King [a]Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence. 2 Therefore the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart.” So I became dreadfully afraid, 3 and said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire?” 4 Then the king said to me, “What do you request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven.
And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.”
6 Then the king said to me (the queen also sitting beside him), “How long will your journey be? And when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.
In year 20 Artaxerxes I gave his trusted cup-bearer Nehemiah a commission to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem (Neh. 2:1). Establishing the date of this event has created confusion because there are 2 different lines of testimony. Diodorus in his Library of History places Artaxerxes I on the throne in 464 BC, making his 20th year 444 BC. Claudius Ptolemy (2nd cent. AD) adopts Diodorus’ dating in his influential Canon, which provides a list of kings from various countries spanning a 900-year period. Moreover, these dates were copied into Eusebius’ Chronicles during the 4th cent. AD. But, a differing witness, and second line of testimony occurs when historical events correlate with historical writings of Thucydides. Then the date of Artaxerxes I as governor, or sub-king to Xerxes is 474 BC which also was the date Nehemiah was using. A Summary of the debate over last two millennia [McNeil-1970]; “That Thucydides’… is the best evidence we have… If, on the other hand, we refuse Thucydides’ order on faith but try to check it against what we learn from other sources, it becomes evident to check this is improbable. The only other linked account of the 465-450BC period is Diodorus, who to some extent is dependent upon Thucydides… [and wrote] centuries after the events.”#11a
Ptolemy, noted Greek-Egyptian astronomer (2nd century A.D.), in his Canon of the Kings, assigns 21 years to the reign of Xerxes & 41 years to Artaxerxes immediately following. But as the Canon is dated beyond doubt by 19 eclipses and other astronomical synchronisms and signs, it is certain that in official Egyptian reckoning Xerxes’ year 21 (the year 283 in Ptolemy’s Nabonassar Era) correlates to the chronology of Olympiads.
Olympiad Chronology
The BC/AD dating system had not been developed even in the time of Eusebius (260-340 AD) [Eusebius – Chronicles] and dating the reign of Artaxerxes as the Great King requires reviewing the Greek Olympiad chronology system. Every four years in the midsummer around August, the Greek city-states, swore an oath to lay down weapons and meet together in truce, if not in peace, for the Olympic competition. Because these Olympiads were not linked to the reign of a specific king, or kingdom, they provide a convenient method for dating events in history. The Olympiad counting system began in mid-summer and Olympic years always covering portions of 2 Julian years (mid-August to next mid-Aug.). Olympiad counting was adopted in Greece well before Artaxerxes I. The start date for this counting was 776 BC as Olympiad 1. Olympiad reckoning employed both the number of the Olympiad and the year within the cycle, 1-4; the Olympiad itself was held on year 1.# 3 Eusebius in his Chronicles carries the Olympiad dating from its inception in 776BC to 217AD, the 249th Olympiad. Olympiad dating is completely reliable for dating the Persian invasion of Greece by Xerxes, father of Artaxerxes I, in 480 BC. [Shaw-2003].#11b
Seventy-fifth Olympiad [480 BC]… It was in this year king Xerxes opened his campaign against Greece Olympiad 75.2 (479 BC; Xerxes year 6/7) Herodotus, Histories, Book 9 – concludes the history of the Persian invasion the following summer, when the Persian forces staying in Greece were defeated at Platea – ending the last Persian incursion on the Greek mainland. Olympiad 75.3 (478BC; Xerxes year 7/8): The Athenians returned to rebuild. Pausanias, Greek-Spartan captures most of Cyprus. Thucydides; The Peloponnesian War, 1.89: “When the Persians, defeated by the Hellenes on sea and land, retreated from Europe, & the remnant of the fleet, had taken refuge at Mycalè, and there perished…
They both included Artabanus with a seven month reign between Xerxes and Artaxerxes, i.e., in the 4th year of 78th Olympiad (465 14). They also dated Artaxerxes’ year 20 in the 4th year of the 83rd Olympiad. 20
This added research uncovers that “Artaxerxes I” ascended the throne in the year 475 BC, and his 20th year of reign would then be 455 BC. But, some of Christendom’s secular scholars will tell you “Artaxerxes I” began his reign in the year 465 BC, making his 20th year 445 BC, a difference of about ten years. The question then is who is correct? This short study intends to show 4 simple lines of evidence, in support of the date 475 BC. as a correct date for the start of Artaxerxes reign vs. 465BC. A 1st line of evidence: came in the year 1847AD, from a German scholar named Ernst Hengstenberg, in his book: “Christology of the Old Testament“, saying, “For then the 20th year of Artaxerxes is the year 455 BC“, and “Artaxerxes 1st full regnal year began in 474 BC“. Also, the book;“Pay Attention to Daniel’s Prophecy” relates this in a 1999 printing, from p. 197 we find “Ernst Hengstenberg in his Christology of the Old Testament; Artaxerxes 1’s reign commenced in 474 BC, #12 as do other following sources.
In Archaeological history, a bas relief taken from Persepolis, the man sitting on the throne is none other than Persian King Darius.
Representations of lions can be found frequently in Persepolis, for the city’s entire purpose, after all, was to direct attention to the great king of Persia. The central relief, now displayed in the Archaeological Museum of Tehran, brought the focus of the room and all its carved figures to the image of Darius, seated on his throne, flanked by his son, and receiving the tributes of the visitors.
The figures are recognized as Darius and his son Xerxes as they commissioned the work, but the reliefs are also intentionally ambiguous, not capturing any unique features of Darius himself. In that way, the relief serves also as a larger, symbolic depiction of the strong Achaemenid royal line, great king and ready successor, at the center of the great Persian Empire.
Enthroned Darius with Xerxes behind– central Bas relief of the Persepolis Apadana, found in the Treasury. [https://www.thecollector.com/fascinating-facts-from-the-bas-reliefs-of-persepolis/]
Somewhat unique to ancient kingdoms is the tolerance of the Persian king and empire reflected in those images of the monarchy. Where Greek and Roman art often shows their leaders crushing surrounding nations, the Persian courtiers are shown leading them by the hand to come before Darius. It was a powerful piece of propaganda for all those who entered the halls, but also largely true. Having been violently subjugated by the Assyrians, Cyrus worked to build an empire that would integrate its conquered nations and remain respectful of their cultures and religions.
As we turn our gaze to a history of religious policies of the Achaemenids. The Achaemenid rulers were Zoroastrian, but they were extremely tolerant of other religions in their Empire and even contributed to building of temples and gave special privileges to priesthoods.25 On a cylinder inscription Cyrus records “I gave daily care to his (Marduk’s) work”.26 Cyrus rebuilt the temple of Marduk; Cyrus and Darius both allowed the Jews to deduct rebuilding cost of the Jerusalem Temple from their taxes. Cambyses was no less tolerant.”#27 Cambyses & Darius both partook in a ceremony; “seizing the hands of Marduk” at the statue of Bel-Marduk in Esagila, which entitled them in the eyes of the Babylonians to bear the title “king of Babylon.”
A Third line of evidence: is what is known as cuneiform tablet BM 65494 taken from the British Museum. It is a business document from Borsippa dated to the 50th year of Artaxerxes I.
Tablet BM 65494 dated 4/V1/50 of Artaxerxes I –Stolper reconstituted the prosopography of Murashu’s family and has dated it according to the accepted chronology’*’. 13a
In the 2nd picture provided, the number 50 is written in the Akkadian language and is in the lower right corner of the tablet to see it’s location. The final picture is the Akkadian numerical system, shows how they would write the number 50, which exactly matches this cuneiform tablet.#14
This shows robust archaeological evidence of Artaxerxes’ reign exceeded 41 years. And that the 51st year of Artaxerxes was 424 BC, making his first regnal year 474 BC, and not 465 BC as some of Christendom’s secular scholars would have you to believe.
Fourth line of evidence: Archbishop James Usher in his book entitled the “Annals of the World“, published back in 1650 AD, made these paraphrased statements “In the year 455 BC, that was the 20th year of Artaxerxes I, when Nehemiah requested to obtain permission from the king to be the governor of Judah and to rebuild Jerusalem (Nehemiah 2:1-6). This event marks the start of Daniel’s 70 weeks.” #15
These four, powerful lines of evidence, show a correct date to the beginning of Artaxerxes reign, and how we may unlock a secret to the start date of Daniel 9:24-27. Many thanks to Ernst Hengstenberg for his work published in 1847, and James Ussher for his book published in the year 1650AD. I also wanted to thank the British Museum for providing the cuneiform tablet BM 65494, and finally the headquarters staff at Jehovah’s Witnesses (WTBTS) to help us to a proper grasp of King Artaxerxes I’ regnal year start in 474 B.C., and that his 20th year was in fact 455 BC.
The last Year of Xerxes and the 1st Year of Artaxerxes
As we have seen throughout the reigns involved here the regnal-year numbers in the Egyptian calendar are known from astronomically fixed reckoning of Ptolemy’s Canon and synchronisms of several double-dated papyri. It is also known in the Persian calendar from the Saros list, based on the 18-year Saros cycle. #16
ACCESSION OF ARTAXERXES I
Figure 2. Xerxes and Artaxerxes in Three Calendars
The regnal years of Xerxes (shortened in this drawing by an 18-year gap of the Saros cycle) and the early years of Artaxerxes are shown as reckoned (1) In the Egyptian calendar (with years beginning in December), (2) in the Persian calendar (with years beginning in the spring), and (3) in the Jewish calendar (with years beginning in the autumn), all three aligned against the back-ground of the BC years.
The Saros list is extant on two clay tablets containing a series of regnal years at eighteen-year intervals based on a Babylonian Eclipse cycle (published by J. N. Strassmaier in reports in ZA, VII [~Sgz], zoo, 201; VIII [1893], 106). #17 Starting with the 7th year of Nabonidus, this list includes the year of Xerxes and the years 6 and 24 of Artaxerxes.
A SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO AN ABSOLUTE CHRONOLOGY THROUGH SYNCHRONISMS DATED BY ASTRONOMY
The death of Xerxes is dated, at the present time, in 465 BC. This date comes mainly from the official Babylonian chronology, however, the testimony of Thucydides and from some Elephantine Egyptian records support dating of 475 BC. A careful chronological analysis of Babylonian astronomical tablets allows a fixing of a precise date of Xerxes’ death on August 24th, 475 BC. An official Babylonian chronology is based on the tablet BM 34576 (King List copy dated 99 BC). #18
Likewise, the death of Artaxerxes I is fixed precisely by Thucydides (The Peloponnesian War IV:50-52) just before a partial Solar Eclipse (21 March 424 BC) which implies absurd co-regency of Darius II with a dead king for at least one year! The arrangement of the intercalary months in a chronology without co-regency has several anomalies especially the presence of two months Ulul in a single cycle. By contrast, in a chronology with co-regency, and two distinct cycles, the abnormal intercalary month in year 30 of Darius (Persepolis) links to another cycle ending in year 4 of Xerxes. The titulature of Xerxes I (496-475) in Egypt and data of Diodorus confirm a Co-regency of 10 years with Darius-1 (522-486), with Elephantine papyri and many double dates with civil and lunar calendars. #19
A popular date of Xerxes 1′ death in 465 BC by mainstream historians, comes mainly from the official Babylonian chronology, recorded in the King’s List such as the tablet BM 34576 (copy dated 99 BC) 1 , but a witness of Thucydides support the dating in 475 BC, in addition, careful chronological analysis of Babylonian astronomical Tablets allows the fixing of the precise date of Xerxes’ death on August 24 in 475 BC. Why do mainstream historians prefer to rely on the Babylonian royal lists to establish the Achaemenid chronology, rather than on the evidence from Greek historians who clearly mentioned several usurper kings and co-regencies?#20
We can agree that the Book of Esther has a historical setting in the reign of Darius, that is replete with details of Persian court life. A purpose of the
study, while not denying romantic and ritual elements and a complicated amalgamation of history, and religion, is a return to search for historical material, aligned with an Astronomical Chronology specifically in Darius‘ reign, with solid links to the Book of Esther. A good place to start may be a historical seed in the Book of Esther in the religious policy of King Darius I, in whose reign events of the book are set, as his decree singles out a religious-ethnic group for destruction, albeit fomented by Haman.
An initial question to be answered is the Jewish seed of Mordecai and Esther. On multiple occasions it’s used as a Jewish name in the Bible. #21 The name
“Mordecai“ shows in a list of Jews who returned to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel (Ezra 2:2, Neh. 7:7). 2 Now these are the people of the province who returned from Babylonian captivity, of those carried away, by the king of Babylon–Nebuchadnezzar, who returned to Jerusalem & Judah, all to their own city.
2 Those who returned with Zerubbabel: Jeshua; [a man of Pahath-moab with
Zerubbabel [Ez. 2:6], Nehemiah, [Neh. 7:7] [a]Seraiah, [1Chron. 6:13-4] [b]Reelaiah, Bilshan, Mordecai, known by some as finance officer at Susa under Darius 1. [Est. 2:7] [c]Mispar, Bigvai, [d]Rehum, [Ez. 4:8] and Baanah, numbered among the men of the people of Israel: The name Mordecai, listed in Aramaic; see G. R. Driver, Aramaic Documents of the Fifth Century BC. (Oxford 1957) 20 n. 2. It also occurs in the Treasury Tablets from Persepolis; see; G. G. Cameron, Persepolis Treasury Tablets (Chicago 1948) 85; is also found in an undated text, probably from the end of Darius’ reign or the beginning of Xerxes I, the name of an official, perhaps an accountant/scribe, on tour from Susa; #22
The rivalry between the fractious political world of the Greeks and the enormous Persian empire began when Cyrus the Great conquered Greek-inhabited region of Ionia in 547 BC. In 499 BC, the tyrant of Miletus, Aristagoras, incited Hellenic Asia Minor into rebellion against the Persians. This opened an Ionian Revolt, that that lasted until 493 BC, progressively drawing more regions of Asia Minor into the conflict. Aristagoras got military support from Athens & Eretria, and in 498 BC these forces captured the Persian regional capital of Sardis. The Persian king Darius the Great vowed revenge on Athens & Eretria for this. An early Persian invasion of Greece began in 492 BC, as Persian General Mardonius successfully re-subjugated Thrace & Macedon before several mishaps forced an early end to the rest of the campaign.[3] Darius then began raising a huge new army with designs to subjugate Greece; but, in 486 BC, his Egyptian subjects revolted, delaying any Greek expedition. After Darius died, his son Xerxes I restarted preparations for a second invasion of Greece, which finally began in 480 BC.#22a
In 480 BC, the Persian King led a large army across the Hellespont into Europe, achieving military victories at Thermopylae & Artemisium before their defeat & razing of Athens. His forces got control of mainland Greece-north of the Corinthian Isthmus till they were defeated at the Battle of Salamis. Fearing the Greeks might trap him in Europe, Xerxes I retreated with a greater part of his army back to Asia, leaving behind Mardonius to continue his campaign.
Achaemenid king killing a Greek hoplite. Impression from a cylinder seal, sculpted c. 500–475 BC, at the time of Darius I Metropolitan Museum of Art.#23
At the Battle of Thermopylae, a small force of Greek warriors led by King Leonidas of Sparta resisted much larger Persian forces, but were ultimately defeated. According to Herodotus, the Persians broke the Spartan phalanx
after a Greek man called Ephialtes betrayed his country by telling the Persians of another pass around the mountains. At Artemisium, large storms sunk and damaged ships from the Greek side as the battle stopped prematurely when the Greeks got news of the defeat at Thermopylae and retreated.
In 480 BC, following the Battle of Thermopylae, all of Boeotia fell to the Persian army. Thespiae and Plataea, the two Greek cities that resisted Darius I, were captured and subsequently razed. Attica was left open to a Persian offensive, and the surviving population of Athens evacuated, by the Greek fleet, to Salamis. [1]
After Thermopylae, Athens was captured. Most of the Athenians abandoned the city, fled to the island of Salamis before Xerxes‘ arrived. Xerxes I ordered the Destruction of Athens burning the city, leaving an archaeologically attested
destruction layer, known as “Persian debris” or Perserschutt.[46] Thus, Persia gained control of all Grecian mainland, north of the Isthmus of Corinth.[5]
The following Charts for Repeating-Matching Eclipse Tetrads in 2024 AD with 480 BC, show how our current Eclipse decade of 2024-2034 match the ancient Eclipses of Ahaseurus/Darius I & Queen Esther, opening in 480-479 BC. They also match the 3 consecutive Blood Moon Purim Eclipses to open the Purim Holiday for Israel in Persia under Queen Esther and Mordecai. As we take into account Darius I’/Xerxes military history aligned with this key eclipse period, we gain a more complete image and impression not only of Modern Persia, seen in today’s Iran, but also a spiritual perspective of the building of the Wall & Temple of Jerusalem, and perhaps even the Coming building of a Third Temple, that the Jewish Temple Institute stands ready to enact.
| Comparison Chart #1 of Repeating Eclipse Tetrads 2024 AD with 480 BC.#24 | ||||
| Eclipse Date | AD | Sun/Moon | Eclipse Date | BC |
| 3/25/2024 | AD | Lunar | 3/25/480 | BC |
| 4/08/2024 | AD Total | Solar | 4/09/480 | BC Total |
| 9/18/2024 | AD | Lunar | 9/18/480 | BC |
| 10/2/2024 | AD Annular | Solar | 10/2/480 | BC Annular |
Battles of Salamis and Plataea
The Battle of Salamis (26-27th Sept. 480 BC) won by the Greek fleet, followed Xerses I setting up a winter camp in Thessaly. [The history of April 8th/ Sept. 18th/ Oct. 2nd, 480 BC, eclipses, is mirrored in Chart 1 above.]
The Persian active military campaign against the Greeks initiated a battle in Salamis, fought in the straits between the mainland and Salamis, an island in Saronic Gulf near Athens, marked a high point of the 2nd Persian invasion of Greece, arguably the largest naval battle of the ancient world, marking a turning point in the invasion.[8]
To block the Persian advance, a small force of Greeks blocked the pass of Thermopylae, while an Athenian-dominated allied navy engaged the Persian fleet in the nearby straits of Artemisium. In the resulting Battle of Thermopylae, the rearguard of the Greek force was annihilated, as in a Battle of Artemisium
the Greeks suffered heavy losses and retreated after the loss at Thermopylae.
Although heavily outnumbered, the Greeks-persuaded by Athenian general Themistocles to bring the Persian fleet to battle again, in hopes that a victory would prevent naval operations against the Peloponnese. The Persian king was also eager for a decisive battle. As a result of Themistocles’ subterfuge that included a message directly sent to Xerxes I, letting him know that much of the Greek fleet was stationed at Salamis), the Persian navy rowed into the Straits of Salamis in an attempt to block both entrances. In the cramped waters, the great Persian numbers proved a detriment, as ships struggled to maneuver and became disorganized. Seizing the opportunity, the Greek fleet formed in line and achieved a victory. This Naval scenario as the Repeating-Matching Eclipses in Chart 1 above looks a bit like modern Iran attempting to control the oil traffic via straits of Hormuz, and loosing their entire navy in the process.
The majority of the Persian army retreated to Asia, leaving Mardonius to complete the conquest of Greece. The following year the remainder of the Persian army was defeated at the Battle of Plataea and the Persian navy at a Battle of Mycale. The Persian ships were then captured and burned. The complete destruction of the Persian navy, along with the destruction of Mardonius’ army at Plataea, allegedly on the same day as the Mycale Battle, decisively ended the invasion of Greece. After Plataea and Mycale, the Greeks would take the offensive against the Persians, marking a new phase of the Greco-Persian Wars. The Persians made no further attempts to conquer the Greeks, as the battles of Salamis and Plataea thus marked a turning point in the course of the Greco-Persian Wars. The Greco-Persian wars were a series of conflicts between the Achaemenid Empire and Greek city-states that started in 499 BC[i] and lasted until 449 BC. This near 50-year period of conflict can be seen to reflect the near 50 years of conflict between US/Israeli’s vs. Iran today.
The last time there was a set of Triple Lunar Eclipses on Purim, before the current triad of 2024-26; and 480 BC–2500 years ago, was from 1978-1980; when the radical Islamic revolution and terrorist regime in Iran first took power!
Xerxes left a contingent in Greece to finish the campaign under Mardonius, who according to Herodotus suggested the retreat in the first place. This force was defeated in the next year-479 BC; [See March 14/29th-9/7 Eclipses in 479BC in Chart 2 below, the following year at Plataea by the Allied forces of Greek city-states, ended the Persian invasion of Greece for good.
| Comparison Chart#2 for Repeating Eclipse Tetrads 2025 AD with 479 BC#25 | ||||
| Eclipse Date | Eclipse type | Sun/Moon | Eclipse Date | Saros# |
| 3/14/2025 AD | Partial | Lunar | 3/14/479 BC | 34 |
| 3/29/2025 AD | Total | Solar | 3/29/479 BC | 60 |
| 9/07/2025 AD | Partial | Lunar | 9/07/479 BC | 39 |
| 9/21/2025 AD | Annular | Solar | 9/21/479 BC | 65 |
In Book 7.37, Herodotus describes the movements of the Persian forces as they gathered to invade Greece in 480 BC. The King wrote what follows: “At the start of its journey, the sun left its seat in the heavens, disappeared and although the sky had been especially clear and cloudless, day now eclipsed into night.”#26 Xerxes himself observing this, was concerned. He asked his Magi of the Zoroastrian’s-the portent’s import. They said “the god showed the Hellenes in advance and they left their cities, as the sun prophesied for the Hellenes, but for the Persians it was the moon.” This speaks to Purim’s 3 Blood Moon Lunar eclipses in a row, related to the import of their linked Soli–Lunar Eclipses in 480-478BC matched with today’s repeating eclipses in 2024-2026 AD!
In addition, the only Solar Eclipses that fit Xerxes description in 480BC time are the 4/09/480BC Total Solar and the 10/2/480BC Annular Solar Eclipses. In 479BC only the 3/29/479BC Total Solar and the 9/21/479BC Annular Solar Eclipses fit the bill of “day now eclipsing into night.”
The editors of the Landmark Edition of Herodotus provide a footnote here explaining that “this purported eclipse cannot be verified by astronomical calculations.”27 Historians have argued about this for centuries- in an article published in “The Observatory” in 1884, W.T. Lynn noted that the issue might be the dates given by Herodotus. While the article finds no Solar Eclipse evidence visible in Asia Minor/Anatolia in 480BC, it appears Solar Eclipses took place in 481 & 478 BC.”#28 However, the dates given here for both Lunar and Solar Eclipses obviously verified by NASA’s Five Millennium Canon of Eclipses and other modern resources, hold Eclipse records are proven to have happened in 480-478BC, the Repeating-Matching Eclipses renewed in [2024-2026 AD].#29
based on scholarly & historical sources, we can confirm what was previously may not be visible; due to clouds. these dates not only match Esther’s reign with Darius I/Ahasuerus as he readied his forces to attack Greece, but also draws a unique correlation to our current decade of Repeating-Matched eclipses. Below the example is found cited above as “Xerxes’ Eclipse…“
Xerxes’ Eclipse– Note
“…while he was offering sacrifice to know if he should march out against the Greeks, the sun was suddenly darkened in mid-sky“
– History, IX, 10, Herodotus #30
The fact that Xerxes, while offering sacrifice to the monotheistic god Ahura–Mazda of the Persian–Zoroastrian Religion of the Biblical Magi, was able to consult the Magi in his Army on the meaning of this eclipse, is striking. In 481 BC, as part of Xerxes 1‘ preparations for a 2nd invasion of Greece in Greco-Persian Wars, the Xerxes Canal was dug through the isthmus of Mount Athos peninsula, as provisions stored on the Thracian road, & 2 pontoon bridges, later known as Xerxes’ Pontoon Bridges were built across the Hellespont. This is noteworthy, as one of the few monuments left by the Persian Empire in Europe.[1]
According to other astronomical tablet notations BM 32234, Xerxes I’ death was dated 14/V/21 between 2 Lunar Eclipses, one dated 14/III/21 (25-29 June 475 BC), which was partial, and the 2nd dated 14/VIII/21 (12-20 Dec. 475 BC), was total. This dates the death of Xerxes I on 24 August 475 BC. [see below]
Comparison Chart#3 for Repeating Eclipse Tetrads 2029 AD with 475 BC#30a
| Eclipse Date | Sources | Saros | Sun/Moon | Eclipse Date | Source | Saros |
| 1/14/29 AD | T&D/Nasa | 151 | Partial Solar | 1/14/475 BC | ||
| 4/13/2029 AD | Apophis | 99942 | Asteroid flyby | |||
| 6/12/29 AD | T&D/Nasa | 118 | Partial Solar | 6/12/475 BC | ||
| 6/25-6/29 AD | T&D/Nasa | 130 | Partial Lunar | 6/26/475 BC | LBAT | 51 |
| 7/11/29 AD | T&D/Nasa | 156 | Partial Solar | 7/11/475 BC | ||
| 12/6/29 AD | T&D/Nasa | 123 | Partial Solar | 12/6/475 BC | ||
| 12/20/29 AD | T&D/Nasa | 135 | Total Lunar | 12/20/475 BC | LBAT | 56 |
Haman’s Genocide of the Jews is mirrored in modern Iran. As Haman intended Genocide for the Jews, so modern terrorists like Hamas show a like hatred for the Jews, seen in their October 7th atrocities. We also find a reflection of the reversal that Haman brought on himself, being hung with his 10 sons on the very gallows he built to hang Mordecai! [Est. 8:1-8]. In modern Iran Ayatollah Ali Khameni and his top leaders met their final ruin on Saturday–Feb. 28th, a “Sabbath of Remembrance“-3 days before the 3rd [2024-2026] Blood Moon
Purim Eclipse 3/3/2026–in a row on the Jews annual victory bash to remember Haman’s demise! As we consider this Purim Eclipse culminated @ maximum on 3/3/2026 at 3:33 am (PST), we note the many Bible references to the number “3” that ties to God’s descent in a cloud, (Ex. 19:9–11; John 2:1; weddings, and 1 Cor. 15:4 with resurrection, all of which denote a “spiritual completion,” as a spiritual symbol for the number 3. #31
Part of the Purim celebration includes a Torah Reading in Jewish Synagouges of Haman being blotted out, [1 Sam. 15:2 -3] as Ali Khameni and his leaders were bombed by Israeli/US forces. Iran has been busy developing a Nuclear bomb to bring “death to America and Israel” for decades, but were themselves Bombed into submission on this day! As Haman & his Sons had their gallows, so Khamanei & his sons got their bomb. Like Haman rose many generations after Amalek’s fall, so Khamanei pursued so many generations after Haman, but our Lord recalls the ancient battle vs. the seed of evil, [Gen. 3:15] as the Almighty wrote it in the Sun, Moon & Stars in Repeating-Matching Eclipses of our day in current Purim Lunar Eclipses!
The February 28th Saturday–“Sabbath of Remembrance“ recalls Exod. 17:8-16 as Amalek fought with Israel at Rephidim. In 1 Samuel 15:2 the Lord recalled what Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way [#1870] when he came up from Egypt. It is no coincidence that Ali Khameni met his demise on this Sabbath of Remembrance, so near the 3rd Purim Blood Moon in a row! This aligns with God’s Promise in Ex. 17:14 below that; “I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.”
Ali Khameni-as a notorious ruler since 1989, having recently massacred 40K+ of his own Iranian people, while sponsoring the likes of Hamas and terrorist proxies, Hezzbollah with other Palestinian groups vs. the US and Israel. Not only do we find the link to a Sabbath of Remembrance, but we too find dates Matched- to Repeating 3/3/478 BC Purim Lunar Eclipses, on the same March 3rd date with another Lunar Eclipse in 478BC, during Esther’s reign with Ahaseraus/& Mordecai! The Purim feast is a permanent yearly notice and celebration of Israel’s victory and Freedom from Haman’s Genocide, evident in history. It’s also a main reason for these Repeating, Matching dates seen in current events of 3/3/2026 Purim Lunar Eclipse, with the signs of Repeating-Matched dates of a decade of Luni-Solar Eclipses from 480-478BC to 469 BC.
Exodus 17:14-16 14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this for a memorial; [#2146-to pierce, invoke in memory]#32 in the book and recount it in hearing
of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.” 15 And Moses built an altar and called its name, [f]The-Lord-Is-My-Banner; 16 for he said, “Because the Lord has sworn: the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”
In the seed and generations of Amalek from Agag in 1 Samuel 15:2-3 we find Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, [Est. 3:1]. This shows a priority in the Mind of God concerning Israel’s generational enemies, with the low ranking of Amalek’s seed, as “the Lord desired to war with Amalek.” As God looks on the heart of Men, there is no better righteous Judge of man-kind than The Almighty God. Esther 3.1, too shows Haman in Hebrew; (the Agagite) is named pouyaooq, but Agagite to mean descendent of Agag, king of the Agagites may originally, for the Jewish readers of Esther, as evidenced by Josephus, in the Talmud and the Targums, took Agagite as implacable enemies of Israel, that they proved to be. Lewy found in Esther 3:6 a verse where Haman chose to destroy Mordecai and all the Jews in the kingdom of Ahasuerus, the genocide of “the people of Mordecai.” Thus the Greek translator of Esther modernized an arcane term Agagite into pouyaooq, a form that has meaning for the Greek speaking Jew. #33
The Book of Esther is set in the reign of Darius, who was heavily committed to Zoroastrianism of an orthodox variety There was a temple of Ishtar and certainly worshippers of Marduk in Susa at this time. We agree the religious persecution referred to in the Book of Esther originally was not Persians vs. Jews, but only Haman’s Agagite hatred of the Jews as they lay in wait for them coming out of Egypt.
We have not yet heard the end of God’s Judgment on Agag!
It also occurs in the Treasury Tablets in Persepolis;
17 Although many biblical critics & scholars from antiquity argued that Esther and Mordecai are merely theophoros names and represent secular names, much as Jews in Daniel 1:6-7 had Jewish and Babylonian names [see Moore, op. cit., 19],#34 the collocation of the names Esther and Mordecai, the names of a Babylonian god and goddess, [Marduk & Ishtar] as close cousins in the myths of the Babylonian pantheon, even as Esther and Mordecai were in their family at Persian Court.
In Elephantine Papyri, and inscriptions from Persepolis, devotees of Ahura-Mazda are referred to as “worshippers of Mazda.” This logic seems to fail as for the Zoroastrian Magi as “Ahura-Mazda” was a monotheistic God like that of Hebrew Jehovah, not as the idolatrous Mithraic gods or Egyptian Trinities, many times seen as Sol/Ra; the Sun-god, Luna-mistress of the Moon, & Saturn, who- often seen passing a dagger or short sword to Mithras, in ancient iconography to sacrifice a Bull.
In summary, I find the history of the Greco-Persian Wars a fascinating part of both a Historical and Astronomical record, as they relate to Bible History. The times of ancient Persia and Greece represent a key period of prophecy in the Book of Daniel related to Nebuchadrezzar’s Dream Statue and the kingdoms of history. Even more, an overlap of this period with Repeating-Matching Eclipses of 480-469BC as they match with our current decade speaks volumes in light of current events, prophecy and ancient history. I invite all comments and feed-back as these topics are open for discussion on my Biblical Astronomy Fellowship in the Facebook forum.
God Bless!
Rene’
Footnotes
1. E.W. Bullinger’s Companion Bible for Ezra 4:1-6:22, p. 623.
2. Ren Manetti’s Notes on Ahasuerus & Artaxerxes–OT History Class.
2a. https://biblestudentarchives.com/documents/Artaxerxes20thYear.pdf
3. Herodotus, Histories 3.91.
3a. E.W. Bullinger’s Companion Bible for Ezra 6:15-22.
3b. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_monarchs_of_Iran
4. Ren Manetti’s Notes on Dan. 11:1-19 from OT History Class.
5. Ren Manetti’s Notes on Dan. 11:2 from OT History Class.
6. E.W. Bullinger’s Companion Bible, App. 57 ppg. 80-81.
7. Analysis of the Prophecies of Daniel at the Hope “Mini-Summit” in Tampa, Fl, Rev. Jon Nessle
8. Intercalations during the co-regency of Xerxes with Darius I, in NABU 2020-4, pp. 273-279. By Gerard GERTOUX
9. https://biblestudentarchives.com/documents/Artaxerxes20thYear.pdf
9a. https://www.academia.edu/2421036/Dating_the_reigns_of_Xerxes_and_Artaxerxes
10. Analysis of the Prophecies of Daniel at The Hope “Mini-Summit” in Tampa, Fl, Rev. Jon Nessle
11. IBID
11a. https://biblestudentarchives.com/documents/Artaxerxes20thYear.pdf
11b. IBID
12. Christology of the Old Testament; 1999 printing, p. 197 Ernst Hengstenberg
13. A bas relief from Persepolis, in the Insight Book Vol II page 615 entitled “Evidence from Persian sources“ in the Archaeological Museum of Tehran.
13a. Tablet BM 65494 dated 4/V1/50 of Artaxerxes I –Stolper
14. Akkadian numerical system shows how to wrote the #50, that exact match.[https://www.academia.edu/99055324/_King_Artaxerxes_475_BCE_or_465_BCE_ And_the_seventy_weeks_of_years_]
15. “Annals of the World,” by Archbishop James Usher book published 1650 AD.
16. Horn and Wood, op. cit., pp. 14-16, 20; Thiele, 09. cit., pp. 28-31.
17. J. N. Strassmaier in reports in ZA, VII [~Sgz], zoo, 201; VIII [1893], 106).
18. Babylonian chronology based on tablet BM 34576 (King List dated 99 BC)
19. [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/312069819_Dating_the_reigns_of_Xerxes_and_Artaxerxes] Data of Diodorus confirm a Co-regency of 10 years with Darius (522-486), with Elephantine papyri.
20. King’s List from the tablet BM 34576 (copy dated 99 BC).
21. [see V. Ryssel, Zusdtzen zum Buch Esther (Tiibingen 1900) and L. B. Paton, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Esther, (New York I908) 51-54].
22. A. Ungnad, Keilin-schriftliche Beitrage zum Buch Esra und Ester,” ZAW 58 (I940-4I) 240-244 and addenda in ZA W 59 (1942-43).
22a. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrus_the_Great
23. Impression from a cylinder seal, sculpted c. 500–475 BC, Metropolitan Museum of Art
24. Comparison Chart #1 of Repeating Eclipse Tetrads 2024 AD with 480 BC.
25. Comparison Chart#2 for Repeating Eclipse Tetrads 2025 AD with 479 BC
26. Xerxes’ Eclipse, Book 7.37, Herodotus History, IX, 10,
27. Landmark Edition of Herodotus provide a footnote
28. The Observatory” in 1884, W.T. Lynn noted the dates given by Herodotus, as the article finds no Solar Eclipse evidence visible in Asia Minor/Anatolia in 480BC, it appears Solar Eclipses took place in 481 & 478 BC
29. NASA’s Five Millennium Canon of Eclipses, Time and date.com
30. [https://www.eclipsewise.com/extra/SEhistory.html#-479BC]
30a. NASA’s Five Millennium Canon of Eclipses, Timeanddate.com.
31. Number in Scripture, E. W. Bullinger on #3, ppg 107-122.
32. Strong’s Concordance [#2146-to pierce, invoke in memory] Ex. 17:14-16.
33. GG. Cameron, The Persepolis Treasury Tablets (Chicago 1948) 85; A. Ungnad, Keilinschriftliche Beitrage zum Buch Esra und Ester,” ZAW 58 (I940-4I) 240-244 and addenda in ZA W 59 (1942-43) 219. 16 Lewy, op. cit., 128 n. 14.
34. IBID, Moore, op. cit., 19
35. Certain Historical sections of this study were taken from Wikipedia where the links remain for reference.
them to subdue any resistance to their 
of precious stone, nearly hard as 
, to cut out the victim’s 
. This secondary comparison to 
