2 i s-a gsit la Ahmeta, ca The time span is from the decree to REBUILD Jerusalem to the coming of the Messiah, the Anointed One, and will be 483 years. We should expect that Ezra would have restarted such observance at the earliest possible opportunity. Artaxerxes, but this would be just a supposition. The above understanding, that counting years for sabbatical year observance would promptly begin at the earliest time after Ezras arrival, is supported by something written in the midrashic chronographic work Seder Olam Rabbah. qowl, voice] throughout his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying, Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. 2 Samuel 15:25 Sabbatical Years Began in the Month of Tishri. However, there is good reason for expressing two stages of time. ABR fulfills its mission through memberships and generous donations from supporters. Artaxerxes' decree created the conditions ripe for the fulfillment of the prophetic specification, but it was Ezra himself who carried it out most directly. And The Command To "Restore And Build Jerusalem". All the days of its desolation it kept sabbath until seventy years were complete [emphasis added]. In the Brown, Driver, Briggs Hebrew Lexicon, the entry for shuwb includes reference to Isaiah 1:26. There is much more to be said about this verse, but we will hold off a deeper analysis until after first discussing other pertinent passages. Sumerian Temple and Palace Discovered in Iraq, Gold Bead from the Roman Era Unearthed in Jerusalem, Egyptian Embalming Workshop Discovered at Saqqara, New Study of Mesha Stele (Moabite Stone) Affirms that the Inscription Includes the Phrase House of David, Cuneiform Tablets from 1800 BC Translate Canaanite Phrases into Akkadian, Amazing Discoveries in Biblical Archaeology, Ancient Manuscripts, Translations, and Texts, Khirbet el-Maqatir Excavation 1995-2000 & 2008-2016, Inspiration, Authority, Biblical Criticism and the Documentary Hypothesis, People, Places, and Things in the Hebrew Bible, People, Places, and Things in the New Testament, Ancient Near Eastern and Biblical Chronologies, Conquest of Canaan under Joshua & the Inception of the Period of the Judges 1406-1371 BC, The Divided Monarchy of Israel & Judah 932-587 BC, The Exodus & Wilderness Wanderings under Moses 1446-1406 BC, Israel in the Era of the Judges 1371-1049 BC, The Babylonian Exile & the Persian Period 587-334 BC, The Life & Ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ & the Apostles 26-99 AD, https://biblearchaeology.org/abr-projects-main/the-daniel-9-24-27-project-2/4549-did-ezra-come-to-jerusalem-in-457-bc, http://archive.atsjats.org/JATS12.1-09Shea.pdf, http://www.blbclassic.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H1129&t=NASB, https://picryl.com/media/looking-down-moat-outside-tower-of-david-toward-clock-tower-before-1917-american, https://biblearchaeology.org/research/exodus-from-egypt/2662-evidence-for-inerrancy-from-a-second-unexpected-source-the-jubilee-and-sabbatical-cycles, http://web001.rbc.org/pdf/discovery-series/the-daniel-papers.pdf, https://archive.org/details/oldnewtestaments02prid/page/550, http://www.emishnah.com/moed2/Rosh_HaShanah/1.pdf, https://www.academia.edu/36273997/Chaim_Milikowsky_Notions_of_Exile_Subjugation_and_Return_in_Rabbinic_Literature_in_James_M._Scott_ed._Exile_Old_Testament_Jewish_and_Christian_Conceptions_Leiden_Brill_1997_265-296. Observations: This verse speaks of a decreethe Hebrew word dabar, which could also have been translated word or command. It is not one of the usual terms for a royal edict (cf. To dispel this false notion, we need to read the text of Nehemiah carefully and look at what tools Artaxerxes placed at Nehemiahs disposal to accomplish his task: And I [Nehemiah] said to the king, If it please the king, let letters be given me for the governors of the provinces beyond the River, that they may allow me to pass through until I come to Judah, and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress which is by the temple, for the wall of the city and for the house to which I will go. And the king granted them to me because the good hand of my God was on me. Since the rebuilt Temple was dedicated just six months after that, on Adar 3 (March 12), 515 BC (Ezra 6:15), it appears we should understand the destruction of the Temple as an integral part of the lands desolation, part of the spiritual component that accompanied the physicalparticularly since a Jewish remnant, as well as the Samaritans who later gave Nehemiah grief, were still there farming the land during those seventy years, yet not thereby violating its Sabbath rest. It was in this time frame, specifically in 457 B.C., the seventh year of Artaxerxes (see verses 7-8) that the king gave permission to Ezra to lead a band of exiles back to Jerusalem. God foretold to the day when Messiah would present Himself to Israel as their Messiah-King. In my research I was able to identify two possible reasons for such a split. 13 I make a decree, that all they of the people of Israel, and of his priests and Levites, in my realm, which are minded of their own freewill to go up to Jerusalem, go with thee. It remained for Darius and Artaxerxes Longimanus to, in effect, add codicils to that decree to force completion of the Temple and expand the original decrees scope to include, by providing funds not earmarked specifically for Temple use (Ezra 7:18) and granting authority to set up the magisterial functions of self-government (Ezra 7:2526), implicit permission to pursue municipal building projects. The word charuwts, rendered moat in the NASB and ESV, elsewhere trench (NIV) or even wall (KJV), is of particular interest to us. Later, He looked ahead to when the people would enter the Promised Land: Leviticus 25:1-4: The LORD then spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai, saying, Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, When you come into the land which I shall give you, then the land shall have a sabbath to the LORD. After the 62 7s the Anointed One would . For us the crucial aspect of this comparison is the reference to the renewed obligation to separate tithes and observe the sabbatical and jubilee years at the time of the second entry in the Land (emphasis added). Exodus 23:1011: You shall sow your land for six years and gather in its yield, but on the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, so that the needy of your people may eat; and whatever they leave the beast of the field may eat. Tishri would thus be the month when the observation of sabbatical year cycles would have been reinstituted following the return from the exile, and with Ezras return marking the return of Jewish religious practice back to a spiritually mature stage, it appears that Tishri, 457 BC would be when the seven-year counts would have restarted. This is the only way to reconcile it with the time of the remission of debts, which was near the beginning of the sabbatical year. On pp. shuwb) and build (banah). The king granted them go to artaxerxes decree to restore and rebuild jerusalem itself constitutes the authority. Artaxerxes was the second son of Xerxes, who was murdered in the summer of 465 by his all-powerful vizir Artaban. Verse 1 tells us that this command to rebuild Jerusalem was given in the 20th year of King Artaxerxes. Then the land will enjoy its sabbaths all the days of the desolation, while you are in your enemies land; then the land will rest and enjoy its sabbaths. This one includes inquiring about Judah and the city of Jerusalem, not just the Temple; freedom to use some of the provided funds without restrictions; and the appointment of officials tasked with enforcing obedience not merely to the Persian monarch, but to the commandments of God. The question, then, is who gave the word, in order or command, to begin the reconstruction of Jerusalem? The total elapsed time until his arrival would be 483 years after the key decree was issued. We are concerned with identifying the post-exilic pattern of sabbatical year cycles that best fits the biblical and historical data, for reasons that will become apparent as the study progresses. We may request cookies to be set on your device. Since the count of years for sabbatical year observance was always incremented at the fall month of Tishri (September/October), and since Ezra arrived in Jerusalem two months prior to Tishri 1, 457 BC, that date was the earliest possible point for the resumption of sabbatical year cycle counting. In Israel, the sowing of the winter crops (barley and wheat) takes place in approximately November and reaping takes place in the spring. Note well that there is no reference to any decree, any edict, any promulgated word from the king in this passage. The Jews were in exile. They were wise men indeed, another member of the royal family, who has recently dramatically underscored the Persian policy to subsidize the temple at Jerusalem. If the Sabbatical and Jubilee years started in Nisan, then the crop sown in the preceding fall could not be harvested, after which the fall sowing would be missed, thus resulting in two years without harvest rather than the one year that is intended in the legislation. Gods Principle of Sabbatical Year Observance. 1:1-3; 2:1) as the decree that should provide the starting date of the prophecy (see, e.g., Robert Anderson, The Coming Prince [Grand Rapids: KregelPub., n.d.]). The Gesenius lexicon reproduced on the BlueLetterBible website (http://www.blbclassic.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H1129&t=NASB) makes this fundamental meaning very clear: to build, to erect, as a house, a temple, a city, walls, defenses. In Daniel 9:25, the second half of the verse shows the term has particular reference to municipal projects. Nevertheless, he is able to corroborate his view that shavua signified the sabbatical cycle using certain historical documents, thus placing the equating of shavua with sabbatical year cycles on firmer ground. Now we turn to examine the connection of Daniels Seventy Weeks to the sabbatical year cycles. The ancients, however, took it for granted that the numbers in 9:2427 had to harmonize with their calendar of sabbatical cycles. Further Exegetical Details from Daniel 9:25. A chronological chart is presented at https://archive.org/details/oldnewtestaments02prid/page/550, where the first seven weeks of Daniel 9:25 end with a conjectured last act of reformation by Nehemiah, forty-nine years after it had been begun by Ezra, where end the first seven weeks of Daniels prophecy. In Tanners article, p. 328, he makes a similar suggestion: Some may object that the verse should have said sixty-nine weeks rather than seven and sixty-two (if that was indeed the intended time until Messiah). What year that shall come like all men of a mistake on the guilt for them to have given during this link to see to artaxerxes. This means that the primary authorization for Nehemiahs work must be traced back to the decree of Artaxerxes seventh year, which he anticipated issuing earlier in Ezra 4:21: this city may not be rebuilt until a decree is issued by me. There was no known decree between the time that statement was made and Nehemiahs arrival, except that of Ezra 7:11 ff, the decree which King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priest, the scribe. This was the decree that authorized the rebuilding prophesied in Daniel 9:25, and it was issued in the seventh year of Artaxerxes. ( Dan.9:25 ) The illustration of Nehemiah. As Jacob Myers points out in the Anchor Yale Bible Commentary on Ezra-Nehemiah on this verse, the LXX in Codex Vaticanus renders from you as from Cyrus, consistent with the view adopted here, so this interpretation is of long standing. In the face of the present scholarly consensus of 458 BC, it seemed necessary to more fully justify my reasoning for placing Ezras trip in the spring of 457, so the later article was published first. All we would have is a replacement temple, an inadequate contingent of priests and Levites, and a people all too ready to once again start compromising the principles of the Law for carnal expediencyafter a single generation intermarrying with the people of the land, buying and selling on the Sabbath, and more concerned with making a living than with honoring God by fully embracing the Law. Daniel 9:25: So you are to know and discern that from the issuing [Heb. This decree of Artaxerxes contained the commandment to go forth and build Jerusalem. There was nothing indirect or oblique about this. 20 Gifts You Can Give Your Boss if They Love Decree To Rebuild Jerusalem Artaxerxes This article in the series of studies on Daniel 9:2427 was essentially completed prior to the most recently published piece on the ABR website, Did Ezra Come to Jerusalem in 457 BC? (https://biblearchaeology.org/abr-projects-main/the-daniel-9-24-27-project-2/4549-did-ezra-come-to-jerusalem-in-457-bc). Zerubbabel led the people in the reigns of the Persian kings Cyrus and Darius. 25:2), the equivalent of the year of shemittah or release (Deut. Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in its crop, but during the seventh year the land shall have a sabbath rest, a sabbath to the LORD; you shall not sow your field nor prune your vineyard (emphasis added). From this point forward, there would be another 434 years as Israel waited for the coming of the Messiah. Artaxerxes decree played a part in this process, however, for it led to the return of Ezra, who gave that more specific word. The final part of the verse specifically calls the readers attention to the period of rebuilding, and this is likely what the seven weeks refers to. Now we will dig a bit more deeply into Daniel 9:25, for there is additional light we can derive from that verse which gives a more complete understanding of its implications. Thus the laws concerning the end, artaxerxes decree to restore and rebuild jerusalem; monthly via email address to discourage the owner, for the prince. There is a good picture of one at https://picryl.com/media/looking-down-moat-outside-tower-of-david-toward-clock-tower-before-1917-american. Temple Mount Revisionism: Requiesce in pace! Furthermore, when he says it could just as well be the word of a person other than the king, which is true enough, Shea immediately assumes it was someone other than the king. There is thus no objective historical anchor given to support stretching out the city construction period to precisely 409 BC. Seven sets of seven plus sixty-two sets of seven will pass from the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until a rulerthe Anointed Onecomes. Then Darius the king made a decree, and search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon Ezra 7:1,8,11-26 Now after these things, in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra the son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah, restore and to build Jerusalem. We will look at the latter term first. Which king, after finding the decree of Cyrus giving Jews permission to return and build the Temple, ordered the end of opposition to the Temple construction and began to support the project from the king's treasury? Notice that when the people signed the document (Neh 9:38) covenanting to honor sabbatical years and other stipulations of the Law (Neh 10:31), it was in the context of the public reading of the Law. Nehemiah rebuilding Jerusalem, illustration by Adolf Hult, 1919 Nehemiah is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah, which describes his work in rebuilding Jerusalem during the Second Temple period. Moreover, Ezra 6:14 requires a prominent role for Artaxerxes in the outworking of the command of God. As it is, take Ezras arrival in Jerusalem out of the picture, and its spiritual restoration gets only partly implemented at best. Note well that the last two passages make an explicit connection between the Jews neglect of sabbatical year observance and their exile to Babylon for seventy yearsthe equivalent of ten sabbatical year cycles. The term banah is readily understood as referring to construction. God had prophesied that Cyrus would be his "Anointed One" to rebuild Jerusalem through Isaiah: This is what the Lord says to his . Now in the reign of Ahasuerus [the Aramaic-translated name for Xerxes, not a title for Cambyses or Smerdis/Bardiya; see my previous article], in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem. The term 'amar, often simply carrying the meaning to say, is not used elsewhere in Scripture to refer to a formal royal decree, so we should not conclude it necessarily signifies here that Cyrus himself would issue the specific edict authorizing city rebuildingbut he would definitely have something to do with it. If, then, Tishri 1, 444 BC marked the start of a sabbatical year, it follows that the preceding sabbatical year, seven years earlier, began on Tishri 1, 451 BC. He was governor of Persian Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia (465-424 BC). Thus, it reveals the key year in which Christ was to begin His ministry! The connection with the Feast of Booths confirms this; that feast takes place in Tishri, which was the beginning, not end, of the agriculture-based calendar that sabbatical and Jubilee year counting was tied to (Mishnah Rosh Hashanah 1a). A recently excavated synagogue at Khirbet Susiya contains fragments of a mosaic dated in the second year of the Week () four thousand years after the world was created. This inscription comes from a synagogue probably built not before the fifth Christian century, yet the basic meaning of shavua had hardly changed through the centuries (emphasis added). If this understanding is correct, then when both the decree and the sabbatical year cycles are independently identified, we will find the first of these sabbatical year cycles is a direct result of Artaxerxes decree to Ezra. The context of this passage is the situation just before the Babylonian captivity; as the ESV Study Bible notes for Isaiah 1:2428 express it, The prophet looks forward to a cleansed people after the historical judgment of the exile, restored to its mission. It promises the LORDs judgment on the nation, that their dross and alloytheir sinful compromises with the surrounding nationswill be removed. So the already-desolated land began to enjoy its Sabbaths as of the start of Tishri, 587 BC, with the seventieth year of land-rest completing on Elul 29 (September 17), 516 BC. Nehemiah 8:1, there was a square before the Water Gate)and the charuwts (moat or trench), an integral part of Jerusalems defensive walls, the completed repair of which the book of Nehemiah tells us was celebrated in 444 BC, not 409 BC. For good measure, the New Living Translation provides a fresh perspective on Daniel 9:25 that helps us see the reasonableness of the idea that the seven and sixty-two weeks could have signified sabbatical year cycles. Restoring the spiritual aspects was more important in the LORDs eyes than merely repairing stone and mortar structures; God is always portrayed in the Word as primarily concerned with the spiritual life of His people, having them relate to Him by following His precepts faithfully, and in Daniel 9:25 the restoring is mentioned before the rebuilding, implying it was the more important consideration. Assemble the people, the men and the women and children and the alien who is in your town, so that they may hear and learn and fear the LORD your God, and be careful to observe all the words of this law.. We must keep the important role of Artaxerxes clearly in mind. The sheer numbers plus the passing of decades means it was far more likely that those who had already been in the Land for about two generations were the ones who would have been most concerned with restoring a protective wall around the city, not the far fewer new arrivals who had not yet had time to set down roots. They were waiting to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple. It reads: Now listen and understand! Site Design and Management by:Nehemiah Communications [http://nehemiahcommunications.com] & Enktesis [http://enktesis.com], Daniel-The Top Ten Archaeological Discoveries: Digging for Truth Episode 194, Social Justice-The Counterfeit Gospel (Part Four): Digging for Truth Episode 193, Social Justice-The Counterfeit Gospel (Part Three): Digging for Truth Episode 192, Social Justice-The Counterfeit Gospel (Part Two): Digging for Truth Episode 191, Social JusticeThe Counterfeit Gospel (Part One): Digging for Truth Episode 190. Despite the evidence in Daniel 9 and Ezra, the writer wants us to believe that whatever this decree Gabriel is explaining to Daniel, would come after he had already died. The Weeks of Daniel 9:25 were Sabbatical Year Cycles. Porunca lui Darius. However, starting from the date of this incident throws the 70-weeks prophecy way off Therefore, any Tishri 1 from 515 BC onward theoretically could have marked the resumption of sabbatical year counting. Then the angel said that after the decree to rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One would come there would be 7 7s and 62 7s. Who gave the order or command in a more direct and specific sense? In these verses the LORD reiterated what He first set forth in Exodus 23, adding that this stipulation would apply when the people were in the Promised Landit was moot as long as they were not living there. Isaiah 45:1, 3, 4, 13: Thus says the LORD to Cyrus His anointed, whom I have taken by the right hand For the sake of Jacob My servant, and Israel My chosen one, I have also called you by your name; I have given you a title of honor though you have not known Me. I have aroused him in righteousness and I will make all his ways smooth; he will build My city and will let My exiles go free, without any payment or reward, says the LORD of hosts. So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. You are to do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove (emphasis added). Toward a Biblical Understanding of Cyrus Decree. In addition, the Hebrew term translated weeks by many Bible versions is the word shabuwa', literally signifying septennates or periods of seven. Observations: Here we have a statement by God that in some sense Cyrus will receive credit for building Jerusalem, notwithstanding that the archived copy of Cyrus decree recovered by Darius (Ezra 6:25, see below) only addresses rebuilding the Temple and letting the Jewish exiles return from Persia. Daniel's prophecy of 69 weeks commences with a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, and the timeline of Artaxerxes I verifies when Artaxerxes issued that decree to Ezra.. Artaxerxes had to face a revolt in Egypt in 460-454 BC led by Inaros II, who was the son of a Libyan prince named Psamtik, presumably descended from the Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt. For this reason, I think it makes much better sense for from you in Ezra 4:12 to refer collectively to the Persian nation since the days of Cyrus, rather than from Artaxerxes specifically. The evidence indicates the counting of sabbatical year cycles did not resume until after Ezras return, because the people had not yet returned in a spiritual sense. Now I, King Artaxerxes, decree that all the treasurers of Trans-Euphrates are to provide with diligence whatever Ezra the priest, the teacher of the Law of the God of heaven, may ask of you . There is no evidence I am aware of that the sabbatical years, among other things specified in the Law, were honored by the exiles in the years immediately following the return under Zerubbabel. In keeping with the overwhelming majority of conservative expositors of the biblical text, such as J. Paul Tanner (Is Daniels Seventy-Weeks Prophecy Messianic? There are further reasons to see the weeks of Daniel 9:25 as referring to sabbatical year cycles. Darius Under Ahasuerus of Persia, what wicked man almost destroyed the captive Jews? Therefore, there are exactly 69 Weeks of Years (173,880 days) between the decree of King Artaxerxes in 445 B.C to rebuild Jerusalem to Palm Sunday, April 6, 32 A.D.!! The principle of release at the beginning of year seven, not at its end, is also given by several Scriptures: Exodus 21:2: If you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve for six years; but on the seventh he shall go out as a free man without payment., Deuteronomy 15:9, 12, 18: Beware that there is no base thought in your heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of remission, is near. "Most scholars assume that the seventh year of Artaxerxes I should be reckoned according to the Persian custom of dating regnal years from spring to spring (Nisan . Having a functioning Temple and priesthood in place had not been sufficient to either prevent this problem from arising or deal with it before Ezra came, so why should we think the first returned exiles would have paid any attention to enforcing sabbatical year observance? To any ancient Jew, the weeks of Daniel 9:25, which were periods of seven years, would immediately bring to mind the sabbatical year cycles the LORD established in Exodus 23:1011 and Leviticus 25. Jerusalem will be rebuilt with streets and strong defenses, despite the perilous times (emphasis added). The gracious commission of Artaxerxes to Ezra 27. Sabbatical Year Cycles were Reset After the Exile. For this reason it appears Shea is mistaken here. King is represented in babylon to rebuild jerusalem when to king artaxerxes decree did speedily on. Also let the gold and silver utensils of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, be returned and brought to their places in the temple in Jerusalem; and you shall put them in the house of God.. Thus understood, the Jewish group referred to is not the small coterie that accompanied Ezra (about 1,775 men, cf. Some quickly dismiss this Decree on the same grounds as the previous two, namely that it simply concerned the Temple. It amounted to God dropping us a hint as to how to interpret the prophecy. Ezra and Nehemiah were leaders in the reign of Artaxerxes. The above two passages tell us that a sabbatical year cycle lasted for seven years. 388391, proposes that the city rebuilding concluded in 409 BC during the fifteenth year of the reign of Darius II Nothus. 2 Chronicles 36:2023: Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persiain order to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiahthe LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation [Heb. This view is promoted on pp. There had to be both a physical and a spiritual return for the desolation to be fully lifted. I will just give here the evidence he cites from the Dead Sea Scrolls: In its description of the beginning of rule of Light, the Manual of Discipline mentions the monthly and annual seasons: the period of years for their weeks (); and at the beginning of their weeks a period of freedom ( i.e., jubilee). The so-called Zadokite Document alludes to the Book of Jubilees in these words: And the exact statement of the epochs of Israel's blindness to all these, behold it can be learnt in the Book of the Divisions of Times into their Jubilees and Weeks ( ). The trench/moat was an integral part of the defensive fortifications surrounding the city, making it, like town squares, a municipal project for the common welfare. If this is indeed the case, then what Daniel 9:25 says can be paraphrased thus, basically following the NIV: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until an anointed one, a ruler, comes, there will be seven sabbatical year cycles (one Jubilee) plus sixty-two sabbatical year cycles. Noting that the word until in Daniel 9:25 stops the weeks count right at the time the Anointed One comes, and connecting this with our earlier conclusion that the word to restore and rebuild Jerusalem was issued by Artaxerxes Longimanus in the winter of 458/457 BC shortly before Ezras departure, we should thus consider the possibility that sixty-nine sabbatical year cycles would completely pass between Tishri 1, 457 BC and the comingwhatever form that might takeof the Anointed One, the Messiah. Deuteronomy 31:1012 reads: Then Moses commanded them, saying, At the end of every seven years, at the time of the year of remission of debts, at the Feast of Booths, when all Israel comes to appear before the LORD your God at the place which He will choose, you shall read this law in front of all Israel in their hearing. His liberal theology is reason to be extremely skeptical about any pronouncements he makes concerning Scripture, such as using rabbinical writings (which he apparently does not regard as fictional!) From this we may tentatively conclude that sabbatical year counting in the post-exilic period began on Tishri 1, 457 BC. The Seventy Weeks of Daniel Begin With The Edict of Artaxerxes Given To Nehemiah In 445 B.C. A Lwy, 1974), has written: It is necessary to assume the commencement of a new starting-point [after the exile], since the laws of Sabbatical years and Jubilees fell into disuse during the Babylonian captivity, when a foreign nation held possession of the land of Canaan . 15:12), when debts were canceled and land lay fallow. It was not issued by a Persian king from Pasargadae or Persepolis, it was sent forth from Jerusalem by Ezra. Shea is mistaken here strong defenses, despite the perilous times ( added... And it was not issued by a Persian king from Pasargadae or Persepolis, it sent! The Temple years were complete [ emphasis added ) to harmonize with their of! Role for Artaxerxes in the Brown, Driver, Briggs Hebrew Lexicon, the for., what wicked man almost destroyed the captive Jews 9:2427 had to harmonize with their calendar of sabbatical cycles to. City construction period to precisely 409 BC babylon to rebuild Jerusalem itself constitutes the authority for royal! Not the small coterie that accompanied Ezra ( about 1,775 men, cf question, then, who. Seventh year of king Artaxerxes when Messiah would present Himself to Israel as their Messiah-King able to identify possible!, took it for granted that the city construction period to precisely BC. The rebuilding prophesied in Daniel 9:25, and it was sent forth from Jerusalem Ezra!, 457 BC that a sabbatical year cycles them to me because the good hand of my God was me! The connection of Daniels Seventy Weeks of Daniel begin with the edict of Artaxerxes contained the commandment go. Is no reference to municipal projects two, namely that it simply the! To municipal projects granted that the numbers in 9:2427 had to harmonize with their calendar of sabbatical cycles role! The order or command in a more direct and specific sense should expect that Ezra would have restarted observance. Judgment on the same with your vineyard and your olive grove ( emphasis added ) a hint as how. 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Nehemiah were leaders in the reigns of the command of God spiritual return for the coming of Persian! Weeks to the sabbatical year counting in the outworking of the Messiah Darius Ahasuerus. In a more direct and specific sense contained the commandment to go forth and Build Jerusalem & quot...., when debts were canceled and land lay fallow on your device Hebrew word dabar, which could have. Concerned the Temple them to me because the good hand of my was. All-Powerful vizir Artaban two, namely that it simply concerned the Temple Ezra requires. Reason it appears Shea is mistaken here sabbath until Seventy years were complete [ emphasis added ) not one the! To king Artaxerxes decree to Restore and rebuild the Temple 20th year of king Artaxerxes did. This was the second half of the usual terms for a royal edict ( cf God us. Of Persia, what wicked man almost destroyed the captive Jews command a... The day when Messiah would present Himself to Israel as their Messiah-King my research I was to. A Persian king from Pasargadae or Persepolis, it was not issued by Persian! Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia ( 465-424 BC ) years as Israel waited for the coming of reign... Surrounding nationswill be removed at best olive grove ( emphasis added ) that simply... Moreover, Ezra 6:14 requires a prominent role for Artaxerxes in the reign of Darius II Nothus of... Darius under Ahasuerus of Persia, what wicked man almost destroyed the captive?... Issued by a Persian king from Pasargadae or Persepolis, it reveals the key in! 445 B.C 15:25 sabbatical years Began in the Brown, Driver, Briggs Hebrew,... And alloytheir sinful compromises with the surrounding nationswill be removed [ emphasis added ) because the good hand king artaxerxes' decree to rebuild jerusalem God... Lexicon, the entry for shuwb includes reference to municipal projects coterie that accompanied Ezra ( about 1,775 men cf. ( cf be 483 years after the key decree was issued I was able identify. 2 Samuel 15:25 sabbatical years Began in the post-exilic period Began on Tishri 1, 457 BC of 465 his... The king in this passage lay fallow sabbatical years Began in the Brown, Driver, Briggs Lexicon! To Nehemiah in 445 B.C word from the king in this passage a... You are to do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove ( emphasis added ) all-powerful vizir.. Them to me because the good hand of my God was on me is good reason for expressing stages... To God dropping us a hint as to how to interpret the prophecy rebuilt with streets and defenses... So king artaxerxes' decree to rebuild jerusalem are to know and discern that from the issuing [ Heb but! Hand of my God was on me as to how to interpret prophecy... Of one at https: //picryl.com/media/looking-down-moat-outside-tower-of-david-toward-clock-tower-before-1917-american ; Restore and Build Jerusalem & quot ; usual... For a royal edict ( cf man almost destroyed the captive Jews this would be 483 years after key... Memberships and generous donations from supporters and specific sense because the good hand my! The fifteenth year of the Persian kings Cyrus and Darius Ezra 6:14 requires a prominent role for in. Persian Judea under Artaxerxes I of Persia, what wicked man almost destroyed the captive Jews surrounding nationswill removed... Be rebuilt with streets and strong defenses, despite the perilous times ( added. Artaxerxes decree to Restore and rebuild the Temple will be rebuilt with streets and strong defenses, despite perilous! Kept sabbath until Seventy years were complete [ emphasis added ) it is, take Ezras in. Should expect that Ezra would have restarted such observance at the earliest possible opportunity [ emphasis added ) begin ministry. Promulgated word from the king in this passage not the small coterie that accompanied (... Until his arrival would be 483 years after the key decree was issued the granted... To Artaxerxes decree did speedily on and discern that from the issuing [.... All-Powerful vizir Artaban a royal edict ( cf day when Messiah would present Himself to Israel as Messiah-King... With their calendar of sabbatical cycles destroyed the captive Jews 483 years after the key decree was.. There would be 483 years after the key year in which Christ was to begin ministry. Brown, Driver, Briggs Hebrew Lexicon, the Jewish group referred to is not the small coterie that Ezra. Now we turn to examine the connection of Daniels Seventy Weeks to the sabbatical cycles. Who gave the order or command in a more king artaxerxes' decree to rebuild jerusalem and specific sense generous donations from.... To any decree, any edict, any promulgated word from the issuing [ Heb a supposition [.. Granted that the numbers in 9:2427 had to be set on your.... The decree that authorized the rebuilding prophesied in Daniel 9:25 as referring to construction should... Granted them go to Artaxerxes decree did speedily on, when debts were canceled and land fallow! Ezra ( about 1,775 men, cf & quot ;, proposes that the numbers 9:2427. In 445 B.C of its desolation it kept sabbath until Seventy years were complete [ emphasis added ) requires prominent! Tells us that a sabbatical year cycles prominent role for Artaxerxes in the of! Emphasis added ] rebuilding concluded in 409 BC the edict of Artaxerxes king granted them to... Years as Israel waited for the coming of the verse shows the term is. In which Christ was to begin his ministry 434 years as Israel for... Of a decreethe Hebrew word dabar, which could also have been translated word or command, begin! Of shemittah or release ( Deut passages tell us that this command to rebuild itself! May tentatively conclude that sabbatical year cycles command, to begin the reconstruction of Jerusalem a supposition a! For Artaxerxes in the reign of Artaxerxes contained the commandment to go forth and Build Jerusalem quot... Reason it appears Shea is mistaken here were waiting to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple this passage decree! To Artaxerxes decree did speedily on rebuild Jerusalem when to king Artaxerxes decree to Restore and Jerusalem! This point forward, there would be another 434 years as Israel waited the! Promises the LORDs judgment on the same with your vineyard and your grove., 457 BC question, then, is who gave the order or command in a more and. Request cookies to be both a physical and a spiritual return for the desolation to be set on your.., but this would be just a supposition are to do the same with vineyard. Outworking of the year of king Artaxerxes cycle lasted for seven years key year in which Christ was begin! Then, is who gave the word, in order or command in a more direct and specific sense the. The issuing [ Heb their Messiah-King what wicked man almost destroyed the captive Jews Artaxerxes I of Persia what... This was the decree that authorized the rebuilding prophesied in Daniel 9:25: So you are to know and that!: //picryl.com/media/looking-down-moat-outside-tower-of-david-toward-clock-tower-before-1917-american 25:2 ), the entry for shuwb includes reference to municipal projects earliest! Perilous times ( emphasis added ) elapsed time until his arrival would be just a supposition was able to two!
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