Nehemiah vs. the Beginning of the Reign of Artaxerxes I

Statement of belief: “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” (John 17:17 KJV)

Created 5929± 10 10 2025 [2009-01-08]

Updated 5929± 10 10 2025 [2009-01-08]

New Meaning in Familiar Texts

“As soon as the seeker for truth opens the Bible to read the utterances of God with reverence, possessing an earnest desire to know "what saith the Lord," light and grace will be given him, and he will see wondrous things out of God's law. He will not regard the law of Jehovah as a yoke of bondage, but as the gracious commands of One who is all-wise and full of compassion. He will make haste to fulfill His requirements. Great truths which have been neglected and unappreciated for ages, will be revealed by the Spirit of God, and new meaning will flash out of familiar texts. Every page will be illuminated by the Spirit of truth. The Bible is not sealed but unsealed. The most precious truths are revealed; the living oracles are heard by wondering ears, and the consciences of men are aroused into action.” --TSS 30. {CSW 34.3}

“I have seen that the 1843 chart was directed by the hand of the Lord, and that it should not be altered; that the figures were as He wanted them; that His hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until His hand was removed.” ({EW 74.1} The entire paragraph is quoted below!)

Nehemiah

vs.

the Beginning of the Reign of Artaxerxes I

Abstract:

I find that by means of a more precise understanding of the Hebrew dates, and especially by a better understanding of the use of the names of the weekdays, and how these are being used in the book of Nehemiah we are able to arrive at an exact and correct relationship between the Scriptural and the Babylonian regnal years as reckoned for the reign of Artaxerxes I. Thus the Scriptural 20th regnal year of Artaxerxes (Neh. 2:1) is found to correspond to the 21st regnal year per Babylonian reckoning.

Considerations:

After considering carefully all the dates re Artaxerxes I provided by the Elephantine papyri I am left without an exact definition of the Scriptural years pertaining to the reign of Artaxerxes I. Will the book of Nehemiah provide the necessary data to fill this gap? I believe it does... Searching Nehemiah for “days” I get two hits of special importance:

Neh 2:11 (KJV) So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days.

Neh 6:15 (KJV) So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty and two days.

Will we find it possible to use those dates for arriving at a solution to our dilemma and to get an answer to my question re the exact numbering of the Scriptural years of Artaxerxes?

Neh 2:11 ואבוא אל־ירושׁלם ואהי־שׁם ימים שׁלשׁה׃

Neh 2:11 (TLT) So I came to Jerusalem, and was there by Day Three [of the week.]

Will this TLT translation hold up to the calendrical test? Let’s see… What year was this?:

Neh 2:1 (KJV) And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence.

Given that the Babylonian year 20 of Artaxerxes’ reign is exactly defined by means of the Elephantine papyri as beginning with Aviv 1, 445 BCE, the question is whether the Scriptural year 20 precedes the Babylonian calendar such that Nisan in the 20^th Scriptural regnal year = Nisan in the 20^th Babylonian regnal year, or else that the Scriptural year 20 follows the Babylonian calendar such that Nisan in the 20^th Scriptural regnal year corresponds Nisan in the 21^st Babylonian regnal year. Thusly:

Nisan in the Babylonian 20^th year falls in 445 BCE.

Nisan in the Babylonian 21^st year falls in 444 BCE.

The same goes for the subsequent Elul:

Elul in the Babylonian 20^th year falls in 445 BCE.

Elul in the Babylonian 21^st year falls in 444 BCE.

Thus:

Elul 25, 445 BCE began at sunset Mon Sep 1 or Tue Sep 2, or else Tue Sep 30 or Wed Oct 1, 445 BCE

Elul 25, 444 BCE began at sunset Fri Aug 21 or Sat Aug 22, or else Sat Sep 19 or Sun Sep 20, 444 BCE

Well, it is nice to receive only one fit! It remains for us to count backwards in time from the day when the wall was finished and unto the beginning when Nehemiah first arrived: But this is not hard to do given our Julian day calculator…

The words of Nehemiah 6:15 are “in the twenty… in fifty and two…” Thus Fri Aug 21, 444 BCE [JD 1559485] is the 52^nd day. Removing these last 52 days should bring us back to the accession day and the beginning of reckoning, i.e. to Day Three…

The closest fitting result (considering all eight dates above) is:

The day that began at sunset Tue Jun 30, 444 BCE, i.e. Day Four of the week.

Notice that a full 6 of the 7 weekdays are represented among the above results, yet we are left with no exact fit!!! Studying the Scriptures a little more closely I find in Nehemiah 2:12-14 & 3:1, that Day Three should probably not be reckoned as the beginning, considering that it was certainly not the first day of Nehemiah’s planning of this event. Thus, he probably conferred with the local people during Day Three and the beginning of Day Four, and the beginning of building as reckoned by Nehemiah 3:1 should properly be begun with Day Four. Given the clear distinction between the above results for 445 BCE and 444 BCE, I find no contest to the idea that the beginning of building of the wall should be reckoned from:

Day Four, beginning at sunset Tue Jun 30, 444 BCE [Av 1, 444 BCE.]

Notice that Nehemiah more than likely was conferring with his cohorts while the new moon crescent of this month was first seen! Wasn’t that a most suitable beginning for such a project!!!

I find that Day Three of Nehemiah 2:11 began at sunset Monday June 29, 444 in Artaxerxes’ 20^th regnal year per Scriptural reckoning and in Artaxerxes’ 21^st regnal per Babylonian reckoning.

Conclusion:

I find that during the reign of Artaxerxes the Scriptural regnal years followed in the tail of the Babylonian reckoning.

More considerations by Ellen G. White:

“September 23, the Lord showed me that He had stretched out His hand the second time to recover the remnant of His people, [SEE PAGE 86.] and that efforts must be redoubled in this gathering time. In the scattering, Israel was smitten and torn, but now in the gathering time God will heal and bind up His people. In the scattering, efforts made to spread the truth had but little effect, accomplished but little or nothing; but in the gathering, when God has set His hand to gather His people, efforts to spread the truth will have their designed effect. All should be united and zealous in the work. I saw that it was wrong for any to refer to the scattering for examples to govern us now in the gathering; for if God should do no more for us now than He did then, Israel would never be gathered. I have seen that the 1843 chart was directed by the hand of the Lord, and that it should not be altered; that the figures were as He wanted them; that His hand was over and hid a mistake in some of the figures, so that none could see it, until His hand was removed. [THIS APPLIES TO THE CHART USED DURING THE 1843 MOVEMENT, AND HAS SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE CALCULATION OF THE PROPHETIC PERIODS AS IT APPEARED ON THAT CHART. THE NEXT SENTENCE EXPLAINS THAT THERE WAS AN INACCURACY WHICH IN THE PROVIDENCE OF GOD WAS SUFFERED TO EXIST. BUT THIS DOES NOT PRECLUDE THE PUBLICATION OF A CHART SUBSEQUENTLY WHICH WOULD CORRECT THE MISTAKE, AFTER THE 1843 MOVEMENT WAS PAST, AND THE CALCULATION AS THEN MADE HAD SERVED ITS PURPOSE.]” {EW 74.1} - Please note that the capitalized text within brackets is added by the editor!

1843 Chart II

The 1843 Chart

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