Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Peter Kirk <peter AT qaya.org>]

On 15/09/2006 08:47, Yigal Levin wrote:
> Peter Kirk asked:
> I don't in fact know why no one seems to suggest that Nehemiah's Artaxerxes 
> was also Artaxerxes II.
>
>
> The reason is simple: Shemaiah and Delaiah, sons of Sanbalat, are mentioned 
> in one the Elephantine papyri dated (independently) to 402/1, year 3 of 
> Artaxerxes II. This would mean that Nehemiah, Snabalat's contemporary, would 
> have had to have lived before that date. The only possibility is Artaxerxes 
> I, whose 20th year was 445. So that the date of Nehemiah's arrival as 
> governor of Yehud is "fixed" at 445. The question that remains is the 
> arrival of Ezra and his relationship with Nehemiah.
>
>   
Thank you. So a combination of this evidence and that of Nehemiah 8:1 
that Ezra and Nehemiah were contemporaries seems to prove that Ezra was 
around in the time of Artaxerxes I, not II, in the mid 5th century BCE, 
not the early 4th century.

Bryant seems to be confused, mentioning "the 20th to the 32nd year of 
Artaxerxes II, 445 (444) - 433 (432) BCE" when in fact these seem to be 
dates of Artaxerxes I.

--
Peter Kirk
E-mail:  peter AT qaya.org
Blog:    http://speakertruth.blogspot.com/
Website: http://www.qaya.org/