How do you explain the historical error in Daniel with regard to Darius?
Question:
1) Dan. 5:30 Belshazzar dies – Darius becomes king of Babylon
2) Dan 6:28 Daniel prospers during the reign of Darius and (later) Cyrus (Daniel 1:21)
3) Dan 9:1 Darius is said to be the son of Xerxes (Ahasuerus)
4) It is a historical fact that the conqueror of Babylon in 539/8 was Cyrus who thus became king of Babylon in that year
5) Ezra 6:1 Darius orders Cyrus’s decree to be found thus establishing that Cyrus reigned first
6) Ezra 7:1 At a later time Artaxerxes is king
7) Ezra 7:7 Ezra arrives in Jerusalem in the 7th regnal year of Artaxerxes
Please tell me how you explain the contradiction between 2) and 4) as against 1) and 5)
Answer:
I already did. See my previous e-mail. By the way, you put (later) in there. I guess you wish that was what it said. They you would have a bona fide contradiction. The problem is that the (later) is not there. In fact, Daniel implies that they are both ruling. The most reasonable interpretation of the wording is that they ruled at the same time. This is the natural interpretation, unless one is looking for a reason to discount the historical accuracy of Daniel. Cyrus was not "the king of Babylon" Cyrus was "the king of the Persians and the Medes." Again, you are adapting the correct wording to create a wording which makes your case look stronger than it actually is. I have never heard of Cyrus being referred to simply as king of Babylon. Technically, he was, but not just of Babylon, to say the least, and he was never called that as far as I know.
539 Cyrus conquers Bablyon
538 or 537 we do not know exactly, Darius THE MEDE, son of Ahasuerus (presumably also a Mede) becomes governer of what is by far the most important province of Persia; Babylon which was itself a great empire on its own, with many provinces. He is never called emperor. He is never said to rule over Persia. He was quite old already in 538–62 years old. This is obvioiusly not the Darius who ruled for 36 years after taking the throne of Persia.
530-522 Cambysses (Persian) rules Persia
522-486 Darius I (Persian) rules
486-465 Xerxes (Persian)
465-424 Artaxerxes I (Persian)
Everything in your little chronology below is correct except for the part you conveniently added; the word "later."
John Oakes
