A Calendar of Biblical and Historical

Dates and Events

Beginning with the Creation of Adam

By Harry Peyton

Table of Contents:

Introduction (2)

Two Thousand and Eighty-Three Years: Adam to God’s Pledge to Abraham of A Promise Seed (3)

Four Hundred and Thirty Years: God’s Pledge of A Promise Seed to Abraham to the Law Given at Mt. Sinai (3)

Four Hundred and Eighty Years: The Giving of the Law to the Fourth Year of Solomon’s Reign (5)

The Rule of the Leaders or Judges of Israel (396 Years)

Four Hundred Years: The Fourth Year of Solomon to Babylonian Captivity (6)

The Reign of the Kings of Judah and Israel

The Prophets of God

Babylonian Captivity and Deportations

Seventy Years: The Reign of Nebuchadnezzar to Belteshazzar Kings of Babylon (8)

Eighty-Seven Years: The Reign of Cyrus over Babylon to Artaxerxes’ Twentieth Year Kings of Persia (9)

Four Hundred and Eighty-Three Years: Artaxerxes’ Twentieth Year to Christ’s Death (14)

Daniel’s Seventy Weeks of Years

First Part of Daniel’s Prophecy: Rebuilding Jerusalem

Second Part of Daniel’s Prophecy: The Coming and Death of Messiah the Prince

Astronomical, Biblical, and Historical Proof that Jesus Was Born on the 19^th of Nisan in 1 BC (16)

Copyright May 30, 1996 by Harry A. Peyton under the title of “The Doctrines Of Christ.”

A Note from the Author: Since Almighty God, the Lord Jesus Christ, gives His Salvation and His Word to all freely (Rev 22:17, Mt 10:7-8), this book, and all other books, written by Harry A. Peyton are given without charge, and can be accessed through the Internet at the following address: http://www.DoctrinesOfChrist.com. Therefore, fell free to copy it in digital or written form, and share it with others. Since this book is copyrighted, the author forbids any alteration of its contents, and the reproduction of it in any form for Marketing Purposes. This book may be placed on anyone’s web page, as long as my website address is attached to it.

The author believes that the Word of God is infallible in the ORIGINAL LANGUAGE it was written in, and all translations of the Bible regardless of how good they may be are NOT. Since the author has implicit faith in the infallibility of the Word of God, the author has formed his beliefs firmly on the truth of the Bible. This author uses the ancient ANTIOCHIAN LITERAL-HISTORICAL METHOD OF INTERPRETING THE BIBLE, which was used by early Christian Prophets and Apostles of the Bible.

I definitely believe that the ancient Alexandrian Allegorical Method of spiritualizing scripture, which was made popular by the ancient Jewish philosopher Philo Judaeus (13 BC – 50 AD) and later used by the Ante-Nicene Catholic Priests, especially Origen and his student Clement of Alexandria (200 AD), is an abomination to our Lord. Therefore, all scriptures will be interpreted in a literal exegetical fashion, unless the language used and the context demands a spiritual interpretation.

All CAPITALIZATION and ITALICIZATION in QUOTES used in this book is always MINE. All Biblical quotes used in this book will be in dark red, and from the New King James version of the Bible, unless another version is stated as the reference. The vast majority of all translations of the Bible, as well as Hebrew and Greek Lexical definitions and grammar, will come from BibleWorks computer software program version 7.0. The author in most places will quote verses from the Bible instead of commenting on a verse and giving a reference; for He believes that the written Word of God’s has greater power to inspire and enlighten a heart to understand and act upon truth, than the elegant oratory or writings of any man.

If this book has been a blessing to my beloved readers, and they would like to send an offering to the author, feel free to do so. If anyone wishes to send any biblical or historical materials to the author, my address is: 148 Little Creek Hills Rd.: Alto, NM 88312: Phone # 575-336-2800: Email address: DoctrineOfChrist@Hotmail.com.

Introduction

According to the Histories of Herodotus, a 9 volume history of the Persian Empire of Achaemenian era by the Greek Herodotus of Halicarnassus (484 - 425 BC): The Egyptians, they said, were the first to discover the solar year, and to portion out its course into twelve parts. They obtained this knowledge from the stars. To my mind they contrive their year much more cleverly than the Greeks, for these last every other year intercalate a whole month, but the Egyptians, dividing the year into twelve months of thirty days each, add every year a space of five days besides, whereby the circuit of the seasons is made to return with uniformity (Herodotus – Thucydides, vol 6, bk 2, Euterpe, sec 4, pg 49).

A link to a document entitled “Calendars” by Dr. P. Kenneth Seidelmann can be found on NASA Eclipse Home Page website. It gives the following history of Calendars: The principal astronomical cycles are the day (based on the rotation of the Earth on its axis), the year (based on the revolution of the Earth around the Sun), and the month (based on the revolution of the Moon around the Earth).... Three distinct types of calendars have resulted from this situation. A solar calendar, of which the Gregorian calendar in its civil usage is an example, is designed to maintain synchrony with the tropical year…. A lunar calendar, such as the Islamic calendar, follows the lunar phase cycle without regard for the tropical year… The third type of calendar, the Lunisolar Calendar, has a sequence of months based on the lunar phase cycle; but every few years a whole month is intercalated to bring the calendar back in phase with the tropical year. The Hebrew and Chinese calendars are examples of this type of calendar….

However, a count of years from an initial epoch is the most successful way of maintaining a consistent chronology. Whether this epoch is associated with an HISTORICAL or LEGENDARY EVENT, it must be tied to a SEQUENCE of RECORDED HISTORICAL EVENTS. This is illustrated by the adoption of the birth of Christ as the initial epoch of the Christian calendar. This epoch was established by the sixth-century scholar Dionysius Exiguus, who was compiling a table of dates of Easter…. Bede, the eighth-century English historian, began the practice of counting years backward from A.D. 1 (see Colgrave and Mynors, 1969). In this system, the year A.D. 1 is preceded by the year 1 B.C., without an intervening year 0.

The ancient Jewish Lunisolar Calendar added: three intercalary months every eight years, as Julius Africanus stated in the third century (Ante Nicene Fathers, The Extant Writings Of Julius Africanus, vol 6, pg 137, sec 2). Therefore, the years stated in the Bible included the above extra months, which would make their Lunisolar Calendar consisting of 354 days equal to the Solar Calendar of 365.24 days every 8 years. In other words, the 11.24 days difference between these calendars would be equal every 8 years (11.24 X 8 = 89.92 days or 3 months of 30 days). They did this so their feasts, which took place in certain seasons, would not change to any significant degree.

All BC dates given in this book will follow the Scriptural Historical Method of Dating and also the Astronomical Dating System, which use solar and lunar eclipses to confirm time periods of historical events and the reign of certain kings. Church historians, in many cases, use astronomical chronology to verify or correct dates given in history for certain events or the reign of kings.

Astronomical Dates: The Assyrian solar eclipse in the 40^th year of King Uzziah (6\15\762 BC), the three lunar eclipses recorded in Babylon, i.e., in the 7^th year of Cambyses (7\16\522 BC), in the 20^th year of Darius (11\19\501 BC), and in the 31^st year of Darius (4\25\490 BC), also the solar eclipse in the 6^th year of Xerxes (10\2\479 BC). The lunar eclipse that took place at Herod’s death on 1\09\0000 BC, and the 3 hours afternoon lunar eclipse at the death of our Lord and Savior on Wednesday Nisan the 15^th (Hebrew Calendar) or April the 14^th (Julian Calendar) in 32 AD.

The greatest sign from God in heaven was no doubt the great conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Venus in 2-1 BC, which were so close that the two planets would have appeared to touch each other. I believe this conjunction, which was very near to the bright star Regulus in Leo, was the Star of Bethlehem that God used to announce the birth of His Son on the 19^th of Nisan in 1 BC. According to the Holy Bible, God ordained: “there be lights [sun, moon, stars, & planets] in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for SIGNS and seasons, and for days and YEARS” (Gen 1:14).

Some of the above eclipses and the year of the reign of these kings are taken from The Almagest, a book written by an earlier astronomer by the name of Claudius Ptolemy (70-161 AD). The dates of these eclipses can also be confirmed on NASA’s Eclipse Home Web Page. I will use the above dates and work backward and forward using Scripture and the writings of the ancient Jewish historian Flavius Josephus (37-100 AD) to establish the birth of Patriarchs, and the length of reign of all Judges, Kings, and events mentioned in the Bible. I will also use the writings of ancient Grecian historians, such as Herodotus (484 - 425 BC) and Thucydides (401 BC), to confirm the reigns of Babylonian and Persian kings. So with these things in mind, let us begin our journey through biblical history.

In all the following biblical charts the BIRTH BC COLIMN represent the ACTUAL BC YEAR, and not the historical year, that each Patriarch was born, or the year a Judge or King began to rule, or the year an event happen.

Two Thousand and Eighty-Three Years:

Adam to God’s Pledge to Abraham of A Promise Seed

The Patriarchs

Creation		Birth	Age as		Age		Died
of Adam	Patriarchs	BC	a Dad	Scripture	Died	Scripture	BC	Notes
0	Adam	4001	130	Gen 5:3	930	Gen 5:5	3071
130	Seth	3871	105	Gen 5:6	912	Gen 5:8	2959
235	Enos	3766	90	Gen 5:9	905	Gen 5:11	2861
325	Canaan	3676	70	Gen 5:12	910	Gen 5:14	2766
395	Mahalaleel	3606	65	Gen 5:15	895	Gen 5:17	2711
460	Jared	3541	162	Gen 5:18	962	Gen 5:20	2579
622	Enoch	3379	65	Gen 5:21	365	Gen 5:23	3014	Raptured
687	Methuselah	3314	187	Gen 5:25	969	Gen 5:27	2345
874	Lamech	3127	182	Gen 5:28	775	Gen 5:31	2352
1056	Noah	2945	502	Gen 5:32	950	Gen 9:29	1995	(cp Gen 5:32 with Gen 11:10)
1558	Shem	2443	100	Gen 11:10	600	Gen11: 11	1843
1656	Flood	2345		Gen 5:32	2sd Mo, 17th Day
1658	Arphaxad	2343	35	Gen 11:12	438	Gen 11:13	1905
1693	Salah	2308	30	Gen 11:14	433	Gen 11:15	1875
1723	Eber	2278	34	Gen 11:16	464	Gen 11:17	1814	(Earth split into continents
1757	Peleg	2244	30	Gen 11:18	239	Gen 11:19	2005	when Peleg was born Gen 10:25)
1787	Reu	2214	32	Gen 11:20	239	Gen 11:21	1975
1819	Serug	2182	30	Gen 11:22	230	Gen 11:23	1952
1849	Nahor	2152	29	Gen 11:24	148	Gen 11:25	2004	(Abraham was 75 when Terah
1878	Terah	2123	130	Gen 11:31	205	Gen 11:32	1918	died 205-75=130; Gen 12:1-4)
2008 2083	Abraham Abraham	1993 1918	100	Gen 21:5 Gen 15:3-18	175 ; 16: 3	Gen 25:7 cp with Ga	1818 3:6-17	Abraham 75 when God gave him the Promise Seed Covenant

Total years from Adam to God’s Promise Seed Covenant with Abraham were 2083, which was 1918 BC

Four Hundred and Thirty Years: God’s Pledge of A

Promise Seed to Abraham to the Law Given at Mt. Sinai

“Now to Abraham and to his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, ‘And to seeds,’ as of many but as of one, ‘And to YOUR SEED, 'who is Christ. And this I say, that the LAW, which was FOUR HUNDRED and THIRTY years LATER, cannot annul the COVENANT” (Ga 3:16-17). As one carefully examines all the following scriptures, one must conclude that Paul is declaring that the Law of Moses, which was given 430 years AFTER God gave Abraham the PROMISE SEED COVENANT cannot annul this covenant. Therefore, it would behoove us to discover when God gave this great covenant to Abraham.

Abraham was 75 years old when he entered into Canaan and God at that time gave him the Promise Seed Covenant: “Abram was SEVENTY-FIVE years old when he departed from Haran…. So they came to the land of Canaan…. Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, ‘To your descendants I will give this land” (Gen 12:4-5 cp 13:14-16; 2008 + 75 = 2083); the Lord also said: “Look now toward heaven, and count the STARS, if thou be able to count them’; and He said unto him: ‘So shall THY SEED [Christ] be.’ And he BELIEVED in the LORD; and He counted it to him for RIGHTEOUSNESS…. In that day the LORD made a COVENANT with Abram, saying: ‘Unto THY SEED [Christ] have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates” (Gen 15:3-6, 18).

According to the Masoretic Hebrew Text: “The length of time that the Israelites lived in Egypt was FOUR HUNDRED and THIRTY years. And it came to pass at the end of the FOUR HUNDRED and THIRTY years -- on that VERY SAME DAY -- it came to pass that all the armies of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt” (Exo 12:40-41). In the Septuagint Geek OT the above verses in Exodus read thus: “The sojourning of the children of Israel, while they SOJOURNED in the land of Egypt AND the LAND of CHANAAN, was four hundred and thirty years.” Some historians use the Septuagint version to show that the 430 years started from the time Abraham received God’s Promise Seed Covenant to the time they came out of Egypt.

Josephus confirmed the Septuagint version when he declared that the Law was given at Mt. Sinai: 430 years after our forefather Abraham CAME INTO Canaan, but 215 years only after Jacob removed into Egypt (The Complete Works of Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, bk 2, chp 15, sec 2). Dr. Whiston’s in a footnote to the above statement made by Josephus stated: Why our Masorete copy so groundlessly abridges this account in Exodus 12:40, as to ascribe 430 years to the sole peregrination of the Israelites in Egypt, when it is clear even by that Masorete chronology elsewhere, as well as from the express text itself, in the Samaritan, Septuagint, and Josephus, that they sojourned in Egypt but HALF that time, - and that by consequence, the other HALF of their peregrination was in the land of Canaan, before they came into Egypt, - is hard to say (Josephus, Antiquities, bk 2, footnote 28).

At no time in the Bible did Abraham’s descendants receive all the land God promised to give. This promise will not be fulfilled until Christ, Abraham’s Promise Seed, reigns on the earth in His Millennial Kingdom. Also according to the Bible, Abraham’s descendants did not receive a portion of Canaan Land as a inheritance or a possession until they came out of Egypt. The great Christian martyr Stephen speaking of this said: “And God gave him NO INHERITANCE in it [Canaan Land], not even enough to set his foot on. But even when Abraham had no child, He PROMISE to give it to him for a possession, and to his descendants after him. But God spoke in this way: that his descendants would dwell in a FOREIGN LAND, and that they would bring them into bondage and oppress them four hundred years. And the nation to whom they will be in bondage I will judge,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and serve Me in THIS PLACE.’ Then He gave him the covenant of circumcision” (Acts 7:5-8; cp with Gen 15:13-14). In other words, Abraham and his descendants would be oppress in a land that was not theirs i.e. Canaan and Egypt 400 years, and this oppression did not begin until God gave Abraham the Promise Seed Covenant.

The above truth can be verified by the following illustration revealing the year of our Lord’s death and birth: If the 430 years began when Abraham was 75 years old, or in 1918 BC, we must subtract 430 years from this, which gives us 1488 BC as year the Law was given to Moses (1918 BC - 430 = 1488 BC). If we subtract 1488 from 480 years [the reign of the Judges to 4^th year of Solomon], we have 1008 BC. We then must subtract 400 years [from the 4 year of Solomon to beginning of the Babylonian Captivity], we have 608 BC. After this we subtract 70 years [the end of Babylonian Captivity], we have 538 BC. If we subtract 87 years [from the beginning of Cyrus’ reign over Babylon to the 20^th year of Artaxerxes], we have 451 BC. After this we subtract 483 year [Artaxerxes’ decree to death of Christ], we have 32 AD. If we then subtract 32 AD from 33 years [the age of Christ at death], we have 1 BC [as the birth of Christ].

Now, if one believes the Masoretic text is the correct text in the above passage in Exodus, then they would have to believe the 430 year countdown began when Jacob entered into Egypt. Isaac was born 1893 BC, when Abraham was 100 years old. Jacob was born to Isaac in 1833 BC, when Isaac was 60 years old: “Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them [Jacob and Esau]” (Gen 25:26; 1893 BC - 60 = 1833 BC). We would then have to subtract 1833 BC from 130, i.e. the age of Jacob when he and his descendents enter into Egypt, we would have 1703 BC: “And Jacob said to Pharaoh, ‘The days of the years of my pilgrimage are ONE HUNDRED and THIRTY years” (Gen 47:9; 1833 - 130 = 1703 BC).

After this we would subtract the 430 years from 1703 BC, which the Masoretic text stated was the time they were in Egypt, and this would be 1273 BC as the year the Law was given (1703 BC - 430 = 1273 BC). If we take the year 1273 BC and subtract it from the following years, we would then have the following dates: (1273 BC - 480 [the reign of the Judges to 4^th year of Solomon] = 793 BC - 400 [from the 4 year of Solomon to beginning of the Babylonian Captivity] = 393 BC - 70 [the end of Babylonian Captivity] = 323 BC – 87 [from the beginning of Cyrus’ reign over Babylon to the 20^th year of Artaxerxes] = 236 BC - 483 [Artaxerxes’ decree to death of Christ] = 247 AD - 33 [the age of Christ at death] = 214 AD [as the birth of Christ]). As my beloved readers can clearly perceive, this would be totally ridiculous!

Four Hundred and Eighty Years: the Giving

of the Law to the Fourth Year of Solomon’s Reign

“And it came to pass in the FOUR HUNDRED AND EIGHTIETH year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the FOURTH year of Solomon’s reign… he began to build the House of the Lord” (1Ki 6:1). The rule of the Leaders or Judges of Israel lasted 396 years. From King Saul (1092 BC) to the fourth year of Solomon (1008 BC) was 84 years, which equals to 480 years (396 + 84 = 480 years, or 1488 BC – 1008 BC = 480 years). The BC column represents the year that the rule of the Leaders or Judges of Israel began. This chart also gives the name of the nations and the years they afflicted Israel.

The Rule of the Leaders or Judges of Israel (396 Years)

Creation	Leader	Judge	Years		Afflicting	Years
of Adam	Judges	BC	Ruled	Scripture	Nations	Afflicted	Verse
2513	Moses	1488	40	Exo 7:7; Deu 31:2	[Law given]	Exo 7:7	Num 14:33
2553	Joshua	1448	5	Jos 14:1-10			Jud 2:8; Jos 15:1-22
2558	Othniel	1443	40	Jud 3:9-11	Assyrians	8	Jud 3:5-8
2598	Ehud & Shamgar	1403	80	Jud 3:15-31	Moabites	18	Jud 3:12-14
2678	Deborah\Bark	1323	40	Jud 4:3-6; 5: 31	Canaanites	20	Jud 4:1-3
2718	Gideon	1238	40	Jud 8:28	Midianites	7	Jud 6:1
2758	Abimelech	1234	3	Jud 9:1-2, 22
2761	Tola	1240	23	Jud 10:1-2
2784	Jair	1217	22	Jud 10:3	Philistines	18	Jud 10:6-8
2806	Jephthah	1295	6	Jud 12:7
2812	Ibzan	1189	7	Jud 12:8-9
2819	Elon	1182	10	Jud 12:11
2829	Abdon	1172	8	Jud 12:13-14	Philistines	40	Jud 13:1
2837	Samson	1164	20	Jud 16:30-31			(Samuel ruled 12 years
2857	Eli	1144	40	1Sa 4:18 Total Years Afflicted		111	alone & 18 years with Saul)
2897	Samuel	1104	12	1Sa 7:1-2, 13; 8:6 (1104 – 12 = 1092 BC); Antiquities of the Jews, bk 6, chp 13, sec 5

Total Years of the Reign of the Judges 1488 – 1092 BC = 396 years.

Four Hundred Years: The Fourth Year of Solomon

to the Babylonian Captivity

The names of the Kings of Judah from Solomon to Zedekiah: “These were all the sons of David, besides the sons of the concubines, and Tamar their sister. Solomon's son was Rehoboam; Abijah was his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son, Joram [or Jehoram] his son, Ahaziah his son, Joash his son, Amaziah his son, Azariah [or Uzziah] his son, Jotham his son, Ahaz his son, Hezekiah his son, Manasseh his son, Amon his son, and Josiah his son. The sons of Josiah were Johanan [Jehoahaz] the firstborn, the second Jehoiakim, the third Zedekiah” (1Ch 3:9-15). The BC column represents the year the reign of each king of Judah and Israel began.

Kings of Judah and Israel

Creation	Judah's	King	Years		Israel’s	King Years
of Adam	Kings	BC	Reign	Scripture	Kings	BC	Reign Scripture
2909	Saul	1092	40	Acts 13:21
2949	David	1052	40	1Ch 29:26-27
2989	Solomon	1012	40	1Ki 11:42 [1008 BC 4^th year]
3029	Rehoboam	972	17	1Ki 14:21	Jeroboam	965	22 1Ki 14:20
3046	Abijah	955	3	1Ki 15:1-2 Nadab		943	2 1Ki 15:25
3049	Asa	952	41	1Ki 15:8-10	Baasha	941	24 1Ki 15:33
3090	Jehoshaphat	911	25	2Ch 20:31 Elah		917	2 1Ki 16:6-8
3115	Jehoram Joram	886	8	2Ch 21:1, 5	Zimri	915	7 days 1Ki 16:15
3123	Ahaziah	878	1	2Ch 22:1-2	Omri	915	12 1Ki 16:23
3124	Athaliah	877	6	2Ki 11:2-3 woman usurper	Ahab	903	22 1Ki 16:29
3130	Joash Jehoash	871	40	2Ch 24:1	Ahaziah	881	2 1Ki 22:51
3170	Amaziah	820	29	2Ch 25:1	Jehoram	879	12 2Ki 3:1
3199 3250	Azariah Uzziah Assyrian Eclipse	802 762	52 June 15	2Ch 26:1-3 40^th year of Uzziah	Jehu	867	28 2Ki 10:36
3251	Jotham	750	16	2Ki 15:32-33 Jehoahaz		839	17 2Ki 13:1
3266	Ahaz	735	16 (co-	reign 1); 2Ki16:1-2 Joash		822	16 2Ki 13:10
3272	Hezekiah	729	29 (co-	reign 10); 2Ki 18:1-2	Jeroboam	806	41 2Ki 14:23
3278	Assyrian Captivity	723		2Ki 17:6; 18:10 began in 6^th year of Hezekiah or 9^th year of Hoshea
3301	Manasseh	700	55	2Ch 32:33; 33:1	Zechariah	765	6 mo 2Ki 15:8
3356	Amon	645	2	2Ch 33:20-21 Shallum		764	1 mo 2Ki 15:13
3358	Josiah	643	31	2Ch 33:25; 34:1 Menahem		764	10 2Ki 15:17
3389	Jehoahaz Johanan	612	3 Mos	2Ch 36:1-2; 1Ch 3:15	Pekahiah	754	2 2Ki 15:23
3389	Jehoiakim	612	11	2Ch 36:4-5 Eliakim	Pekah	752	20 2Ki 15:27
3393	Babylonian Captivity	608	70	Jer 25:1; Dan 1:1; began	in 4^th year of Jehoiakim
3400	Jehoiachin	601	3 Mos	2Ch 36:8-9	Hoshea	732	9 2Ki 17:1
3400	Zedekiah	601	11	2Ch 3610-11

Total Years of Reign of the Kings of Judah from 4^th year of Solomon to Babylonian Captivity: 400 years (1008-608 = 400).

According to Solar Eclipses of Historical Interest by NASA, the Assyrian Eclipse took place in the: Astronomical year -0762 (763 BC), June 15, Universal or Greenwich Time 08:23 (AM) (http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/SEcat/SE-0799--0700.html).

Dr. Fred Espenak, an Astrophysicist at the NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, in his Year Dating Conventions document explained the astronomical dating systems this way: Christianity has played a dominant role in the development of Western civilization over the past two thousand years. A prime example is the dating system we commonly use which was instituted by the monk Dionysius Exiguus in or about the year AD 532…. In sixth century Europe, the concept of ‘ZERO’ was still UNKNOWN. Thus, the year 1 BC was followed by the year AD 1…. Of course, Exiguus' dating system still lacks a "0" year which makes calendrical calculations awkward.

The ‘astronomical’ dating system refers to an alternative method of numbering years. It includes the year "0" and eliminates the need for any prefixes or suffixes by attributing the arithmetic sign [+ or -] to the date…. The astronomical year 0 corresponds to the year 1 BCE, while the astronomical year 1 corresponds to 2 BCE. In general, any given year ‘n BCE’ becomes ‘-(n-1)’ in the astronomical year numbering system. Historians should take care to note the numerical difference of one year between ‘BCE’ dates and astronomical dates (National Aeronautics and Space Administration i.e. NASA’s Eclipse Home Page: Website address: http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/eclipse.html).

The Prophets of God

God’s Prophet Prophet BC King of Judah or Israel Scripture

Gad 1052	David (Judah)	1Sa 22:5; 2Sa 24:11; 2Ch 29:25
Nathan 1052 David		2Sa 7:2-17; 12:1-2; 1 Ki 1:23
Shemaiah 972	Rehoboam (Judah)	1Ki 12:21-24; 2 Ch 11:2-4
Ahijah 965 Jeroboam (Israel)		1Ki 1:23; 11:27-37; 14:1-2; 2Ch 9:29; 10:15
Oded 952	Asa (Judah)	2Ch 15:8; 28:9-11
Azariah 952 Asa		2Ch 15:1-7
Hanani 952	Asa	2Ch 16:1, 7-10
Micaiah 911	Jehoshaphat (Judah) & Ahab (Israel)	1Ki 22:7-29
Elijah 903 Elisha 879	Ahab - Ahaziah (Israel) Jehoram – Jehoash (Israel)	1Ki 16:29; 17:1-4; 18:1; 2Ki 1:3 1Ki 19:1, 15-17; 2Ki 3:9-11; 13:14
Un-named (of Judah) 831 Amos 831	Amaziah (Judah) Amaziah-Uzziah (Ju) & Jeroboam (Is)	2Ki 14:25 2Ch 25:7, 15; Amos 1:1; 7:8-17
Jonah 806 Jeroboam (Israel)		Jon 1:1
Isaiah 802 Uzziah - Hezekiah (Judah) Hosea 802 Uzziah - Hezekiah (Judah) Micah 750 Jotham - Hezekiah (Judah)		Isa 1:1; 2Ki 19:2-5, 20 Hos 1:1 Jer 26:18-19
Obadiah 729 Hezekiah (Judah) Ch 17:5-10; Oba 1:1
Nahum 723	Before Assyria fell to Babylon	Nah 1:1; 2:8-13; Zep 1:1
Jeremiah 643 Josiah - Zedekiah (Judah)		2Ch 36:12, 20-23; Jer 1:1-3
Habakkuk 608	Before Babylonian conquest	Hab 1:6
Joel 608	Before Babylonian conquest	Joel 1:1-6
Urijah 612 Jehoiakim (Judah) Daniel 608 Jehoiakim (Judah) – Cyrus (Persia)		Jer 26:20-23 Dan 1:1-6; 2:1; 6:1-2; 10:1
Haggai 520	After Darius’ decree to build temple	Ezra 5:1-2; 6:5-15; Hag 1:1
Zechariah (son of Berechiah) 520 After Darius’ decree to build temple Ezra 5:1-2; 6:5-15; Zec 1:1 Malachi 520 After Darius’ decree to build temple Mal 1:1

Total Years God’s Prophets Prophesied: 552 years (1052 – 500 = 552).

As my beloved readers may have perceived by now, it appears from the information given by the unknown Jewish scribes, who wrote the history of First and Second Kings, some of the kings of Judah must have co-reigned with their father. It definitely seems logical to assume this when these scribes make clear statements about the different kings of Judah began their reign in a certain king of Israel’s reign, and vise versa that is, different kings of Israel began their reign in a certain king of Judah’s reign. I must confess, as one carefully examines this impenetrable information, he or she is left in a quandary. There can be no doubt that the length of the reign of each king of Judah and Israel is correct. If there was no co-reign of the kings of Judah with their father, then there would be 411 years from the 4^th year of Solomon to the Babylonian Captivity. This would mean that the creation of Adam took place in 4012 BC. The 11 year difference between these two forms of reckoning of sole reign and co-reign is not hard to believe when one is looking for a harmony in the infallible Word of God!

Babylonian Captivity and Deportations

Creation		Year
of Adam	Event	BC	Event	Notes
3393	1^st Deportation 608		1^st year of Neb’s sole reign	This was the 4^th year of Jehoiakim (Jer 36: 1, 9; 46:1-2; Dan 1:1). Daniel was in captivity in the 2^nd year of Neb (Dan 2:1).
3400	2sd Deportation 601		7^th year of Neb	and the 11^th year of Jehoiakim (2Ch 36:5-8; Jer 24:1; 52:28).
3401	3^rd Deportation 600		8^th year of Neb	and the 1^st year of Jehoiachin (2Ki 24:8-12).
3411	4^th Deportation 590		18^th year of Neb	and the 11^th year of Zedekiah (Jer 52:3-10, 29).
3412	5^th Deportation 589		19^th year of Neb	vessels of the Lord taken (Jer 52:12-27).
3416	6^th Deportation 585		23^rd year of Neb	(Jer 52:30).

Solomon’s temple was destroyed in the 19^th year of King Nebuchadnezzar reign, i.e., in 589 BC on the 5^th month and 10^th day (Jer 52:12). This took place 3,412 years after God created Adam.

Seventy Years: The Reign of Nebuchadnezzar to Belteshazzar

Kings of Babylon

Creation	Kings of	Year	Years
of Adam	Babylon	BC	Reign	Notes
3393	Nebuchadnezzar 608		45 + mos sole reign	(608 – 563 BC): Nabolassar the king of Babylon, the father of Nebuchadnezzar, became the founder of the neo-Babylonian empire. He was succeeded by his son, Nebuchadnezzar II, who like Hammurabi and Sargon is among the greatest known characters in Babylonian history. He is the Biblical Nebuchadnezzar who carried the Jews into captivity. In the Greek Septuagint of the Old Testament Nebuchadnezzar is called Nabuchodonosor. All of the following reigns of Babylonian Kings are from Josephus, who quoted Berossus (290 or 340 BC) the ancient Chaldaean historian and priest of Bel, who wrote three books in Greek on the history and culture of Babylonia. Josephus wrote: King Nabolassar sent his son Nabuchodonosor against Egypt, and against our land, with a great army, upon his being informed that they had revolted from him…. Now it so fell out that his father Nabolassar fell into a distemper at this time, and died in the city of Babylon, after he had reigned twenty-nine years…. Nabuchodonosor… departed this life, when he had reigned forty-three years (The Complete Works of Josephus, Against Apion, bk 1, sec 19-20; also Antiquities of the Jews, bk 10, chp 6, sec 1-2; bk 10, chp 11, sec 1). Nebuchadnezzar must have co-reigned with his father for a year or two before his sole reign began. This can be seen when the Bible called him King of Babylon before he besieged Jerusalem in 609 BC: “In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar [Septuagint - Nabuchodonosor] KING of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it” (Dan 1:1). Therefore, Nebuchadnezzar’s sole reign must have began in 608 BC, which was the 4^th year of the reign of Jehoiakim as the following scripture reveals: “The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon” i.e. his 1^st year of his SOLE reign (Jer 25:1, JPS & KJV; cp with 46:1-2 & Dan 2:1). As one compares the above scriptures with the following two passages of scripture, one can easily see that Nebuchadnezzar reigned 45 years not 43 years: “Jehoiachin king of Judah, his mother, his servants, his princes, and his officers went out to the king of Babylon; and the KING of Babylon, in the eighth year of his [Nebuchadnezzar’s] reign, took him prisoner” (2Ki 24:12); Jeremiah declared: “It came to pass in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, that Evil-Merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison” (Jer 52:31-32). Since, the Bible equates the 37^th year of Jehoiachin's imprisonment, which began in the 8^th year of Nebuchadnezzar reign, with the accession year of Evil-Merodach, Nebuchadnezzar must have reigned 45 years (i.e. 37 + 8 = 45 years).
3438	Evil-Merodach 563		2 + mos	(563 – 561 BC): Josephus: He governed public affairs after an illegal and impure manner, and had a plot laid against him by Neriglissoor, his sister's husband, and was slain by him when he had reigned but two years (Josephus, Against Apion, bk 1, sec 20).
3440	Neriglissoor	561	4 + mos	(561 – 556 BC); Josephus: Neriglissoor… succeeded him [Evil-Merodach] in the kingdom, and reigned four years (Josephus, Ibs).
3445	Laborosoarchod	556	9 + mos	(556 – 556 BC): Josephus: Neriglissor’s son Laborosoarchod obtained the kingdom, though he was but a child, and kept it nine mouths… and he was tormented to death (Josephus, Ibs).
3445	Nabonnedus	556	17 + mos	(556 – 538 BC): Josephus: After his [Laborosoarchod’s] death, the conspirators got together, and by common consent put the crown upon the head of Nabonnedus, a man of Babylon, and one who belonged to that insurrection. In… the seventeenth year of his reign, Cyrus came out of Persia with a great army, and having already conquered all the rest of Asia, he came hastily to Babylonia.... Nabonnedus… was beaten, and fled away with a few of his troops with him, and was shut up within the city Borsippus (Josephus, Ibs). Josephus also calls Nabonnedus by other names such as Naboandelus and Baltasar (Josephus, Ant., bk 10, chp 11, sec 2-4). The Bible calls him Belteshazzar, who was a son or grandson of Nebuchadnezzar (Dan 5:1-31).

Total Years: 70 (45 + 2 + 4 + 9 mos + 17 = 68 & 9 mos + 15 mos from reigns of the above kings & 1^st year of Cyrus = 70 years).

Eighty-Seven Years: The Reign of Cyrus Over Babylon

to Artaxerxes’ Twentieth Year Kings of Persia

Creation	Kings of	Year	Years
of Adam	Persia	BC	Reign	Notes
3443	Cyrus II the Great	558	29	(558 – 529 BC): Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 99: When Cyrus became (558 BC) ruler of the Persian district of Anshan, the district was subject to the Medes; five years later he led a rebellion against the Medes that resulted in the capture of King Astyages (reigned about 584 - 550 BC) and the overthrow (550 BC) of the Median Empire. Thereafter Cyrus called himself king of Persia…. Babylon, Egypt, Lydia, and the city-state of Sparta in Greece combined to curb the power of Cyrus, but in 546 BC the Persians added Lydia to their realm, and in 539 BC the kingdom of Babylon fell to Cyrus (article: “Cyrus the Great”). The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia reveals that Cyrus’ reigned lasted: 29 years. He had ruled over Media for 11, and over Babylonia (and Assyria) for 9 years (vol 2, pg 775, heading Cyrus). Therefore, he was king of the Persians for 9 years, 11 years over the Medes, and 9 years over Babylon. Herodotus of Halicarnassus (484 - 425 BC): Thus after a reign of thirty-five years, Astyages lost his crown…. It was the Persians who under Cyrus revolted from the Medes, and became thenceforth the rulers of Asia…. The overthrow of Croesus made him master of the whole of Asia…. [In the last battle with the Massagetae] Cyrus himself fell, after reigning NINE and TWENTY YEARS (Great Books of the Western World, Herodotus – Thucydides, vol 6, bk 1, Clio, sec 130, pg 31, and sec 214, pg 48).
3463	Cyrus’ 20^th year	538		This was the beginning of Cyrus’ first year as king over Babylon. It was at this time he gave the decree freeing the Jews from captivity, thus fulfilling the prophecy of Jeremiah 29:10 concerning the 70 years of captivity (608 - 538 = 70 yrs). Cyrus was the king mention in Ezra 1:1-18; 4:3-5; 5:12. Josephus says it this way: In the first year of the reign of Cyrus, which was the seventieth [year] from the day that our people were removed out of their own land into Babylon, …[king Cyrus promised] he would restore them again to the land of their fathers, and they should build their temple…. This was foretold by Isaiah one hundred and forty years before the temple was demolished [Isa 44:28; 45:1- 4]…. When Cyrus had said this to the Israelites, the rulers of the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin, with the Levites and priests, went in haste to Jerusalem; yet did many of them stay at Babylon (Josephus, Ant.,, bk 11, chp 1, sec 1-3).
3472 3479	Cambyses II Ahasuerus II Cambyses’ Lunar Eclipse	529 522	7 + 5 mos 7	(529 – 522 BC): Herodus: On the death of Cyrus, Cambyses his son by Cassandane daughter of Pharnaspes took the kingdom…. [After conquering King Amasis of Egypt, Cambyses heard about Smerdis the Magi usurping his throne. He then] sprang hastily upon his steed, meaning to march his army with all haste to Susa against the Magus. As he made his spring, the button of his sword-sheath fell off, and the bared point entered his thigh, wounding him…. [Cambyses then told his army while dying] ‘When I was in Egypt I saw in my sleep a vision… that Smerdis sat upon the royal throne…. So I slew my brother without any need, and nevertheless have lost my crown. For it was Smerdis the Magus, and not Smerdis my brother, of whose rebellion God forewarned me by the vision…. The Magi have the royal power - Patizeithes, whom I left at Susa to overlook my household, and Smerdis his brother….’ [After this speech] Cambyses, son of Cyrus, died. He had reigned in all seven years and five months, and left no issue behind him, male or female (Herodotus – Thucydides, vol 6, bk 2, Euterpe, sec 1, pg 49; bk 3, Thalia , sec 64 - 66, pg 104). Josephus declared: When Cambyses, the son of Cyrus, had taken the kingdom, the governors in Syria, and Phoenicia, and in the countries of Amlnon, and Moab, and Samaria, wrote an epistle to Cambyses…. When Cambyses had read the epistle… [he] gave order, that the Jews shall NOT be PERMITTED to BUILD that CITY (Josephus, Ant., bk 11, chp 2, sec 1-2). Cambyses was the Ahasuerus mention in Ezra 4:6, who stopped the building of the temple: “Then the people of the land tried to discourage the people of Judah. They troubled them in building, and hired counselors against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia. In the reign of Ahasuerus, in the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation AGAINST the inhabitants of Judah and JERUSALEM.” According to Claudius Ptolemy (70-161 AD): In the year 7 of Cambyses (which is the year 225 of Nabonassar, Egyptian wise Phamenoth 17-18 one hour before midnight) the moon was eclipsed in Babylon (Claudius Ptolemaeus - The Almagest, (Great Books Of The Western World, Ptolemy, vol 16, pg 172). Ptolemy was an Alexandrian astronomer, geographer, historian, and chronologist who lived in Egypt and wrote around 142 AD. The Egyptian month Phamenoth and the 17-18 day is July 16^th. According to NASA’s Lunar Eclipse records this eclipse took place in the: Astronomical year -0522 (523 BC), Jul 16, Universal or Greenwich Time 20:38 (8:38 PM). (NASA Eclipse Page; http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/SEcat/SEcatalog.html). Thus 522 BC was the 7^th year of Cambyses’ reign
3479	Smerdis the Magi 522 Artaxerxes		7 mos	(522 - 521 BC): His biblical name was Artaxerxes I, the king mention in Ezra, who also gave a decree that the building of the temple should not be resumed: “In the days of Artaxerxes also, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabel, and the rest of their companions wrote to Artaxerxes king of Persia; and the letter was written in Aramaic script, and translated into the Aramaic language. Rehum the commander and Shimshai the scribe wrote a letter against Jerusalem to King Artaxerxes…. The king sent an answer…. Now give the command to make these men cease, that this city may NOT BE BUILT until the command is given by me” (Ezra 4:7-8, 17, 21). According to Herodotus: The Persians who had heard his [Cambyses’] words, put no faith in any- thing that he said concerning the Magi having the royal power; but believed that he spoke out of hatred towards Smerdis [his brother], and had invented the tale of his death to cause the whole Persian race to rise up in arms against him. Thus they were convinced that it was Smerdis the son of Cyrus who had rebelled and now sat on the throne…. Thus then Cambyses died, and the Magus now reigned in security, and passed himself off for Smerdis the son of Cyrus. And so went by the seven months which were wanting to complete the eighth year of Cambyses (Herodotus – Thucydides, vol 3, bk 3, Thalia, sec 66-67, pg 104; also see Josephus, Ant., bk 11, chp 3, sec 1).
3480 3486 3500 3511 3516 3522 3530 3550	Darius I Darius I Temple Rebuilt Darius I Lunar Eclipse Darius I Lunar Eclipses Xerxes I (Ahasuerus III) Xerxes’ Solar Eclipse Artaxerxes I Artaxerxes’ Decree	521 515 501 490 485 479 471 451	36 6 20 31 14 6^th year 41 20	(521 – 485 BC): Josephus: Those families which were called the seven families of the Persians appointed Darius, the son of Hystaspes, to be their king (Josephus, Ant., bk 11, chp 3, sec 1; chp 4, 7- 8). L.W. King and R.C. Thompson in 1907 made the following translation of the writings of the old Persian, Elamite, and Akkadian languages that were inscribed on the rock of Behistûn in Persia, i.e. the Rosetta Stone: I am Darius, the great king… the son of Hystaspes, the grandson of Arsames, the Achaemenid…. The kingdom of which Gaumâta, the Magian, dispossessed Cambyses, had always belonged to our dynasty. After that Gaumâta, the Magian, had dispossessed Cambyses of Persia and Media, and of the other provinces, he did according to his will. He became king…. On the tenth day of the month Bâgayâdiš [29 September 522] I, with a few men, slew that Gaumâta, the Magian, and the chief men who were his followers… and I… became king (Translation I, sec 1, 12, & 13; also see Herodotus – Thucydides, vol 3, bk 3, Thalia, sec 71, pg 105). According to Herodus, after Darius became king he waged war with the Greeks: Now when tidings of the battle that had been fought at Marathon [490 BC] reached the ears of King Darius, the son of Hystaspes, his anger against the Athenians, which had been already roused by their attack upon Sardis, waxed still fiercer, and he became more than ever eager to lead an army against Greece…. Darius, when he had thus appointed Xerxes his heir, was minded to lead forth his armies; but he was prevented by death while his preparations were still proceeding. He died… after having reigned in all six-and-thirty years…. At his death the kingdom passed to his son Xerxes (Herodotus – Thucydides, vol 3, bk 7, Polymnia, sec 1& 4, pg 215). According to the Bible it was King Darius, who confirmed the decree of Cyrus and gave a decree to start building the temple again: Haggai 1:1-4, 14-15: “The LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel… and the spirit of Joshua… and they came and worked on the HOUSE of the LORD of hosts, their God, on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month, in the SECOND YEAR of King Darius.” Ezra 4:24: “The work of the HOUSE of GOD which is at Jerusalem ceased, and it was discontinued UNTIL the SECOND YEAR of the reign of Darius king of Persia.” Ezra 6:1-2, 8, 14-15: “I [Darius] issue a DECREE as to what you shall do for the elders of these Jews, for the BUILDING of this HOUSE of GOD: Let the cost be paid at the king's expense from taxes on the region beyond the River; this is to be given immediately to these men, so that they are not hindered…. And they built and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the command of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. 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.” Ptolemy declared that there were two lunar eclipses in the reign of Darius. One: eclipse [was] observed in Babylon in the year 31 of Darius, Egyptianwise Tybi 3-4…. [The other eclipse] is the one… in the year 20 of Darius… Egyptianwise Epiphi 28-29…. Each of these eclipses occurred when the moon was near the apogee (The Almagest, vol 16, pp 136-137). The Egyptian month Epiphi and the 28-29 day is November 19^th. According to NASA’s Lunar Eclipse Data, there was an eclipse in the: Astronomical year -0501 (502 BC), Nov 19, Universal Time 21:03 (9:03 PM) [this was the 20^th year of Darius: http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/SEcat/SEcatalog.html]. The Egyptian month Tybi and the 3-4 day is April 25^th, and there was an eclipse in the: Astronomical year -0490 (491 BC), Apr 25, Time 19:44 (7:44 PM) [http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/SEcat/SEcatalog.html]. (485 – 471 BC): The son of Darius I and Atossa… daughter of Cyrus the Great. Ascending the throne upon the death of his father. Faussett Bible Dictionary under the heading of Ahasuerus: Darius Hystaspis’ son was Ahasuerus the third = Xerxes…. The gap between Ezra 6 and Ezra 7 is filled up with the book of Esther. The character of Ahasuerus III much resembles that of Xerxes as described by Greek historians…. In the third year was held Ahasuerus, feast in Shushan (Esth. 1:3): so Xerxes in his third year held an assembly to prepare for invading Greece (#132.01 sec 3). Thucydides (401 BC), a Greek historian, in his History of the Peloponnesian War revealed that Xerxes started the Grecian War tenth years after the Battle of Marathon. He wrote: The battle of Marathon [in Darius I reign] was fought between the Medes and the Athenians. TEN YEARS afterwards, the barbarian [Xerxes] returned with the armada for the subjugation of Hellas (Herodotus – Thucydides, vol 3, History of the Peloponnesian War, bk 1, sec 18, pg 353). Herodotus: In the year following the death of Darius, he [Xerxes I] marched against those who had revolted from him; and having reduced them, and laid all Egypt under a far harder yoke than ever his father had put upon it…. After Egypt was subdued, Xerxes, being about to take in hand the expedition against Athens, called together an assembly of the noblest Persians to learn their opinions, and to lay before them his own designs…. Reckoning from the recovery of Egypt, Xerxes spent four full years in collecting his host and making ready all things that were needful for his soldiers. It was not till the CLOSE of the FIFTH YEAR that he set forth on his march, accompanied by a mighty multitude (Herodotus – Thucydides, vol 3, bk 7, Polymnia, sec 7-8, 20-21, pg 215, & sec 37, pg 223). According to Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia Xerxes I: During the spring of 480 BC he [Xerxes] marched with his forces through Thrace, Thessaly (Thessalia), and Locris. At Thermopylae 300 Spartans, under their king, Leonidas I, and 1100 other Greeks made a courageous but futile stand, delaying the Persians for ten days. Xerxes then advanced into Attica and burned Athens, which had been abandoned by the Greeks. At the Battle of Salamís later in 480 BC, however, his fleet was defeated by a contingent of Greek warships commanded by the Athenian Themistocles. Xerxes there- upon RETIRED to Asia Minor (article: “Xerxes I”). Herodotus: A PRODIGY had caused him [Xerxes] to BRING HIS ARMY HOME, for while he was offering sacrifice to know if he should march out against the Persian, the SUN was suddenly DARKENED in mid sky (Herodus, bk 9, Calliope, pg 290, sec 10-11). Dr. Espenak of NASA in his article entitled Solar Eclipses of Historical Interest gives the following data for the Xerxes’ Eclipse: Astronomical year -0479 (480 BC), Oct 02, Time 11:57 (AM) (http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/SEhistory/SEhistory.html). Faussett Bible Dictionary under the heading of Ahasuerus continued by saying: In his seventh year Ahasuerus replaced Vashti by marrying Esther (Est. 2:16), after gathering all the fair young virgins to Shushan: so Xerxes in his seventh year, on his defeat and return from Gre