When did The Seventy Years prophecy start and end?
The seventy years prophecy is found in Jeremiah 25.
Jer 25:1 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 (which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon),
It was given in the first year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign. (This was the first year of his subjugation of Judah, not the first year of his ascension to the throne of Babylon. See the first part of Appendix 1 for an explanation of this.) The next few verses (Jeremiah 25 2-7) explain that God sent His servants to warn the people of Judah to repent of their evil ways, but they didn’t listen. God then revealed His plan for 70 years of captivity.
Jer 25:8 “Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Because you have not heard My words,
Jer 25:9 behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,’ says the LORD, ‘and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land, against its inhabitants, and against these nations all around, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, a hissing, and perpetual desolations.
Jer 25:10 Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp.
Jer 25:11 And this whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.
Jer 25:12 ‘Then it will come to pass, when seventy years are completed [male], that I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity,’ says the LORD; ‘and I will make it a perpetual desolation.
Because the people of Judah refused to repent of their sins, God said he would send Nebuchadnezzar to punish them, and they would serve him 70 years. Later, Jeremiah wrote to those who had been taken captive to Babylon, telling them they would return to Judah after 70 years were completed.
Jer 29:10 For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed [male] at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place.
Here are the key points.
- 70 years started when Nebuchadnezzar conquered Judah.
- 70 years completed when the Jews returned to Judah.
- 70 years completed when God punished the king of Babylon.
The question we would like to answer is can we assign dates to these events? To do that we need a timeline of the kings and events of that time. The Bible gives the time of various events in terms of the particular year of the reigning king of the time, and secular history gives the B.C. dates of the reigns of kings and important battles. Combining these produces the timelines we need.
Here is a timeline of king Nebuchadnezzar’s conquest of Judah, see Appendix 1 for the details.
605 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar became king of Babylon.
600 B.C. Jehoiakim became king of Judah aged 25 and reigned 11 years.
597 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem.
1st year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 4th year of Jehoiakim’s reign.
Nebuchadnezzar carried off some articles of the temple.
589 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem a 2nd time.
8th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 1st year of Zedekiah’s reign.
Nebuchadnezzar carried off all the treasures of the temple and the king’s house.
Jehoiakim died aged 36; his reign lasted 11 years.
Jehoiachin became king of Judah aged 18 and reigned for 3 months.
Zedekiah became king of Judah aged 21 and reigned for 11 years.
580 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem a 3rd time.
17th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 9th year of Zedekiah’s reign.
578 B.C. 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 11th year of Zedekiah’s reign.
Zedekiah was taken captive aged 32.
And here is a timeline of decrees for the captives to return to Judah. See Appendix 2 for details.
559-530 B.C. Cyrus the Great.
539 B.C. Cyrus conquers Babylon.
Decree of Cyrus, Ezra 1:1-4, to rebuild the temple.
1st year of Cyrus’s reign in Babylon.
530-522 B.C. Cambyses II. Died while enroute to put down a rebellion.
522 B.C. Gaumata. Murdered by Persian aristocrats.
522-486 B.C. Darius the Great. His reign started at the end of 522 B.C.
521-520 B.C. Decree of Darius, Ezra 6:1-23.
520 B.C. 2nd year of Darius’s reign in Babylon.
Work on the temple resumed.
516 B.C. 6th year of Darius’s reign in Babylon.
Temple was finished.
485-465 B.C. Xerxes the Great. Same as King Ahasuerus of the Book of Esther.
465-425 B.C. Artaxerxes I.
459-458 B.C. Decree of Artaxerxes I, Ezra 7:11-28.
7th year of Artaxerxes’s reign in Babylon.
446 B.C. Nehemiah goes to Jerusalem to repair its walls and gates, Nehemiah chapters 1-2.
20th year of Artaxerxes’s reign in Babylon.
Possible solution 1
The most obvious solution is to start the 70 years when king Nebuchadnezzar first besieged Jerusalem and end the 70 years at Cyrus’s conquest of Babylon and his decree.
According to secular history, the date for when Nebuchadnezzar first besieged Jerusalem is 597 B.C., and the date for when Cyrus conquered Babylon is 539 B.C.
Referring to the key points of the 70 years prophecy (listed earlier), here is a table summarizing this possible solution.
| Key Point | Fulfillment |
| 70 years started when Nebuchadnezzar conquered Judah. | First siege of Jerusalem, 597 B.C. |
| 70 years completed when the Jews returned to Judah. | Decree of Cyrus, 539 B.C. |
| 70 years completed when God punished the king of Babylon. | Cyrus conquered Babylon, 539 B.C. |
Unfortunately there is a gap of 58 years between 597 B.C. and 539 B.C. So, with this possible solution we are forced to conclude that one, or both, of the secular dates are incorrect.
Possible solution 2
2 Chronicles 36:17-21 provides a clue about the start of the 70 years and Daniel 9:1-2 provides a clue about the end of the 70 years.
Let’s look at 2 Chronicles 36:17-21 first. It states that the capture of all the temple treasures and the king’s treasures happened to “to fulfill seventy years” (verse 21), indicating that this was the start of the 70 years.
2Ch 36:17 Therefore He [the LORD God] brought against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, on the aged or the weak; He gave them all into his hand.
2Ch 36:18 And all the articles from the house of God, great and small, the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king and of his leaders, all these he took to Babylon.
2Ch 36:19 Then they burned the house of God, broke down the wall of Jerusalem, burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all its precious possessions.
2Ch 36:20 And those who escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon, where they became servants to him and his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia,
2Ch 36:21 to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths. As long as she lay desolate she kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years.
When did king Nebuchadnezzar take all the temple treasures and the royal treasures back to Babylon with him? In the first siege he only took some of the articles of the temple.
Dan 1:1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.
Dan 1:2 And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with some of the articles of the house of God, which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the articles into the treasure house of his god.
It was the second siege, in the 8th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign of Judea, described in 2 Kings 24:11-13, in which king Nebuchadnezzar took all the temple treasures and the royal treasures back to Babylon with him.
2Ki 24:11 And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, as his servants were besieging it.
2Ki 24:12 Then 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 reign, took him prisoner.
2Ki 24:13 And he [Nebuchadnezzar] carried out from there all the treasures of the house of the LORD and the treasures of the king’s house, and he cut in pieces all the articles of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD, as the LORD had said.
This second siege, in the 8th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign of Judea, was in the year 589 B.C.
Now let’s look at Daniel 9:1-2, which provides a clue about the end of the 70 years.
Dan 9:1 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans—
Dan 9:2 in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the LORD through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
How is it that Daniel understood about the 70 years? Was it because Darius had just issued his decree for the Jews to return to Judah, and that Daniel realised this was 70 years from the second siege of Jerusalem? Perhaps Daniel himself had been in captivity for 70 years at this point! This would place Darius’s decree in the first year of his reign, which is certainly a possibility. The decree of Darius was about 520 B.C.
The gap between 589 B.C. and 520 B.C., if both the start and end years are included, is 70 years! Is this what Daniel understood?
There is one problem with this possible solution and that is how to understand Jeremiah 25:12.
Jer 25:12 ‘Then it will come to pass, when seventy years are completed [male], that I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity,’ says the LORD; ‘and I will make it a perpetual desolation.
If the end of the 70 years is the decree of Darius, then the king of Babylon was punished before the 70 years were completed! There is a way to understand Jeremiah 25:12 to resolve this apparent contradiction. The Hebrew word translated completed is male, which can mean confirmed. 40 years into the 70 years (starting 589 B.C.) Babylon was conquered (539 B.C.), and so one could certainly state that 40 years into the 70 years the 70 years was confirmed, as it was well underway, which is when the king of Babylon was punished.
Referring to the key points of the 70 years prophecy (listed earlier), here is a table summarizing this possible solution.
| Key Point | Fulfillment |
| 70 years started when Nebuchadnezzar conquered Judah. | Second siege of Jerusalem, 589 B.C. |
| 70 years completed when the Jews returned to Judah. | Decree of Darius, 520 B.C. |
| 70 years confirmed when God punished the king of Babylon. | Cyrus conquered Babylon, 539 B.C. |
So, with this possible solution we are forced to understand the “when seventy years are completed” in Jeremiah 25:12 to mean “when seventy years are confirmed”.
Conclusion
We have covered two possible solutions for dates when the 70 years occurred. There are no doubt other possible solutions.
The first (and maybe most obvious) solution forces a conclusion that one (or both) of the secular dates are incorrect. This would be rejected by most historians.
The second solution has the benefit of agreeing with the secular dates and is supported by Scriptural clues; however, its disadvantage is that Jeremiah 25:12 must be understood in a way that is not the most straightforward, but nevertheless possible.
Let me know if you have a better solution. Until then, the second solution seems the most likely.
Appendix 1 – A timeline of king Nebuchadnezzar’s conquest of Judah
In the 3rd year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.
Dan 1:1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.
Dan 1:2 And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with some of the articles of the house of God, which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the articles into the treasure house of his god.
The Bible tells us that the 4th year of Jehoiakim’s reign was the 1st year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign.
Jer 25:1 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 (which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon),
So the 3rd year of Jehoiakim’s reign was the 0th Nebuchadnezzar’s reign! What’s going on here? It’s generally accepted that king Nebuchadnezzar started his reign in 605 B.C. and first besieged Jerusalem in 597 B.C. Thus, when the Bible refers a particular year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, it’s counting not from when Nebuchadnezzar ascended to the throne of Babylon, but from when Nebuchadnezzar subjugated Judah. We can summarise this as follows.
605 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar became king of Babylon.
600 B.C. Jehoiakim became king of Judah. (4th year is 597 B.C., so 1st year is 600 B.C.)
597 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem.
1st year of Nebuchadnezzar reign in Judah. 4th year of Jehoiakim’s reign.
Nebuchadnezzar carried off some articles of the temple.
King Nebuchadnezzar took many Jewish prisoners and relocated them in Babylon. Daniel, and his three friends were among them.
Dan 1:3 Then the king instructed Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs, to bring some of the children of Israel and some of the king’s descendants and some of the nobles,
Dan 1:4 young men in whom there was no blemish, but good-looking, gifted in all wisdom, possessing knowledge and quick to understand, who had ability to serve in the king’s palace, and whom they might teach the language and literature of the Chaldeans.
Dan 1:5 And the king appointed for them a daily provision of the king’s delicacies and of the wine which he drank, and three years of training for them, so that at the end of that time they might serve before the king.
Dan 1:6 Now from among those of the sons of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
Dan 1:7 To them the chief of the eunuchs gave names: he gave Daniel the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abed-Nego.
This is also recorded in 2 Kings.
2Ki 23:36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zebudah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah.
2Ki 24:1 In his [Jehoiakim’s] days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years. Then he turned and rebelled against him.
Jehoiakim was succeeded by his son Jehoiachin.
2Ki 24:6 So Jehoiakim rested with his fathers. Then Jehoiachin his son reigned in his place.
2Ki 24:8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. …
Why did Jehoiachin only reign for 3 months? The Bible explains that King Nebuchadnezzar returned and besieged Jerusalem again and took Jehoiachin toBabylon as a prisoner.
2Ki 24:10 At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged.
2Ki 24:11 And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, as his servants were besieging it.
2Ki 24:12 Then 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 reign, took him prisoner.
2Ki 24:13 And he carried out from there all the treasures of the house of the LORD and the treasures of the king’s house, and he cut in pieces all the articles of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD, as the LORD had said.
This second siege of Jerusalem occurred in the 8th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. Nebuchadnezzar took more captives back to Babylon with him.
2Ki 24:14 Also he carried into captivity all Jerusalem: all the captains and all the mighty men of valor, ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths. None remained except the poorest people of the land.
King Jehoiachin was taken captive in Nebuchadnezzar’s 8th year, but others were taken captive a year earlier.
Jer 52:28 These are the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive: in the seventh year, three thousand and twenty-three Jews;
Nebuchadnezzar installed a vassal king, Zedekiah, whose reign lasted 11 years. Zedekiah’s reign therefore ended in 578 B.C.
2Ki 24:15 And he carried Jehoiachin captive to Babylon. The king’s mother, the king’s wives, his officers, and the mighty of the land he carried into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.
2Ki 24:16 All the valiant men, seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths, one thousand, all who were strong and fit for war, these the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon.
2Ki 24:17 Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place, and changed his name to Zedekiah.
2Ki 24:18 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
We can add to our summary as follows:
605 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar became king of Babylon.
600 B.C. Jehoiakim became king of Judah aged 25 and reigned 11 years.
597 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem.
1st year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 4th year of Jehoiakim’s reign.
Nebuchadnezzar carried off some articles of the temple.
589 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem a 2nd time.
8th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 1st year of Zedekiah’s reign.
Nebuchadnezzar carried off all the treasures of the temple and the king’s house.
Jehoiakim died aged 36; his reign lasted 11 years.
Jehoiachin became king of Judah aged 18 and reigned for 3 months; taken captive.
Zedekiah became king of Judah aged 21 and reigned for 11 years.
578 B.C. Zedekiah was taken captive aged 32; his reign lasted 11 years.
Zedekiah was a wicked king who rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar.
2Ki 24:19 He also did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done.
2Ki 24:20 For because of the anger of the LORD this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, that He finally cast them out from His presence. Then Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
Zedekiah’s rebellion prompted Nebuchadnezzar to besiege Jerusalem for a 3rd time. The siege started in Zedekiah’s 9th year and ended in his 11th year with his capture. His sons were killed before his eyes so that it was the last thing he saw before having his eyes put out. He was bound and taken prisoner to Babylon.
2Ki 25:1 Now it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and encamped against it; and they built a siege wall against it all around.
2Ki 25:2 So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.
2Ki 25:3 By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine had become so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land.
2Ki 25:4 Then the city wall was broken through, and all the men of war fled at night by way of the gate between two walls, which was by the king’s garden, even though the Chaldeans were still encamped all around against the city. And the king went by way of the plain.
2Ki 25:5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and they overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his army was scattered from him.
2Ki 25:6 So they took the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and they pronounced judgment on him.
2Ki 25:7 Then they killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, put out the eyes of Zedekiah, bound him with bronze fetters, and took him to Babylon.
2Ki 25:8 And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month (which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem.
2Ki 25:9 He burned the house of the LORD and the king’s house; all the houses of Jerusalem, that is, all the houses of the great, he burned with fire.
2Ki 25:10 And all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard broke down the walls of Jerusalem all around.
2Ki 25:11 Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive the rest of the people who remained in the city and the defectors who had deserted to the king of Babylon, with the rest of
the multitude.
2Ki 25:12 But the captain of the guard left some of the poor of the land as vinedressers and farmers.
Jer 39:1 In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem, and besieged it.
Jer 39:2 In the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the city was penetrated.
Jer 52:3 For because of the anger of the LORD this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, till He finally cast them out from His presence. Then Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
Jer 52:4 Now it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and encamped against it; and they built a siege wall against it all around.
Jer 52:5 So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.
Nebuchadnezzar took more captives back to Babylon with him, both shortly before and after the final fall of Jerusalem.
Jer 52:29 in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem eight hundred and thirty-two persons;
Jer 52:30 in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Jews seven hundred and forty-five persons. All the persons were four thousand six hundred.
We can add these to get our final summary.
605 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar became king of Babylon.
600 B.C. Jehoiakim became king of Judah aged 25 and reigned 11 years.
597 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem.
1st year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 4th year of Jehoiakim’s reign.
Nebuchadnezzar carried off some articles of the temple.
589 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem a 2nd time.
8th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 1st year of Zedekiah’s reign.
Nebuchadnezzar carried off all the treasures of the temple and the king’s house.
Jehoiakim died aged 36; his reign lasted 11 years.
Jehoiachin became king of Judah aged 18 and reigned for 3 months.
Zedekiah became king of Judah aged 21 and reigned for 11 years.
580 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem a 3rd time.
17th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 9th year of Zedekiah’s reign.
578 B.C. 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign in Judah. 11th year of Zedekiah’s reign.
Zedekiah was taken captive aged 32.
Appendix 2 – A timeline of decrees for the captives to return to Judah
There were three decrees (with possibly an inferred fourth) recorded in the Bible regarding the Jews captive in Babylon which allowed them to return to their homeland.
Here is a (generally accepted) timeline of the reigns of the kings of Persia at that time.
559-530 B.C. Cyrus the Great. He conquered Babylon in 539 B.C.
530-522 B.C. Cambyses II. Died while enroute to put down a rebellion.
522 B.C. Gaumata. Murdered by Persian aristocrats.
522-486 B.C. Darius the Great.
485-465 B.C. Xerxes the Great. Same as King Ahasuerus of the Book of Esther.
465-424 B.C. Artaxerxes I.
We will place the various decrees into this timeline.
First Decree
The first decree is found in Ezra 1:1-4 and given by Cyrus, the king of Persia, in the first year of his reign over Babylon (after he captured it). This is generally accepted to be 539 B.C. The decree allowed the captives to return to Jerusalem and build a temple.
Ezr 1:1 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying,
Ezr 1:2 Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the earth the LORD God of heaven has given me. And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem which is in Judah.
Ezr 1:3 Who is among you of all His people? May his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah, and build the house of the LORD God of Israel (He is God), which is in Jerusalem.
Ezr 1:4 And whoever is left in any place where he dwells, let the men of his place help him with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, besides the freewill offerings for the house of God which is in Jerusalem.
Work on the temple started at this first decree but was stopped after a while. It was restarted in the 2nd year of Darius’s reign – presumably when he issued his decree.
Ezr 4:24 Thus 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.
Second Decree
The second decree is found in Ezra 6:1-23 and given by Darius the Great, king of Persia, which is essentially a renewal of Cyrus’ decree. What date was this second decree given? It must have been given before work restarted in the second year of the reign of Darius. So, the second decree was given in the second year (if work on the temple resumed as soon as the decree was given), or possibly the first year, of the reign of Darius.
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Cambyses II died in the summer of 522 B.C., and that his successor, Gaumata, also died in 522 B.C. but reigned for 8 months. Thus Gaumata must have died at the end of 522 B.C. and so Darius the Great ascended to the throne at the end of 522 B.C. This is significant because it means that Darius the Great’s first year was 521 B.C., not 522 B.C. So the second year of the reign of Darius, when the work on the temple restarted, was 520 B.C.
Here is the second decree.
Ezr 6:1 Then King Darius issued a decree, and a search was made in the archives, where the treasures were stored in Babylon.
Ezr 6:2 And at Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of Media, a scroll was found, and in it a record was written thus:
Ezr 6:3 In the first year of King Cyrus, King Cyrus issued a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem: “Let the house be rebuilt, the place where they offered sacrifices; and let the foundations of it be firmly laid, its height sixty cubits and its width sixty cubits,
The temple was finished four years later in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius.
Ezr 6:15 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.
Third Decree
The third decree is found in Ezra 7:11-28 and given by Artaxerxes, king of Persia, in his seventh year of his reign. Artaxerxes reigned 465-425 B.C., so his seventh year was 459-458 B.C. This decree resulted in the rebuilding of Jerusalem under Nehemiah.
Ezr 7:8 And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king.
Ezr 7:11 This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave Ezra the priest, the scribe, expert in the words of the commandments of the LORD, and of His statutes to Israel:
Ezr 7:12 Artaxerxes, king of kings, To Ezra the priest, a scribe of the Law of the God of heaven: Perfect peace, and so forth.
Ezr 7:13 I issue a decree that all those of the people of Israel and the priests and Levites in my realm, who volunteer to go up to Jerusalem, may go with you.
Ezr 7:14 And whereas you are being sent by the king and his seven counselors to inquire concerning Judah and Jerusalem, with regard to the Law of your God which is in your hand;
Ezr 7:15 and whereas you are to carry the silver and gold which the king and his counselors have freely offered to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem;
Ezr 7:16 and whereas all the silver and gold that you may find in all the province of Babylon, along with the freewill offering of the people and the priests, are to be freely offered for the house of their God in Jerusalem—
Under the leadership of Nehemiah, the Jews who returned to Jerusalem rebuilt the wall and the streets, fulfilling, “The street shall be built again, and the wall”, Daniel 9:25. The rebuilding of the wall took a remarkably short time of 52 days.
Neh 6:15 So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of Elul, in fifty-two days.
The books of Ezra and Nehemiah relate that this was a difficult time, fulfilling, “even in troublesome times”, Daniel 9:25.
Fourth Decree
A possible fourth decree is found in Nehemiah chapters 1-2 given by Artaxerxes in his 20th year. Jerusalem had fallen into a state of disrepair.
Neh 1:1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. It came to pass in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the citadel,
Neh 1:2 that Hanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.
Neh 1:3 And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.“
Nehemiah got letters from Artaxerxes granting him permission to travel to Jerusalem and repair its walls and gates.
Neh 2:1 And it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, that I took the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had never been sad in his presence before.
Neh 2:2 Therefore the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart.” So I became dreadfully afraid,
Neh 2:3 and said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire?”
Neh 2:4 Then the king said to me, “What do you request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven.
Neh 2:5 And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.”
Neh 2:6 Then the king said to me (the queen also sitting beside him), “How long will your journey be? And when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time.
Neh 2:7 Furthermore I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given to me for the governors of the region beyond the River, that they must permit me to pass through till I come to Judah,
Neh 2:8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he must give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel which pertains to the temple, for the city wall, and for the house that I will occupy.” And the king granted them to me according to the good hand of my God upon me.
There is no decree mentioned Nehemiah chapters 1-2, but presumably got letters from Artaxerxes in his 20th his reign, which is around 446 B.C.
We can summarise the various decrees in a timeline as follows.
559-530 B.C. Cyrus the Great.
539 B.C. Cyrus conquers Babylon.
Decree of Cyrus, Ezra 1:1-4, to rebuild the temple.
1st year of Cyrus’s reign in Babylon.
530-522 B.C. Cambyses II. Died while enroute to put down a rebellion.
522 B.C. Gaumata. Murdered by Persian aristocrats.
522-486 B.C. Darius the Great. His reign started at the end of 522 B.C.
521-520 B.C. Decree of Darius, Ezra 6:1-23.
520 B.C. 2nd year of Darius’s reign in Babylon.
Work on the temple resumed.
516 B.C. 6th year of Darius’s reign in Babylon.
Temple was finished.
485-465 B.C. Xerxes the Great. Same as King Ahasuerus of the Book of Esther.
465-425 B.C. Artaxerxes I.
459-458 B.C. Decree of Artaxerxes I, Ezra 7:11-28.
7th year of Artaxerxes’s reign in Babylon.
446 B.C. Nehemiah goes to Jerusalem to repair its walls and gates, Nehemiah chapters 1-2.
20th year of Artaxerxes’s reign in Babylon.