Commentary on Daniel, Chapter 9 · Doctrines 1 · Question 53
Quest. 53. Of the particular year… of the second part of the Persian Mona…hi… … the finishing of the Temple to the ende thereof.
1. Iunius in his first edition summeth these yeares to 90. or thereabout, giuing vntounto Longimanus 37. in whose 6. the Temple was finished, to Darius Nothus 18. to M…emon 10. to Ochus 22. to Arsen 3. and Darius the … raigned 6. yeares: wherein he misseth not greatly the generall somme of the Persian yeares, but he counteth onelyonly 36. to the finishing of the Temple in Longimanus 6. yeare, and 90. afterward: whereas so few as 30. yeares, cannot be giuen to the fowre former kings. Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius the sonne of Hystaspis; and Xerxes, which raig…ed before Longimanus.
2. Oecolampadous counteth an 160. yeares after the reedifying of the Temple to the ende of the Persian Monar…hie, which he collect… th…s: Darius in his account raigned 4. yeares after the temple and citie repaired, Xerxes … Artehanus 7. moneths; A…taxerxes Longhand 40. yeares, Xerxes the … moneths, Segdia…us 8. moneths, Darius Nothus 19. yeares, … 40. yeares. … 26. Arseo. 4. Darius the last 6. But here beside that he counteth three among the Persian kings. …, Xgrxes the 2. Segdi…s whose yeares of raigne are not reckoned but the best historians, as is shewed before, quest. 37. he erreth in referring the reedifying of the Temple to Darius Hystaspis raigne, the third king of Persia; whereas there are reckoned in Ezra, after Cyrus, Ass…us, Artaxerxes, and then Darius, vnderunder whom the Temple was builded, Ezra. 4. 7. and 24.
3. Tertullia… first setteth downe Darius to hauehave … 19. yeares, then A…taxerxes 41. after him Ochus 24. then Argus one, and the last Darius 21. So he seemeth in all to account but an 106. yeares for the persian Monarchie: whereof 49. beeing expired at the reedifying of the Temple, there will remaine but 57. to the ende of that Monarchie. But herein is Teriullian deceiued, in making but fiue kings of Persia in all.
4. Iunius in his third edition, in his annotations vponupon this place, summeth the yeares from the 2. of Nothus to the ende of the Persian Monarchie, to 93. for Nothus he, counteth 19. yeares in all, and from his second 18. for Mnemon 43. Ochus 23. Arses 3. Darius the last 6. so also Polanus: which yeares beeing added to the 106. which he thinketh were expired from Cyrus first, at the 2. of Nothus, make 200. saue one. But the age of Nehemiah, who saw the beginning and ende of that Monarchie, will not permit, that so many yeares be allowed vntounto it.
5. Pintus giuing vntounto the Persian Monarchie 191. yeares, and counting 48. vntounto the sinishing of the Temple, must leaue an 143. yeares or thereabout, for the time of that Monarchie, after the finishing of the Temple: But vponupon the former reason of Nehemiahs age, this can not be admitted.
6. Pererius from the 1. of Cyrus to the 2. of Nothus, counteth an 140. yeares, and from thence to the ende of that Monarchie some 94. yeares: M. Lively also agreeth with him in the same account, Pers. Monarch. p. 53. they differ but in 2. yeares: Pererius allotteth to the Persian Monorchie 232. yeares, lib. 13. in Dan. M. Lively 230. But it is sufficiently shewed before, that the Persian Monarchie could not continue so long, qu. 43.
7. But Montanus counting by the high Priests goeth beyond them in all in his reckoning for the latter part of the Persian Monarchie:in apparat. lib. Daniel. for he giueth vntounto Eliashib 41. yeares, in whose 14. yeare he saith Nenemiah returned to the king of Persia after the citie was repaired, which was in 32. yeare of Mnemons raigne, Nehem. 5. 14. there remaine then of Eliashibs yeares 27. then Ioiada succeeded 25. yeares, Iohanan 24. yeares, Iaddua, to the time of Alexander 27. thus there shall be an 103. yeares from the 32. yeare of Mnemon, to the ende of the Persian Monarchie; vntounto the which adde the 32. yeares of Mnemon, and 7. yeares of Darius, there will arise an 142. yeares from the finishing of the Temple to the ende of the Persian Monarchie, which Nehemiahs age will by no meanes endure.
8. This then is the best resolution, that although in such great varietie and difference, the particular yeares can not well be assigned vntounto the seuerall kings of Persia, which succeeded after the finishing of the Temple, yet the whole summe is must not extende beyond 80. or 81. or thereabout: so that thus the whole summe is made vp: 49. yeares are counted from Cyrus 1. to the 6. of Darius, when the Temple was finished: and thence to the ende of the Persian Monarchie, if 81. yeares more be added, we shall hauehave the whole summe of an 130. yeares: this account followeth Beroaldus, Iunius in his annotations, edit. 1. H. Broughton in his proleg. in Dan. who last named doth thus parcell out the yeares: from Cyrus to Xerxes 6. when he warred against Grecia, he giueth 30. yeares, to Artaxerxes with his father and alone, 42. to Ochus, called also Darius Nothus, alone 8. with his father 16. to Mnemon 42. to Ochus 3. to Darius the last 5. or 6. the whole summe is an 130.