What is the new era?
You have probably come across such expressions more than once: “it was in such and such a year BC,” or the phrase: “it was in such and such a year AD.” Remember? The city of Pompeii perished in 79 AD, and Gaius Julius Caesar introduced his calendar in 45 BC. Perhaps it's time to explain what this means. The calendar is the calculation of time according to the movement of heavenly forces. But the heavenly bodies tell us how long a year lasts, but where to start it - they remain silent about this. Wherever you want, start from there! People did just that. After all, different nations have their own chronology, their own starting day, or, as they say, the starting date. Even in our time, not like in ancient times!
In Ancient Egypt, the count of time began from the accession of the pharaoh, the founder of the new dynasty. In Ancient Greece - from the first Olympics, this was the name of the sports activities of the ancient Greeks; in Ancient Rome - from the foundation of the city, and in Rus' in ancient times, chronology was carried out from the biblical creation of the world - it came to us along with the Julian calendar from Byzantium.
The Bible is the oldest book of the Jews, as they say, the oldest literary monument. Different peoples have their own monuments - they are called myths, eddas, sagas - and the ancient Jews have biblical tales. This is a very interesting book; in many historical tales, its scientists find echoes of historical events that once took place in the Ancient East. But there are also simply fairy tales in the Bible, including the legend of the creation of the world, which is very naive and very poetic. Other nations also had such fairy tales, because people really wanted to explain to themselves how it all happened, that there is earth and sky, and forests grow, and all sorts of animals live in them. Where did it all come from? Where did the man himself come from? But even now, not all these questions can be answered by modern scientists, who know a lot - what can we say about the people of antiquity!
But be that as it may, the biblical story of the creation of the world was accepted by the Christian Church; it did not look for another explanation and made it the basis of a new chronology.
In Rus', chroniclers always began their records of various important events with the date and year; “In the summer of 6612 there was a sign in the sun” or: “In the summer of 6553 the Church of Hagia Sophia burned down.” This meant that the event took place in such and such a year from the creation of the world; the word “summer” itself meant the year.
Meanwhile, the Pope approved another starting date - from the birth of Christ, the founder of a new religious teaching - Christianity.
There are no mentions of Jesus Christ in history - apparently, he lives only in legends created by the people. Of course, no one can say exactly when, on what day, in what year a person was born who never existed. But they came up with such a date because they did not want to recognize the old calendar of Julius Caesar. And so the church came up with the idea that Christ was born on December 25 and counting starts from that day. And they say: “Such and such a year before the birth of Christ” or: “After the birth of Christ.”
This new starting date in Russia was introduced by Tsar Peter I after December 31, 7208 from the biblical creation of the world, January 1, 1700 after the birth of Christ.
We still adhere to this calendar - do not create something new! But we just call it the new era or our era, that is, the date from which a new count of time is carried out.
In most countries of the world, including Russia, church and state are separated, but religious traditions have a huge influence on everyday secular life. One of the manifestations of this is the use of the Christian calendar, counting from the birthday of Jesus Christ.
Chronology of the monk Dionysius
The beginning of the Christian chronology is associated with the name of the monk, theologian and chronicler Dionysius the Lesser. Little is known about his life. It appeared in Rome around 500 AD. and was soon appointed abbot of one of the Italian monasteries. He owns several theological works. The main work was Christian chronology, which was accepted in 525, although not immediately and not everywhere. After long and complex calculations, assuming that the year 248 of the Age of Diocletian corresponds to 525 after AD, Dionysius came to the conclusion that Jesus was born in 754 from the founding of Rome.
According to a number of Western theologians, Dionysius the Small made a mistake in his calculations by 4 years. According to the usual chronology, Christmas took place in 750 from the founding of Rome. If they are right, then on our calendar it is not 2014, but 2018. Even the Vatican did not immediately accept the new Christian era. In papal acts, the modern countdown dates back to the time of Pope John XIII, that is, from the 10th century. And only the documents of Pope Eugene IV from 1431 count years strictly from AD.
Based on the calculations of Dionysius, theologians calculated that Jesus Christ was born in 5508 after, according to biblical legend, the god of Hosts created the world.
According to the king's will
In Russian written sources of the late XVII - early XVIII centuries. scribes sometimes put a double date - from the creation of the world and from the Nativity of Christ. The transfer of one system to another is also complicated by the fact that the beginning of the new year has been pushed back twice. In Ancient Rus' it was celebrated on March 1, which was the beginning of a new cycle of agricultural work. Grand Duke Ivan III Vasilyevich in 1492 A.D. (in 7000 from the creation of the world) moved the beginning of the new year to September 1, which was logical.
By this time, the next cycle of agricultural work was completed, and the results of the working year were summed up. In addition, this date coincided with that accepted in the Eastern Church. The Byzantine Emperor Constantine the Great, having won a victory over the Roman consul Maxentius on September 1, 312, granted Christians complete freedom to practice their faith. The fathers of the first Ecumenical Council of 325 determined to begin the new year on September 1 - the day of “commemoration of the beginning of Christian freedom.”
The second advance was carried out by Peter I in 1700 (7208 from the creation of the world). Along with the transition to a new era, he, by analogy with the West, ordered to celebrate the beginning of the new year on January 1.
Let's listen to the apostles and argue
In the texts of the four canonical Gospels there is not a single direct indication of the year when Christ was born (the text of the New Testament is quoted from the canonical synodal translation of “Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Gospel of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John.” Thirteenth edition. St. Petersburg, 1885 ). The only indirect indication remains in the Gospel of Luke: when Jesus began his ministry, he was “about 30 years old” (3.23). He apparently did not know the exact age of Jesus.
In the same chapter, Luke reports that John the Baptist, Jesus' cousin, began his preaching in the 15th year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius (3.1). The well-developed ancient calendar took the year of the founding of Rome as the starting point. All events in the history of the Roman Empire were tied to this conditional date. Christian chroniclers built the date of the birth of Christ into this chronology system, starting with it the countdown of a new era.
Emperor Tiberius Claudius Nero was born in 42 BC and died in 37 AD. He took the imperial throne in 14 AD. The Christian chronicler reasoned something like this. If Jesus was about 30 years old in the 15th year of Tiberius, then this would correspond to 29 AD. That is, Christ was born in the first year AD. However, this system of reasoning raises objections based on other time references noted in the Gospels. The caution of the Apostle Luke in determining the age of Jesus allows deviations in both directions. And with this, the beginning of a new era may be shifted.
Let's try to apply the methods of the theory of testimony, widely used in modern criminology, to solve this complex problem. One of the provisions of the theory is the limitations of human imagination. A person can exaggerate something, downplay something, distort something, collect real facts into unrealistic combinations. But he cannot invent circumstances that do not exist in nature (the patterns of distortion of reality are described by psychology and applied mathematics).
The Gospel contains several references to events that were indirectly related in time to the date of the Nativity of Christ. If it is possible to tie them to an absolute chronological scale, then it will be possible to introduce certain adjustments to the traditional date of Christ.
1. In the Gospel of John, the Jews said that during the interrogation before his execution, Jesus “was not yet fifty years old” (8.57). Traditionally it is believed that Jesus was executed at the age of 33. It is strange that the Jews who saw Jesus could say about a young 33-year-old man that he was not fifty. Perhaps Jesus looked older than his supposed age, or perhaps he was actually older.
2. The Gospel of Matthew explicitly states that Jesus was born during the reign of King Herod (2.1).
The biography of Herod the Great is well known. He was born in 73 and died in April 4 BC. (750 Roman account). He became king of Judea in 37, although he nominally served as head of state since 40. He took possession of the throne with the help of Roman troops. Vengeful and ambitious, infinitely cruel and treacherous, Herod destroyed everyone in whom he saw rivals. Tradition ascribes to him the massacre of two-year-old infants in Bethlehem and the surrounding area upon receiving news of the birth in that city of Jesus, king of Judah.
How reliable is this message of the evangelist? Some church historians tend to consider it a legend on the grounds that only Matthew reported the massacre of the infants. The other three evangelists make no mention of this heinous crime. Josephus, who knew the history of Judea well, did not mention a word about this event. On the other hand, Herod had so many bloody atrocities on his conscience that this could well have taken place.
Without stopping to assess the moral qualities of Herod, let us compare the date of his death with the date of birth of Jesus accepted in the Christian tradition. If the Savior was born in the first year of our era, how could Herod, who died 4 years BC, organize the mass murder of children in Bethlehem?
3. Evangelist Matthew writes about the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt due to the threat from Herod (2.1). This plot has been played out many times in Christian art. On the outskirts of Cairo stands the oldest Christian temple, allegedly built on the site where the house where the Holy Family lived during their stay in Egypt was located. (The Roman writer Celsus also reports about the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt.) Next, Matthew writes that an angel conveyed to Joseph the news that Herod had died and he could return to Palestine (2.20).
Again there is a discrepancy in dates. Herod the Great died in 4 BC. If at this time the Holy Family lived in Egypt, then by the first year AD. Jesus must have been just over four years old.
4. Evangelist Luke claims (2.1) that Joseph and Mary, on the eve of the birth of the Savior, traveled to Bethlehem. It was caused by the need to participate in the census, which was carried out in Judea by order of Caesar Augustus and was organized by the procurator of Syria Quirinius. At present, the fact of the census (but not throughout the entire earth, as Luke wrote, but in Judea) is beyond doubt.
According to Roman tradition, population censuses were always carried out in newly conquered areas. They were purely fiscal in nature. After the final annexation of this area of Palestine to the empire in 6 AD. such a census was carried out. If we follow the exact text of the Gospel of Luke, we will have to admit that Jesus was born in 6 or 7 AD.
And a star rose in the east
Evangelist Matthew reports about a star that indicated to the eastern sages the time of the birth of Jesus (2.2-10.11). This star, called the Star of Bethlehem, has firmly entered into religious tradition, literature, art, and the design of religious holidays in the name of the Nativity of Christ. This heavenly phenomenon is not reported by Mark, Luke, or John. But it is possible that then the inhabitants of Judea really saw an unusual celestial phenomenon. Historians of science are convinced that the astronomers of the Ancient East knew the starry sky very well and the appearance of a new object could not fail to attract their attention.
The mystery of the Star of Bethlehem has long interested scientists. The search for astronomers and other representatives of materialistic sciences was carried out in two directions: what is the physical essence of the Star of Bethlehem and when did it appear in the celestial spheres? Theoretically, the bright star effect could be generated either by the visible approach of two large planets in the sky, or by the appearance of a comet, or by the outbreak of a new star.
The comet version was initially questionable, because comets do not stay in one place for a long time.
Recently, a hypothesis has arisen that the Magi observed UFOs. This option does not stand up to criticism. Celestial objects, regardless of whether they are considered natural formations or the creation of the Supreme Mind, always move in space, only hovering at one point for a short time. And the Evangelist Matthew reports that the Star of Bethlehem was observed for several days at one point in the sky.
Nicolaus Copernicus calculated that around the first year A.D. within two days there was a visible approach of Jupiter and Saturn. At the beginning of the 17th century, Johannes Kepler observed a rare phenomenon: the paths of three planets - Saturn, Jupiter and Mars - intersected so that one star of unusual brightness was visible in the sky. This apparent convergence of three planets happens once every 800 years. Based on this, Kepler suggested that 1600 years ago a convergence took place and the star of Bethlehem flashed in the sky. According to his calculation, Jesus was born in 748 of the Roman era (December 25, 6 BC).
Based on the modern theory of planetary motion, astronomers calculated the position of the giant planets Jupiter and Saturn visible from Earth 2000 years ago. It turned out that in 7 BC. Jupiter and Saturn approached each other three times in the zodiac constellation Pisces. The angular distance between them was reduced to one degree. But they did not merge into one bright point. Recently, American astronomers found that in 2 BC. Venus and Jupiter came so close that it seemed as if a flaming torch had flared up in the sky. But this event took place in June, and Christmas is traditionally celebrated in winter.
It was also recently established that in 4 BC, on the first day of the new year, which was then celebrated in the spring, a new star flashed in the constellation Aquila. Now a pulsar is detected at this point in the sky. Calculations showed that this brightest object was visible from Jerusalem towards Bethlehem. Like the entire starry sky, the object moved from east to west, which coincides with the testimony of the Magi. It is likely that this star attracted the attention of the inhabitants of Judea as a unique and grandiose cosmic phenomenon.
The comet version raises some objections, but modern astronomy does not completely reject it. Chinese and Korean chronicles mention two comets that were observed in the Far East from March 10 to April 7, 5 BC. and in February 4 BC. The work of the French astronomer Pingré “Cosmography” (Paris, 1783) reports that one of these comets (or both, if two messages refer to the same comet) was identified with the Star of Bethlehem back in 1736. Astronomers believe that the comet visible in the Far East could have been observed in Palestine.
Based on this, then Christ was born in 5 or 4 BC. between February and March. Considering that he preached as a mature man, it is logical to assume that at that time he was not 33 years old according to the canon of the church, but closer to forty.
Comparing all the available information, we can make a fairly reasonable assumption that Jesus Christ was born in 4 BC. and today it’s 2018. But, of course, revising the modern calendar is unrealistic.
Boris Sapunov, Valentin Sapunov
To the question AFTER WHAT YEAR DID OUR ERA BEGIN??? given by the author Vadim. the best answer is our era after the birth of Christ, that is, from the 1st year. 1193 BC, this means before the birth of Christ, that is, 2011+1193=3204 years ago.
Answer from Mikhail Nikitin[guru]
zero) and before it -1. Don't you teach math at school?
Answer from Sleep it off[guru]
the era of enlightenment began with the first!
Answer from Neurosis[guru]
there was no zero year! because obviously zero is a mathematical convention. There is 1st year AD. e. , and before it the 1st year BC. e.
PS: okay, I’ll express it in your language: RAM, BC years are counted backwards: 2nd year AD. e. , 1st year AD e, 1st year BC. e. , 2nd year BC uh,. I don’t know how to make RAM even more stupid for you
Answer from Nasopharynx[guru]
It is customary to count from the birth of Christ, and so, of course, much earlier
Answer from David Shabashov[newbie]
I don’t know exactly after what year it began. uh, but I know for sure that 8112 BC. e. was
Answer from DANILA QUEEN[newbie]
from 20-21
Answer from Larisa zhirnova[active]
Since 0001 AD
Answer from Qwerty qwert[newbie]
People who lived before our era lived with a countdown?))
Answer from Boris Baratov[active]
The use of AD in chronology became widespread after the use of the Venerable Bede, starting in 731. Gradually, all countries of Western Europe switched to this calendar. The last in the West, on August 22, 1422, to switch to the new calendar was Portugal (from the Spanish era).
In Russia, the last day of the Constantinople era was December 31, 7208 from the creation of the world; By decree of Peter I, the next day was officially counted according to the new calendar from the “Nativity of Christ” - January 1, 1700.
Answer from Anna Kovaleva[active]
Our era appeared in 124 AD. e until 97 AD uh
Answer from Vovchik[newbie]
The chronology from the Nativity of Christ was introduced in 525 by the abbot of one of the Roman monasteries, Dionysius the Small.
Answer from Tatyana Mikheeva[newbie]
Our era began in 1193
Answer from Victor Vysotsky[newbie]
7525 thousand years ago the counting of years began. Jesus Christ was born, as I calculated from my own mathematics, in 5508. but in 7208 Peter 1 and blah blah blah in short said that the count will be from the Nativity of Christ. Therefore, the year 7208 turned into 1700 and this is in Rus'. other countries, as I read history, began counting the years from the Nativity of Christ much earlier! But I don’t know from what end of this era to count. either from Christmas or from the first year. Of course it’s more interesting from the first year. so you start to believe in people more.. otherwise if everything is closer to Christmas it will be boring... and the further from Christmas the more pleasant it is that the people in those years were so smart and did such things.. that after 7525 years we see them on TV We're happy to watch! how they made history!
Answer from Valery Pronichev[newbie]
the last year BC was 3761 this year was taken as 0 then went 1
Answer from Vitalik kartuzov[newbie]
Hmm, there are so many pseudo-clever people who don’t understand what they want, but still answer obviously and uselessly, while insulting and making others look stupid.
Dude, I understand you, the birth of Christ is the first and only reason for the beginning of a new era, so the new era interrupted 10,000 years of the old one (this is not an exact number, we will never know the exact one)
You will see that the Bible clearly says that the above statement is false.
Firstly: The Adventist Church, like many others, teaches that the order to rebuild Jerusalem was received by Ezra in the 7th year of the government of Artaxerxes I in 457 BC From this year, ignoring the principle of biblical time (see page 2), the church begins to count the 69 weeks as 483 years (we will discuss these 69 weeks later) and gets the 27th year, which they believe Jesus was baptized(457 BC - 483 years +1 = 27 years. ). .
However, this view has no reliable basis. Luke said quite clearly (3:1) that John the Baptist began his baptismal mission in the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar. Tiberius became Caesar in 14, which means his 15th year was 29. This means that Jesus could not have been baptized before the age of 29. The Bible says that John the Baptist began his mission in the year 29, it does not say that Jesus was baptized in the same year - the 29th.
In fact, when Jesus came to be baptized, John was well known
“ Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region around Jordan” (Matt. 3:5; Mark 1:5), so most likely he preached for longer than a few months (no one knows which day Luke considered the beginning of the year. At that time, according to several calendars, the year began on the day Augustus' birth (September 23) http ://en. wikipedia. org/ wiki/ Julian_ year_(calendar ) . And if this were so, 29 would have just begun).Adventists teach that the year 27 was the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius, as he stood in for Emperor Augustus for the last two years before his death. Thus, they teach, his 15th year of reign was actually the 27th year. However, a careful study of the reign of Augustus clearly shows that that short time (less than two years) when Tiberius was openly recognized by Augustus as his successor and was admitted to meetings of the Senate, was not in fact the time of his co-rule: he did not issue laws, did not take take responsibility for the empire.
Tiberius was not a leader; he did not know how to speak either with the people or with the Senate. Augustus brought him closer to himself because Tiberius was not his competitor; Augustus was not afraid that Tiberius would attract the respect and honor of his subordinates. Until his death, Augustus remained of a strong mind and sound memory; in the year of his death, he wrote down all his victories that he accomplished during his life (“Acts of the Divine Augustus”). Augustus did not need helpers.
Being a selfish and proud ruler, well aware of his merits in strengthening the empire, he liked it when people saw the contrast between him, albeit an old but wise leader, a bright personality, and the future ruler, a wild, aloof, suspicious person, like Tiberius.
At that time, no one perceived Tiberius as the ruler of the empire.
Even after the death of Augustus, Tiberius was not ready to accept responsibility for the empire. According to Chronicles of Tacitus , very hesitantly, he asked the Senate if he could assume control of only some part of the state. The Senate answered him that the empire could not be divided and must be ruled by one mind.
The successor of Caesar, not by blood, but by Caesar's own choice, Augustus perfectly satisfied the expectations of the Romans. As the first Roman emperor, Augustus organized the local government and army, restored Rome, and patronized culture and the arts.With his reign, endless wars ceased, and 200 years of peace began, which went down in history under the namePax Augustus ( or Pax Romana) . What he did for the empire was so great and seemed impossible for a man that many considered him a god and worshiped him even after his death.
While Augustus was alive, Tiberius was only a shadow of a leader. The Senate, and especially the masses, never accepted him as the ruler of the empire while Augustus was alive. Luke could not attribute the last two years of Augustus to the reign of Tiberius in any way.That is why in the 29th year, and not in the 27th year, John began to preach, and Jesus could come to him in the 29th year or later.
http://classics.mit.edu/Augustus/deeds.html
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/
suetonius-augustus.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiberius http://www.jerryfielden.com/essays/suetonius.htm
http://www.roman-emperors.org/tiberius.htm
http://www.romansonline.com/Persns.asp?IntID=
2&Ename=Tiberius
http://www.unrv.com/early-empire/tiberius.php
Second: In the traditional explanation of the prophecy there is no logic in the order of the specified events. See for yourself: first the temple was built, then the city, then the city wall. From the above books we know that the Jews were surrounded by enemies who were constantly trying to prevent the restoration of the temple. The neighboring tribes were aggressive and dangerous to the Jews. The Jews could not build the temple and the city without first rebuilding the city walls.The city wall had far from aesthetic purposes, but protective ones. She had to be restored first.
Let's start studying these books step by step.
From history we know that in 539 BC. Cyrus II (559-521 BC) defeated Babylon and gave the order to rebuild the temple (Ezra 1:1-3). During the government of Cyrus, in 539-8 BC, the first Jews came out of Babylonian captivity to Jerusalem and other Jewish cities with Sheshbazzar (Ezra 1:8,11), the governor (Ezra 5:14), who first laid foundations of the temple (Ezra 5:16).
It was Sheshbazzar, not Zerubbabel, who received the silver and gold of Cyrus (Ezra 1:8). Sheshbazzar's name was not mentioned in the list of people who went out with Zerubbabel, because Sheshbazzar led another group - the very first one.
The second outcome took place later, with Zerubbabel eat (Ezra 2:2), governor (Haggai 1:14). When they came and began to build the city of Jerusalem, the neighboring nations wrote a letter to King Artaxerxes I complaining about the Jews, in the letter they said: “ Let it be known to the king that the Jews who went out from you, they came to us - to Jerusalem, they are building this rebellious and worthless city, and they are making walls, and they have already erected their foundations” (Ezra 4:12). So when did the exodus with Zoroabel take place? To the government of Artaxerxes I (465-424 BC). What did Zerubbabel’s people do immediately upon arrival? They began to repair the walls and install foundations.
Nehemiah (or Tirshatha 1:1; 10:1) was a very wealthy and respected man (Neh. 7:70). He first arrived in Jerusalem with a group Zerubbabel (Neh.7:7; Ezra 2:2) and together with the priest Ezra he participated in the Feast of Tabernacles (Neh.8:9,17), which they did not have “ from the days of Joshua the son of Nun”(Neh.8:1,17). The festival was held in the seventh month (Ezra 3:4,6), in the first year after Zerubbabel's group returned to Jerusalem (Ezra 3:6,8). After this, Nehemiah returned to Babylon to continue his work as cupbearer at the court of Artaxerxes. I.About 10 years later (we will discuss this time period later), when he was in Susa (Neh. 1:1, indicates that Nehemiah did not stay in one place all these years), he heard that the people who had gone to Jerusalem - “ in great distress and humiliation; and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are burned with fire” (Neh. 1:3). Nehemiah was very annoyed (1:3) because he was with Zerubbabel's men when they were repairing the walls. Probably neighboring tribes who were against the restoration of Jerusalem burned the gatesThe Bible says that in the second year after their return (Ezra 3:8) the foundations of the temple were laid (Ezra 3:10). As we know, Sheshbazzar had already laid the foundations of the temple (Ezra 5:16). This only means that too many years have passed since Sheshbatzar laid the foundations, and they were already partially destroyed, and probably were not even finished: “Then that Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the house of God in Jerusalem; and since then it has been under construction until now, and is not finished yet"(Ezra 5:16)due to the strong opposition that Jews experienced from their neighbors.
In the 20th year of the reign of King Artaxerxes I (reigned from 465 to 424 BC), Nehemiah asked the king for permission to go to the city of his ancestors and rebuild it. The king sent Nehemiah to build the city (Neh. 2:1,5,6) and gave him wood for construction city wall and gate Jerusalem (2:8). Nehemiah did not say that this was a decree to rebuild the city, most likely it was simply the king's response to his request.
“On the day of building your walls - on that day the decree will be removed” - said the prophet (Mic. 7:11).
The wall was built despite all odds (Neh. 4:16,17), despite threats to kill Nehemiah (6:10) in 52 days (6:15). Only after the wall was completed was it possible to build anything inside Jerusalem without the threat of death from the surrounding tribes.
Nehemiah said: "you see the distress we are in; Jerusalem is empty and its gates were burned with fire; let's go to, Let's build the wall of Jerusalem and we won't be like this again humiliation "(2:17). Consequently, Jerusalem was empty until the wall was built. Construction of the city walls was a priority.
During Nehemiah's time Jerusalem “ was spacious and great: but there were few people in it, and no houses were built ” (Neh. 7:4).
The decree on the restoration of Jerusalem was given by Nehemiah, as governor (Neh. 5:14), after the completion of the construction of the city walls. Thus, the decree to restore the city of Jerusalem was given by Nehemiah in the same 20th year of the reign of King ArtaxerxesI , in 446 BC. If it was Ezra who received the order to rebuild Jerusalem 14 years earlier than the time of Nehemiah (as is generally believed), then some buildings would already have been built in the city.
The incorrect conclusion that Nehemiah's time came after the time of Ezra, and the city and temple had already been rebuilt before Nehemiah arrived, was probably made because the Bible reports that in Nehemiah's time there was a temple of God in Jerusalem (Neh. 6:10) . However, at that time, even the place where the temple was before was called the house of God.
So, the altar was built in the first year after arrival Zerubbabel's group (Ezra 3:1,2,6,8), in the seventh month. In the same seventh month (Neh. 9:1) they “ cast...lots for the delivery of firewood,...to bring them toto the house of our God ” (10:34). This means that there was only an altar, but the place was already called the house of God.
Ezra said: “ In the second year after his arrivalto the house of God in Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel... and Joshua... and the rest of their brothers, the priests and Levites... laid foundation of the temple of the Lord ”(3:8,11). Thus, the place was called the house of God even when the house had no foundation.
At the time of Nehemiah there was no temple in Jerusalem. The Bible says that Artaxerxes I stopped all work on the temple and work did not continue until the second year of the reign of Darius (Ezra 4:24). If the temple had already been built when Nehemiah came, how would Artaxers have stopped work on the temple? In addition to Artaxerxes' order to stop work on the temple, Ezra also mentions Artaxerxes I's assistance in the construction of the temple (Ezra 6:14). This leads to a misunderstanding: did he stop the work or help with the work? The king stopped work on the temple, but allowed Nehemiah to complete the fortress at the house of God (Neh. 2:8; 13:7). It was a fortress where there was an altar, on the site of a temple, and it was called the house of God. The temple had not yet been built.
The Temple was rebuilt when all the people of Jerusalem already had their own houses (Haggai 1:4,9), and in the time of Nehemiah there were no houses yet (Nehemiah 7:4). Thus, contrary to traditional claims, the temple could not have been built before Nehemiah.
In chapter 4, Ezra described the difficulties of rebuilding the temple that the Jews went through from the beginning of the exodus from Babylon to the time of Ezra. Read this chapter carefully.
The neighboring nations were hostile to the Jews (Ezra 4:5): “all the days of Cyrus (Cyrus II , from the exodus from Babylon in 538 BC. before521 BC)… and until the reign of Darius(Darius I 521-486 BC)".
During the reign of Darius' son I – Ahasuerus (486-465 BC) an accusation was brought against the Jews (Ezra 4:6), which occurred at the same time when the king issued a decree for the extermination of all Jews in his kingdom (Esther 3:7,13. In Russian translations of the book of Esther, the name of Artaxerxes is sometimes used instead of the name Ahasuerus. This is an incorrect translation).
After this Artaxerxes (Artaxerxes I reigned 465-424 BC) stopped all work in the temple and “ this stop lasted until the second year of the reign of Darius” (Ezra 4:7,21,24). It was Darius II , he reigned from 424 to 404 BC.
Thus, in the second year of the reign of Darius II (Ezra 5:5), in 423 BC. “ The Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel... and the spirit of Jesus... and they came to do work in the house of the Lord... in the second year of King Darius” (Haggai 1:14-15). Zechariah (4:9) said: “ The hands of Zerubbabel laid the foundation of this House, and his hands will finish it” (The Jews actually believed that Zerubbabel, and not Sheshbazzar, laid the foundation of the temple, because almost nothing remained of the first foundation and it was not even finished: “ and since then it has been under construction until the village, and is not yet finished”(Ezra 5:16).
As we see, if Zerubbabel came to Jerusalem in 538 BC, as is commonly believed, then in the time of DariusII , i.e. in 116 years, he would no longer be alive.
When King Darius II It was reported that the Jews began to build the temple by order of King Cyrus; he first ordered that this order be found in the book depository (Ezra 5:17,6:1). And only after making sure that such an order from Cyrus really existed, he issued a decree to continue the construction of the temple. Cyrus II The Great One was the legendary king of Persia, and all his decrees were authoritative for every subsequent king. Therefore, the Jews boldly referred to the decree of Cyrus even at a time when other kings were in power. This is how Zerubbabel's people told their neighbors about Cyrus' order during the reign of Artaxerxes I (Ezra 4:3).
In the 6th year of the reign of Darius II (Ezra 6:15) God's temple was finished. So, the temple was rebuilt in 419 BC.
