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Biblical History Atlas

Historical event dossier · Political, Construction

Artaxerxes sends Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem, Nisan of his twentieth year (Neh 2:1–8)

Researched — not human reviewedRevision 2Last reviewed: not reviewed

No review items are open for this dossier. Classifications remain machine-proposed unless marked as approved by the owner.

Biblical references

Text: World English Bible (public domain). The ESV and NKJV are the preferred study translations and are referenced, not reproduced.

Nehemiah 2:1–8Narration
1 In the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, when wine was before him, I picked up the wine, and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad before in his presence. 2 The king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing else but sorrow of heart.” Then I was very much afraid. 3 I said to the king, “Let the king live forever! Why shouldn’t my face be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste, and its gates have been consumed with fire?” 4 Then the king said to me, “What is your request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you would send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may build it.” 6 The king said to me (the queen was also sitting by him), “How long will your journey be? When will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me, and I set a time for him. 7 Moreover I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the River, that they may let me pass through until I come to Judah; 8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house that I will occupy.” The king granted my requests, because of the good hand of my God on me.

Connection: The wall completed on 25 Elul after 52 days. (confidence: high)

Biblical account

Layer: Biblical text

In Nisan of Artaxerxes's twentieth year Nehemiah, serving the king wine, could not hide his sadness; asked why, he said the city of his fathers' tombs lay waste; asked what he wanted, he prayed and requested to be sent to rebuild it; the king, with the queen beside him, set a time and granted letters to the governors beyond the River and to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, for timber.

Historical overview

Layer: Historical reconstruction · Period: Achaemenid Persian rule over Judah

On Babylonian reckoning Artaxerxes I's twentieth year began 1 Nisan = 13 Apr 445. Anderson instead dates 1 Nisan 445 to 14 March from an astronomical new moon of 13 March.[1, 2]

Kingdoms: Achaemenid Persian Empire, Kingdom of Judah

Date and chronology derivation

Ranges are computed by the project's deterministic chronology engine from the biblical statements and each model's reign anchors. They are reconstructions, not independent dates.

446 BC – 444 BC

Model-independent (applies under every chronology model) · precision: regnal year

How this range was derived

Earliest bound

  1. “In the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king” — Artaxerxes sends Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem, Nisan of his twentieth year (Neh 2:1–8) in regnal year reign of Artaxerxes I (Longimanus) (year 20) [reckoned accession, nisan new year] (Nehemiah 2:1)[1]Assumption: Nisan reckoning: year 20 began 1 Nisan = 13 Apr 445 (Parker & Dubberstein table). Neh 1:1 places Chislev "in the twentieth year" before Nisan of the twentieth year, which suggests an autumn (Tishri) year count; on that count the Nisan in question is spring 444. Not modelled here; recorded as a competing reconstruction.

Latest bound

  1. “So the wall was finished in the twenty-fifth day of Elul, in fifty-two days” — The wall completed on 25 Elul after fifty-two days (Neh 6:15–19) in regnal year reign of Artaxerxes I (Longimanus) (year 20) [reckoned accession, nisan new year] (Nehemiah 6:15)[1, 3]Assumption: The year is not stated; the twentieth year of 2:1 is meant (Keil). On Parker & Dubberstein's table Elul of year 20 began 8 September 445, so 25 Elul = 2 October 445 and the 52 days began about 12 August (Keil: 3 Ab).
  2. “Nisan (2:1) … Elul (6:15)” — The wall completed on 25 Elul after fifty-two days (Neh 6:15–19) months later Artaxerxes sends Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem, Nisan of his twentieth year (Neh 2:1–8) (Nehemiah 6:15)Assumption: Nisan to 25 Elul of the same year is under six months.

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What else was happening? (model-independent)

  • Daniel's refusal of the king's food and the ten-day test (Dan 1:8–16): 606 BC – ?
  • Nebuchadnezzar's golden image on the plain of Dura (Dan 3:1–7): 603 BC – ?
  • Nebuchadnezzar's decree honouring the God of the three Judeans (Dan 3:28–30): 603 BC – ?
  • The refusal of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and the fiery furnace (Dan 3:8–27): 603 BC – ?
  • The thirty-day decree and Daniel in the lions' den (Dan 6:4–23): 539 BC – ?
  • Darius appoints 120 satraps and three chief officials (Dan 6:1–3, 28): 539 BC – ?
  • The accusers punished; Darius's decree honouring the God of Daniel (Dan 6:24–27): 539 BC – ?
  • Artaxerxes I (Longimanus) (reign): 465 BC – 423 BC
  • Hanani's report at Susa and Nehemiah's prayer (Chislev, Artaxerxes's 20th year): 447 BC – 445 BC
  • Gedaliah governs from Mizpah and is assassinated (2 Kgs 25:22–26): 589 BC – ?
  • Accusations to Ahasuerus and the Rehum–Shimshai letter to Artaxerxes; the city's rebuilding stopped (Ezra 4:6–23): 537 BC – ?
  • Nehemiah arrives, inspects the walls by night and calls for rebuilding (Neh 2:9–20): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • The rebuilding of Jerusalem's wall and gates, section by section (Neh 3): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • Mockery, threats and the armed builders (Neh 4): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • The debt crisis and the remission of pledges (Neh 5:1–13): 446 BC – 423 BC
  • Plots against Nehemiah: Ono, the open letter, Shemaiah (Neh 6:1–14): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • The wall completed on 25 Elul after fifty-two days (Neh 6:15–19): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • Nehemiah's first governorship: twelve years, 20th–32nd year of Artaxerxes (445–433 BC): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • Jerusalem guarded under Hanani and Hananiah; the registry of the first returnees found (Neh 7:1–5): 446 BC – ?
  • Ezra reads the Law on the first day of the seventh month (Neh 7:73b–8:12): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • The Feast of Booths kept "as it is written" (Neh 8:13–18): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • The sealed covenant to keep the law and support the temple (Neh 9:38–10:39): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • The fast of the twenty-fourth day and the Levites' confession (Neh 9): 446 BC – 444 BC
  • Jerusalem repopulated: one in ten by lot (Neh 11): 446 BC – ?
  • The dedication of the wall of Jerusalem (Neh 12:27–13:3): 446 BC – 423 BC
  • The priestly and Levitical registers to the days of Jaddua (Neh 12:1–26): 446 BC – ?
  • The first "burden" of Zechariah 9–11 (undated oracle collection): 518 BC – ?
  • The second "burden" of Zechariah 12–14 (undated oracle collection): 518 BC – ?
  • Malachi's disputations with priests and people (Mal 1–4; undated, mid-fifth century BC): 465 BC – 423 BC
  • The institution of Purim; Mordecai second to the king (Esth 9:20–10:3): 474 BC – ?

Ancient and modern geography

Location confidence assumes the event as described. Whether it occurred is assessed in the claims below.

PlaceConnection to this eventLocation identification
JerusalemJerusalem (Old City / City of David)Object of the decreeLocation confidence: certainPleiades representative point: certain[4]

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Claims, evidence and classifications

Each claim is classified on its own. A classification describes the evidence for that specific claim, not for the event as a whole.

Artaxerxes I's twentieth year began in spring 445 BC on Babylonian reckoning.

Independently corroboratedMachine-proposedExternal evidence

Babylonian tablets and the Syene papyrus fix Artaxerxes I's accession in 465/464 and his reign to 424/423; year 20 began 1 Nisan 445. Whether Nehemiah counted the same way is a separate question (see competing reconstructions).

Supporting

  • Accession year attested 3 Jan 464 (Cowley 6); year 20 begins 13 Apr 445.[1]Strength: direct·pp. 15–16; table·Claim checked

Research date 2026-10-13

Nehemiah's king was Artaxerxes I, so his commission fell in 445 BC.

Strongly supportedMachine-proposedHistorical reconstruction

The Elephantine letter of 408/407 shows Bigvai as governor of Judah and the sons of Sanballat active, so Nehemiah's 32nd year (Neh 13:6) must belong to Artaxerxes I (433), placing the twentieth year in 445 (Cowley); Keil and the commentators read the same. Josephus's Xerxes is out of line with both the biblical names and the papyri.

Supporting

  • Bigvai was governor in 408, so the 32nd year of Neh 13:6 must be Artaxerxes I = 433 B.C., "a fixed point".[5]Strength: indirect·p. 109·Claim checked
  • The twentieth year of Artaxerxes (Longimanus).[3]Strength: indirect·pp. 163–164·Claim checked

Challenging

  • Nehemiah was cupbearer to Xerxes and arrived in his twenty-fifth year.[6]Strength: direct·Ant. 11.5.6·Claim checked

Research date 2026-10-13

Evidence by type

The same evidence regrouped by kind of source. Each item names the claims it bears on.

Archaeological evidence

None recorded for this event.

Scientific findings

None recorded for this event.

Ancient documents

Modern news and announcements

None recorded for this event.

Reference works and summaries

Historical disputes and competing reconstructions

  • Spring 445 BC (Nisan reckoning)

    Parker & Dubberstein table (operator conversion); Anderson (14 Mar 445); D. Guzik

    Year 20 counted from Nisan 445.[1, 2, 7]

  • Spring 444 BC (Tishri reckoning)

    Autumn new-year solution, one of three listed by Noss & Thomas (UBS Handbook, 2005)

    Neh 1:1 (Chislev, year 20) precedes 2:1 (Nisan, year 20); counting years from an autumn new year makes this consistent and puts the Nisan in 444.[8]

  • Emend Neh 1:1 to "the nineteenth year", or count from the accession day

    Commentators listed by Noss & Thomas (2005)

    Either a textual emendation or a count of regnal years from the king's accession anniversary rather than a calendar new year. Noss & Thomas advise translating the text as it stands.[8]

  • Nehemiah under Xerxes (25th year)

    Josephus, Ant. 11.5.6–8

    Josephus also has the wall take two years and four months (against Neh 6:15's fifty-two days).[6]

  • 1 Nisan 445 = 14 March (Anderson) or 13 April (Parker & Dubberstein)

    D. Guzik, following Sir Robert Anderson: "March 14, 445 B.C."; Parker & Dubberstein table: 13 April 445

    See the seventy-weeks prophecy record, where Anderson's reckoning is evaluated.[1, 9]

Related passages and events

FromRelationshipToBasis
this eventDirect referencehigh · Biblical textNehemiah 6:15The wall completed on 25 Elul after 52 days.
this eventPreceded byhigh · Biblical textHanani's report at Susa and Nehemiah's prayer (Chislev, Artaxerxes's 20th year)Hanani's report in Chislev led to the petition in Nisan.

Prophetic relationships

No prophecy or proposed-fulfillment relationships have been recorded for this event.

Unanswered questions and research gaps

  • Horn & Wood (1954), JNES 13, not accessible; the Elephantine papyri themselves not analysed.
  • Horn & Wood (1954) on the Elephantine double dates and Judean regnal reckoning not accessible.

Research process

3 logged searches
DateQueryWhereUseful
2026-10-13archive.org: Anderson, The Coming PrinceFirst download returned HTTP 500; retried successfully.archive.org1
2026-10-13Parker & Dubberstein: Darius I, Xerxes, Artaxerxes I evidence and year tableslocal text1
2026-10-13Nehemiah 1–2 unit: Cowley No. 30; Josephus Ant. 11.5.6; Keillocal text3

Sources

  1. 1.
    Parker, Richard A., Dubberstein, Waldo H.. Babylonian Chronology 626 B.C.–A.D. 45 (SAOC 24). University of Chicago Press (Oriental Institute). archive.orgClaim checkedAcademic monographRead through the Internet Archive OCR text of the Oriental Institute PDF; OCR has digit errors (e.g. "589" for 539) checked against context. The 1956 revised edition was not consulted.Verification log
  2. 2.
    Anderson, Sir Robert. The Coming Prince, or the Seventy Weeks of Daniel (11th edition). Pickering & Inglis (Glasgow), n.d. (first ed. 1881). archive.orgClaim checkedTheological commentaryRead through the Internet Archive OCR text (eleventh edition). Archive metadata gives 1900; the volume itself is undated.Verification log
  3. 3.
    Keil, C. F., Taylor, Sophia (trans.). Biblical Commentary on the Books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther (Clark's Foreign Theological Library). T. & T. Clark, Edinburgh, 1873. archive.orgClaim checkedScholarly commentaryRead through the Internet Archive OCR text.Verification log
  4. 4.
    Pleiades contributors. Ierusalem/Hierosolyma — Pleiades place 687928. Pleiades (pleiades.stoa.org). pleiades.stoa.orgClaim checkedInstitutional databaseRepresentative point read from the Pleiades JSON record: lon 35.234978, lat 31.7771895.Verification log
  5. 5.
    Cowley, A. E.. Aramaic Papyri of the Fifth Century B.C.. Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1923. archive.orgClaim checkedAcademic monographRead through the Internet Archive OCR text (No. 30 and its introduction; No. 21 introduction).Verification log
  6. 6.
    Josephus, Whiston, William (trans.). Josephus, Antiquities 11.5.6–8 (trans. W. Whiston). Project Gutenberg #2848. www.gutenberg.orgClaim checkedAncient primary textVerification log
  7. 7.
    Guzik, David. Daniel 9 — Enduring Word Bible Commentary. Enduring Word. enduringword.comClaim checkedTheological commentaryInterpretive resource — not historical corroboration.Verification log
  8. 8.
    Noss, Philip A., Thomas, Kenneth J.. A Handbook on Nehemiah (UBS Helps for Translators) — on Neh 2:1. United Bible Societies, 2005 (via Translation Insights and Perspectives). tips.translation.bibleClaim checkedScholarly commentaryExcerpt quoted with permission on the TIPs site.Verification log
  9. 9.
    Guzik, David. Nehemiah 2 — Enduring Word Bible Commentary. Enduring Word. enduringword.comClaim checkedTheological commentaryInterpretive resource — not historical corroboration.Verification log