Biblical references
Text: World English Bible (public domain). The ESV and NKJV are the preferred study translations and are referenced, not reproduced.
15 So the wall was finished in the twenty-fifth day of Elul, in fifty-two days. 16 When all our enemies heard of it, all the nations that were around us were afraid, and they lost their confidence; for they perceived that this work was done by our God. 17 Moreover in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah’s letters came to them. 18 For there were many in Judah sworn to him because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah the son of Arah; and his son Jehohanan had taken the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah as wife. 19 Also they spoke of his good deeds before me, and reported my words to him. Tobiah sent letters to put me in fear.
Biblical account
Layer: Biblical text
The wall was finished on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days; when the enemies and surrounding nations heard, they were disheartened, perceiving that the work was of God. Nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, to whom they were bound by oath, since he was son-in-law of Shecaniah and his son married Meshullam's daughter.
Historical overview
Layer: Historical reconstruction · Period: 2 October 445 BC (on Parker & Dubberstein's table)
Elul of Artaxerxes's twentieth year began on 8 September 445; the twenty-fifth was 2 October; fifty-two days earlier is about 12 August (Keil: 3 Ab).[1, 2]
- Artaxerxes I (Longimanus): King of Persia
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
- “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.
- “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.
Latest bound
- “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, 2]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).
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 sends Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem, Nisan of his twentieth year (Neh 2:1–8): 446 BC – 444 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
- 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.
| Place | Connection to this event | Location identification |
|---|---|---|
| JerusalemJerusalem (Old City / City of David) | JerusalemLocation confidence: certain | Pleiades representative point: certain[3] |
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.
The wall was finished on 25 Elul of Artaxerxes I's twentieth year, 2 October 445 BC.
The year is implied by 2:1 (Keil); Parker and Dubberstein's table gives Elul of year 20 beginning 8 September 445, so the 25th was 2 October. Depends on the fifty-two days and on Babylonian month reckoning.
Supporting
Research date 2026-10-13
The wall was rebuilt in fifty-two days (Neh 6:15), not over two years and four months (Josephus).
The Masoretic text has fifty-two days; Keil (with Bertheau) defends it, noting that the work was largely repair and well staffed. Ewald emended the text from Josephus's two years and four months (as reported by Keil), though Josephus's other Nehemiah dates (Xerxes 25th–28th years) are unreliable. Batten notes that much may have been rebuilt before Nehemiah (Ezra 4). No external evidence decides it.
Supporting
- No reasonable ground for doubting fifty-two days; Ewald's emendation rejected.[2]Strength: indirect·on 6:15·Claim checked
Challenging
- The wall took two years and four months, finished in Xerxes's twenty-eighth year.[4]Strength: direct·Ant. 11.5.8·Claim checked
Context
- Much of the work may have been done before Nehemiah; fifty-two days left little to build.[5]Strength: indirect·Introduction·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
- The wall took two years and four months, finished in Xerxes's twenty-eighth year.[4]Bears on: challenging — “The wall was rebuilt in fifty-two days (Neh 6:15), not over two years …”
Modern news and announcements
None recorded for this event.
Reference works and summaries
- Elul (month VI) began 8 September 445.[1]Bears on: supporting — “The wall was finished on 25 Elul of Artaxerxes I's twentieth year, 2 O…”
- The year intended is the twentieth of 2:1; begun on 3 Ab.[2]Bears on: supporting — “The wall was finished on 25 Elul of Artaxerxes I's twentieth year, 2 O…”
- No reasonable ground for doubting fifty-two days; Ewald's emendation rejected.[2]Bears on: supporting — “The wall was rebuilt in fifty-two days (Neh 6:15), not over two years …”
- Much of the work may have been done before Nehemiah; fifty-two days left little to build.[5]Bears on: context — “The wall was rebuilt in fifty-two days (Neh 6:15), not over two years …”
Historical disputes and competing reconstructions
Disputed claims: The wall was rebuilt in fifty-two days (Neh 6:15), not over two years and four months (Josephus).
Fifty-two days
Neh 6:15 (MT); C. F. Keil (1873), with Bertheau
Possible because much was repair of existing lines with a large workforce.[2]
Two years and four months
Josephus, Ant. 11.5.8; H. Ewald (as reported by Keil), emending Neh 6:15
Josephus also dates the work to Xerxes's 25th–28th years, which Keil calls untrustworthy.[2, 4]
Related passages and events
| From | Relationship | To | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| this event | Preceded byhigh · Biblical text | The rebuilding of Jerusalem's wall and gates, section by section (Neh 3) | Completion of the work begun in Neh 3. |
| this event | Preceded byhigh · Biblical text | Artaxerxes sends Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem, Nisan of his twentieth year (Neh 2:1–8) | Within six months of the commission of Nisan. |
Prophetic relationships
No prophecy or proposed-fulfillment relationships have been recorded for this event.
Commentary references
Layer: Interpretation. This is commentary, not historical evidence.
Guzik contrasts four months of prayer with fifty-two days of work.[6]
Unanswered questions and research gaps
- Archaeology of the gates and doors not researched.
Research process
4 logged searches
| Date | Query | Where | Useful |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-13 | Parker & Dubberstein Artaxerxes I year 20 (local OCR) | local text | 1 |
| 2026-10-13 | Keil 1873 on 6:15 | web fetch | 1 |
| 2026-10-13 | Josephus Ant. 11.5.8 | web fetch | 1 |
| 2026-10-13 | Batten Introduction | web fetch | 1 |
Sources
- 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.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
- 3.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
- 4.Josephus, Whiston, William (trans.). Josephus, Antiquities 11.5.6–8 (trans. W. Whiston). Project Gutenberg #2848. www.gutenberg.orgClaim checkedAncient primary textVerification log
- 5.Batten, Loring W.. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah (International Critical Commentary). T. & T. Clark / Scribner, 1913. archive.orgClaim checkedScholarly commentaryRead through the Internet Archive OCR text.Verification log
- 6.Guzik, David. Nehemiah 6 — Enduring Word Bible Commentary. Enduring Word. enduringword.comClaim checkedTheological commentaryInterpretive resource — not historical corroboration.Verification log