Ezra 1:1-2 and Ezra 6:3 also tell us that Cyrus issued a decree to rebuild the temple. No comment is made about the city. It was King Artaxerxes who issued the decree to rebuild the city.     And it came about in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes . . . And I said to the king, “If it please the king, and if your servant has found favor before you, send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.” . . . And I said to the king, “If it please the king, let letters be given me for the governors of the provinces . . . 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 fortress which is by the temple, for the wall of the city, and for the house to which I will go. “And the king granted them to me because the good hand of my God was on me. (NASB) Neh. 2:1, 5-8         The following link will provide a list of key scriptures that discuss both King Cyrus' decree and King Artaxerxes' decree . King Cyrus' decree only authorized the rebuilding of the temple while King Artaxerxes' decree authorized the rebuilding of the city of Jerusalem.       The Wonders of Bible Chronology. We have been able to confirm that Philip Mauro is the author of "The Wonders of Bible Chronology" and we understand his view of Daniel 9:25, in part. It is unfortunate that he rejects the Ptolomy chronology and accepts Josehpus', Seder Olam's, and Fidusi's chronologies. Josephus, Seder Olam, and Fidusi lived many years after King Cyrus and King Artaxerxes. Josephus lived during the first century of our Lord.       Tradition claims that the Seder Olam (Seder Olam Rabbah) was written by Tannaitic Rabbi Yose ben Halafta who lived somewhere between A.D. 200-300. Seder Olam spans events from Genesis to the building of the Second Temple. The chronology of the book is based on the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament. It was written almost 800 years after the book of Daniel was written and about 700 years after the time of Cyrus and Artaxerxes. The book is not a secular chronology and was written too many years after the time of Cyrus and Artaxerxes to be dependable.       Josephus wrote several well known books entitled ""Antiquities of the Jews" and the "Wars of the Jews." He was born in A.D. 37. Consequently, his chronologies are about 600 years after Daniel.       Insufficient information exists about Fidusi to make a comment. Ptolomy's Canon basically accounts for the chronology of the Babylonian empire, rather than being an exhaustive chronological account from the time of that empire to Jesus Christ. Consequently, I would recommend a very excellent and scholarly book entitled "Handbook of Biblical Chronology" by Jack Finegan. The book has extensive documentation and references. The ancient chronologies are not dependent on Ptolomy's canon. In fact, Ptolomy's canon does not even appear in his book.   Conclusion:  Historical data implies that Mr. Mauro (1859-1952) was a Christian, and says that he rejected the idea that Daniel 9:25 pointed to the time of Jesus Christ's death . However, his information is incomplete and inaccurate. There is also another excellent book on this subject entitled, "Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ" by Harold W. Hoehner which you may want to consider.         < Back
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