Darius the Mede
Encyclopedia
Darius the Mede is a biblical person in the Book of Daniel
, Chapters 6-9, who rules over Babylon
after King Belshazzar
is deposed. The author of the book of Daniel indicated that Darius was about 62 years old when he was 'made king over Babylon.[5:31] He is best known for having been forced into throwing Daniel in the lions' den
.
No such person as Darius the Mede is known in history. However, there have been attempts to identify Darius the Mede with such persons as: Cyrus the Great
, Darius the Great or Gubaru
.
, who wrote his history about 440 BCE, records that Babylon fell to the Persian army, under the control of King Cyrus, who had conquered the Median Empire as early as 550 BCE.
The conqueror of Babylon was Gobryas, governor of Gutium
, a general of Cyrus, king of Persia. The successor of Cyrus, as king of Persia, was known as Darius the Great. Scholar, John J. Collins
, who shares the Maccabean thesis view, states that the author of Daniel inherited a schema
of four kingdoms in which Media
preceded Persia. Therefore, he suggests that it was highly probable that Daniel
created the figure of Darius the Mede to fit this schema.
, verse 1 mentions Astyages
the Mede, who was the last king before Cyrus the Persian; but nearly the same verse is added in the Greek LXX after the end of Daniel chapter 6, having the name "Darius" in place of "Astyages". (LXX Dan. 14:1 and Dan 6:29)
ns,[9:1] and pre-dated Cyrus.[11:1] What is little known of Cyaxares II
, from extra-Biblical sources, matches the above mentioned descriptions offered in the Book of Daniel.
in 1957.
Unlike Gubaru or Astyages, Cyrus the Great
of Persia was the king who took over the Babylonian Empire. Cyrus was also married to a Mede, and had a Median mother. Indeed, his maternal grandfather Astyages
, to whom he owed fealty, was the so-called "Last King of the Median Empire." An analysis of variant early texts, particularly the Septuagint, reveals that the names "Darius" (דריוש DRYWS in Hebrew) and "Cyrus" (כורש KWRS) are reversed in 11:1, and may have been miscopied elsewhere. The appellation "Mede" (Heb. מדי MDY) may have been used as an ethnic term to apply to Persians as well, who were of the same race. In addition, Dan. 6:28, "So Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian", could also be translated, "So Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius, that is, the reign of Cyrus the Persian." Furthermore, kings commonly took dual titles and Nabonidus, Cyrus' cousin, referred to Cyrus as "the king of the Medes."
4:24. Scholars have argued that this is not the same Darius of Daniel chapter 6, at the very least, due to dating discrepancies. Those who support this view are: Tremper Longman
and J. Daniel Hays.
However, there are historians who view the presence of Darius in the Book of Daniel, as simply a mistake of a much later author, or chronologist. The Persian King Darius I was perhaps inadvertently placed at an earlier date, than he actually reigned. Three key pieces of information seem to support this: Firstly, Darius I, like Cyrus, also conquered Babylon and personally commanded the Persian army that took the city in 522 BCE to put down a rebellion. Secondly, Daniel's reference to Darius organising the empire by appointing satraps and administrators fits Darius I perfectly: he is known to history as the Persian king par excellence who professionalised the empire's bureaucracy and organised it into satrapies and tax districts. Thirdly, Darius I was an important figure in Jewish history, remembered as a king associated with Cyrus who permitted the returned exiles to rebuild the temple. (cf Ezra chapters 1-6)
, who actually led Cyrus's army that captured Babylon in the month of Tashritu in the 17th year. Two weeks later Cyrus made his triumphal entry into Babylon and a week after that Gubaru died. It is possible that Cyrus may have rewarded Gubaru with a regional governorship for capturing the capital of the Babylonian Empire and ending the war. Furthermore, under the first translation of Dan. 6:28, Darius ruled during the reign of Cyrus, and Dan. 5:31 states that Darius the Mede "received the kingdom" of the Chaldeans. Complicating this view is the question of whether or not Gubaru and Ugbaru are two different people, or simply variant spellings of the same name.
ic and midrash
ic sources describe Darius the Mede as the uncle and father-in-law of Cyrus the Great, to whom Cyrus owed fealty. After Darius's death, Cyrus took the throne. According to Josippon
, the Ahasuerus
in the book of Esther
was the son of Darius the Mede. The Midrash Tanchuma describes the fall of Babylon as described in Daniel and adds to the narrative Darius taking Vashti
, the daughter of Belshazzar, as a wife for his son Ahasuerus.
Book of Daniel
The Book of Daniel is a book in the Hebrew Bible. The book tells of how Daniel, and his Judean companions, were inducted into Babylon during Jewish exile, and how their positions elevated in the court of Nebuchadnezzar. The court tales span events that occur during the reigns of Nebuchadnezzar,...
, Chapters 6-9, who rules over Babylon
Babylon
Babylon was an Akkadian city-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which are found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad...
after King Belshazzar
Belshazzar
Belshazzar, or Balthazar , was a 6th century BC prince of Babylon, the son of Nabonidus and the last king of Babylon according to the Book of Daniel . Like his father, it is believed by many scholars that he was an Assyrian. In Daniel Belshazzar, or Balthazar , was a 6th century BC prince of...
is deposed. The author of the book of Daniel indicated that Darius was about 62 years old when he was 'made king over Babylon.[5:31] He is best known for having been forced into throwing Daniel in the lions' den
Daniel in the lions' den
The story of Daniel in the lions' den is found in the sixth chapter of the Book of Daniel in the Hebrew Bible. Daniel is an official in the Persian empire under King Darius, who had made a decree that no-one was to offer prayer to any god or man except him for a period of thirty days...
.
No such person as Darius the Mede is known in history. However, there have been attempts to identify Darius the Mede with such persons as: Cyrus the Great
Cyrus the Great
Cyrus II of Persia , commonly known as Cyrus the Great, also known as Cyrus the Elder, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire. Under his rule, the empire embraced all the previous civilized states of the ancient Near East, expanded vastly and eventually conquered most of Southwest Asia and much...
, Darius the Great or Gubaru
Gubaru
Gobryas was a common name of several Persian noblemen. The English form Gobryas is derived from the Greek rendering of this name.- Gobryas :...
.
Historicity of Darius the Mede
While mentioned in the book of Daniel, the works of Flavius Josephus, and Jewish Midrash material, Darius the Mede is not known from any primary historical sources. Neither the Babylonian nor the Persian histories record such a person. HerodotusHerodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
, who wrote his history about 440 BCE, records that Babylon fell to the Persian army, under the control of King Cyrus, who had conquered the Median Empire as early as 550 BCE.
The conqueror of Babylon was Gobryas, governor of Gutium
Gutium
The Gutians were a tribe that overran southern Mesopotamia when the Akkadian empire collapsed in approximately 2154 BC....
, a general of Cyrus, king of Persia. The successor of Cyrus, as king of Persia, was known as Darius the Great. Scholar, John J. Collins
John J. Collins
John J. Collins is the Holmes Professor of Old Testament Criticism & Interpretation at Yale Divinity School. He is noted for his research in the Hebrew Bible, as well as the apocryphal works of the Second Temple period including the sectarian works found in Dead Sea Scrolls and their relation to...
, who shares the Maccabean thesis view, states that the author of Daniel inherited a schema
Schema
The word schema comes from the Greek word "σχήμα" , which means shape, or more generally, plan. The plural is "σχήματα"...
of four kingdoms in which Media
Medes
The MedesThe Medes...
preceded Persia. Therefore, he suggests that it was highly probable that Daniel
Daniel
Daniel is the protagonist in the Book of Daniel of the Hebrew Bible. In the narrative, when Daniel was a young man, he was taken into Babylonian captivity where he was educated in Chaldean thought. However, he never converted to Neo-Babylonian ways...
created the figure of Darius the Mede to fit this schema.
Identifying Darius the Mede
George R. Law, Ph.D., provides this list of candidates, who may identify with Darius the Mede:- AstyagesAstyagesAstyages Astyages Astyages (spelled by Herodotus as Ἀστυάγης - Astyages; by Ctesias as Astyigas; by Diodorus as Aspadas; Akkadian: Ištumegu, was the last king of the Median Empire, r...
- Cambyses II
- Cyaxares IICyaxares IICyaxares II was said to be a king of the Medes whose reign is described by the Greek historian Xenophon. Some theories have equated this figure with the "Darius the Mede" named in the Book of Daniel...
- Cyrus the GreatCyrus the GreatCyrus II of Persia , commonly known as Cyrus the Great, also known as Cyrus the Elder, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire. Under his rule, the empire embraced all the previous civilized states of the ancient Near East, expanded vastly and eventually conquered most of Southwest Asia and much...
- Darius the Great
- GubaruGubaruGobryas was a common name of several Persian noblemen. The English form Gobryas is derived from the Greek rendering of this name.- Gobryas :...
As Astyages
In the apocrapha, Bel and the DragonBel and the Dragon
The narrative of Bel and the Dragon incorporated as chapter 14 of the extended Book of Daniel exists only in Greek in the Septuagint. This chapter, along with chapter 13, is referred to as deuterocanonical, in that it is not universally accepted among Christians as belonging to the canonical works...
, verse 1 mentions Astyages
Astyages
Astyages Astyages Astyages (spelled by Herodotus as Ἀστυάγης - Astyages; by Ctesias as Astyigas; by Diodorus as Aspadas; Akkadian: Ištumegu, was the last king of the Median Empire, r...
the Mede, who was the last king before Cyrus the Persian; but nearly the same verse is added in the Greek LXX after the end of Daniel chapter 6, having the name "Darius" in place of "Astyages". (LXX Dan. 14:1 and Dan 6:29)
As Cyaxares II
According to the Book of Daniel, Darius the Mede began ruling when he was 62 years old,[5:31] appointed 120 satraps to govern over provinces or districts,[6:1] was made king over the realm of the ChaldeaChaldea
Chaldea or Chaldaea , from Greek , Chaldaia; Akkadian ; Hebrew כשדים, Kaśdim; Aramaic: ܟܐܠܕܘ, Kaldo) was a marshy land located in modern-day southern Iraq which came to briefly rule Babylon...
ns,[9:1] and pre-dated Cyrus.[11:1] What is little known of Cyaxares II
Cyaxares II
Cyaxares II was said to be a king of the Medes whose reign is described by the Greek historian Xenophon. Some theories have equated this figure with the "Darius the Mede" named in the Book of Daniel...
, from extra-Biblical sources, matches the above mentioned descriptions offered in the Book of Daniel.
As Cyrus the Great
This theory was first proposed by Donald WisemanDonald Wiseman
Donald John Wiseman OBE, FBA was a Biblical scholar, archaeologist and Assyriologist. He was Professor of Assyriology at the University of London from 1961 to 1982.-Early life and beliefs:...
in 1957.
Unlike Gubaru or Astyages, Cyrus the Great
Cyrus the Great
Cyrus II of Persia , commonly known as Cyrus the Great, also known as Cyrus the Elder, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire. Under his rule, the empire embraced all the previous civilized states of the ancient Near East, expanded vastly and eventually conquered most of Southwest Asia and much...
of Persia was the king who took over the Babylonian Empire. Cyrus was also married to a Mede, and had a Median mother. Indeed, his maternal grandfather Astyages
Astyages
Astyages Astyages Astyages (spelled by Herodotus as Ἀστυάγης - Astyages; by Ctesias as Astyigas; by Diodorus as Aspadas; Akkadian: Ištumegu, was the last king of the Median Empire, r...
, to whom he owed fealty, was the so-called "Last King of the Median Empire." An analysis of variant early texts, particularly the Septuagint, reveals that the names "Darius" (דריוש DRYWS in Hebrew) and "Cyrus" (כורש KWRS) are reversed in 11:1, and may have been miscopied elsewhere. The appellation "Mede" (Heb. מדי MDY) may have been used as an ethnic term to apply to Persians as well, who were of the same race. In addition, Dan. 6:28, "So Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian", could also be translated, "So Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius, that is, the reign of Cyrus the Persian." Furthermore, kings commonly took dual titles and Nabonidus, Cyrus' cousin, referred to Cyrus as "the king of the Medes."
As Darius the Great
Darius I the Great reigned from 522 to 486 BCE. He is mentioned in the Book of EzraBook of Ezra
The Book of Ezra is a book of the Hebrew Bible. Originally combined with the Book of Nehemiah in a single book of Ezra-Nehemiah, the two became separated in the early centuries of the Christian era...
4:24. Scholars have argued that this is not the same Darius of Daniel chapter 6, at the very least, due to dating discrepancies. Those who support this view are: Tremper Longman
Tremper Longman
Tremper Longman, III is an Old Testament theologian, professor and author of several books, including 2009 ECPA Christian Book Award winner Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry & Writings. He serves as Robert H. Gundry Professor of Biblical Studies at Westmont College in Santa Barbara,...
and J. Daniel Hays.
However, there are historians who view the presence of Darius in the Book of Daniel, as simply a mistake of a much later author, or chronologist. The Persian King Darius I was perhaps inadvertently placed at an earlier date, than he actually reigned. Three key pieces of information seem to support this: Firstly, Darius I, like Cyrus, also conquered Babylon and personally commanded the Persian army that took the city in 522 BCE to put down a rebellion. Secondly, Daniel's reference to Darius organising the empire by appointing satraps and administrators fits Darius I perfectly: he is known to history as the Persian king par excellence who professionalised the empire's bureaucracy and organised it into satrapies and tax districts. Thirdly, Darius I was an important figure in Jewish history, remembered as a king associated with Cyrus who permitted the returned exiles to rebuild the temple. (cf Ezra chapters 1-6)
As Gubaru
Gubaru was the governor of GutiumGutium
The Gutians were a tribe that overran southern Mesopotamia when the Akkadian empire collapsed in approximately 2154 BC....
, who actually led Cyrus's army that captured Babylon in the month of Tashritu in the 17th year. Two weeks later Cyrus made his triumphal entry into Babylon and a week after that Gubaru died. It is possible that Cyrus may have rewarded Gubaru with a regional governorship for capturing the capital of the Babylonian Empire and ending the war. Furthermore, under the first translation of Dan. 6:28, Darius ruled during the reign of Cyrus, and Dan. 5:31 states that Darius the Mede "received the kingdom" of the Chaldeans. Complicating this view is the question of whether or not Gubaru and Ugbaru are two different people, or simply variant spellings of the same name.
Jewish views
TalmudTalmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
ic and midrash
Midrash
The Hebrew term Midrash is a homiletic method of biblical exegesis. The term also refers to the whole compilation of homiletic teachings on the Bible....
ic sources describe Darius the Mede as the uncle and father-in-law of Cyrus the Great, to whom Cyrus owed fealty. After Darius's death, Cyrus took the throne. According to Josippon
Josippon
Josippon is the name usually given to a popular chronicle of Jewish history from Adam to the age of Titus, attributed to an author Josippon or Joseph ben Gorion....
, the Ahasuerus
Ahasuerus
Ahasuerus is a name used several times in the Hebrew Bible, as well as related legends and Apocrypha. This name is applied in the Hebrew Scriptures to three rulers...
in the book of Esther
Esther
Esther , born Hadassah, is the eponymous heroine of the Biblical Book of Esther.According to the Bible, she was a Jewish queen of the Persian king Ahasuerus...
was the son of Darius the Mede. The Midrash Tanchuma describes the fall of Babylon as described in Daniel and adds to the narrative Darius taking Vashti
Vashti
Queen Vashti is the first wife of King Ahasuerus in the Book of Esther, a book included in the Hebrew Bible and read on the Jewish holiday of Purim. She is banished for her refusal to appear at the king's banquet, and Esther is chosen to succeed her as queen. In the Midrash, Vashti is described...
, the daughter of Belshazzar, as a wife for his son Ahasuerus.