Commentaria in I Esdrae
Hence it is clear that Esdras was very long-lived, and prolonged his life to 132 years. For he lived to the seventh year of Artaxerxes, as is plain from chapter 7, verse 8. For since his father Saraias was killed in the eleventh year of Sedecias, it is necessary that he himself was already born in that same year at the least, or was a posthumous child. Now from the eleventh year of Sedecias to the first of Cyrus there were 60 years. Add to these the three years of Cyrus, six of Cambyses, 36 of Darius Hystaspes, 27 of Artaxerxes, and you will have 132 years, which Esdras must have lived, and perhaps he lived more. For we do not know how long afterwards he prolonged his life, nor in what year before his father’s death he was born.
Contemporaries and coevals of Esdras and Nehemias were, of the Prophets, Jeremias, Baruch, Daniel, Aggeus, Zacharias, Malachias; of the royal stock, Jechonias, Salathiel and Zorobabel; of the Pontiffs, Saraias the father of Esdras, Josedec his brother, and Jesus his nephew. At this time was gathered the Synagogue, or Great Synod, in which the Canon of the books of sacred Scripture was published, over which presided Esdras, Nehemias, Daniel, Mardochai, Zorobabel and Jesus the son of Josedec, in which likewise the matter of emending the books of sacred Scripture, and of dividing them into their sections and chapters, was dealt with, the care of which was given to Esdras. So the Hebrews hand down.
In the time of Esdras flourished the monarchy of the Chaldeans under Nabuchodonosor, Evilmerodach, Baltassar; in Media reigned Cyaxares and Astyages; in Persia Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius, Xerxes and Artaxerxes; at Rome, the kings being expelled, the first consuls were put in their place, Junius Brutus and Lucius Collatinus. In Greece flourished historians, poets and philosophers: Herodotus, Pindar, Simonides, Anacreon, Aristoxenus, Archilochus, Alcaeus, Sappho, Arion, Sophocles, Euripides, Parmenides, Empedocles, Socrates, and of the Sibyls the Cumaean and the Hellespontine. So Eusebius, Tornielli, Genebrard, Salianus and others.
Moreover, since in these books, as in the books of Judith and Esther, frequent mention must be made of the kings of the Persians, to whom the monarchy was transferred from Cyrus after Babylon was taken, I here subjoin the series of them and their years, since it brings great light to these books.
Series of the Ancient Kings of the Persians.
The first was Cyrus, grandson of Astyages king of the Medes through his daughter Mandane, and son of Cambyses king of the Persians, says Xenophon; who reigned thirty years, but was monarch for the last three only, in which he freed the Jews from Babylon. He reigned therefore 3 years as monarch.
The second was Cambyses, son of Cyrus, who, while his father Cyrus set out against the Scythians (where he also perished), ruled in Persia for two years; but after his father’s death he reigned 6 years.
Esdras, chapter 4, calls him Assuerus, and in verses 7 and 8, Artaxerxes. He hindered the building of the temple permitted by Cyrus, chapter 4, verse 23.
The third, Smerdes the magian, reigned 7 months.
The fourth, Darius son of Hystaspes, made king by the neighing of a horse, reigned 36 years.
He gave the Jews leave to finish the temple, Esdras 6:7. Some think that this Darius was the husband of Esther, and so that the history of Mardochai and the hanging of Aman took place under him; but I shall examine this very point in the proem to Esther.
The fifth was Xerxes, son of Darius, who reigned 20 years.
Under him many think that the history of Judith took place; of which I shall treat in its place.
The sixth was Artaxerxes, surnamed Longimanus from having one hand longer, son of Xerxes, who in the seventh year of his reign sent Esdras, and in the 20th Nehemias, to restore Jerusalem: whence from him begin the 70 weeks of Daniel, chapter 9, which end in Christ. He reigned 40 years.
The seventh was Darius Nothus, son of the Artaxerxes just mentioned. He reigned 19 years.
The eighth, Xerxes the second, who reigned 2 months.
The ninth, Sogdianus, who reigned 8 months.
The tenth, Artaxerxes, surnamed Mnemon, that is, “mindful,” from the excellence of his memory. He was the son of Darius Nothus, and reigned 43 years.
The eleventh, Artaxerxes Ochus, 23 years.
The twelfth, Arses or Arsames, son of Ochus, 3 years.
The thirteenth, Darius, son of Arses, surnamed Codomannus, 6 years.
For in the seventh year he was stripped of kingdom and life by Alexander the Great, who transferred the monarchy from the Persians to the Greeks.
These kings therefore reigned in Persia for 227 years, but from the monarchy of Cyrus only two hundred. For Cyrus became monarch in the 27th year of his reign.
Allegorically, in this liberation of the Jews through Cyrus was signified the liberation of the human race from the captivity of the devil, accomplished through Christ; tropologically, the liberation of Christians oppressed by the heathen, accomplished by Constantine, Theodosius, Charlemagne, etc.; likewise the liberation of the faithful and penitent soul, which is daily wrought by apostolic men. See Bede, volume three, who wrote an allegory both on Esdras and on Nehemias.
Take now the series of the Pontiffs of the Jews, who were contemporaries and coevals of the kings just named.
Series of the Pontiffs of the Jews from the Babylonian Captivity to Alexander the Great and Ptolemy Philadelphus.
1. Saraias, or as Josephus has it, Sareas, son of Azarias the Pontiff. When Jerusalem was taken, Nabuchodonosor killed him with 70 chief men, 4 Kings.
2. Josedec, son of Saraias, carried over into Babylon, was Pontiff there during the whole time of the captivity until Cyrus, 1 Paralipomenon 6:15.
3. Josue or Jesus, son of Josedec. With Zorobabel he led the Jews back from Babylon to Jerusalem under Cyrus, and rebuilt the temple, Esdras
4. Joakim, son of Josue, held the Pontificate under Darius Hystaspes and Xerxes, Nehemias 12:10.
5. Eliasib, son of Joakim, was Pontiff under Artaxerxes Longimanus, Nehemias 3:1, and the last chapter, verses 4 and 9.
6. Joiada, son of Eliasib, Pontiff under Darius Nothus, son of Longimanus, Nehemias 12:10.
7. Jonathan, son of Joiada, Pontiff under Artaxerxes Mnemon, son of Darius Nothus, Nehemias 12:11.
8. Jeddoa or Jaddus, son of Jonathan, Nehemias 12:11. He met Alexander the Great, and reconciled him, who was offended with the Jews, as Josephus testifies, book 11 of the Antiquities, at the end. Manasses, the first Pontiff of the Samaritans on Mount Garizim, was the brother of Jaddus. See Josephus, book 11 of the Antiquities, chapter 7.
9. Onias, first son of Jaddus, Pontiff under Ptolemy son of Lagus, the first king of Egypt after Alexander, as Josephus, Eusebius and others testify.
10. Simon, son of Onias, surnamed the Just, whose praises are described in Ecclesiasticus, chapter 50.
11. Eleazar, brother of Simon and son of Onias. He sent the 70 Interpreters to Ptolemy Philadelphus, the second king of Egypt, who translated sacred Scripture from Hebrew into Greek, as Josephus, Aristeas, Eusebius and others testify.