Q377 : Who is Ahasuerus mentioned in Daniel 9:1?

My question is in Daniel 9:1 where a character called Ahasuerus is mentioned who is identified as the father of Darius the Mede. The identifications for this Ahasuerus are Astyages and Cyaxares l on average, however there is no evidence that Darius is the son of Astyages or Cyaxares. Who is Ahasuerus? Astyages? Cyaxares? One fact is that Astyages for example. He had no children according to Herodotus.

A377 : by Charles Ray

Thank you for your question about the book of Daniel. I wish more Christians would take a deeper look into the Scriptures! The answer is very complex, but I will start with a basic answer. Ahasuerus, Astyages, and Cyaxares were all kings of ancient Persia at one time or another.

Problems arise because secular history does not give us enough information to figure everything out in detail. For many years conservative Bible scholars have been trying to put it all together but there is little agreement so far. Cyaxares reigned about 624-585 BC, and Astyages from 585-550 BC. Part of the confusion concerns the Ahasuerus (also known by the Greek form of his name, Xerxes) in Daniel 9:1. There was another Ahasuerus who was on the throne later than Daniel. The later Ahasuerus reigned 485-465 BC. Darius was king much earlier than that so the Ahasuerus of Daniel 9:1 was some other Ahasuerus.

I hope that information helps you some but to say anymore would get very confusing. I would urge you to email Tony Garland and also go to SonicLight.org^a and read through the explanation on Daniel 5:31 and 9:1.

Thank you again for your interest in SpiritandTruth.

God Bless, Charles Ray

[Editor - There are different opinions concerning the historical identity of the person named Ahasuerus in Daniel 9:1. The Bible declares Darius to be his descendant (perhaps his immediate son). In my Daniel Commentary, in the section where I discuss the identity of Darius the Mede^b, you will find a chart which diagrams various views of the family relationships^c among key rulers at the time of Darius. The two main views are that Ahasuerus is either Astyages, son of Cyaxares I, or Cyaxares II, son of Astyages. Footnotes on the chart indicate the sources of these views which may be a fruitful source of further study.

If you search on "Ahasuerus" on that commentary page, you'll find numerous mentions of this individual—and suggestions from different sources as to his identity. As I'm sure you appreciate, this is a very complex area of history and sources vary widely in their reliability. I would not put too much stock in any one secular source, whether ancient (Herodotus) or modern (Wikipedia) as the non-Biblical sources for that time period often contradict one another.

May the Lord lead you as you continue to study His Word! — Tony Garland]