The son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki,
Ezra 7:4 belongs to the genealogy that identifies Ezra's priestly ancestry, forming the background for his role as priest and scribe in his return to Jerusalem and for the king's recognition of his standing. It places him in the lineage of Aaron, as a priest chosen to serve Israel and to restore honor to the priesthood whose glory had diminished during the captivity.
The chapter containing the verse records the decree of Artaxerxes, king of Persia, as the command to restore and build Jerusalem, which completed the decree begun under Cyrus and continued under Darius. That decree went forth in 457 B.C., a date capable of the clearest proof. From that date the seventy weeks are counted.
That same date is the starting point for reckoning the 2300 years of Daniel 8:14, a calculation so simple and plain that even children could understand it. Counting 2300 years from 457 by subtraction brings the end to 1843, fixing hope on the coming of the Lord at the end of that year, and when the year passed entirely and the Saviour had not come the expectation ended in sad disappointment. Because the decree is dated near the close of 457 B.C., the period reckoned from that late-year date reaches to the fall of 1844 rather than to the end of 1843, showing the vision did not tarry though it seemed to.
Ezra 7:4 belongs to the genealogy that identifies Ezra's priestly ancestry, forming the background for his role as priest and scribe in his return to Jerusalem and for the king's recognition of his standing. It places him in the lineage of Aaron, as a priest chosen to serve Israel and to restore honor to the priesthood whose glory had diminished during the captivity.
The chapter containing the verse records the decree of Artaxerxes, king of Persia, as the command to restore and build Jerusalem, which completed the decree begun under Cyrus and continued under Darius. That decree went forth in 457 B.C., a date capable of the clearest proof. From that date the seventy weeks are counted.
That same date is the starting point for reckoning the 2300 years of Daniel 8:14, a calculation so simple and plain that even children could understand it. Counting 2300 years from 457 by subtraction brings the end to 1843, fixing hope on the coming of the Lord at the end of that year, and when the year passed entirely and the Saviour had not come the expectation ended in sad disappointment. Because the decree is dated near the close of 457 B.C., the period reckoned from that late-year date reaches to the fall of 1844 rather than to the end of 1843, showing the vision did not tarry though it seemed to.