The Chronology of the Postexilic Period.

Ruler	Regnal Year	BCE	Event
		605	Nebuchadnezzar defeated the Egyptians, first at Carchemish, then at an unidentified place near Hamath in Syria giving him de facto control of Syria and Palestine.
		605	Nebuchadnezzar came to Jerusalem and besieged it (Daniel 1:1). Judah's king, Jehoiakim, changed his loyalty to the Babylonians rather than the Egyptians and he became Nebuchadnezzar's vassal king (2 Kings 24:1). Temple vessels seized as booty, and along with Daniel and other captives, brought to Babylon (Daniel 1:3-4) thereby beginning the 1st phase of the Babylonian Captivity.
Cyrus II [559-530]	Accession	539	Fall of Babylon to Cyrus (October 9, Cyrus' accession year).
		539	It would seem that, on October 29, Cyrus appointed his 62 year old general Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of Median descent, governor over the conquered Chaldean kingdom. Darius the Mede, who was made ruler (Daniel 9:1) was known as Gobryas (Herodotus, History 1.191) and Gubaru (Whitcomb 1959:11). On November 6, Cyrus' general Ugbaru, who engineered the capture of Babylon, died of a sudden fatal illness (Archer 1985:76). The implication is that God provided special encouragement and protection to Darius, which evidently included the divine removal of a dangerous rival, through the agency of the archangel Gabriel (Daniel 11:1).
		539/8	Timeframe of Daniel 9. In the first year of governor Darius, Daniel comes to realize that with the fall of the Babylonian empire (Jeremiah 25:11-12) the time had come for God to bring the Jews back to Jerusalem (Jeremiah 29:10) as the 70 years were complete (Daniel 9:2). Deeply moved, Daniel humbles himself and implores God in prayer and fasting to forgive the Jews and to restore Jerusalem (Daniel 9:3-19). In response, Gabriel appears and tells him of seventy weeks and the anointed prince [The Seventy Weeks Prophecy] (Daniel 9:24-27).
	1st	538/7	Cyrus issues a proclamation for the Jews to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem (Ezra 1:1-2).
	3rd	536/5	Timeframe of Daniel 10-12 (Daniel told of coming events by angel [unidentified but probably Gabriel again]).
		535	Return of Jews under Zerubbabel (probable; 70 years, inclusive, from 1st phase of captivity in 605 BCE). 605/604 BCE - 70 years = 535/534 BCE Reconstruction of the Temple begun.
Cambyses [530-522]	Accession	530	Rebuilding of the Temple stopped. The second son of Cyrus II assassinated by his brother Cambyses II, who kept the murder a secret. Patizithes, Magi custodian of Cambyses� palace, deposed Cambyses (while he campaigned in Egypt).
Pseudo-Smerdis [522]	Accession	522	Patizithes put forward his brother Guamata, to impersonate Smerdis, and proclaimed him king. After a reign of seven months Darius I slew the pretender in a coup d'�tat.
Darius I-the Great [522-486]	Accession	522/1	Darius I, son of Hystaspes of the Achaemenid dynasty, took the throne in a coup d'�tat. He began his reign in 522 at about age 28 (Archer 1985:76).
		520	Haggai and Zechariah prophesy.
	2nd	520/19	Darius issued a decree that the rebuilding of the Temple should continue without interference (Ezra 6:6-12).
	6th	516/15	The Jews finished construction of the Temple (Ezra 6:13-15).
Xerxes-Ahasuerus [486-464]	Accession	486/5
	7th	479/8	Esther made queen
		473	Jews delivered from death.
Artaxerxes I [465-423]	Accession	465/4	Artabanus, a courtier, murdered Xerxes in December 465
	7th	458 (457)	Ezra left Babylon for Jerusalem on Nisan 1 [the 1st month]. Ezra arrived in Jerusalem on Ab 1 [the 5th month] (Ezra 7:1-9).
	7th	458 (457)	Artaxerxes sent Ezra and his party to Jerusalem to beautify the Temple and make offerings (Ezra 7:11-26). The group included some of the people of Israel, some of the priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, and temple servants (Ezra 7:6-7).
	20th	445 (444)	Nehemiah troubled as the wall of Jerusalem remained in ruin the gates destroyed.
			Nehemiah asks Artaxerxes I to send him to Jerusalem to rebuild the city (Nehemiah 2:1-5).
			Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem (Nehemiah 1:1; 2:1; 5:14).
			Ezra, with Nehemiah present, read the Law in a public ceremony (Nehemiah 8:9).
	32nd	433 (432)	End of Nehemiah's first term as governor. After a 12-year stay Nehemiah left Jerusalem and returned to the capital a Shushan (Nehemiah 5:14; 13:6).
			Nehemiah returned for a second stay before Artaxerxes' reign ended in 424 BCE (Nehemiah 13:6-7).
Xerxes II and Secydianus or Sogdianus [424-423]
Darius II [423-405/4]
Artaxerxes II [405/4-359/8]
Artaxerxes III [359/8-388/7]
Darius III [336/5-331]
Alexander the Great (from his recognition in Babylonia) [331-323]