Who Was Darius the Mede?

Darius the Mede is a historical Bible mystery. Daniel says he was the king who threw him in with the lions, but history doesn't have any space for someone by the name of Darius the Mede. Something's gotta give.

[tbjpersonal]

Man, the production value on your videos is always right where it needs to be. You don't over-do it with unnecessary visuals, you don't under-inform with them either. The custom goofy music brings a fun element into the video with little effort demanded of the viewer. Your videos are sick man, keep it up.

[colmwhateveryoulike]

Yeah it's funny as an ex-atheist who reviewed all the problems I thought the Bible had after encountering God, I spent the whole video thinking exactly what you said at the end. Jericho, Pilate's office, lots of seeming inconsistencies made much of by skeptics have been proven in favour of the Biblical narrative as more evidence is uncovered, while none has gone against it. That trend is impossibly unlikely if the authors weren't reporting in good faith.

[joejackson]

I have always found Daniel to be a companion book to John's Revelations. I found understanding Revelations a lot easier after reading Daniel. Both books are more prewriting history. Together they give God's arc of history. So, if nonbelievers scoff because of lack of archeological evidence, they are missing the point of the book. It is to give calm and confidence to the faithful that these things are going to happen, but God is in control. Still hoping you do a video on Modern Day Eucharistic Miracles. Love you Matt.

[danharris]

I like the Air Bud theory at the end. I checked the rules and nothing says a dog can’t be in power over Babylon

[rockandsandapologetics]

Daniel called him "Darius the Mede" while the others referred to him as King Darius. I believe Daniel was making a point here. If we remember the dream of Nebuchadnezzar about the statue whose head was of gold, arms of silver, etc. we realize Daniel is referring to the divided kingdom that would defeat Babylon. Cyrus is mentioned by name as the Persian king who would allow the Jews to go home and rebuild the Temple, but Daniel does not refer to Darius as a king, but as a Mede.

[ByzantineCalvinist]

I especially appreciated your conclusion at the end. The fact that a biblical figure cannot be found in surviving records outside the Bible does not mean he didn't exist. Coincidentally, I am currently reading through Daniel at evening prayer, having completed Ezekiel several days ago. So this came at the right time. Thanks.

[deli_fresh]

What a guy- this is just about as close to perfect as it can get. Information transmission is hard, but you do it right

[The_True_]

King Cyrus the Persian and King Darius the Mede are mentioned simultaneously as well as the law of the Medes and the law of the Persians, so it seems Darius is a King of the Medes put in place by his alliance with King Cyrus of Persia. Not an uncommon thing in history. Two different kingdoms, with Persia possibly as the head kingdom in the alliance.

[kittykuddi]

I absolutely love this kind of stuff. Looking forward to more historical deep dives in the future!

[justjasmine]

I believe that Darius the Mede is Darius the Mede. There are so many people who have perished as unknowns but used mightily by God. If this man is only recorded in this one instance for the sake of OUR faith thousands of years later then this is consistent with the God I know. I think this man would be honored by this ONE significant mention in history.

[notthefbi]

Just watched an interesting press conference yesterday on this channel about how the lions finally lost, and the victim survived 😃

[isaacwhitman]

Great work as usual Matt! I always especially appreciate your videos on the historical topics. You do a great job breaking down theories and reasonings in an approachable way but your research and study shows! Thanks!!

P.S. I love Jeff’s work, I’ve definitely had “who was Darius the Mede” stuck in my head since I watched this yesterday.

[edavidson]

I remember reading a few years ago that there was a thought that Darius the Mede was actually either the Father-in-Law or Brother-in-Law of Cyrus and if I remember correctly, the evidence for this had to do with the ambush and killing of Cyrus by the Medes and that those who led him to his death were related to him through one of his wives. What's interesting is that these were two different studies that came together to put forward this idea. I do remember that the murder of Cyrus (death by ambush) was a discussion in one of my history classes years ago and then years later I came across this hypothesis concerning Darius the Mede that actually used that incident that had started the debate in my history class. WIll try to find it, I know it's around here somewhere because I had asked my pastor what he thought.

[njoroge_mn]

Why do I like the TMBH channel, simply coz I always learn something new . Today i learnt about the "Daniel Double chiasm" .

[ghostsquare]

These historical videos are fantastic! I feel like I remember you mentioning something about the Sea Peoples in passing once (maybe in an old NDQ) and I've been dying to hear more about that if you are ever running low on historical video ideas.

[Knight-Of-YAH-WEH]

Love the channel. Love the vibe. There aren't a lot of people that I connect with but your topps Brother. If this was a I'd pull up a chair, oh wait, I kinda did. Thanks! Can't wait for the next one. May The LORD bless you and yours! JESUS is King!

[PhoenixSong]

This is awesome, I love these deep dives into history. Keep it up!

[CruceibleProductions]

Thank you so much Matt! Me and some friends are from church are doing a Bible study in Daniel right now. Great resource!

[johngleich]

Just got done listening to Hardcore History talk about this period (from several years ago) and I wondered what Matt's thoughts would be. Wow! Thanks for reading my mind, Mr. Whitman!

[varables]

Here's a potential solution that ties in to #4. We don't know all the satraps, governors or kings of the regions in the area at the time. Darius the mede could've been like a cousin of Cyrus or uncle(like claimed by Josephus) that was trusted enough by Cyrus to rule Babylon but no threat politically to attempt a coup. The reason we don't know him from external sources is because they're usually incomplete and sometimes they disagree with one another(See 'secret histories' vs 'wars of Justinian' and those are written by the same guy).