This article will discuss a recent apologetic attempt by Christian scholar Dr. Steven Anderson to identify the mysterious king “Darius the Mede”, who is mentioned in the Book of Daniel. During a recent discussion on Paul Williams’ blog involving the Christian interpretations of Daniel, I pointed out that scholars generally regard “Darius the Mede” to be a fictional character. The Christian apologist Ken Temple responded,[1] by linking to an article,[2] that summarizes a PhD dissertation by Dr. Steven Anderson,[3] in which he claimed that the identity of “Darius the Mede” can finally be resolved after centuries of debate. Various theories have been proposed to identify “Darius the Mede”, from Cyrus’ general Gobryas, to Cyrus himself, all of which were discussed by the English scholar H.H. Rowley and refuted.[4] But Anderson has sought to reopen the debate with a new look at one of the many theories proposed. In short, Anderson claims that “Darius” was actually “Cyaxares II”, an obscure figure who is only mentioned by name in the Greek philosopher Xenophon’s grand work on the life of Cyrus, the “Cyropaedia”.[5] And being true to form, Temple uncritically accepted this theory without any objective analysis. So, let us do that for him.
https://quranandbibleblog.wordpress.com/2018/12/28/was-daniels-darius-the-mede-really-xenophons-cyaxares-ii/
