# Talk:Nebuchadnezzar II

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Jony (talk) 16:27, 8 June 2018 (UTC)

How is it relevant that the book of Daniel is fiction? I work as a teacher, and teach my students that anything not 100% relevant should be considered removed. Is the statement about Daniel really relevant to who Nebuchadnezzar II was? This is like an article about Gandalf discussing how Gollum is a work of fiction. It just isn't relevant.
Ader (talk) 19:49, 9 June 2018 (UTC)

It is you who thinks that it would be irrelevant. Others might not think so. E.g. we have to state that such portrayal of Nebuchadnezzar is unhistorical. Tgeorgescu (talk) 19:54, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
Even if Daniel is invented, it does not mean that the portrayal of Nebuchadnezzar is incorrect? How is that good science? Do you throw away the entire source material just because one person in it is portrayed erroneously? Ader (talk) 20:08, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
There is no evidence that Nebuchadnezzar has converted to Judaism. Tgeorgescu (talk) 20:13, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
See, that would definitely be relevant to mention. Daniel himself as a character is not interesting. How about a paragraph something like this:
Nebuchadnezzar is an important character in the Book of Daniel, a collection of legendary tales and visions dating from the 2nd century BC.[15] The book's portrayal of Nebuchadnezzar should be taken with a spoonful of salt, since it claims that Nebuchadnezzar converted to Judaism, a claim that no other sources back up.
Ader (talk) 20:28, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
All the information from our articles is a matter of WP:SOURCES. Tgeorgescu (talk) 20:32, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
I fail to find that principle in the guidelines. It must go something like this: "When discussing the portrayal of one person in a source, you should also mention whether or not the main character existed"? Ader (talk) 20:40, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
I don't think that there would be such WP:PAG, but there is one about WP:CONSENSUS. Tgeorgescu (talk) 20:41, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
I didn't expect there to be either :) I think you misunderstand my argument. My issue is not with whether or not there is consensus for or against Daniel being a real person, my question is why that is relevant to this article. People wondering about things like that, could click on the link and read the discussion on the page about The Book of Daniel. There is no need to have it here. Including information that does not really shed light on anything but something vaguely related, will just lead to bloated articles.
So can you answer this: Why is whether or not Daniel is a real of fictitious person relevant to who Nebuchadnezzar is and how he is portrayed in the Bible?
Ader (talk) 20:48, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
Because the whole story is fiction loosely based upon some really-existing historical persons. Tgeorgescu (talk) 20:53, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
Well, why don't we write that? That's highly relevant because it tells the reader something about the source itself, and not just about one of the other characters. Suggestion: "The consensus among scholars is that this source is fiction loosely based upon some really-existing historical persons". Ader (talk) 20:57, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
If that's WP:VERifiable, I am not opposed to it. Tgeorgescu (talk) 20:59, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
I don't know whether it is verifiable. You coined most of the sentence and I am no expert on this issue, just an advocate for clear language :) But I assume that you have your sources? Ader (talk) 21:03, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
Conversely, most critical scholars take for granted that the genre is not HISTORY.
Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 21:22, 9 June 2018 (UTC)
Is that the best source we have? That book is as old as I am. An entire generation of new scholars has arrived on the scene since then. Is it confirmed in any newer material? 84.210.68.172 (talk) 06:08, 10 June 2018 (UTC)
No, it is not the only source. The idea that Daniel was real and wrote the Book of Daniel is WP:FRINGE/PS. The only group of scholars who disagree with this are Christian fundamentalists and conservative evangelicals, who do so for theological reasons. What they state about Daniel is theology (apologetics), not history. Tgeorgescu (talk) 08:15, 10 June 2018 (UTC)
Ader is correct that the sentence about the Daniel character never existing is actually superfluous at this article. The section only needs to make it clear that the presentation of Nebuchadnezzar in the book of Daniel is not historical.--Jeffro77 (talk) 08:57, 10 June 2018 (UTC)
I've tried making the change. I really don't want to be difficult, but a 34 year old book as a source on consesus among scholars, is not something I look upon as a good source. Most of the scholars Collins speaks about must be retired by now, so the only thing the source proves is that consensus existed 34 years ago. Does anyone know of any more recent metastudies on what scholars think of The Book of Daniel? Ader (talk) 15:39, 10 June 2018 (UTC)

You may look for more sources at Book of Daniel. The consensus that it is a 2nd century BCE book did not change. Some things hardly change.
I would like to chime in here that the reason we know the Book of Daniel was written in the second century BC is because the prophecies in it are only accurate up until a certain date: 164 BC exactly. After that date, all of the prophecies are catastrophically wrong. The only way that you can arrive with a work containing accurate prophecies up to one, specific date and inaccurate prophecies thereafter is if the book was actually written at that date, making all the "predictions" prior to that point actually be history framed as predictions to make the actual predictions found later seem reliable. --Katolophyromai (talk) 15:41, 3 December 2017 (UTC)
Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 16:01, 10 June 2018 (UTC)
@Dilidor: I think that you should read the above. Tgeorgescu (talk) 17:10, 14 February 2019 (UTC)
@Tgeorgescu your assertion that Daniel is considered by scholars to be a work of historical fiction is technically incorrect.  Some scholars certainly state that, but there are many others (both old and current) that do not.  The qualifier "some" should be added before "scholars". Mkenweaver (talk) 14:29, 16 October 2024 (UTC)

This is regarding my reversion of this edit on the basis that it is original research (i.e. original conclusions were drawn from the sources which are not made in the sources themselves).
Firstly, this text was added:

This biblical portrayal of the King's descent into madness is consistent with modern and ancient historians' understanding that Nebuchadnezzar became increasingly irrational in his later years. .
This is what the cited reference says about this matter:

"According to a Babylonian poem, the king had begun to act irrationally: "He paid no heed to son and daughter, family and clan were not in his heart." Perhaps this is the basis for the later story that Nebuchadnezzar went mad."
The author doesn't mention the biblical account and makes no comment on the consistency of the biblical portrayal.
Similarly for this text that was added:

Daniel's prophecy of the downfall of Babylon, as described to Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar in the Hebrew Bible, was also consistent with the eventual fate of the Babylonian Empire as described by historians.
Again, I do not see where the source notes the consistency of Daniel's prophecy. It only speaks of the influence of the Babylonian-Assyrian religion on the Old Testament. Bennv3771 (talk) 01:48, 23 December 2018 (UTC)

Critical scholars are WP:MAINSTREAM: their vision gets taught from Ivy Plus to US state universities. Biblical inerrantists are WP:FRINGE. Tgeorgescu (talk) 03:26, 21 January 2019 (UTC)

If by "fringe" you mean "complete jokes" with unconvincing arguments, I would agree. Dimadick (talk) 08:30, 21 January 2019 (UTC)
@Barok777: The views of the Adventist scholars are considered marginal opinions. Tgeorgescu (talk) 19:28, 9 July 2019 (UTC)
I have truncated the claim that there is 'substantial evidence' supporting an earlier date for Daniel. The Ferch source that was added cites Wiseman and the existence of Belshazzar as 'evidence', neither of which actually substantiate an earlier date for Daniel.--Jeffro77 (talk) 08:49, 10 July 2019 (UTC)

I recently erased a baseless statement at the end of the intro, citing some scholar named Collins, that the Book of Daniel is merely a collection of legendary tales and visions dating from the 2nd century BCE. User:Tgeorgescu seems to have a problem with that. The dating of the Book of Daniel by scholars to the 2nd century BCE refers to the sealing of the text by the Men of the Great Assembly (in it's original Hebrew version, see Great Assembly), not its original composition. Additionally, this statement is irrelevant in this entry, and if anything should be mentioned as a scholarly opinion in Book of Daniel (and definitely not as consensus).  — Preceding unsigned comment added by Natorious (talk • contribs) 12:08, 24 July 2019 (UTC) 

That would be John J Collins " Holmes Professor of Old Testament Criticism & Interpretation at Yale Divinity School. He is noted for his research in the Hebrew Bible". See Book of Daniel#Dating for the reasons given for the dating. It's hardly a baseless statement and Collins is not just "some scholar". Doug Weller talk 13:43, 24 July 2019 (UTC)
I would like to chime in here that the reason we know the Book of Daniel was written in the second century BC is because the prophecies in it are only accurate up until a certain date: 164 BC exactly. After that date, all of the prophecies are catastrophically wrong. The only way that you can arrive with a work containing accurate prophecies up to one, specific date and inaccurate prophecies thereafter is if the book was actually written at that date, making all the "predictions" prior to that point actually be history framed as predictions to make the actual predictions found later seem reliable. --Katolophyromai (talk) 15:41, 3 December 2017 (UTC)
Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 15:29, 24 July 2019 (UTC)
In any event it must be relevant and neutral. The addition (end of intro) that the Book of Daniel is a "collection of legendary tales and visions.." is irrelevant to this entry. As to the dating - If you can't determine it's composition was initiated before the 2nd century BCE (when it itself declares to have been) then you can't determine it wasn't Natorious (talk) 19:28, 25 July 2019 (UTC)
Let me spell out your choice: you either play by our WP:RULES or you'll get blocked and then banned. You have no right of undoing a more than hundred years old academic consensus and still actual. We side with Ivy Plus, not with true believers. If your view is unworthy of top 100 US universities, then it is unworthy for Wikipedia. As simple as that. If we mention at all the Book of Daniel, then we have to mention that it is a work of fiction, that it isn't history. We never conflate attested historical facts with fantasy stories. For WP:MAINSTREAM historians it is a historical fact that the Book of Daniel was composed in the 2nd century BCE. Of course, it includes stuff from older writings, nobody has denied that. Tgeorgescu (talk) 20:16, 25 July 2019 (UTC)
Whether right or wrong, I don't think your hammer reply was necessary, Tgeorgescu. Natorious clearly doesn't understand modern biblical theory where true scholars don't believe in precognition. Telling him that he's going to be blocked for a misunderstanding, for disagreeing with concensus thought, and for deleting passages - once - based upon misguided POV (which are very easily restored) is not only completely false but would mean half of the current reviewers would have been blocked at one time or another in their editing history. The fact that he brought this to Talk in the first place rightly suggests that he's not an Anon rewriting things for kicks.
That being said, I do have to differ with you on one point. You can't state that Daniel was both written by someone who understood current events (therefore a book of at worst partial history) and turnaround and state that we "have to mention that it is a work of fiction". If you want to state that this Daniel isn't who he says he was and he didn't write when he said he did, he sure got alot of current events correct (if we go along with the "modern" dating method) and therefore the book is not "a collection of legendary tales and visions". I would suggest that this specific statement needs to be reworked within the context of what is already on the page - UNLESS - that's a direct quote from a citation that I missed. Ckruschke (talk) 18:43, 26 July 2019 (UTC)Ckruschke
I do get what you say. It's like describing three years of Obama's presidency and then tell about his reasons why he nuked Pakistan. Isn't that a work of fiction? Tgeorgescu (talk) 18:49, 26 July 2019 (UTC)
Natorious is rather unknown to other editors at this point. Despite registering as an editor back in 2012, he/she has a very small number of edits and Talk:Nebuchadnezzar II is the first time he/she wrote anything in a talk page. A clearer explanation of Wikipedia policies might be better here than going directly to threats. Dimadick (talk) 13:57, 27 July 2019 (UTC)
Yup, I have seen many newbies indeffed because they did not want to listen to my honest advice. In fact, I suspect that some of them weren't newbies at all. If they listen and comply with WP:RULES I'm content. I cannot decide this matter instead them. Tgeorgescu (talk) 16:13, 27 July 2019 (UTC)

Seems that there is historical depiction of Nebuchadnezzar II in the so called Tower of Babel Stele. Here is some info:

Schøyen Collection (MS 2063)
A stele of Nebuchadnezzar II (Tower of Babel stele)
The Tower of Babel Stele
Anyone willing to upload it? 109.160.36.104 (talk) 22:12, 5 August 2019 (UTC)

How about copyright? Tgeorgescu (talk) 22:21, 5 August 2019 (UTC)
Sorry, I`m not competent on the copyright problems, but there might be some available images on google. Not sure about this: SOAS  or this: [1] 109.160.36.104 (talk) 11:16, 6 August 2019 (UTC)

This is a WP:MAINSTREAM history article, so Barok777 don't bother us anymore with the fundamentalist POV, which would be booed off the stage at WP:CHOPSY. That falls within WP:FRINGE/PS. Tgeorgescu (talk) 06:08, 8 August 2019 (UTC)

Indeed a mainstream article. And very informative. The inclusion of an orthodox point of view in no way makes my POV fundamentalist. Why are your responses to these type of edits tainted with aggression, derision and contempt? Does it not highlight your own POV?  I am A VERY BIG FAN of WIKIPEDIA and would like to contribute in a helpful way. Including several points of view, from several scholarly groups should round out an article should it not? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Barok777 (talk • contribs) 
Adventists believe in a literal Adam and Eve, literal seven days of the creation week, i.e. they are fundamentalists in the original meaning of the word. Their scholarship is WP:FRINGE: fringe theologically and fringe historically. We don't infect the article Earth with the Adventist POV upon the age of the Earth, since that it banned by WP:RULES. That's why we don't take them seriously about the dating of the Book of Daniel. It's banned by WP:FRINGE. As I have told Natorious: if you have an axe to grind against Ivy Plus, Bar-Ilan University and Tel Aviv University you stand absolutely no chance of winning this dispute. Wikipedia simply isn't the venue for your WP:FRINGE WP:POV pushing. Tgeorgescu (talk) 06:49, 8 August 2019 (UTC)
Have no axe to grind. I also do not speak in the "royal we' form. Wanted to include orthodox point of view to balance article. Not an Adventist, but I do not limit my reading to only material I agree with. Even if you take out the reference to the Adventist academic article, the orthodox view is still relevant as the WIKI article specifically mentions POVs.— Preceding unsigned comment added by Barok777 (talk • contribs) 
"We" means the Wikipedia community, i.e those who have a WP:CLUE. This is a history article, not a religion/theology article. That's why your orthodox POV is irrelevant to this article. Tgeorgescu (talk) 07:02, 8 August 2019 (UTC)
Thank you for your views.  Wikipedia has a strong bias in favor of academic sources for history.  That is how it should be.  If archaeology says Beersheba was founded 6000 years ago and the bible says it was founded 4000 years ago, archaeology wins. Zerotalk 13:06, 11 July 2013 (UTC)
Modernists won the debate about the dating of that book more than 100 years ago, so in the secular academia there is no other view. Theologically orthodox POV has been busted. So the WP:ONUS is upon you to show why a busted POV should be included as probably factual. If you are into shenanigans like "there is no empirical evidence for that dating" (see what you wrote at [2]) and "there is no empirical evidence for evolution", we don't play by your rules, you have to play by our WP:RULES or be blocked and then banned. This isn't a website wherein we weigh empirical evidence in order to establish WP:THETRUTH. This is merely a website upon which we parrot WP:MAINSTREAM WP:SCHOLARSHIP. What you have shown so far is that true believers dissent from mainstream history, and that they write pseudoscholarship. You have shown no reason why that would be germane to this article. What is so special about preaching to the choir employing pseudoscholarship? Instead of writing "our church believes that mainstream history is bull-crap" they write pseudohistory. Tgeorgescu (talk) 09:07, 8 August 2019 (UTC)
No need to misquote me. It makes you look sloppy (or sinister...) Empirical evidence is required in most Academic research, even for WP:THETRUTH - especially if you say things such as "MOST critical scholars". I removed no content. I added 2 references and a statement about the orthodox viewpoint, which is also based on several other academic references. Always speaking on behalf of the Wikipedia community makes you look desperate, or vain... I made absolutely no reference to "true believers", "evolution" etc etc - yet you went on a WP:RANT. I can almost see the spittle forming on your upper lip. "In the secular media there is no other view" - your own words are dripping with irony... If I am to be burnt at the WIKI-stake then so be it. Oh yes - I like your bull-crap quote. It made me smile. Genuine. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Barok777 (talk • contribs) 
Let me tell you historical method 101: post-Enlightenment scholars don't work with precognition. It's called methodological naturalism. History well-done always endorses methodological naturalism. So, post-Enlightenment historians are compelled to accept Porphyry's explanation about the dating of Daniel.
This isn’t simply the approach of “liberal” Bible professors. It’s the way historians always date sources. If you find a letter written on paper that is obviously 300 years old or so, and the author says something about the “United States” — then you know it was written after the Revolutionary War. So too if you find an ancient document that describes the destruction of Jerusalem, then you know it was written after 70 CE. It’s not rocket science! But it’s also not “liberal.” It’s simply how history is done. If someone wants to invent other rules, they’re the ones who are begging questions!
Bart Ehrman quoted by Tgeorgescu. What you really ask from us is that we should teach the controversy about alternative historical facts, based upon pseudoscholarship. You're fighting against the luminaries of the Enlightenment, you fight against the scholars who shaped modern history, you fight against Ivy Plus, you fight against US state universities—your ambitions are too big for this venue, maybe at Conservapedia they will love what you write. Tgeorgescu (talk) 12:39, 8 August 2019 (UTC)
Copy/paste in case you missed it:
Critical scholars are WP:MAINSTREAM: their vision gets taught from Ivy Plus to US state universities. Biblical inerrantists are WP:FRINGE. Tgeorgescu (talk) 03:26, 21 January 2019 (UTC)
If by "fringe" you mean "complete jokes" with unconvincing arguments, I would agree. Dimadick (talk) 08:30, 21 January 2019 (UTC)
@Barok777: The views of the Adventist scholars are considered marginal opinions. Tgeorgescu (talk) 19:28, 9 July 2019 (UTC)
I have truncated the claim that there is 'substantial evidence' supporting an earlier date for Daniel. The Ferch source that was added cites Wiseman and the existence of Belshazzar as 'evidence', neither of which actually substantiate an earlier date for Daniel.--Jeffro77 (talk) 08:49, 10 July 2019 (UTC)
As for the page having two sets of rules, it doesn't: sources representing mainstream scientific thought have precedence over mysticism and fringe science. That should be a fairly simple rule to comprehend and abide by. User:Kww
Copy/paste by Tgeorgescu. So, academically speaking, the Book of Daniel to contain both historical fact and accurate prophecy for a period during Daniel's lifetime and thereafter is dead in the water. Tgeorgescu (talk) 13:28, 8 August 2019 (UTC)
Yeah, no biblical literalism on Wikipedia please. Simonm223 (talk) 13:40, 8 August 2019 (UTC)
Barok777 asks from mainstream history something which it can neither do nor deliver. Stating that Daniel had real prophecies is a violation of WP:NPOV, since prophecies cannot be shown to be historical facts, since the historical method prohibits that. The Enlightenment has done away with all supernatural claims from history. What Barok777 is doing is called around here WP:RGW. I'm not angry at him/her because all the discussions we could have upon this subject aren't going to change a jot of the historical method, and therefore his/her attempt to change the article to include a fundamentalist POV is by default doomed to fail. Barok777 cannot change that and I cannot change that. It is simply a matter that the WP:RULES for WP:Verifying historical facts do not allow for such POV in an article about mere historical facts. No amount of edit-warring is going to change the historical method or the methodological naturalism. Barok777 thinks that I and other established editors would have much discretionary powers in allowing his edits to be. No, such edits simply violate basic WP:PAGs and are therefore unallowable. This has nothing to do with his/her person or with my own person. It's nothing personal. It is merely that his/her past edits are incompatible with Wikipedia. Many things would have to drastically change in the outside world in order for such edits to become allowable. Tgeorgescu (talk) 16:19, 8 August 2019 (UTC)
@Vasyaivanov: Read the above. No bona fide history department could teach that Daniel had genuine prophecies, since the epistemology of history prohibits it. There is a difference between past (what really happened) and history (what historians can show in peer-reviewed papers that it happened). Tgeorgescu (talk) 07:31, 11 August 2019 (UTC)
I would like to chime in here that the reason we know the Book of Daniel was written in the second century BC is because the prophecies in it are only accurate up until a certain date: 164 BC exactly. After that date, all of the prophecies are catastrophically wrong. The only way that you can arrive with a work containing accurate prophecies up to one, specific date and inaccurate prophecies thereafter is if the book was actually written at that date, making all the "predictions" prior to that point actually be history framed as predictions to make the actual predictions found later seem reliable. --Katolophyromai (talk) 15:41, 3 December 2017 (UTC)
Quoted by Tgeorgescu. Where we draw the line? Daniel's prophecies probably factual? David Irving probably factual? Andrew Wakefield probably factual? Ryke Geerd Hamer probably factual? AIDS denialism probably factual? Young Earth Creationism probably factual? Moon landing probably hoax? It seems a complete mockery to poo on the historical method and then call your papers history writing. Since the Enlightenment the supernatural has been purged from history, yet some Wikipedia editors seem unaware of this fact. The edits at this article by Barok777, Natorious, Madcricketer and Vasyaivanov are a perfect example of how to flunk as a history undergraduate. If historians could prove paranormal claims, then you should expect peer-reviewed history articles like "Have leprechauns dictated the Book of Isaiah? An alternative theory for the claim that angels have dictated the Book of Isaiah." Tgeorgescu (talk) 09:33, 14 August 2019 (UTC)
Bart D. Ehrman (23 September 1999). Jesus: Apocalyptic Prophet of the New Millennium. Oxford University Press. p. 197. ISBN 978-0-19-983943-8. As I've pointed out, the historian cannot say that demons—real live supernatural spirits that invade human bodies—were actually cast out of people, because to do so would be to transcend the boundaries imposed on the historian by the historical method, in that it would require a religious belief system involving a supernatural realm outside of the historian's province.
Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 14:29, 17 August 2019 (UTC)

@Jmcsparin: Your stance is highly preposterous to anyone familiar with the historical method. See why above. The supernatural does not count in writing history, beginning with the Enlightenment. Historians do not work with the hypothesis that the supernatural is real when they write history, only theologians do that when they write theology. So, yeah, sooner or later inerrantists will find that the whole historical method is from Satan, just as they found that about evolution and about mainstream geology. I'd say wait till the conclusion that David did not rule a kingdom, he only ruled a village trickles down to schoolbooks. Then it will happen. This is all what WP:FRINGE/PS WP:POV pushers can do here: trolling with a complete mockery of the historical method. That is the rub. I vehemently disagree with your assertion that modern scholars are secretly in league with Satan, but, even if your accusation were true (which it certainly is not), it would not matter; Wikipedia is still bound to represent the views of modern scholars, regardless of whether or not they are secretly Satanists. --Katolophyromai (talk) 19:50, 9 August 2017 (UTC) Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 22:16, 28 August 2019 (UTC)
Wikipedia is not an advertising billboard. Just because members of the MGTOW community don't like this article doesn't mean it's biased. Wikipedia is designed to be written from a neutral point of view, not a promotional point of view. In the case of fringe opinions, such as MGTOW, Flat Earth Society, etc., the proponents of such opinions are as a rule never satisfied with the consensus version of the article. That doesn't mean Wikipedia should completely avoid covering such topics. FiredanceThroughTheNight (talk) 03:12, 31 December 2015 (UTC) Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 00:03, 29 August 2019 (UTC)
Modern Bible scholarship/scholars (MBS) assumes that:
• The Bible is a collection of books like any others: created and put together by normal (i.e. fallible) human beings;
• The Bible is often inconsistent because it derives from sources (written and oral) that do not always agree; individual biblical books grow over time, are multilayered;
• The Bible is to be interpreted in its context:
✦ Individual biblical books take shape in historical contexts; the Bible is a document of its time;
✦ Biblical verses are to be interpreted in context;
✦ The "original" or contextual meaning is to be prized above all others;
• The Bible is an ideologically-driven text (collection of texts). It is not "objective" or neutral about any of the topics that it treats. Its historical books are not "historical" in our sense.
✦ "hermeneutics of suspicion";
✦ Consequently MBS often reject the alleged "facts" of the Bible (e.g. was Abraham a real person? Did the Israelites leave Egypt in a mighty Exodus? Was Solomon the king of a mighty empire?);
✦ MBS do not assess its moral or theological truth claims, and if they do, they do so from a humanist perspective;
★ The Bible contains many ideas/laws that we moderns find offensive;

• The authority of the Bible is for MBS a historical artifact; it does derive from any ontological status as the revealed word of God;
Quoted by Tgeorgescu. Maybe he wanted to say "it doesn't derive from any ontological status". Tgeorgescu (talk) 07:22, 29 August 2019 (UTC)

Think its time to close out this thread. The horse is dead, has been drawn and quartered, and each part has been sent to farthest points of the realm. Time to move on... Ckruschke (talk) 18:33, 5 September 2019 (UTC)Ckruschke
Tomelti has not dropped the WP:STICK. It is not known whether “most critical scholars agree” that the book of Daniel is historical fiction. — but, yes, it is known: for more than 100 years the claim "the Book of Daniel is real history" is WP:FRINGE/PS according to WP:MAINSTREAM WP:SCHOLARSHIP. Tgeorgescu (talk) 14:52, 3 November 2019 (UTC)
Benimiah I suggest you drop the WP:STICK. Tgeorgescu (talk) 04:59, 5 April 2020 (UTC)
Saxophilist Please read the above, it concerns your edits. WP:NPOV means especially WP:RNPOV, not what you think it means.
Dispute resolution won't do any good. The feedback you've gotten so far is the exact same kind of feedback that you would get in Wikipedia's dispute resolution systems. To simplify it somewhat, Wikipedia reflects the kind of scholarship that you find at leading secular universities, such as those mentioned at WP:CHOPSY: the kinds of things you would find taught at Cambridge, Harvard, Princeton, the Sorbonne, and/or Yale. If a view is considered fringe in those kinds of circles, you can bet that it will be considered fringe at Wikipedia. Now, that may not seem fair, especially if you believe the CHOPSY outlook is wrong. But that is the way Wikipedia has been since its inception, and it would be very unlikely if you could talk the Wikipedia community out of the approach that they've used since the beginning. As William Dever put it in "What Remains of the House that Albright Built?', "the overwhelming scholarly consensus today is that Moses is a mythical figure." That's from William Dever, who is on the conservative side of much of the debate currently going on within mainstream biblical studies. The great majority of mainstream scholars have abandoned the idea of Moses as a historical figure. Alephb (talk) 00:10, 23 January 2018 (UTC)
If you think that the WP:ONUS would be upon me to prove that Ivy Plus got it right, you misunderstood the rules of Wikipedia. The WP:BURDEN is upon you, not upon me. You are the WP:FRINGE/PS WP:POV pusher. This isn't a level playing field, the sooner you learn it, the better. Wikipedia is very biased for WP:MAINSTREAM WP:SCHOLARSHIP. Appeal to tradition is a fallacy. Wikipedia is WP:NOTAFORUM, so you don't get to define the terms of the debate; we do, WP:RULES do. Something makes you think that your traditional religious authorities trump the authorities from Ivy Plus, BIU and TAU. Wikipedia just doesn't work that way. Who has the power to decide upon this historical fact? Mainstream Bible scholars. Tgeorgescu (talk) 12:10, 26 July 2019 (UTC)
Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 08:54, 21 May 2020 (UTC)


### The gist
Wikipedia does not follow the Bible. Wikipedia follows mainstream Bible scholarship. See WP:RSPSCRIPTURE. Tgeorgescu (talk) 05:40, 4 October 2020 (UTC)

The correct name is Nebuchadrezzar with an R; I've added this and given a source. We should move the page to Nebuchadrezzar II. (This has been discussed before at length at Talk:Nebuchadnezzar II/Archive 2#"Nebuchadrezzar".) Richard75 (talk) 22:04, 19 December 2019 (UTC)

I oppose this.  "Nebuchadnezzar" has been and remains the most common name in English.  See Google ngram for both variations. -Ben (talk) 04:07, 21 December 2019 (UTC)
Oppose for the same reason. I'll add that move requests should be done per WP:RM#CM. Doug Weller talk 08:55, 21 December 2019 (UTC)
Oppose for the same reason. BobKilcoyne (talk) 14:52, 21 December 2019 (UTC)

I have changed the final sentence of the opening to reflect a neutral stance. It is as follows:
"He is an important character in the Book of Daniel, a collection of writings and visions that were perhaps written in the 2nd century BC."
Saxophilist (talk) 16:51, 21 May 2020 (UTC)

Your WP:TE has to stop. See #Fundamentalist POV for details. You're not making the article more neutral, you're making it more akin to true believers' stance. You have no WP:CONSENSUS, gain first consensus for your edits.
Thank you for your views.  Wikipedia has a strong bias in favor of academic sources for history.  That is how it should be.  If archaeology says Beersheba was founded 6000 years ago and the bible says it was founded 4000 years ago, archaeology wins. Zerotalk 13:06, 11 July 2013 (UTC)
Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 17:23, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
It's not a fundamentalist point of view. You think it's a fundamentalist point of view. Your opinion is not fact. Rejecting scholars you disagree with is not neutral. Saxophilist (talk) 17:30, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
@Saxophilist: Wikipedians reject WP:FRINGE/PS "scholars" all the time. In WP:MAINSTREAM WP:SCHOLARSHIP "the Book of Daniel was written in the 2nd century BCE" is the only game in town. That's academic consensus which holds true for more than a century. Tgeorgescu (talk) 17:38, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
You claim scholars that you disagree with are fringe and not real scholars. I know your game. It's a great way to shut down any real debate. The Book of Daniel may very well have been written in the 2nd century BC. I'm taking issue with it being called "legendary tales". Saxophilist (talk) 17:44, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
@Saxophilist: The consensus is that it's not history. It's tales of court conquest + Vaticinium ex eventu.
I would like to chime in here that the reason we know the Book of Daniel was written in the second century BC is because the prophecies in it are only accurate up until a certain date: 164 BC exactly. After that date, all of the prophecies are catastrophically wrong. The only way that you can arrive with a work containing accurate prophecies up to one, specific date and inaccurate prophecies thereafter is if the book was actually written at that date, making all the "predictions" prior to that point actually be history framed as predictions to make the actual predictions found later seem reliable. --Katolophyromai (talk) 15:41, 3 December 2017 (UTC)
Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 17:48, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
That quote shows a lack of understanding of the book. None of the prophecies are wrong. Some prophecies are about the end of time. That time obviously hasn't occurred yet. Do you honestly think you (or the quoted person) know more about the meaning of the book than 2000 years worth of theologians? Saxophilist (talk) 18:33, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
You do not make the call, I do not make the call, mainstream Bible scholars (WP:CHOPSY) make the call. Tgeorgescu (talk) 21:31, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
You only consider scholars you agree with to be "mainstream". Saxophilist (talk) 23:22, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
Nope, Wikipedia has clear WP:RULES for determining who's mainstream.
 And if you don't want your editing to be limited by the Wikipedia community's particular goals and methods and decisions, the good news is that there's plenty of other outlets for your work, like perhaps Conservapedia, or getting a personal blog. At the end of the day, Wikipedia really is the private project of the Wikimedia Foundation. It is, roughly, a service that provides summaries of the contents of mainstream scholarship, in the specific sense that "mainstream scholarship" has here at Wikipedia. It's really not an experiment in treating all views equally, and if you think it is, you're likely to wind up frustrated. Alephb (talk) 12:16, 24 January 2018 (UTC)
Quoted by Tgeorgescu (talk) 12:39, 22 May 2020 (UTC)

Who crowned Tgeorgescu as king of this page? If anyone disagrees with his opinions or his preferred scholars, then they are fringe fundamentalists. Really? Saxophilist (talk) 18:50, 21 May 2020 (UTC)

As I told you, read #Fundamentalist POV. You will see that the regulars agree with me. Oh, yeah, I received thanks for reverting you. Tgeorgescu (talk) 21:30, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
You disagree with it, therefore it's fundamentalist? Daniel being a real person has been the belief of Christians (and Jews) for 2000 years. How is a standard belief of a religion considered a fundamentalist view? I realize some Christians might not consider Daniel to be a historical figure, but they are a minority. Saxophilist (talk) 23:26, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
And congrats on being thanked for your revert. Do you want a prize? Saxophilist (talk) 23:28, 21 May 2020 (UTC)
The basic editorial rule on WIkipedia is that we use sources for our statements - every statement beyond the most basic should be sourced, and the source should be reliable and accessible. In this case, there are multiple reliable sources saying the Book of Daniel is not a history book (which should be obvious to any reader), and that Daniel is a legendary figure. This has always been the position of Jewish scholars,or at least since the failure of the Bar Kochba revolt, but Christians see it in prophetic messianic terms, and so it becomes problematic for them. Anyway, the converse of the rule about using reliable sources is that we don't delete sourced statements when we disagree with them. Achar Sva (talk) 03:52, 22 May 2020 (UTC)
Most Christians did not read the Bible.
We have to distinguish between a subjective religious opinion and an objective historical fact.
@Saxophilist: I advise you that you should refrain from maiming the academic consensus at this article. Just like I avoid the articles Abortion and Health effects of salt. The difference between you and me is that I know where my edits are unwelcome. To be specific, we don't use WP:ATTRIBUTEPOV for WP:RS/AC sort of claims. Or if we do, we say something like "The consensus of mainstream scholars is...". It's not just Collins' POV: the consensus existed before he was born and will continue to exist after his death. There isn't any alternative to it, precisely as for evolution the only credible alternative is or was lamarckism not intelligent design. Once the Enlightenment purged history of all miracles/supernatural, there was no other option left for historians. Tgeorgescu (talk) 13:24, 24 May 2020 (UTC)

A Unicode rendition of the Akkadian script for the name Nebuchadnezzar "𒀭𒀝𒆪𒁺𒌨𒊑𒋀" has recently been added to the article. That rendition appears to be frequently used online (though it seems to transliterate as ANAKKUDUURRIŠEŠ). In any case, it does not take an expert in cuneiform to see that  and 𒀭𒀝𒆪𒁺𒌨𒊑𒋀 are not the same word. Can somebody verify the form from the image from the original source (Bertin, G. (1891). "Babylonian Chronology and History". Transactions of the Royal Historical Society. 5: p. 50; [@User:Ichthyovenator]?) and either replace with the correct form or add a note to the article explaining why the two forms are different? Ideally, if someone can also confirm the accuracy of the Unicode form too.--Jeffro77 (talk) 00:54, 3 October 2020 (UTC)

Jeffro77: I uploaded the image version and I can confirm that it is correct in so far that this is the form given by Bertin in the cited source. The reason I replaced the original unicode version with the image is that cuneiform changed over time (signs and grammar are for instance noticeably different in Sumerian and Neo-Assyrian writings); the unicode version (the accuracy of which I can't verify since it is uncited) seems to use older signs while Bertin presents the actual Neo-Babylonian rendition. Another advantage of Bertin is that he presents the name of a vast amount of kings, making it convenient to use him as a source for these articles. Ichthyovenator (talk) 08:13, 3 October 2020 (UTC)
Do we know that the 1891 source is accurate? Do we know that the Unicode form is accurate? If the Unicode text shows only an earlier Sumerian or Assyrian form of the letters, it is probably misleading to use it if it were not the form used in the Neo-Babylonian period? That said, the glyphs in the Unicode form provided do appear in cuneiform from the Neo-Babylonian period. Perhaps an excerpt showing the context of the images in the Bertin source would help. In any case, the presentation of two obviously different forms without explanation as in the article presently is unhelpful. It probably also is not useful in the context of the article to note that the text form is "Unicode", and if, for example, it is an Assyrian rather than Neo-Babylonian form of the name, it would be more helpful to note that.--Jeffro77 (talk) 01:44, 4 October 2020 (UTC)
Personally I automatically trust the 1891 source more since it's actually cited (unlike the unicode version). In the source itself, the names of various Mesopotamian rulers are presented in cuneiform and transliteration. Of course, a more modern "dictionary" of names in cuneiform would be preferrable, but I haven't found any. I agree that both the 1891 version and the unicode version should not be in the article, at least not in the way they are now. For a similar situation, see Ashurbanipal, whose lede presents his name as written by the Neo-Assyrians, with a unicode version in older script added as a note. Ichthyovenator (talk) 11:49, 4 October 2020 (UTC)
More to the point, how many of us can read Akkadian?Achar Sva (talk) 11:50, 4 October 2020 (UTC)
A fair point, I would be more than happy to completely do away with Akkadian script in the ledes since it's difficult to find sources for the names for some kings (notably I haven't found anything for Sin-shumu-lishir and Labashi-Marduk). I'm not sure if there are guidelines in regards to this, but other ancient rulers appear to use ancient scripts as well, such as Cyrus the Great (has his name in Old Persian script) and Bahram V (has his name in Middle Persian script). Ichthyovenator (talk) 12:43, 4 October 2020 (UTC)
Apart from an extremely small number of readers, inclusion of a cuneiform form of the name is really just a novelty, but if it is included, it should be accurate.--Jeffro77 (talk) 02:52, 5 October 2020 (UTC)
I agree on both points. What I was showing with the Ashurbanipal example is that both could very well be accurate renditions of Nebuchadnezzar's name, in different scripts/contexts; I trust the 1891 source more since it is a scholarly source. The unicode rendition completely lacks a source as it stands and if one is not added, must be considered original research. Ichthyovenator (talk) 11:00, 5 October 2020 (UTC)

Nebuchadnezzar (The Matrix) is better than I expected (it has a well-referenced reception section), but it suffers from one critical issue - the coverage of this fictional entity (ship) is in passing, which makes it fail WP:GNG/WP:NFICTION. Several sources do discuss a single aspect of it - its name - but do so in passing. As far as I can tell, none have more than a sentence or two about this aspect, and there is nothing about anything else. (Of course, there are also few sentences in some sources that are mentions in passing in the context of plot summaries, but that's pretty much irrelevant). As such, I think we should merge the receptions section somewhere, but I am not sure what article would be a good choice to discuss the meaning of the name of the ship. Perhaps 'in popular culture' section could be added to Nebuchadnezzar II  and the entry redirected there? Another option would be to rename and rewrite the article into the Meaning of the name Nebuchadnezzar in The Matrix but that's a mouthful. There is also the option of merging it to some Matrix article (or forking it to both articles), but I couldn't find any Matrix-themed article that is relevant, as none discuss this ship outside a plot summary. --Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus| reply here 01:31, 8 November 2020 (UTC)

The section seems best located where it already is or otherwise merged into another article related to the film franchise. It only really has superficial relevance to the historical character, so it definitely shouldn't be merged to this article. Article content about the fictional ship should be kept within articles specific to the Matrix franchise. There doesn't seem to be sufficient notability to have a standalone article for "Meaning of the name Nebuchadnezzar in The Matrix".--Jeffro77 (talk) 02:51, 8 November 2020 (UTC)
I agree; it should not be merged to this article. Ichthyovenator (talk) 11:03, 8 November 2020 (UTC)
Agreed with Jeffro77. If there is a consensus for a merge, it should not be merged with the actual historical character, as there is only a superficial similarity/reference between the two topics. In any event, Oppose merge.  Haleth (talk) 06:27, 13 November 2020 (UTC)
Agreed with Jeffro77. Just because some science fiction franchise borrows a historical name, there is no reason to add this non-historical content to a page that is eminently about history. warshy (¥¥) 16:15, 13 November 2020 (UTC)
I agree with Jeffro77. Science fiction and historical figures should not be conflated. Let the other article remain a standalone, where it will be most useful for those particular readers. Oppose merge. Niekinloy (talk) 1:18, 12 December 2020 (UTC)
Oppose That article is standalone notable, IMO (since I created it). It doesn't fail GNG and you have gotten a bit carried away nominating obviously notable pages for merge or deletion. WP:BATHWATER.ZXCVBNM (TALK) 04:38, 13 November 2020 (UTC)
Oppose merge! I completely disagree with your logic. Pixiechick66 (talk) 03:21, 21 February 2021 (UTC)

This review is transcluded from Talk:Nebuchadnezzar II/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.
Reviewer: Simongraham (talk · contribs) 18:31, 28 August 2021 (UTC)
This looks an interesting article. It is stable, although it has been subject to claims of edit wars in the past as it covers some potentially controversial material. 94.4% of the authorship is from one user, Ichthyovenator. It is currently ranked both B and C class.


### Review
Well-written:

Verifiable with no original research:

Broad in its coverage:

Neutral: it represents viewpoints fairly and without editorial bias, giving due weight to each.

Stable: it does not change significantly from day to day because of an ongoing edit war or content dispute.

Illustrated, if possible, by media such as images, video, or audio:


#### Result
### Discussion
File:Nebuchadnezzar II crop.png has an EU public domain tag. Please add a US tag too.
Added. Ichthyovenator (talk) 20:20, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
File:Tissot The Chaldees Destroy the Brazen Sea.jpg and File:Hanging Gardens of Babylon by Ferdinand Knab (1886).png state "You must also include a United States public domain tag to indicate why this work is in the public domain in the United States." Please add.
Added. Ichthyovenator (talk) 20:20, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
File:The captivity of Judah.jpg and File:Daniel Interpreting Nebuchadnezzar's Dream.jpg state "This image might not be in the public domain outside of the United States; this especially applies in the countries and areas that do not apply the rule of the shorter term for US works, such as Canada, Mainland China (not Hong Kong or Macao), Germany, Mexico, and Switzerland." Please address this with relevant tags.
Added. Ichthyovenator (talk) 20:20, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
File:B Urgell 209dét.jpg states "You must also include a United States public domain tag to indicate why this work is in the public domain in the United States. Note that a few countries have copyright terms longer than 70 years: Mexico has 100 years, Jamaica has 95 years, Colombia has 80 years, and Guatemala and Samoa have 75 years. This image may not be in the public domain in these countries, which moreover do not implement the rule of the shorter term. Côte d'Ivoire has a general copyright term of 99 years and Honduras has 75 years, but they do implement the rule of the shorter term." Please resolve this.
I fixed the issues with the current tag for this one, the tag now also says "This photographic reproduction is therefore also considered to be in the public domain in the United States". Ichthyovenator (talk) 20:20, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Excellent work. simongraham (talk) 02:25, 2 September 2021 (UTC)
More to come. simongraham (talk) 18:36, 28 August 2021 (UTC)

Although this is not a GA criteria, consider adding ALT tags to the images as this is good practice.
Done. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Consider removing the citation in the lead as per WP:LEADCITE.
In this case I think the citations are necessary; they cite and clear up the controversy surrounding his name and also serve to cite the otherwise potentially challengable statements of him usually being regarded as the greatest king, what he's most known for, and that he was the most powerful ruler in the world at the time of his death. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Seems reasonable. simongraham (talk) 02:25, 2 September 2021 (UTC)
Consider changing or qualifying the areas marked with a (?) in the infobox.
Not sure what you mean that I should do here. Do you mean something like adding explanatory notes? Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Maybe. I am simply not sure what it means. simongraham (talk) 02:25, 2 September 2021 (UTC)
They are meant to indicate uncertainty - Nebuchadnezzar being born in Uruk, his wife being called Amytis and him having a daughter named Nitocris are ideas and details that are well-established in tradition and scholarship, but cannot be fully confirmed with the surviving evidence. Open to suggestions if you think this could be improved. Ichthyovenator (talk) 10:09, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
That sounds very reasonable and is clear in the prose. This must be a convention I wasn't aware of. Would a footnote help?  simongraham (talk) 20:27, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
I'm not sure if there is a convention but I've done the same thing at Sennacherib (FA), Sargon II (GA), Nabonidus (GA), and others. I can add footnotes with explanations at the points marked with (?) in the infobox if you think that would be an improvement. Ichthyovenator (talk) 12:27, 4 September 2021 (UTC)
Maybe it should be! I suggest it be added to some MOS. However, that is outside the scope of this review, so I will give this a pass.  simongraham (talk) 18:30, 4 September 2021 (UTC)
Link Cuneiform.
Added link at first mention. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Remove duplication of Sack 2005 from "presents problems in and of itself, blurring the line between history and tradition, it is the only possible approach to gain insight into Nebuchadnezzar's reign."
Removed duplicate citation. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Replace "explicily" with "explicitly"
Done. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
"Nebuchadnezzar's military career began already during the reign of his father" Please reword.
Reworded/simplified. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Thank you. That looks much better.  simongraham (talk) 20:27, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
The paragraph which begins "In 597 BC" has three successive sentences that start with an almost identical prepositional phrase. Consider rewording.
Reworded the beginning of the middle sentence. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
"According to the Assyriologist Israel Ephʿal". Is there a reason to mention the author, particularly as they do not have a blue link? The other citations in the narrative at this point are not couched with a mention of the author.
It's because the use of "paper tiger" here is a direct quote and Ephʿal's assessment of the situation; open to suggestions if you feel this should be changed. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Thank you. That makes sense. I think the direct quote is useful. simongraham (talk) 02:25, 2 September 2021 (UTC)
"like Assyria had been" Reword please.
Removed "had been", think it works better like this. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Add the comma to "As Herodotus describes Pharaoh Apries as campaigning in the Levant" to become "As Herodotus describes, Pharaoh Apries as campaigning in the Levant"
Rephrased this part. Ichthyovenator (talk) 22:07, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Thank you. That is clearer.  simongraham (talk) 20:27, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
Link "Adad"
Done. Ichthyovenator (talk) 22:07, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
"Nebuchadnezzar's campaigns in the Levant, most notably those directed towards Jerusalem and Tyre, completed the Neo-Babylonian Empire's transformation from a rump state of the Neo-Assyrian Empire to the new dominant power of the ancient Near East" Consider whether this is the right place for this comment as it seems more reflective and fit for a conclusion.
It is reflective, but I also think it's most appropriate here given that this marks the end point for the discussion on his military campaigns (other than the possible later final Egyptian conflict), and this sentence deals with the effect of those campaigns. Ichthyovenator (talk) 22:07, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
I understand. Thank you. In which case, I suggest moving this to the end of the section as a conclusion.  simongraham (talk) 02:25, 2 September 2021 (UTC)
I've moved the passage to the end of the section as its own paragraph. Ichthyovenator (talk) 10:09, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
Excellent work. I think that improves the flow substantially.  simongraham (talk)
Replace "conjecturaly" with "conjecturally"
Done. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Link Book of Ezekiel.
Done. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Replace "Baylonian" with "Babylonian"
Done. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Replace "resoration of Babylon's Processional Street" with "restoration of Babylon's Processional Street"
Done. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Replace "he would be rembered favourably by the Babylonians" with "he would be remembered favourably by the Babylonians"
Done. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
The paragraph that begins "The succession to Nebuchadnezzar appears to have been a troublesome one" seems to be the succession after him. I suggest rewording the first sentence.
I don't understand what needs to be changed here: it refers to the rise of Nebuchadnezzar's successor, i.e. the "succession to Nebuchadnezzar". Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
The paragraph seems to cover Nebuchadnezzar's legitimacy as well as the succession after him and therefore the jump from the first sentence to the second reads disjointedly. Maybe there needs to be a linking sentence.  simongraham (talk) 02:25, 2 September 2021 (UTC)
It is of course possible that this can be worded in a better way, but the gist here is that some late inscriptions by Nebuchadnezzar stress his divine legitimacy, which is very unusual given that Nebuchadnezzar was unquestionably the legitimate king (and this was otherwise only commonly done by usurpers), which indicates that it might instead have served to attempt to legitimize his intended successor, whose accession for whatever reason Nebuchadnezzar foresaw as problematic. Ichthyovenator (talk) 10:09, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
That makes sense. Is there anything in the cited sources which could help make this clearer?  simongraham (talk) 20:27, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
I've rearranged and rephrased this portion, see if you think it flows better now and makes more sense. Ichthyovenator (talk) 12:27, 4 September 2021 (UTC)
That feels a lot better to me. Thank you.  simongraham (talk) 18:30, 4 September 2021 (UTC)
"featuring exoting shrubs". I believe this should be exotic, although I am not sure whether this sentence needs more clarification.
Yeah, it should be "exotic"; fixed. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
The section Assessment by historians is unclear. For example, "Nebuchadnezzar is recognised as the greatest and most prestigious king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Because of the scarcity of sources, assessment by historians of Nebuchadnezzar and his reign have differed considerably over time" These sentences seem contradictory. Please revisit this section for flow.
I've reworded and changed things around here to make stuff more clear: the assessment concerning his character was and what the priorities of his reign were (military man / builder king) have varied considerably over time, he seems to pretty much always have been regarded as the greatest king. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
Excellent. That is very clear now.  simongraham (talk) 20:27, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
The reference Ephʿal, 2003 is repeated. The one following "restoring his country." Is superfluous.
Removed the duplicate reference. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
I suggest adding a Cultural references section under Legacy listing the many ways that he has been depicted.
I'm not sure there is enough discussion in reliable sources concerning popular culture portrayals and depictions to warrant inclusion; virtually every modern depiction of Nebuchadnezzar is based in the biblical character anyway, which the article does detail. I might be misunderstanding you here. Ichthyovenator (talk) 21:02, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
That may be the case. I was comparing with Cultural depictions of Alexander the Great, and there is sufficient there for a page; those would likely be less on Nebuchadnezzar, but I think it would be still a substantial list and useful to the reader. For example, I think it would be helpful to reference Nabucco. There is a category which is sparse but could be helpful.  simongraham (talk) 02:25, 2 September 2021 (UTC)
I'm not a fan of creating lists of pop-culture appearances of historical figures as I don't think they tend to be very relevant, but I agree that major cultural depictions are fine to discuss (which is why this article contains an extensive discussion on Nebuchadnezzar's legacy in Judeo-Christian tradition). I don't think the video games and TV series in the category are relevant enough to bring up here, but I agree that Nabucco should probably be mentioned, will get back to you on that one. Ichthyovenator (talk) 10:09, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
I agree. A list for a list's sake would be unnecessary as per WP:INDISCRIMINATE. Maybe it is simply a case of adding a subsection to the See also section with a few major mentions like Nabucco.  simongraham (talk) 20:27, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
I've added Nabucco and Blake's painting to the "see also" section; I don't think Civilization V or the two TV series are very relevant, so left those out, and the only other major cultural depiction is the biblical one, and derivatives there of, which is discussed at length in the article. Ichthyovenator (talk) 12:27, 4 September 2021 (UTC)
Excellent. That looks ideal.  simongraham (talk) 18:30, 4 September 2021 (UTC)
The link to the Open Richly Annotated Cuneiform Corpus seems to be dead. Consider changing the link to a copy in archive.org.
This is an issue with the way the ORACC site is designed. You have to click on "Nebuchadnezzar II" in the list that comes up, and then on the individual texts, there is no separate direct links for Nebuchadnezzar II or his inscriptions, it all falls under http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/ribo/pager for whatever reason. Ichthyovenator (talk) 22:03, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
What a nuisance.  simongraham (talk) 20:27, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
Also consider pages archived in archive.org for the other web references.
Added archive links to all the web sources. Ichthyovenator (talk) 22:03, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
@Ichthyovenator: You have done great work with this and, although the list is long, I could only find minor things to do. Please see the comments above and ping me when you would like me to take another look.  simongraham (talk) 07:07, 29 August 2021 (UTC)

The clause "recognised by scholars as a work of historical fiction" is irrelevant to this article. It has been contentious in the talk page, although I cannot fathom why as a discussion on this seems more relevant to the wikilnked article on the Book of Daniel. I suggest removing it as per WP:DETAIL.
This clause was not added by me and has been in the article for a long time (since at least 2018). I agree that it is disappointing that there is so much fuss over this passage. The Book of Daniel is arguably Nebuchadnezzar's most famous cultural outing, with the Nebuchadnezzar character therein arguably more well-known than the actual king he's based on, so I do feel that there is merit in pointing out that the story is not based in any actual historical events; perhaps it is unnecessary, or unnecessarily confrontational, but if it should be removed I think there should perhaps be wider discussion on it first (the same clause pops up over at Belshazzar as well), considering it's been there so long and there's been so much fighting over it. Ichthyovenator (talk) 12:27, 4 September 2021 (UTC)
That seems very reasonable, although, as you know, we can still be bold in our edits as there is no fait accompli here.  simongraham (talk) 18:30, 4 September 2021 (UTC)
Yeah I know, would just feel better with wider input. I added a comment to that place in the text that should dissuade further disruption, but if problems persist I'll launch an RfC into whether the clause is really necessary. Ichthyovenator (talk) 07:27, 5 September 2021 (UTC)
@Simongraham: Many thanks! I've addressed the comments above, most have been deal with but for some points I was unsure what to do. Ichthyovenator (talk) 22:03, 30 August 2021 (UTC)
@Ichthyovenator: You are very welcome. This is an excellent article and worthy of the hard work that you have put in. I think we are at the last hurdle.  simongraham (talk) 20:27, 3 September 2021 (UTC)
Thank you again, and thank you very much for taking the time to review this! Ichthyovenator (talk) 07:27, 5 September 2021 (UTC)


### Comment
If I may raise a minor issue: In the lede, the statement "At the time of his death, Nebuchadnezzar was the most powerful ruler in the known world" is made, cited to the World History Encyclopedia. I feel like the "known world" is a problematic qualifier (despite it being also used by the World History Encyclopedia), as the "known world" can either mean known to Nebuchadnezzar's region or "known" in the sense that we have records of it. The latter interpretation would be probably false, however, as Nebuchadnezzar II was a contemporary to the late Spring and Autumn period states of China. Some of these probably rivalled or even surpassed the Babylonian Empire in landmass, population, and military strength (the state of Chu, for example, allegedly fielded armies numbering hundreds of thousands by the late 6th century). Could the sentence be perhaps be adjusted to "At the time of his death, Nebuchadnezzar was the most powerful ruler in the Middle East" or something like it? Applodion (talk) 11:28, 31 August 2021 (UTC)

@Applodion: I see what you're saying and I agree that "known world" is not the most appropriate term. Per a contemporary/near-contemporary Babylonian world map, the world known by Nebuchadnezzar and his subjects corresponded more or less to the Middle East, so your suggestion could work, but I believe it's not as effective/impactful as "known world", given that Nebuchadnezzar was more powerful than the majority of the world outside of the Middle East as well. Would perhaps "At the time of his death, Nebuchadnezzar was among the most powerful rulers in the world" work? Ichthyovenator (talk) 13:31, 31 August 2021 (UTC)
@Ichthyovenator: Most certainly; I don't think that anyone could dispute that he was among the mightiest rulers of his time. Applodion (talk) 14:16, 31 August 2021 (UTC)
@Applodion: Great! I've gone ahead and made the change. Ichthyovenator (talk) 15:01, 31 August 2021 (UTC)

An editor has identified a potential problem with the redirect 𒀭𒀝𒆪𒁺𒌨𒊑𒋀 and has thus listed it for discussion. This discussion will occur at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion/Log/2022 February 20#𒀭𒀝𒆪𒁺𒌨𒊑𒋀 until a consensus is reached, and readers of this page are welcome to contribute to the discussion.  ~~~~User:1234qwer1234qwer4 (talk) 21:17, 20 February 2022 (UTC)

About is really based around a question of faith—that's exactly the problem: historians work with shared assumptions (like methodological naturalism), and faith in the supernatural does not belong to the shared assumptions of historical scholarship. Historiography which assumes there are supernatural causes is pseudohistory, plain and simple, no doubt about that.
The requirements of the historical method do not allow stating as historical fact that the Book of Daniel is genuine prophecy. This is generally agreed, regardless of which faith the historian does belong to.
So, at the basic level of methodological requirements, modern historical research gives the lie to the fundamentalist reading of Daniel, and it cannot do otherwise.
The whole enterprise of modern historical WP:SCHOLARSHIP is designed to give the lie to fundamentalism. Modern historiography is based upon assumptions which are alien and inimical to fundamentalism.
People who complain that those darn liberal scholars bash the Bible don't understand that honest historians cannot do otherwise. It is their only choice, besides completely refraining from studying the Bible. tgeorgescu (talk)  14:49, 29 October 2022 (UTC)

The current article on Wikipedia calls it "very strange" that Nebuchadnezzar in the end of his reign writes that he had been appointed by the gods prior to his birth. It also mentions some theory to explain his writing.
However, his account is supported by Daniel chapter 4, and it can be easily understood from the biblical perspective.
That is, two historical sources support each other, one is discarded because of unbelief, and the second is then regarded as very strange. Mdiehl216 (talk) 02:50, 22 March 2025 (UTC)

If someone thought that my inclusion of mentions in Jeremiah and Ezekiel was "fringe" (under the POV that those works are fiction), perhaps instead of reverting, a better approach would have been to change the word "predicted."  The passages exist and are pertinent to the topic.  I did not re-enter because I didn't want the risk of an edit war.伟思礼 (talk) 17:14, 29 January 2023 (UTC)

In this instance, the problem would be that you sourced the information solely to primary sources, without any secondary sources validating the statements that you made about theories based on the text in those primary sources. Iskandar323 (talk) 18:00, 29 January 2023 (UTC)

Nebuchadnezzar, the "wicked one" ("ha-rasha'"; Meg. 11a; Ḥag. 13b; Pes. 118a), was a son—or descendant?—of the Queen of Sheba by her marriage with Solomon ("Alphabet Ben Sira," ed. Venice, 21b; comp. Brüll's "Jahrb." ix. 9), and a son-in-law of Sennacherib (Targ. to Isa. x. 32; Lam. R., Introduction, 23, says "a grandson"), with whom he took part in the expedition of the Assyrians against Hezekiah, being one of the few who were not destroyed by the angels before Jerusalem (Sanh. 95b). He came to the throne in the fourth year of King Jehoiakim of Judah, whom he subjugated and, seven years later, killed after that king had rebelled. Nebuchadnezzar did not on this occasion go to Jerusalem, but received the Great Sanhedrin of Jerusalem at Daphne, a suburb of Antioch, informing that body that it was not his intention to destroy the Temple, but that the rebellious Jehoiakim must be delivered to him, which in fact was done (Seder 'Olam R. xxv.; Midr. 'Eser Galuyyot, ed. Grünhut, "Sefer ha-Liḳḳuṭim," iii.; Lev. R. xix.; comp. Jehoiakim in Rabbinical Literature).
Holds No Oath Sacred.
According to Josephus ("Ant." x. 6, § 3), the King of Judah voluntarily received Nebuchadnezzar and his army in the city; but Nebuchadnezzar treacherously broke the compact between them, and massacred the king together with the strongest and most beautiful inhabitants of Jerusalem. Nebuchadnezzar then carried away into captivity 5,000 Judeans and 7,000 of the other tribes, including all the nobles and scholars of the city (Josephus, l.c.; Seder 'Olam R. l.c.; Midr. 'Eser Galuyyot, l.c.).
When he celebrated his triumph in Babylon and told his subjects how he had made Jehoiachin king in the place of his rebellious father Jehoiakim, they reminded him of the proverb: "A poor dog has no good progeny." Nebuchadnezzar then returned to Daphne, where he received the Great Sanhedrin and told it that he desired to take King Jehoiachin to Babylon. When it delivered the king to him, Jehoiachin was cast into prison for life (Lev. R. xix. 6; comp. Seder 'Olam R. l.c.; Yer. Sheḳ. vi. 49a; and Jehoiachin in Rabbinical Literature). The King of Babylon again showed how little sacred an oath was to him; for, although he had pledged his word that he would not harm the city, he carried captive to Babylon a large number of the inhabitants (Josephus, l.c. x. 7, § 1) together with the Ark of the Covenant (Seder 'Olam R. l.c.). Although a voice from heaven uttered for eighteen years these words in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar, "O wicked servant; go and destroy the house of your master, since his children no longer obey him," yet the king was afraid to obey the command, remembering the defeat which Sennacherib had suffered in a similar attempt. Nebuchadnezzar asked the advice of different oracles, all of which warned him not to undertake the expedition against Jerusalem (Lam. R. l.c.). Furthermore the Ammonitesand the Moabites, Israel's "wicked neighbors," gave inducements to Nebuchadnezzar to come by saying that the Prophets announced Judah's downfall. They allayed the king's fear lest God might send the same fate upon him that He had upon Sennacherib, by saying that God had now abandoned Israel, and that there were left among the people no pious ones able to turn away God's anger (Sanh. 96b). Nebuchadnezzar decided on his expedition against Jerusalem only after God showed him how He had bound the hands of Michael, Israel's guardian angel (Midr. Ekah Zuṭa, p. 70); and even then Nebuchadnezzar did not lead the expedition himself, but gave it into the hands of Nebuzar-adan (Pesiḳ. R. 26 [ed. Friedmann, p. 130b]; Sanh. 96b, above; comp. Eccl. R. on Eccl. x. 7, to the effect that Nebuchadnezzar, seated on a horse which was led by Michael, entered the Holy of Holies.
At Daphne, from which place Nebuchadnezzar followed the operations before the walls of Jerusalem, he received the Sanhedrin of Jerusalem with great honors, asking the members to read and explain to him the Torah. Sitting on seats of honor, they began their explanations. When, however, they came to the section on the dispensation from vows (Num. xxx. 2 et seq.), the king cried out in anger: "I believe it was you who released King Zedekiah from his oath to me." He then commanded that the scholars leave their seats and sit on the ground (Lam. R. ii. 10; Ned. 65a; comp. Zedekiah in Rabbinical Literature; "Chronicles of Jerahmeel," x. 10: "the great Sanhedrin . . . who were slain by Nebuchadnezzar"). Zedekiah, the captive king, was also brought to Daphne, where Nebuchadnezzar took him to task, saying that, according to divine and human law, Zedekiah had merited death, since he had sworn falsely by the name of God, and had rebelled against his suzerain (Pesiḳ. R. l.c. [ed. Friedmann, p. 131a]).
Nebuchadnezzar's Cruelty.
Nebuchadnezzar was most merciless toward the conquered people. By his command the exiles on their way to Babylon were not allowed to stop even for a moment, as the king feared that they would pray during the respite granted them and that God would be willing to help them as soon as they repented (Lam. R. to v. 6; Pesiḳ. R. 28 [ed. Friedmann, p. 135a]). Nebuchadnezzar did not feel safe until the exiles reached the Euphrates, the boundary-line of Babylon. Then he made a great feast on board his ship, while the princes of Judah lay chained and naked by the river. In order to increase their misery he had rolls of the Torah torn and made into sacks, which, filled with sand, he gave to the captive princes to carry (Pesiḳ. R. l.c. [ed. Friedmann, p. 135a]; Midr. Teh. cxxxvii.; comp. Buber's remark ad loc. and Lam. R. v. 13).
On this occasion Nebuchadnezzar ordered the singers of the Temple to add their music to his feast; but they preferred to bite off their fingers, or even to be killed, rather than to play their sacred music in honor of the Babylonian idols (Pesiḳ. R. 31 [ed. Friedmann, p. 144a], 28 [136a]; comp. Moses, Children of). He heartlessly drove the captives before him, entirely without clothing, until the inhabitants of Bari induced him to clothe them (Pesiḳ. R. l.c. [ed. Friedmann, p. 135b]). But even after the heavily burdened Jews finally reached Babylonia they had no rest from the tyrant, who massacred thousands of youths whose beauty had inflamed the passion of the Babylonian women—a passion which did not subside until the corpses were stamped upon and mutilated (Sanh. 92b; comp. Ezekiel in Rabbinical Literature). Nebuchadnezzar carried to Babylon, together with the Jews, cedar-trees which he had taken from Lebanon (Lam. R. i. 4), and millstones which he made the captive youths bear (l.c. v. 13). Even the Jews who had sought refuge from the Babylonians in Ammon and Moab or in Egypt did not escape Nebuchadnezzar, who, on conquering Egypt, carried all the Jews in that country, including Baruch and Jeremiah, to Babylonia (Midr. 'Eser Galuyyot, ed. Grünhut, l.c. iii. 14; Seder 'Olam R. xxvi.). Nebuchadnezzar was equally victorious in his expedition against Tyre, whose king, Hiram, his stepfather, he dethroned and put to a painful death (Lev. R. xviii. 2; Yalḳ., Ezek. 367).
Nebuchadnezzar, moreover, not only was a cosmocrat, ruling all the earth (Meg. 11a et passim), but he subdued the world of animals also, his charger being a lion, on whose neck a snake hung quietly (Shab. 150a, above). His godlessness was commensurate with his power; he was given, among other vices, to pederasty, which he, as with the other kings, also tried to commit with the pious Zedekiah, but was prevented by a miracle from doing so (Shab. 149b; see also Jerome on Hab. ii. 16). He was so greatly feared that as long as he was alive no one dared laugh; and when he went down to hell the inmates trembled, asking themselves whether he would rule them also (Shab. l.c.). In his arrogance he considered himself to be a god, and spoke of making a cloud in order to enthrone himself like God on high (Mek., Beshallaḥ, Shirah, 6 [ed. Weiss, p. 47a, b]); but a heavenly voice cried to him: "O thou miscreant, son of a miscreant, and grandson of the miscreant Nimrod! Man lives seventy years, or at most eighty (Ps. xc. 10). The distance from the earth to heaven measures 500 years; the thickness of heaven measures as much; and not less the distance from one heaven to the other" (Pes. 94a, below; Ḥag. 13a et passim).
Behavior Toward Israelites.
The lot of the Jews was naturally a very sad one during Nebuchadnezzar's reign; and even Daniel, as well as his three friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, who were pages at court, were often in peril of their lives. This was especially the case when the king tried to force the three pages to worship the idol at Durah, and they, upon their refusal to do so, were thrown into the fiery furnace. However, the miracle performed in their behalf (comp. Azariah in Rabbinical Literature; Ezekiel in Rabbinical Literature) induced Nebuchadnezzar to join in praising God; and he was so carried away by his songs that had he continued he would have surpassed David, but an angel forced him to desist (Sanh. 92b). Yet this did not prevent him from massacring all the 600,000 Jews who had obeyed his command and worshipedthe idol, and whom he reproached for not having followed the example of the three pious men and trusted in God (Pirḳe R. El. xxxiii.).
He finally received his well-merited punishment; for God changed him into an animal, as far as his appearance, intellect, and language were concerned. He appeared to the people with his upper half as an ox and the lower half as a lion, and as such he killed many villains. Through Daniel's prayers the seven years of punishment decreed for Nebuchadnezzar were changed to seven months; and after the king had lamented his sins for forty days, had lived in the caves for another period of forty days, and had herded for the same length of time with the beasts of the forest, God took mercy upon him and allowed him to return to his throne. He repented and did penance for the next seven years, subsisting, on the advice of Daniel, on vegetable food. The affairs of the government he gave into the hands of seven judges, who held office for one year each. At the expiration of this period he wished to make Daniel one of his heirs; but the latter refused with the words: "Far be it from me to exchange the heritage of my fathers for that of one uncircumcised" ("The Chronicles of Jerahmeel," ed. Gaster, lxvi. 1-2; see also the passage quoted in the introduction, p. 106).
Among the Animals.
According to another version, Nebuchadnezzar really spent seven years among the animals, during which time his son Evil-merodach ruled as king (see, however, Josephus, l.c. x. 10, § 6); but when he returned he cast this son into prison for life. Therefore after Nebuchadnezzar had died and the nobles of the realm came to the son to swear fealty to him as their king, he did not dare listen to them until they brought the corpse of his father, so that he could convince himself that the latter really was dead (Lev. R. xviii. 12). Others say that Evilmerodach himself exhumed the body of his father, because the people believed that Nebuchadnezzar was not really dead—that he had simply disappeared as he had once before, and that they would be severely punished by him if at his return he found that they had invested another king. The body of the dead monarch was therefore dragged through the city so that the people might see it (Targ. Sheni, beginning; Jerome on Isa. xiv. 19; see also "The Chronicles of Jerahmeel," lxvi. 6; a shorter version is given in Seder 'Olam R. xxviii.). This was the shameful end of Nebuchadnezzar, after a reign of forty years (Seder 'Olam R. l.c. 45; Pesiḳ. R., ed. Buber, xxvii. [ed. Friedmann, p. 168b, 40]; Josephus, l.c. x. 11, §§ 1, 43).
That Nebuchadnezzar, in spite of all his wickedness, was chosen by God to rule over Israel and all the earth, was due, according to some, to the fact that he was a descendant of Merodach-baladan, to whom God granted, as a reward for a pious deed, that three of his descendants, namely, Nebuchadnezzar, his son Evil-merodach, and Belshazzar, should become world-rulers (Pesiḳ. R., ed. Buber, ii. 14a; comp. Merodach-Baladan. According to another rabbinical legend, Nebuchadnezzar was the secretary of Baladan. The latter wrote a letter to Hezekiah (II Kings xx. 12) in Nebuchadnezzar's absence, who, on his return, was informed of its contents, which began as follows: "Greetings to the king Hezekiah, to the city of Jerusalem, and to the great God." "What!" exclaimed Nebuchadnezzar, "you call Him the great God, and yet you mention His name at the end, whereas it should be at the beginning!" Nebuchadnezzar then ran after the messenger, to take the letter and rewrite it. God, therefore, rewarded him with the rulership of the world; and if the angel Gabriel had not kept Nebuchadnezzar from overtaking the messenger, his power would have become still greater, and the Jews would in consequence have suffered still more at his hands.