DARIO II MEDO

DARIUS II THE MEDE. – A figure mentioned in the Book of Daniel (v.) as king of Babylon between the end of the Neo-Babylonian dynasty, represented by Belshazzar (Dan. 5:1), and the rise of Cyrus the Persian (cf. 5:28). The notion of a Median kingdom, intermediate between the Babylonian and the Persian conquest, conflicts both with the data of Oriental documents and with the portrayal of pagan empires in the East given by the Book of Daniel, where the Medes and Persians form a single historical entity. It is therefore likely that the mention of this fictitious figure is due to the alteration by a redactor who had in mind Darius I (v.) Hystaspes (organizer of the Persian Empire with the satrapy system, as in Dan. 5:28 it is said of D. II M.), but who assigned him the chronological position of Cyrus, the true successor of the last Neo-Babylonian king.