King Artaxerxes
King Artaxerxes (title)Artaxerxes I Longimanus of Persia (alias)
Emperor of the Persian Empire whose heart God turned to pardon Nehemiah's sorrowful face, grant royal passports, and supply cedar timber from the King's forest to rebuild Jerusalem.
Testament
OT
Historical Era
Return & Restoration
Featured In
Season 8
Key Passage
Ezra 7:1, 11
✦ Tap Any Card to Unfold Full Scriptural Proof (3 Verified Insights)
Persia (winter capital at Susa)
Nehemiah 1:1Nehemiah 2:1
Reigned 465–424 BC; twentieth year of his reign (445 BC) marks Nehemiah's commission
Nehemiah 2:1
Artaxerxes opening the royal forest to supply the beams for Jerusalem's burned gates pictures the Father supplying the wood of the cross to rebuild our ruined walls.
📜 Complete Scriptural Narrative
Ruling the vast Achaemenid Persian Empire from Susa (465–424 BC), Artaxerxes I noticed his cupbearer Nehemiah's sad face in the month of Nisan — an offense that ordinarily meant death in the royal court. Yet because the good hand of God was upon Nehemiah, the Emperor asked 'What are you requesting?' and issued letters to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, providing the timber needed for the gates of the temple fortress and the city wall (Nehemiah 2:1–8).
How Students Search & Remember King Artaxerxes:
“persian king whom nehemiah served as cupbearer”“granted nehemiah timber from the king's forest”“king in susa in nehemiah 2”
ESV Scripture Index:
Ezra 7:1, 11Nehemiah 2:1–8Nehemiah 5:14Nehemiah 13:6
Season 8 • Episode 1
Main Character
Nehemiah 1–2
Full Episode Page →
The Rubble — Nehemiah's Weeping, The King's Timber & The Midnight Ride
Role in Storytime: Persian emperor moved by God to pardon Nehemiah's sad countenance and grant royal letters and timber from the King's forest.
Nehemiah weeps and fasts over Jerusalem's charred gates before requesting the King's heavy timber to rebuild.
✦ Storytime Broadcast Theater • S8E1
Nehemiah's Weeping, The King's Timber & The Midnight Ride (Nehemiah 1–2)
Hebrew • H7725
Lent / Shuv — “Sacred Return (Lenten)”
From Old English 'Lenten' (Spring) and the biblical call to return (Hebrew: Shuv)—a 40-day season of fasting, repentance, and heart preparation mirroring Jesus' 40 days in the wilderness.
Greek • G5498
Cheirographon — “Record of Debt”
Literally a 'handwritten document'—in the ancient world, a signed, legally binding certificate of indebtedness or criminal indictment.
Hebrew • H6684
Tsum / Nesteia — “Sacred Fasting”
To cover the mouth or abstain from food and fleshly comforts for a focused spiritual purpose before God.
Interactive Radial Connection Map (Tap Node to Jump)
Season 8 Companion Study Workbook
Season 8: The Wood We Could Not Carry...
Workbook Story Time: p. 8 • Greek/Hebrew Roots: p. 10