Alleymom
Marjorie
You made several postings on the subject of Evil-Merodach or Awel-Marduk so I will respond to them all in total. I will respond also to the other nutters who have made a vain contribution after I have dealt with the issues you have raised. Posts 959-967:
1. It is correct to say that 1965 WT in stating that the reign of Evil-Merodach was 2 years is possibly incorrect for reliable confirmation as to the length is lacking. Scholarship at that time was that his reign was of two years and this remains the case up to the present because of the cunieform evidence. However, Josephus an ancient Jewish historian claimed 18 years for this ruler so there is some conflict here. Perhaps, the writer of that article had not properly consulted the celebrated WT scholars for information pertaining to Josephus. Whatever the case, scholar, WT writers, celebrated WT scholars, Governing Body and the FDS are not infallible and make mistakes unlike aposates and higher critics who are infallible and are 'of the gods'!
2. Celebrated WT scholars are quite happy to accept that scholarship endorses by means of cunieform tablets and other documents that EM' s reign was of two years but it also must be recognized that Berossus gives differing figures for the Neo-Babylonian period and so does Josephus. Josephus does provide primary evidence for Josephus and however you view Josephus does give conflicting data for the NB period.
3. To demonstrate how shonky Neo-Babylonian chronology I draw your attention to the following facts:
Berossus assigns for Nabopolassar a reign of 29 years rather than the traditional reign of 21 years, Josephus gives him a reign of 21 years.
Berossus assigns for EVIL-Merodach a reign of 18 years which differs from the traditional chronology and Josephus which give a reign of 2 years.
Whiston in his discussion of the chronology of Josephus that Josephus determined that 40 years for Neriglissar and that the reign of Evil-Merodach ought to have 22 years rather than 2 in the Canon and those instead of the 18 in our copies of Josephus.
We see then that from Josephus there is much confusion as to the reigns of certain rulers of the Neo-Babylonian period and that is why celebrated WT scholars largely reject the evidence as currently understood by modern scholars.
Regardless of these facts what is more important is the testimony of the Bible and the Bible refers to a definite historic period of seventy years which is unaccounted for in the Babylonian history and cunieform tablets. Such a period proves a twenty year gap that cannot be reconciled with current king-lists so the celebrated base biblical chronology on this solid historical fact despite the so-called overwhelming evidence of the pagans who did bother to give any account of the Jewish exile in Babylonia. This latter fact demands an explanation.
scholar JW