Great king, the name or title of several kings of Persia.

1. It is given in Ezra 4:7-24, to Smerdis the Magian, who usurped the throne after the death of Cambyses, B. C. 522, pretending to be Smerdis, the son of Cyrus, whom Cambyses had put to death. His usurped power was used, at the rebuilding of the temple. He was murdered, after a reign of eight months, and was succeeded by Darius son of Hystaspes.

2. The king of this name mentioned in Ezra 7:1-28, is most probably Artaxerxes Longimanus, the son and successor of Xerxes, who ascended the throne B. C. 425, after a mild reign of thirty-nine years. In the seventh year of his reign, Ezra led a second company of the Jewish exiles back to Jerusalem. In the twentieth year of Artaxerxes Longimanus, Nehemiah was sent to Jerusalem as governor, Nehemiah 2:1; 5:14.

The Greek form of the name of several Persian kings. The king who obstructed the rebuilding of the temple (Ezra 4:7). He was probably the Smerdis of profane history.

The king mentioned in Ezra 7:1, in the seventh year (B.C. 458) of whose reign Ezra led a second colony of Jews back to Jerusalem, was probably Longimanus, who reigned for forty years (B.C. 464-425); the grandson of Darius, who, fourteen years later, permitted Nehemiah to return and rebuild Jerusalem.

(the great warrior ). The first Artaxerxes is mentioned in (Ezra 4:7) and appears identical with Smerdis, the Magian impostor and pretended brother of Cambyses, who usurped the throne B.C. 522, and reigned eight months. In (Nehemiah 2:1) we have another Artaxerxes. We may safely identify him with Artaxerxes Macrocheir or Longimanus, the son of Xerxces, who reigned B.C. 464-425.