Daniel 1:1 - The Popular Commentary by Paul E. Kretzmann

In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, Cf 2 Kings 24:1; 2 Chronicles 36:6-7, came Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. This account, which has been declared to be untrue by unbelieving Bible critics, is abundantly supported and verified by secular accounts, as recent investigations have shown; for even if Nabopolassar was king of Babylon at the beginning of this year, his death took place while Nebuchadnezzar was in the midst of his expedition against Jerusalem, and so the latter was king in fact before the city was taken.