MDG: If bayis sheni was destroyed in about 69 CE then it was built around 351 BCE. Then Bayis rishon was destroyed in around 421 BCE. The problem with that is that there is voluminous historical data that Nevuchadnetzar actually destroyed Bayis Rishon somehere around 586 BCE. Hence 165 missing years. Rav Schwab’s thesis includes a machshava that Bayis sheni was built with yerios on a somewhat scaled down level at which it functioned for some 165 years until it was formally dedicated. The 420 years of Bayis sheni begin at that point. He was subsequently chozer from it, as I and other commenters above have mentioned.
Did you know that for 1500 years, during most of Bayis Sheni and for 1000 years afterward, Klal Yisroel paid no attention to calculating brias haolom in any meaningful way? There was a cheshbon called Minyan Shtaros that was used in virtually all correspondence, on all kesubos and gittin, shtarei mechira and shtarei chov.
When Klal Yisroel migrated from Bavel and Africa to Europe around the tekufa of Rabbeinu Gershom Meor Hagolah, an effort was made to reinstate the counting from Brias Haolam. They started pretty much like you did. Leidas Yitzchok in 2048, as can easily be calculated by pesukim in Breishis. 400 years al pi Chazal to Yetzias Mitzrayim makes 2448. Posuk in Melachim (haftarah first day of Sukkos) says 480 years after yetzias Mitzraim Shlomo dedicated the Bais Hamikdash, 2928. Gemaros tell us 410, 70, and 420, which makes 3828 for churban bayis sheni. And they had tracked since then.
No one ever counted continuously. It was only reconstructed after 1500 years of neglect. Not such a peleh that someone might’ve missed a step. See Rav Schwab who has inferences from pesukim and chzal why Hashgacha may have caused this to happen, and why Hashgacha allowed it to be discovered many many centuries later. You might even be able to Google it. Comperative Jewish Chronology or something like that.
This article was written originally by one of the gedolei rabbanim in America. Not some YCT type skeptic. It’s arguments are very compelling. Yes, he was chozer. That is also part of his gadlus. K’sheim shekibel schar al hadrisha kach kibel schar al haprisha. Not Emes according to Rav Schwab. But to dismiss it as a shtus when you don’t know what it’s talking about smells of ignorance.