Page 67 - Biblical Backgrounds student textbook

Zedekiah over Judah. Against the protests of Jeremiah but with promises of Egyptian aid, Zedekiah
revolted against Babylon in 589 BCE. In the resultant Babylonian campaign, Judah was ravaged, and
Jerusalem besieged. An ill-advised campaign by the Pharaoh Hophra against the attacking Babylonian
forces gave Jerusalem a short respite, but the Babylonian attack was renewed (Jer. 37:4–10). The city fell
in August of 587 BCE and Zedekiah was captured, Jerusalem burned, and the temple destroyed (Jer.
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52:12–14).

Internally, Nebuchadnezzar devoted his efforts to the religious and cultural revival of southern
Mesopotamia, combined with extensive architectural activity. Apart from raising Babylon to its
grandeur, Nebuchadnezzar and his successors launched reconstruction programs in all the main cities of
Sumer and Akkad. Undoubtedly, Hebrew exiles, especially artisans, contributed significantly to the
rebuilding programs. He1brew artisans (2 Kings 24:14–16) undoubtedly made significant contributions
during building programs when exiled in Babylonia.

Unlike the Assyrian era, Nebuchadnezzar gave a sizable amount of power to priests in the temples. He
appointed royal revenue officers to work alongside priests and collect taxes. Since temples occupied
much of the land in Babylon, this won him a considerable amount of authority. Things looked different
the farther you moved away from Babylon, the seat of authority. In distant territories, Nebuchadnezzar
ensured military success. He appointed officials in those territories to rule on his behalf without religious
restrictions while retaining all revenue. Though the power of the crown was checked by the temple, the
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king had control of the political, military, and legal machinery of the state. This can be evidenced by
the King’s handling of the case of Daniel and his colleagues (Dan. 3:8-30).

Nebuchadnezzar died of an illness late in 562 BCE (total reign 605–562). His death marked the beginning
of the end of the splendor and power of the Babylonian empire. He was succeeded by his son Amel-
Marduk (Evil-Merodach of 2 Kings 25:27) who carelessly handled the legacy of his father. He only ruled
for two years. He so badly managed the affairs of state that his sister’s husband Neriglisaros (Neriglissar,
Nergal-Sharezer, Jeremiah 39:3, 13) rebelled against him and killed him. Nergal-Sharezer then ruled for
four years (559–556), carrying out some public works and winning a short war in southeast Asia Minor.
He was succeeded by his incompetent young son Labashi-Marduk, who was killed by a group of
conspirators after a nine-month rule (556). One of the conspirators, Nabunaid (Nabonidus), was
installed as king.This ended a series of short stints but was simply another step toward the collapsing of

the Babylonian dominance.

Nabonidus (556–539) was considered to have had an interesting character; unpredictable and difficult
to discern. Though himself a worshiper of Babylonian gods, he is known for his attempt to strip off
power from the temple priests and gather it to himself. This paralyzed his relationship with some of the
priestly lines and probably cost him some influence. He also weakened his rule and influence in the
kingdom by spending almost a decade in Arabia during the latter days of his tenure. “It now appears
that he was trying to gain control of trade routes with south Arabia to compensate for those lost to the
Medo-Persians farther north. During those years he made his son Belshazzar the ruler in Babylon.

91 Browning, D. C., Jr. (2003). Babylon. In C. Brand, C. Draper, A. England, S. Bond, E. R. Clendenen, & T. C. Butler
(Eds.), Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (p. 158). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

92 Vos, H. F. (1999). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible manners & customs: how the people of the Bible really lived (p.
306). Nashville, TN: T. Nelson Publishers.

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