Page 70 - Biblical Backgrounds student textbook

bricks. These bricks and sometimes bitumen made up the floors. Unburnt bricks and mud were the main
building material for the poor. These easily crumbled, which could explain why there are not many
excavations for these kinds of settlements. Although not many Hebrews lived in Babylon, these housing
standards applied almost everywhere across Babylonia. Hebrew artisans undoubtedly made significant
contributions to the designing and creating of household utensils and furniture.

Wealthier Babylonians ate four meals a day: a good breakfast, a light lunch, a heavy meal, and a light
supper late in the day. “Most of the time the meal consisted largely of vegetable products, but the more
well-to-do might have beef, mutton, goat meat, poultry, or fish. Barley bread served as the main source
of carbohydrates for all classes. Beer or water served as main drinks.... The poor rarely ate meat or fish
but lived on a diet of bread and vegetables.”
98

Clothing in Babylonia was predominantly made of wool or linen. An average poor person wore a single
short-sleeved wool tunic which extended to the feet and went barefoot. Wealthier individuals wore
short-sleeved linen tunics topped with white cloaks often beautifully embroidered with animals or
plants. Both men and women in this class wore sandals.

Marriage arrangements were made between parents of the groom and parents of the bride. The girl
would probably live in the groom’s father’s household until he set up a household of his own or his
father died, and he inherited the property. There is no evidence that married women had to be veiled in
99
public.

Trade and Economics

Temples played an important role in the Babylonian economy. Properties such as land and boats were
owned by temples. These would be rented by the general public and generated revenue and income.
Agricultural products were gathered into warehouses. Most of these products were traded in exchange
for wood, metal, cloth, and other commodities mainly from the west as far as Asia Minor.

Building Babylon into a grand state that it was and reconstruction programs in other cities such as
Sumer and Akkad needed a strong economy. Supporting armies in conquests equally demanded a strong
financial muscle. Carrying these as successfully as Nebuchadnezzar did required skillful trade strategy
and high taxes on the people. As captives in the land, the Jewish people obviously made tremendous
contributions, either with their monetary resources or labor.

God’s Providential Care

In 539 BCE, Cyrus the great, king of the Persian empire, conquered and took control of the Babylonian
empire. Within a year of his victory, Cyrus allowed the Jewish people to return to their homeland.
Counting from 586 BCE, the Jews were held in Babylonian captivity for about 48 years. Traditionally, and
according to Jeremiah 29:10, the exile lasted 70 years. The traditional view often counts from 586 BCE to
516 BCE the year when the rebuilt Temple was dedicated in Jerusalem. Another notable view chooses

98 Vos, H. F. (1999). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible manners & customs: how the people of the Bible really lived (p.
315). Nashville, TN: T. Nelson Publishers.
99 Ibid., p. 317.

69