Page 78 - Biblical Backgrounds student textbook

national mourning for him. Cyrus is mostly remembered for his decree in 538 BCE which authorized
people groups deported by Assyria and Babylon to return to their ancestral lands.

Vos. H.F. offers the following analysis: Presumably [Cyrus] implemented this general policy by specific
decrees to individual subject peoples. Ezra 1 and the 2 Chronicles 36 quotation noted above detail the
pronouncement given to the Jews. Hence, while the Bible clearly says that Cyrus served as God’s
“anointed” in restoring the Jews to their homeland, it becomes clear that this was not an isolated policy
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aimed at Jews only. Many of these people groups saw Cyrus as a deliverer from the oppressive
Babylon. It can be seen from here that Cyrus’ humane acts were a strategic move to remove any
possible irritations, such as revolts, from among his subject peoples. In this respect, it is interesting to
see Cyrus serving God’s purpose while acting freely with his own motivations.

Administratively, Cyrus chose to rule his subjects in their respective lands through his appointed
governor instead of subordinate kings. While these were to maintain loyalty to him, he did not require
them to be Persian. From Ezra 1:8, 11, it appears that Sheshbazzar, a Jew was appointed by Cyrus as
governor over Judah. Other examples such as Zerubbabel and Nehemiah can be cited. In appointing
non-Persian trustees to govern territories on his behalf, Cyrus’ aim was to lead his subjects (Medes,
Babylonians, Jews among others) to accept him as their appointed ruler. Many narratives indicate that
Cyrus died in one of his conquests in the East around 530 BCE

Cyrus had two sons when he died: Cambyses and Bardiya or Smerdis. Cambyses ascended the throne
but ruled only from 529 to 522 BCE While he was leading a military conquest in Egypt, his brother
Bardiya led a revolt in the homeland. As Cambyses journeyed back home to address the crisis, he fatally
injured himself with his sword. Meanwhile, one of the prominent governors, Darius assassinated Bardiya
and rose to the throne.

Under Darius, the empire reached its fullest extent. In the first years of his reign, he devoted himself to
addressing all the internal revolts that escalated from the death of Cambyses. After successfully uniting
the empire, Darius focused on conquests and expansion of his territory. He built an empire extending
from the Indus River in the East to the Aegean Sea and on into Greece in the West, and through Syria,
Palestine, and Egypt to Libya in the southwest.

Administratively, Darius divided his kingdom into 20 satrapies. Not to be confused with the 127
provinces in Esther 1:1 or the 120 of Daniel 6:1, these were collections of several “provinces or districts.”
Vos. H.F. notes that “Many of these satrapies encompassed several peoples, with one of them serving as
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a nucleus (governing center). For example, Palestine was placed in the fifth satrapy, along with
Phoenicia, Syria, and Cyprus. These satrapies were placed under governors and they were set up to
replicate the governing system of the day. Satraps normally carried out both civil and military
responsibilities. They collected tribute, raised military levies, and provided for justice and security. They
modeled their courts and protocol after that of the king. According to Daniel 6:2, Daniel was one of the
top three officials to whom the satraps (governors of satrapies) reported.

113 Vos, H. F. (1999). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible manners & customs: how the people of the Bible really lived (p.
325). Nashville, TN: T. Nelson Publishers.
114 Ibid., p. 326.

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