Page 78 - Biblical Backgrounds

During the period of the Assyrian Empire, Babylon was dominated by its warlike neighbor to the north.
Babylon kings remained independent but nominally subject to Assyrian “protection.” 102 After the
Assyrian king Ashurbanipal died in 627 BCE, the Assyrian Empire fell apart. With the breakdown of the
central government, provincial governors enjoyed greater freedom. One of these, Nabopolassar, father
of Nebuchadnezzar, established himself as king of Babylonia within about a year. By and large, the
political structures established under the Assyrians continued. 103

Nabopolassar made himself independent most likely when Nineveh [a prominent Assyrian city] was
destroyed in 612 BCE. His son Nebuchadnezzar, after defeating the Egyptians at Carchemish (Jer. 46:2-
12), succeeded him as king in 605 BCE. This ignited the rise of the Neo-Babylonian empire.
While under Assyria, Babylonia attempted several times to rebel and break away from its dominance.
These attempts were motivated by either Assyria’s weakening governance or the formation of alliances
by territories of like minds. These revolts often attracted retaliation and punitive attacks from Assyria.
Notably, in 689 BCE, Sennacherib destroyed Babylon in retaliation. Taking this information into account
raises the possibility that Nebuchadnezzar built Babylon mainly from the ground up. This would make
his boasting in Daniel 4:30 reasonable: “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power
as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?”

Apart from raising Babylon into a great city, Nebuchadnezzar is also known for his military conquests.
After he took the reins of government, he evidently did not either occupy the Assyrian Empire or try to
rebuild it. Instead, he concentrated on the subjection of Syria-Palestine to maintain a gateway to the
Mediterranean. 104 This gave him access to the resources of the East-Mediterranean coast and
strategically allowed trade with Western kingdoms and lands.

Nebuchadnezzar defeated Egypt (Jer. 46:2-12) around 605 BCE and took control of the Palestinian coast
from the Pharaoh of Egypt (2 Kgs. 23:34-35). The detailed account of 2 Kings 24:1-2 informs us that
Judah fell under the control of Babylon during the reign of Jehoiakim. After three years, Jehoiakim
attempted to rebel against Babylon’s rule. Consequently, Jerusalem was besieged (698-697 BCE), and
the temple was raided. King Jehoiachin, son of Jehoiakim, was captured as a king in exile along with the
nobles, prominent officials of the land, and the army (2Kgs. 24:10-17). Nebuchadnezzar appointed
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 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 was burned, and the temple was destroyed
(Jer. 52:12–14). 105

102 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. 156). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

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

104 Ibid, p. 306.

105 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.

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