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Babylonian Captivity
Highlights- Nabonidus Cylinder, 555-540 BCE Prayer of Nabonidus Overview Biblical History- Jeremiah, Ezra and Esther, c. 586-330 BCE, Steven Feldman, COJS. Artifacts Onyx Seal, c. 586 BCE Ishtar Gate, c. 575 BCE Nabonidus Cylinder, 555-540 BCE Stela of Nabonidus, 555-539 BCE Nabonidus Chronicle, c. 539 BCE Prayer of Nabonidus Maps The […]
Prayer of Nabonidus Fragments of a document called The Prayer of Nabonidus were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. The fragments tell the story of King Nabonidus, the last king of Babylon, who was afflicted with a disease for seven years while in Teima, Arabia, and prayed to God for salvation. He was then told […]
Onyx Seal Excavations between 1926 and 1935 by Badé at Mizpah, Tell en Nasbeh. Stratum 2 begins shortly after 586 BCE and ends about 400 BCE. “Stay in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well with you,” the Babylonian-appointed Jewish ruler of Judah, Gedaliah, encourages the army officer Jaazaniah, […]
Stela of Nabonidus Relief showing Nabonidus praying to the moon, sun and Venus. Cyrus takes Babylon- The verse account of Nabonidus- [lacuna] for the inhabitants of Babylon, Cyrus declared the state of peace. His troops he kept away from Ekur. Big cattle he slaughtered with the ax, he slaughtered many aslu-sheep, incense he put on […]
Ishtar Gate 1 Ishtar Gate 2 Ishtar Gate Close-Up The Ishtar Gate was the eighth gate to the inner city of Babylon. It was constructed in about 575 BC by order of King Nebuchadnezzar II on the north side of the city. It was considered one of the seven wonders of the world until it […]
Nabonidus Chronicle The Nabonidus Chronicle records the events during the rule of the last king of Babylonia (King Nabonidus) before the Persian king Cyrus conquered the kingdom in October 539 BCE. However the Chronicles are currently damaged, leaving many blanks and spaces (or lacunas) throughout the script. The script describes how Cyrus’ power began to […]
Like the Northern Kingdom of Israel, the Southern Kingdom of Judah, too, had come to an end. Both had been caught in similar predicaments- how to negotiate the treacherous diplomatic waters of a small power caught between two international superpowers on either side of it. Both small kingdoms had succeeded for a while at picking […]
According to the Astronomical Diaries, a collection of Babylonian texts in which astronomical observations and political events are recorded, Alexander the Great died on June 11, 323 BCE. Alexander marched to Babylon, where he drank heavily at many banquets, and became feverish. He declined rapidly over the next few days, and died of the fever […]