How the incredible
history of a Persian king can change your view of the Bible
The Startling Truth About One of History’s Greatest Kings
Even today, more than 2,500 years after his death, Cyrus the Great of ancient
Persia remains one of humanity’s most brilliant and outstanding monarchs. There
is much to learn and admire about King Cyrus, and no dearth of knowledge on
this subject. But the most interesting feature about this man and his towering
accomplishments is also the most obscure. It is also profoundly inspiring.
Who Was Cyrus?
Cyrus 2 ruled the Persian Empire from
559 to 530 B.C. The history of his life and accomplishments is well documented
by Greek and Roman historians and by archaeological evidence. Among his many
feats, Cyrus conquered the invincible Babylonian - Chaldean Empire and
established Persia
as the world power.
Under Cyrus, the borders of the Persian Empire
rapidly expanded to create the largest empire humanity had ever seen. Under his
leadership, ancient Persia’s borders stretched to Central Asia (Russia’s
southern border today); as far east as the Indus River (the Pakistan India
border); as far north as the Danube, including Turkey, Crete and the southern
parts of Greece and Bulgaria; and as far south as Libya.
But Cyrus was much more than a prodigious conqueror. He
heralded a new breed of leadership and politics. Unlike the Assyrians and
others before him, he did not rule exclusively by sword and spear. Subjects
were not beaten, tortured and killed into acquiescence and cooperation. In
fact, many consider this king the world’s first true humanitarian.
“Cyrus was an outstanding soldier and statesman,” the
Encyclopedia Britannica says. “He founded an empire that stretched from the Indus
and Jazartes to the Aegean and the borders of Egypt
and left behind him a reputation for justice and clemency …” (emphasis added).
The Mainstream of Civilization says, “Cyrus created a new type of empire. Under
the close supervision of his government, he permitted the conquered peoples to
retain their own customs and religions and their own forms of government.”
For a world inured to cruel, forceful governance, King
Cyrus’s disposition was revolutionary and much welcomed. His subjects tended
not to revolt, hence the staying power of the Persian Empire .
The World’s Greatest City
In the time of Cyrus, Babylon
was extraordinarily well fortified, teemed with top-notch Babylonian soldiers,
and had a well-earned aura of impenetrability. It was the greatest city in the
world.
Originally constructed by Nimrod soon after the Flood, the
city had experienced a massive makeover by King Nebuchadnezzar ii in the
late seventh and early sixth centuries b.c. Laden with materials and manpower
plundered from neighbors, Nebuchadnezzar spared nothing in expanding,
fortifying and beautifying his city. Babylon ’s
legendary hanging gardens, built for the queen who missed her lush, mountainous
homeland in Media, were an engineering marvel, one of the Seven Wonders of the
Ancient World.
Herodotus records that Babylon
covered 196 square miles and was protected by an outer wall that was 311 feet high and 87 feet thick. The walls were so
thick, even at the top, that chariots could be driven on them. Controlling
access through this barrier were more than 100 bronze gateways.
The Euphrates River Babylon , much
like the Thames through London .
Inside the outer wall, the riverbanks “were lined and walled with brick. In the
wall on either side of the river were 25 gates. There was a bridge 1,080 yards long and 30 feet broad across the river. At
either end of this bridge was the royal palace. The more magnificent of these
palaces was surrounded by three walls. The middle wall was 300 feet high, with towers 420 feet in height. The inner wall
was yet higher. The two inner walls, Cterias tells us, were of colored brick.
Upon them were portrayed hunting scenes—the chase of the leopard and the lion”
(A Handbook of Ancient History in Bible Light).
Cyrus sought to do the impossible: to conquer this
impenetrable fortress.
His strategy was brilliantly simple. First, he dug trenches
upstream and diverted water from the Euphrates into a
large reservoir. Once the water level had dropped, and under the cover of
darkness, Persian soldiers slipped into the knee deep water, marched up the
riverbed, and snuck under Babylon ’s
giant gates.
Although the soldiers had infiltrated the outer gates, there
were still brass and iron internal gates controlling access out of the riverbed
and into the city. If they couldn’t get through the gates, the soggy riverbed
would turn the Persians’ tactical advantage into a massive kill box. All the
Babylonian soldiers had to do was rain spears and arrows down on them. In fact,
if they could block the Persians’ retreat, the Babylonians could conceivably
kill every last Persian soldier, to a man—like shooting fish in a barrel.
But strangely, on the night of the invasion, there were no
soldiers, and the internal gates were wide open. King Nabonidus, his son
Belshazzar, the imperial guard, the soldiers, and many of the people of Babylon
were partying! Consumed with drinking and games, they had failed to close the
gates and to station guards. Having quenched the Euphrates and penetrated the
outer gates, the Persian soldiers were able to stroll through the internal
gates, taking the city— including the shocked king—by surprise!
It was a magnificent victory, bordering on—and crossing
into—the miraculous!
Greek historians Herodotus and Xenophon recorded the
history-changing event. King Cyrus’s conquest of Babylon
in 539 B.C. was one of his most notable accomplishments. By conquering this
mighty city, he toppled the world-ruling Babylonian-Chaldean Empire.
Cyrus the Humanitarian
In 1879, British archaeologists digging in Iran
discovered a barrel-shaped cylinder made out of clay. Inscribed on the cylinder
in ancient cuneiform was a decree by King Cyrus of Persia .
In the 40-line decree, the king recalled his defeat of Babylon
and clearly outlined a number of policies designed to defend the rights of
the conquered.
You can find this incredible artifact, called the Cyrus
Cylinder, in the British Museum
Cyrus’s governance really is remarkable. For a man with so
much power, he displayed incredible tolerance and even respect for the
religion, customs and politics of the people he conquered.
His greatest and most famous humanitarian act was releasing
the captive Jews in Babylon and
allowing them to return to Judea to rebuild the temple
and the city of Jerusalem . This
decision by Cyrus is well known and well documented by Greek and Roman
historians, as well as Josephus, the most recognized Jewish historian. Many
believe the text on the Cyrus Cylinder alludes to the king’s decision to
release the Jews.
King Cyrus issued his decree releasing the Jews in 538 B.C.,
about a year after he conquered Babylon .
Zerubbabel, a leading Jewish figure in Babylon
at the time, became responsible for mustering the party and leading it back to Jerusalem .
There, they set about rebuilding Solomon’s temple. One of the most astonishing
features about this decree is that there was no cost or price to the Jews. In
fact, the king of Persia
actually financed the Jews’ return to their homeland, their reconstruction of
the temple, and their reconstruction of Jerusalem !
Any historian will agree: Such magnanimity and benevolence
from a man with supreme power is extremely rare! Cyrus the Great was truly an
anomaly among world leaders.
Biblical History
All of this history is well documented by secular historians
and archaeological evidence. But there is another source that records these
events in detail: the Bible. In Ezra 1:1-4, for example, we read of Cyrus’s
decree releasing the Jews to return to Jerusalem .
These scriptures in Ezra were recorded a few decades after the event. More
records about King Cyrus can be found in Jeremiah 25 and 2 Chronicles 36,
both of which were written after Cyrus was on the scene.
A passage in Isaiah 44 also discusses Cyrus the Great—and
this is where the history gets exciting.
Isaiah 44:24 reads: “Thus says the Lord, your redeemer, and
he that formed you from the womb, I am the Lord that makes all things; that
stretches forth the heavens alone; that spreads abroad the earth by myself.”
Here God is establishing His supremacy, even over the daily affairs of mankind.
Isaiah continues: “[God] says of Cyrus, He is my shepherd,
and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem ,
you shall be built; and to the temple, your foundation shall be laid” (verse
28). Isaiah is writing about how King Cyrus would be an instrument in God’s
hands—“my shepherd”—and explaining how God would inspire Cyrus to rebuild Jerusalem
and the temple.
The thought continues in Isaiah 45:1: “Thus says the Lord to
his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I hold, to subdue nations before him;
and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates;
and the gates shall not be shut.” Isaiah is saying that God would empower King
Cyrus, even helping him “subdue nations” and make massive territorial goals.
The narrative becomes even more specific: “I will go before you,
and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of
brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron” (verse 2). If you study this passage
and Bible commentaries, you will easily see that these scriptures are
specifically discussing King Cyrus’s conquest of Babylon .
Notice, God says He will help Cyrus rupture the “gates of brass” and “bars of
iron.”
Isaiah’s account is similar to the accounts in Ezra and
2 Chronicles. Except for one critical factor.
The book of Isaiah was written about 150 years before
Cyrus the Great was born!
It’s true. King Cyrus, his rise to power, his defeat of
Babylon, his humanitarian legacy, his name—even Babylon’s gates of iron and
brass—were all prophesied by God about one and a half centuries before Cyrus’s
birth!
Slow down and think about this. This is awesome proof of
God’s existence and the veracity of the Holy Bible.
How do we know Isaiah was written before Cyrus was born?
It’s not hard to prove. Isaiah 1:1 says: “The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz,
which he saw concerning Judah
and Jerusalem in the days of
Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah .”
This verse clearly says that Isaiah was alive and writing
during the reigns of four kings of Judah :
Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah. Biblical history, as well as Jewish history
and established historical record, clearly show that these all reigned in the
eighth century b.c. This is nowhere disputed.
Bible commentaries agree that Isaiah was on the scene for
about 50 years, roughly between 760 and 710 B.C. For example, Isaiah 38:3-8
show that he prophesied during the reign of King Hezekiah.
Critics of the Bible despise Isaiah 44 and 45. Over the last
century or so, numerous theories have emerged to explain how this passage of
scripture was written after King Cyrus. The most prominent theory says that the
book of Isaiah has multiple authors, and that some parts of the book, mainly
the latter chapters, were written at a different time and much later than the
first part of the book. According to this theory, the book of Isaiah was
compiled into a single book around 70 B.C.
But this theory has been proven false. A copy of the entire
book of Isaiah was discovered as part of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The scrolls on
which the text of Isaiah was discovered were dated to around 200 b.c., proving
that the entire book of Isaiah was completed well before 70 b.c.!
Consider too: Josephus recorded that King Cyrus actually
read this prophecy about himself in the book of Isaiah! If the prophecy in
Isaiah 44-45 was written after Cyrus lived and by another author, how could
King Cyrus have read about it himself?
Perhaps this explains why Cyrus was so benevolent and so
enthusiastic about releasing the Jews. After reading Isaiah’s prophecy, he
realized that he was predestined to make this wondrous decision!
But how did Cyrus gain access to Isaiah’s prophecy? We don’t
know the specifics, but we do know that King Cyrus knew the Prophet Daniel
well. Daniel was well versed in Isaiah’s prophecies and probably owned a copy
of Isaiah’s text. Daniel lived in Babylon .
After Cyrus took Babylon and
toppled the Babylonian Empire, Daniel became a high-ranking official in Cyrus’s
Medo-Persian Empire.
All Hail King Cyrus
Take some time to really think on this, and to study Isaiah
44 and 45. The evidence is irrefutable.
First, it is obvious that Isaiah 44:28 and 45:1-4 are
talking about King Cyrus. He is mentioned by name!
Next, consider Cyrus’s relationship with Jerusalem .
Isaiah 44:28 records Cyrus “even saying to Jerusalem ,
Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.” The
temple in Jerusalem
Verse 28 also explains the origins of Cyrus’s
humanitarianism. Cyrus treated all his conquered peoples much the same way as
he treated the Jews. Cyrus didn’t just allow the Jews to practice their
religion: He released them from captivity, loaded them up with wealth and
treasures, gave them letters of endorsement, and sent them home to rebuild the
temple and Jerusalem !
Surely this is one of the greatest humanitarian acts in
history.
And to think, it was prophesied to happen 150 years
before it actually happened!
Isaiah 45:1 says Cyrus would “subdue nations before him.”
Study the history books: Cyrus conquered more than 15 different peoples—all the
way from Egypt
in the south to Turkey
to Central Asia to the Indus
River
Verse 1 also says God would “loose the loins of kings”
before Cyrus. The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary states: “The loose
outer robe of the [kings], when girt fast around the loins, was the emblem of
strength and preparedness for action; ungirt was indication of feebleness [and
weakness].” This is a perfect description of Belshazzar the night of Babylon ’s
fall!
In addition, verse 1 says God would “open before him the two
leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut.” The history of Babylon ’s
destruction shows that the king of Babylon
left some of the internal gates of the city open that night! “In the revelry in
Babylon on the night of its capture, the inner gates, leading from the streets
to the river, were left open … which, had they been kept shut, would have
hemmed the invading hosts in the bed of the river, where the Babylonians could
have easily destroyed them. Also, the gates of the palace were left open, so
that there was access to every part of the city” (ibid).
Look how specific God is—even prophesying the exact gates
that would be left open in Babylon
In verse 2, God says, “I will go before you, and make the
crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in
sunder the bars of iron.” The strongest doors in Babylon
were not able to withstand the army of Cyrus that night. Again, God prophesied
the exact material that the gates of Babylon
would be made of!
Herodotus recorded that the gates of the inner walls were
made of brass and some were reinforced with iron!
This is some of the most moving and powerful history you
can study. Why? Because it proves the existence of God and the veracity of His
Word!
God Reigns Supreme
Why would God prophesy the life and accomplishments of a
Persian king 150 years before his birth? The answer to that question is the
theme of Isaiah 44-46. In
Isaiah 45:3, God says, “And I will give thee [Cyrus] the treasures of darkness,
and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the Lord,
which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.”
God makes the purpose of this prophecy abundantly clear:
The life and work of King Cyrus prove the existence of God!
Cyrus himself understood this. “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia ,
The Lord God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath
charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem ,
which is in Judah ”
(Ezra 1:2). This great king knew God existed, and he knew that God reigns
supreme in the world of man.
The history of Cyrus the Great is interesting and
inspiring—but it is also much more. This history proves the authority of the
Holy Bible! It shows that this Book of books is true and accurate. It shows
that it is authored by an omnipotent God who can prophesy what He will do and
bring it to pass!
For anyone willing to study and prove it, this history shows
that the Holy Bible is the true Word of God!
The Prophet Daniel recorded the history of Cyrus’s conquest
of Babylon . Remember, King
Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had taken
Daniel to Babylon as a slave at the
start of the sixth century b.c. By the time Cyrus took Babylon ,
Daniel had been there for about 50 years. He was well known and well liked in
the king’s court, thanks largely to his interactions with King Nebuchadnezzar.
A First Hand
Account
Daniel was actually inside the palace in Babylon
when Cyrus’s army was digging the channel and preparing to penetrate the city!
You can read the history in Daniel 5. Verse 1 says that
“Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank
wine before the thousand.” Belshazzar was the grandson of King Nebuchadnezzar
of Babylon and the son of
Nabonidus, who was Babylon ’s king
at the time. Belshazzar was ruling as king, however, while his father was away
campaigning. Belshazzar made this great feast in the banquet hall of the palace
in Babylon .
Archaeologists have uncovered this banquet hall, which was
an impressive size of 60 feet
by 172 feet . He
invited 1,000 of his top rulers to this party. The top brass of the entire
Babylonian kingdom was present that night. Daniel 5 continues: “Belshazzar,
whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels
which his [grandfather] Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in
Jerusalem ; that the king, and his
princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein. Then they brought
the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which
was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines,
drank in them” (verses 2-3). Belshazzar wanted the temple vessels brought out
so he could use them in his party.
“In the same hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and
wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the king’s
palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then the king’s
countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of
his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another” (verses 5-6).
Belshazzar and his princes couldn’t believe what they had witnessed.
Notice the phrasing. Belshazzar’s “countenance was changed …
so that the joints of his loins were loosed.” Remember Isaiah 45:1, where God
said He would “loose the loins of kings.”
In this chilling moment, this prophecy was literally and
powerfully fulfilled!
by
brad macdonald
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