Babylon

Babylon first came to prominence under Hammurabi (c. 1792-50 B.C.), who gained control of all southern Mesopotamia. It came under the shadow of Assyria from the ninth century until Nineveh fell in 612 B.C. As Assyria weakened, Pharaoh Necho sought to establish Egyptian influence in Syria to the north of Israel. He defeated Josiah at Megiddo in 609 B.C. (2 Kings 23:29), but was eventually defeated by Nebuchadnezzar at the Battle of Carchemish in 605 B.C. (Jeremiah 46:2), thus paving the way for Babylon to gain pre-eminence in the region.

Babylon developed into a powerful and evil empire. It was an idolatrous nation worshipping idols such as Merodach and Bel (Jeremiah 50:2). It rejoiced at the destruction in the land of Judah (v. 11), and it was known as “the hammer of the whole earth” (v. 23). The empire came to an end when the Persian Cyrus took the city in 539 B.C. (Isaiah 45:1). The destruction of Babylon had been prophesied in great detail in the prophets.

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Author: The Testimony

Keywords: Babylon, Babylonia, Mesopotamia

Bible reference(s): Genesis 24:10, Deuteronomy 23:4, Judges 3:8, Judges 3:10, 2 Kings 17:24, 2 Kings 17:30, 2 Kings 20:12, 2 Kings 20:14, 2 Kings 20:17, 2 Kings 20:18, 2 Kings 24:1, 2 Kings 24:7, 2 Kings 24:10, 2 Kings 24:11, 2 Kings 24:12, 2 Kings 24:15, 2 Kings 24:16, 2 Kings 24:17, 2 Kings 24:20, 2 Kings 25:1, 2 Kings 25:6, 2 Kings 25:7, 2 Kings 25:8, 2 Kings 25:11, 2 Kings 25:13, 2 Kings 25:20, 2 Kings 25:21, 2 Kings 25:22, 2 Kings 25:23, 2 Kings 25:24, 2 Kings 25:27, 2 Kings 25:28, 1 Chronicles 9:1, 1 Chronicles 19:6, 2 Chronicles 32:31, 2 Chronicles 33:11, 2 Chronicles 36:6, 2 Chronicles 36:7, 2 Chronicles 36:10, 2 Chronicles 36:18, 2 Chronicles 36:20, Ezra 1:11, Ezra 2:1, Ezra 5:12, Ezra 5:13, Ezra 5:14, Ezra 5:17, Ezra 6:1, Ezra 6:5, Ezra 7:6, Ezra 7:9, Ezra 7:16, Ezra 8:1, Nehemiah 7:6, Nehemiah 13:6, Esther 2:6, Psalms 87:4, Psalms 137:1, Psalms 137:8, Isaiah 13:1, Isaiah 13:19, Isaiah 14:4, Isaiah 14:22, Isaiah 21:9, Isaiah 39:1, Isaiah 39:3, Isaiah 39:6, Isaiah 39:7, Isaiah 43:14, Isaiah 47:1, Isaiah 48:14, Isaiah 48:20, Jeremiah 20:4, Jeremiah 20:5, Jeremiah 20:6, Jeremiah 21:2, Jeremiah 21:4, Jeremiah 21:7, Jeremiah 21:10, Jeremiah 22:25, Jeremiah 24:1, Jeremiah 25:1, Jeremiah 25:9, Jeremiah 25:11, Jeremiah 25:12, Jeremiah 25:26, Jeremiah 27:6, Jeremiah 27:8, Jeremiah 27:9, Jeremiah 27:11, Jeremiah 27:12, Jeremiah 27:13, Jeremiah 27:14, Jeremiah 27:16, Jeremiah 27:17, Jeremiah 27:18, Jeremiah 27:20, Jeremiah 27:22, Jeremiah 28:2, Jeremiah 28:3, Jeremiah 28:4, Jeremiah 28:6, Jeremiah 28:11, Jeremiah 28:14, Jeremiah 29:1, Jeremiah 29:3, Jeremiah 29:4, Jeremiah 29:10, Jeremiah 29:15, Jeremiah 29:20, Jeremiah 29:21, Jeremiah 29:22, Jeremiah 29:28, Jeremiah 32:2, Jeremiah 32:3, Jeremiah 32:4, Jeremiah 32:5, Jeremiah 32:28, Jeremiah 32:36, Jeremiah 34:1, Jeremiah 34:2, Jeremiah 34:3, Jeremiah 34:7, Jeremiah 34:21, Jeremiah 35:11, Jeremiah 36:29, Jeremiah 37:1, Jeremiah 37:17, Jeremiah 37:19, Jeremiah 38:3, Jeremiah 38:17, Jeremiah 38:18, Jeremiah 38:22, Jeremiah 38:23, Jeremiah 39:1, Jeremiah 39:3, Jeremiah 39:5, Jeremiah 39:6, Jeremiah 39:7, Jeremiah 39:9, Jeremiah 39:11, Jeremiah 39:13, Jeremiah 40:1, Jeremiah 40:4, Jeremiah 40:5, Jeremiah 40:7, Jeremiah 40:9, Jeremiah 40:11, Jeremiah 41:2, Jeremiah 41:18, Jeremiah 42:11, Jeremiah 43:3, Jeremiah 43:10, Jeremiah 44:30, Jeremiah 46:2, Jeremiah 46:13, Jeremiah 46:26, Jeremiah 49:28, Jeremiah 49:30, Jeremiah 50:1, Jeremiah 50:2, Jeremiah 50:8, Jeremiah 50:9, Jeremiah 50:13, Jeremiah 50:14, Jeremiah 50:16, Jeremiah 50:17, Jeremiah 50:18, Jeremiah 50:23, Jeremiah 50:24, Jeremiah 50:28, Jeremiah 50:29, Jeremiah 50:34, Jeremiah 50:35, Jeremiah 50:39, Jeremiah 50:42, Jeremiah 50:43, Jeremiah 50:45, Jeremiah 50:46, Jeremiah 51:1, Jeremiah 51:2, Jeremiah 51:6, Jeremiah 51:7, Jeremiah 51:8, Jeremiah 51:9, Jeremiah 51:11, Jeremiah 51:12, Jeremiah 51:24, Jeremiah 51:29, Jeremiah 51:30, Jeremiah 51:31, Jeremiah 51:33, Jeremiah 51:34, Jeremiah 51:35, Jeremiah 51:37, Jeremiah 51:41, Jeremiah 51:42, Jeremiah 51:44, Jeremiah 51:47, Jeremiah 51:48, Jeremiah 51:49, Jeremiah 51:53, Jeremiah 51:54, Jeremiah 51:55, Jeremiah 51:56, Jeremiah 51:58, Jeremiah 51:59, Jeremiah 51:60, Jeremiah 51:61, Jeremiah 51:64, Jeremiah 52:3, Jeremiah 52:4, Jeremiah 52:9, Jeremiah 52:10, Jeremiah 52:11, Jeremiah 52:12, Jeremiah 52:15, Jeremiah 52:17, Jeremiah 52:26, Jeremiah 52:27, Jeremiah 52:31, Jeremiah 52:32, Ezekiel 12:13, Ezekiel 17:12, Ezekiel 17:16, Ezekiel 17:20, Ezekiel 19:9, Ezekiel 21:19, Ezekiel 21:21, Ezekiel 24:2, Ezekiel 26:7, Ezekiel 29:18, Ezekiel 29:19, Ezekiel 30:10, Ezekiel 30:24, Ezekiel 30:25, Ezekiel 32:11, Daniel 1:1, Daniel 2:12, Daniel 2:14, Daniel 2:18, Daniel 2:24, Daniel 2:48, Daniel 2:49, Daniel 3:1, Daniel 3:12, Daniel 3:30, Daniel 4:6, Daniel 4:29, Daniel 4:30, Daniel 5:7, Daniel 7:1, Micah 4:10, Zechariah 2:7, Zechariah 6:10, Matthew 1:11, Matthew 1:12, Matthew 1:17, Acts 2:9, Acts 7:2, Acts 7:43, 1 Peter 5:13, Revelation 14:8, Revelation 16:19, Revelation 17:5, Revelation 18:2, Revelation 18:10, Revelation 18:21, Baruch 1:1, Baruch 1:4, Baruch 1:9, Baruch 1:11, Baruch 1:12, Baruch 2:21, Baruch 2:22, Baruch 2:24, Bel and the Dragon 1:34, Bel and the Dragon 1:35, Bel and the Dragon 1:36, Susanna 1:1, Susanna 1:5, 1 Esdras 1:40, 1 Esdras 1:41, 1 Esdras 1:45, 1 Esdras 1:54, 1 Esdras 1:56, 1 Esdras 2:15, 1 Esdras 4:44, 1 Esdras 4:53, 1 Esdras 4:57, 1 Esdras 4:61, 1 Esdras 5:7, 1 Esdras 6:15, 1 Esdras 6:16, 1 Esdras 6:17, 1 Esdras 6:18, 1 Esdras 6:21, 1 Esdras 6:23, 1 Esdras 6:26, 1 Esdras 8:3, 1 Esdras 8:6, 1 Esdras 8:13, 1 Esdras 8:28, Judith 2:24, Judith 5:7, Judith 5:8, Judith 8:26, 1 Maccabees 6:4, 2 Maccabees 8:20, 3 Maccabees 6:6, 2 Esdras 3:1, 2 Esdras 3:2, 2 Esdras 3:28, 2 Esdras 3:31, 2 Esdras 15:43, 2 Esdras 15:46, 2 Esdras 15:60, 2 Esdras 16:1

Source: “A-Z,” The Testimony, Vol. 74, No. 881, May 2004, pp. 160-1.

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