In summary, Babylon destroyed Jerusalem and the temple and became a symbol for the enemy of God and His people. It is usually risky to interpret the Bible in light of current events. However, as events unfolded, it became evident that Hussein was not the final enemy of God and that he would not be successful in restoring a Babylonian Empire.
For a while, Saddam Hussein attempted to rebuild Babylon, and he even fancied himself as the new Nebuchadnezzar. With the ascendency of Saddam Hussein and war in Iraq, many changed their interpretation, thinking that Babylon might actually refer to a revived Babylonian Empire. Revelation also records the downfall of Babylon, lamented by people of the world (chapter 18), along with the rejoicing of the saints at her demise (chapter 19).įor years, many dispensationalists interpreted Babylon as Rome, center of a revived Roman Empire. I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus” (Revelation 17:3–6). The name written on her forehead was a mystery: Babylon the Great, the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the earth. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. “ Babylon the Great” will be overthrown, but here is how she is described: “Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. (Sodom and Egypt are also used in this way.) Babylon figures prominently in the book of Revelation as the ultimate enemy of God and persecutor of His people. These events are recorded in Ezra and Nehemiah.īecause of the awful destruction caused by the Babylonians, Babylon became a symbol for the stereotypical enemies of God and His people. The Lord had promised that the Jewish exile was only temporary, and, after the fall of Babylon, the Persian king allowed the exiles to return to Judah to rebuild the city and the temple. Babylon was overthrown after only several decades of prominence. He rose to prominence in the administration of King Nebuchadnezzar and his successors (see Daniel 1-6). It will be given into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will destroy it with fire” (Jeremiah 21:4–10).ĭaniel was a young man who was taken to Babylon as an exile. I have determined to do this city harm and not good, declares the Lord. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live they will escape with their lives.
Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague. This is what the Lord says: See, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death. He will put them to the sword he will show them no mercy or pity or compassion. After that, declares the Lord, I will give Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials and the people in this city who survive the plague, sword and famine, into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and to their enemies who want to kill them.
I will strike down those who live in -both man and beast-and they will die of a terrible plague. I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm in furious anger and in great wrath. Notably, Jeremiah counseled surrender to the Babylonians in acceptance of God’s will: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am about to turn against you the weapons of war that are in your hands, which you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Babylonians who are outside the wall besieging you. Several of the prophets revealed that Jerusalem would fall to the Babylonians as God’s judgment on Judah for her sin. These events are recorded in 2 Kings 17-25 and 2 Chronicles 32-36. The short period of Babylonian dominance that has biblical significance is referred to as the Neo-Babylonian Empire, as Babylon had been a dominant force at an earlier time.īabylon and King Nebuchadnezzar figure prominently in the Old Testament, as it was Babylon that invaded Judah, destroyed Jerusalem and the temple, and carried off many Jews to Babylon as exiles. Ancient Babylon rose to dominance after throwing off the bonds of the Assyrians. Ancient Babylon was located in modern-day Iraq.
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