| Ancient Empires
and Bible Prophecy | | | |
The Assyrian EmpireAssyria was founded by colonists from Babylon and for many centuries was subject to, or in conflict with, Babylon. Assyria was a world empire from c. 884 B.C. to the fall of Nineveh its capital in 612 B.C. A number of Assyrian kings mention contact with Hebrew kings. Kings of Judah mentioned in records include Azariah, Ahaz and Hezekiah. Kings of Israel (northern ten tribes) mentioned include Omri, Ahab, Jehu, Menahem, Pekah and Hoshea. It was the Assyrian empire, under King Shalmaneser V, that in 723 B.C. conquered Israel's capital of Samaria and carried away as captives to Assyria what is commonly referred to as the "Lost Ten Tribes of Israel." | | Date * (B.C.) | | King | | Events
during Reign | | Biblical
Reference | | | | | | | | 884 - 859 | | Ashurnasirpal | | Warlike and cruel. Welded Assyria into the best fighting machine of the ancient world. | | | | | | 859 - 824 | | Shalmaneser III | | First Assyrian king to come in conflict with Israel. Ahab fought him. Jehu paid tribute to him. | | | | | | 824 - 811 | | Shamsi-Adad V | | | | | | | | 811 - 783 | | Adad-nirari III | | | | | | | | 783 - 773 | | Shalmaneser IV | | | | | | | | 773 - 755 | | Assur-dayan III | | | | | | | | 755 - 745 | | Ashur-nirari V
(Assur-lush) | | Decline | | |
|
| | Date (B.C.) | | King | | Events
during Reign | | Biblical
Reference | | | | | | | | 745 - 727 | | Tiglath-pileser III | | "Pul" was his personal name. Menahem, King of Israel, paid tribute money to him. | | Isaiah 7; 2Kings 15:19-20; 1Chronicles 5:26 | | | | 727 - 722 | | Shalmaneser V | | King conquers Samaria, Israel's (Northern Ten Tribes of Israel) capital, in 723 B.C. The Israelites are taken out of the land of Palestine and transported to Assyria. | | | | | | 722 - 705 | | Sargon II | | | | 2Kings 17:5. Massive deportation of people who refuse to be good vassals. | | | | 705 - 681 | | Sennacherib | | Most famous of Assyrian kings. Burned Babylon (2Chronicles 32) | | | | | | 681 - 669 | | Esarhaddon | | Rebuilt Babylon. Conquered Egypt. Was one of the greatest of Assyrian kings. | | Isaiah 37:38. Manasseh, King of Judah, paid tribute to Esarhaddon. | | | | 669 - 633 | | Ashurbanipal
(Osnapper) | | Last great king of the empire. Collected a great library. Powerful, cruel, literary. | | Nahum 3:8 mentions No-Amon, Thebes and the Nile. Ezra 4:10 refers to king as Asnappar. Manasseh, King of Judah, paid tribute to Ashurbanipal. | | | | 612 | | Fall of Nineveh | | Assyrian empire comes to an end. | | |
| | The Neo-Babylonian EmpireThis was the Empire that broke the power of Assyria, and, in its westward sweep, destroyed Judah and conquered Egypt. Babylon as a world empire lasted from 612 B.C. (when Nineveh fell) to 539 B.C.(when Babylon fell to Cyrus the Great and the Persians). The Empire's capital was in Babylon. In Isaiah's time Assyria was the dominant power of the world. Babylon was a dependency of Assyria. Babylon rose to world power status and then fell in 539 B.C. Isaiah sang of the Fall of Babylon one-hundred years BEFORE its rise in 612 B.C. (Isaiah 13:1, 13:19, 14:22). Babylon's splendor as the Queen city of the pre-Christian world, the "glory of kingdoms" and "the city of gold" (Isaiah 13:19, 14:4) was clearly envisioned. Babylon's fall is also pictured in detail, naming the unknown Medes as destroyers of Babylon. (Isaiah 13:17-19). Babylon was to supersede Assyria (Isaiah 14:25), Media shall supersede Babylon (Isaiah 13:17); and Babylon shall pass away forever (Isaiah 12:19-22, 14:22-23, Daniel 5:31). The Persian Army took Babylon without a battle during the days of Nabonidas and his first son Belshazar. | | | | | Date * (B.C.) | | King | | Events
during Reign | | Biblical
Reference | | | | | | | | 625 - 605 | | Nabopolassar | | Viceroy of Babylon, threw off the yoke of Assyria and established the independence of Babylon. | | Destroyed Nineveh with Cyaxeres the Mede in 612 B.C. (Nahum, Isaiah 13-14). | | | | | 605 - 562 | | Nebuchadnezzar | | Greatest of all Babylonian Kings, he extends the power of Babylon over the then known world. Jerusalem falls at the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar in 597 B.C. He captures Judah's King Jehoiachin, who as prisoner, is taken to Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar sets up Zedekiah as new King of Judah. The Jews, including the prophets Daniel and Ezekiel, are taken into captivity. King Zedekiah sits on the throne for eleven years before Nebuchadnezzar returns to destroy both the city of Jerusalem and its temple in 586 B.C. | | 2Kings 24-25 and book of Daniel. Daniel became one of chief advisers. His influence probably eased the lot of Jewish captives. | | | | | 561 - 560 | | Evil-Merodach
(Amel-Marduk) | | | | 2Kings 25:27-30;
Jeremiah 52:31-34. | | | | | 559 - 556 | | Nergal-shar-usur
(Nergalsharezer) | | | | Jeremiah 39:3, 13. | | | | | 555 - 539 | | Nabonidus | | The last king of the Babylonian empire. Nabonidus fights then surrenders to Cyrus of Persia in October 539 B.C. | | | | | | | 553 - 539 | | Belshazzar | | Son of Nabonidus and co-regent with his father. His responsibility was to defend the city of Babylon. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Revelation 17 |
| | The Persian Empire | |
The Persian Empire, often called the Medo-Persian Empire, was the second great world empire represented in the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 2) of Babylon. It was the LARGEST empire in ancient history in terms of total land controlled. Persia was the mountainous plateau east of the lower end of the Euphrates-Tigris Valley and its empire extending eastward into India and reached westward to Greece. Its capitals were Persepolis and Susa, with its kings sometimes residing at Babylon. One of the first acts of the first Persian king, Cyrus, who was a "singularly noble and just monarch," was to authorize the return of the Jews to Jerusalem and to their own land (2Chronicles 36:22-23). | | | Date * (B.C.) | | King | | Events
during Reign | | Biblical
Reference | | | | | | | | 559 - 530 | | Cyrus the Great | | Considered first true king of the Persian empire. Conquered the Median Empire in 549 B.C. and the Babylonian empire in 539 B.C. | | Cyrus issued decree to allow Jews to return to Jerusalem and conquered Babylon more than 150 years AFTER it was prophesied by Isaiah (Isaiah 44:28; 45:1; Ezra 1:1-4, 2; 2Chronicles 36:22-23). | | | | | 536 - 534 | | Darius the Mede
(Probably Cyaxares II, Astiages, last king of the Medes) | | Although not a King of the empire, Darius received the kingdom of Babylon as viceroy from Cyrus when he was 62 years old (Daniel 5:31). | | Mentioned in Daniel 6:1, 9:1, 11:1. Cyrus is a nephew of Darius married to Darius daughter. Darius was probably a title. | | | | | 529 - 522 | | Cambyses II | | Son of Cyrus the Great and second king of the empire. Conquered Egypt. | | Ezra 4:7, 11, 23. It is thought to have been this king who stopped work on the Temple. | | | | | 521 - 486 | | Darius I the Great (Hystaspes) | | Third king of the Persian Empire. Put down Smerdis insurrection. Authorized completion of Temple. Made "Behistun" inscription. | | Temple at Jerusalem resumes and is completed. (Ezra 6:15) | | | | | 485 - 465 | | Xerxes I
(Ahasuerus) | | | | | | | | | 464 - 424 | | Artaxerxes I
(Longimanus) | | | | | | | | | 423 - 405 | | Darius II Nothius
(The Persian) | | | | Nehemiah 12:22 | | | | | 404 - 359 | | Artaxerxes II
(Mnemon) | | Longest reigning of all the Persian kings. | | | | | | | 358 - 338 | | Artaxerxes III
(Ochus) | | | | | | | | | 337 - 336 | | Artaxerxes IV Arses | | | | | | | | | 336 - 330 | | Darius III (Codomannus).
Last King of Persia | | | | | | | | | Adapted from original article by: Bernie Monsalvo
edited and expanded by BibleStudy.org |
|
|
