Babylon the Great, a city of mystery and intrigue, antiquities and abandonment. An ancient city named after a great kingdom that ruled the Mesopotamia from the heart of the Iraqi desert, fifty miles south of Bagdad. The city of the desert now lies deserted, desolate, lost and slumbering. Oh, the mysteries she hides in the decay of her ruins as she listens for the footsteps of her betrothed to awaken her and embrace her one last time.
Both history and science back up the Biblical claim that the Fertile Crescent, the Mesopotamia was the birth place of man, the birth of civilization. The 'rebirth' was directly after the great flood.
The Mesopotamia is the area that extends from the base of the Nile River up the entire eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea then east through Israel. The Mesopotamian crescent continues through modern day Syria into Nineveh taking a sharp downward turn into Iraq by way of the Euphrates and Tigris River to what is now the Persian Gulf.
This area, believed by many is the location of two of the four rivers that flowed from the Garden of Eden and the birthplace of man. Some have debated that the Garden of Eden was created in Israel, but, the great flood had changed the geophysical landscape in such a way that neither place can be substantiated.
Southern Iraq is also the area of the Plains of Shinar or more commonly known as the Land of Shinar, the area between two rivers, the Tigris, and the Euphrates. The Bible mentions Shinar 8 times; each reference pointing to Shinar as the location of Babel, the land of Nimrod, the Babylonian empire or more specifically to the city of Babylon.
The Book of Daniel gives us a tiny glimpse into the ancient city of Babylon as a land of military might, merchants, sorcerers, necromancers, enchanters and idol worshippers.
This will cover a short history of Babylon; not going into too much detail but covering several significant historical rulers and events. Much of this information is general knowledge and can be found in documentaries and history books on the middle east. I’ve included several online references that provide more information. Concerning end time events, a common knowledge of Babylon is helpful in order to understand why the area of the ancient Babylonian kingdom may become the prime location for the antichrist beast kingdom in the end of days.
Reviewing the historical backdrop:
Babylon had been ruled by many Kings and Kingdoms throughout the early years: the Assyrians, the Chaldeans, the Hittites, and the Amorites. World History, timeline
One of the first mighty Kings of Babylon was the Amorite King Hammurabi 1792 – 1750 B.C., He is Babylon's most famous King next in line to King Nebuchadnezzar II, who was a king of kings, the head of gold outlined in the book of Daniel: Thou, O king, art a king of kings, for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power and strength, and glory. And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thy hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all, Thou art the head of gold. Daniel 2:37,38. The God of heaven had given Nebuchadnezzar the kingdom, his power and his throne. (He took it back for a period of 7 years due to Nebuchadnezzar's pride, Daniel 4, but, it was God who gave him his kingdom.)
The first Biblically unrecognized King was Nimrod.
Babel survived a short time until it was disbanded by God. The people of Babel had just begun to unite, ignoring the command given to Noah to multiply and replenish the earth. (Genesis 9:1) They began to create a city and build a tower (temple). The tower was designed as a temple to reach the heavens (Genesis 11:4) and to make a name for themselves. This suggests that the tower was intended to reach the heavens in order to study the stars; or, escape another flood as suggested by Flavius Josephus.
The name Babel: 'Gateway to the gods' in the Akkadian and 'confusion' in the Hebrew further suggests that it was a temple designed for worship. With the release of the earth bound souls of the Nephilim (demons) and the fallen angels who masqueraded as gods and goddesses there were many entities to worship in the land of Shinar.
Due to the overwhelming number of demon possessions, the use of exorcism began to rise until it became a common practice throughout the Mesopotamia. (this will be covered in more detail in a future post that I am working on)
After the people of Babel were scattered and their language confounded, the ancient city was abandoned and left to the elements. The tower built for worship of the ancient gods, the Nephilim and their demonic spirits crumbled into the earth, blown away by the desert winds. The land between the two rivers became deserted and barren, remnants of its former civilization deteriorating into the desert floor. The area between the two rivers may have been known as cursed or forsaken until it was forgotten and erased by time. I imagine it was left to a state of decay and became a desolate part of the Akkadian territory.
After the collapse of the Akkadian empire (2,150. B.C.) and then the Ur empire, (1,940 B.C.), Babel was forgotten except for the legends that passed through generations. There were perhaps small family villages, wanderers, nomads or an occasional horde of marauders that camped there, but, basically Babel was little more than a cursed city full of long forgotten crumbled buildings and desert sand; perhaps much as it is today.
A few hundred years later, among several power struggles, the Amorites took official control of what would become the Babylon territory in 1899 B.C. and once again the city began to populate and thrive. A century later, 1792 B.C., a man named Hammurabi saw the potential and claimed it as his own. This was the beginning of the Babylon empire, thousands of years after Babel was scattered and Nimrod's horrific blunder was memory-holed from time.
Babel would have been a lingering memory; a generational story as the rise of the Babylonian kingdom was just beginning.
Hammurabi ruled from 1792 - 1750 B.C. and built the city of Babylon as his kingdoms capital. He was a great Babylon-first ruler, creating a code of moral laws while he built Babylon into an oasis in the desert, a great city of splendor and wonder; a jewel of the ancient world.
Hammurabi focused on improving Babylon’s interior by way of streets, irrigation, and public venues. He built a temple, the Esagila for the Babylonian serpent-god Bel-Marduk as well as several new temples to house other popular deities of the region. He erected temples and statues to the goddess of Sumer, Inanna, known as Ishtar in the Babylon and Akkadian cultures, the moon-god Sin, the sun god Shamash, as well as the gods Bel, Ea and Enlil. It didn’t matter which god you worshiped; all were welcome as the middle east flourished with fertility gods, idols, sorcery, witchcraft, exorcisms and paganism.
Under King Hammurabi's 42 year rule, Babylon quickly became a great commercial center with sheep herding at its center. Babylon expanded its textile trade as weavers crafted fine clothing and linens. Dates, barley and vegetables set a pace for a prosperous economic boom as many merchants traveled to the area to sell or buy goods. With the increase in traffic and new families arriving daily, Babylon became a great educational center as well as a cultural center. This was called the Old Babylonian period or more specifically the First Babylonian Empire. Babylon began to attain more power and control over the entire southern Mesopotamia area, reigning through education and commerce. It was also during this period when thick walls were erected to secure the city and its many citizens.
After King Hammurabi died the Babylon-First initiative died with him. The empire declined and fell under the control of the Assyrian king, Ashurbanipal. Several power struggles and a millennium later, when the Assyrian empire was weakened by internal struggle, a Chaldean General named Nabopolassar conquered the Assyrian empire and took control of Assyrian lands and empires it had ruled over.
He made Babylon the capital and created the Chaldean Dynasty of the Babylonian Empire and ruled 626- 605 B.C. This era became known as the Neo-Babylonian period. Nabopolassar was a notable General orchestrating conquests throughout the middle east to grow and protect his kingdom.
http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/amgg/mesopotamianhistory/index.html
He was a devout worshipper of Marduk (Son of Ea), the patron deity of Babylon and the god of magic and exorcism. He also worshipped Marduks son, Nabu. Nabu was a god of learning, prophecy, and writing. Due to the birthright of Nabu as the son of Marduk, grandson of Ea, the arts, literature, magic, witchcraft, sorcery, and divination grew wildly popular under Nabopolassar. He filled his court with sorcerers, soothsayers, enchanters, spell casters, magicians, wise men, astrologers, stargazers, and dream interpreters. His son, Nebuchadnezzar inherited the occultic court as the next ruling King.
After King Nabopolassar died in 605 B.C., his son, Nebuchadnezzar II ruled and Babylon became the main commerce spot of the middle east. Nebuchadnezzar II became a notable leader of the Babylonian kingdom seizing power through war as his father had done. His kingdom extended to the Mediterranean Sea, down into Egypt, Syria, Israel, southeastern Turkey, the Arabian desert and Iran.
More notably Nebuchadnezzar II increased the size of the outer wall, surrounded the city with a moat, and possibly created the fabled hanging gardens as a gift to his wife. Nebuchadnezzar built magnificent entrances into the city, the most famous being the Ishtar Gate.
Nebuchadnezzar fully restored Babylon to the former glory that was first founded under king Hammurabi. King Nebuchadnezzar restored the Esagila building the city around the worship of Bel-Marduk just a Hammurabi had done. He erected a gate to honor the goddess Ishtar and had a basalt statue crafted of the Babylonian lion with a saddle made just for her.
The Ishtar gate honored the goddess Inanna / Ishtar who was worshiped zealously throughout the middle east as the harlot of temple prostitution. The gate itself was decorated with the Babylonian winged lion, walking bulls and Babylons main deity, Bel-Marduk. Bel meaning Lord or Master.
Ishtar’s gate opened to the inner city and the Processional Way; a 50-foot-high walkway adorned with enameled gold and blue tiles featuring the snarling Babylonian winged lion.
The lion was also connected to Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, wisdom and fertility even though the goddess was childless. Because of her high position in Babylon, many believe that Ishtar represents the harlot of commercial corruption and the city of false worship depicted in Revelation 17.
Daniels night vision (Daniel 7) detailed four beast (kingdoms) that were destined to occupy the Babylon empire. The first beast out of the sea was the lion with the wings of an eagle. The winged lion represented the kingdom of Babylon under king Nebuchadnezzar. The final beast, vicious and terrible is made up of three beast kingdoms (Rev 13:2) that had ruled from within a Babylonian empire: the lion (Babylon Daniel 7:4), the bear (Mede-Persia Daniel 7:5) and finally the leopard, the Grecian kingdom of Alexander the Great, Daniel 7:6. The fourth beast kingdom, the one that rises from the sea in Revelation 13:1-4a will provide the final ruling king. Daniel 7:7-24
Marduk was represented as the walking serpent or snake dragon from ancient Mesopotamia mythology. The snake dragon had a sleek, scaley body with a long tail and long neck. Its front feet were that of a large feline and the back feet were the clawed talons of a bird of prey. The head was shaped as a snake or dragon adorned with curled viper horns and out of its mouth was a protruding, forked tongue. The tail was that of a scorpion.
Interesting that the deity Marduk closely resembles two Biblical descriptions of Satan: the Dragon and the Snake.
Walking Serpent: Ishtar’s Gate
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| Walking Serpent |
The Processional Way continued a half a mile to the Esagila, the main temple of Bel-Marduk. The Esagila was originally built by King Hammurabi and fully restored to its former glory under King Nebuchadnezzar II. During celebrations, parades were led through the Processional way to showcase the idols and statues of various gods and goddesses. New Year’s Eve festivities were held in honor of the King of Babylon, Bel and Marduk.
The city itself was inundated with temples that housed the statues and idols of gods and goddesses that were worshipped in Babylon. Bel-Marduk, son of Sumerian god Enki (Akkadian Ea) continued as the chief deity of Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar. Bel meaning Ba’al, Lord, owner, or master, Marduk, Serpent or Dragon: Lord Dragon or, master Serpent.
The Esagila was connected by a garden with a huge gate to a six-level high ziggurat called Etemenanki. The Sumerian meaning behind the name Etemenanki is Temple of the foundation of heaven and earth. Notice how similar that title was to the Akkadian title given to the ancient city of Babel, as the Gateway of the gods. Etemenanki sat on the shores of the Euphrates and was also originally constructed under King Hammurabi then fully restored under King Nebuchadnezzar.
Etemenanki housed several gods along with their wives and could be assessed through a huge gate along the Procession way. The main deity was of course Bel Marduk and his temple sat high atop the ziggurat overlooking his city. The Etemenanki is still confused as the Genesis Tower of Babel even though thousands of years separate the two. Could it be that the Etemenanki was built upon the exact location of the original Tower of Babel (Gateway of the gods) that Nimrod built thousands of years earlier?
Nebuchadnezzars legacy was conquering Syria, Canaan and besieging Jerusalem three times; taking captives, ransacking the temple of Solomon and eventually destroying the city and burning the temple to the ground in 586 B.C. This is why the God of Israel sent Cyrus the Great to free his people, prophesied by Isaiah two hundred years earlier. Cyrus's dual bloodline, Persia and Mede provided the perfect alliance to unite the nations and fulfill prophecy. .
Coincidently (or symbolically) this was done in the Hebrew month of Tammuz, the Jewish month signifying that judgement comes from idolatry.
One of the most famous statues representing Babylonian power and strength was the Babylonian Lion. This is a huge 6 Century B.C. statue of a lion crushing a man beneath its paw. Weather had deteriorated the statue to a degree but Ishtar’s saddle upon its back is still clearly visible. As the Mesopotamian Queen of Heaven, Inanna / Ishtar's symbol was also the lion.
Ishtar was the only Mesopotamian goddess who had earned the right to ride the Babylonian beast.
After the death of Nebuchadnezzar II Babylon was ruled for two years by his son, Amel-Marduk. Amel-Marduk was killed by his brother-in-law Neriglissar, who was succeeded by his son, Labashir Marduk. Labashir Marduk only lasted a few weeks until he was replaced by King Nabonidus. None of these kings were able to capture the allure or enchantment Babylon once held for the nations. None of these kings were chosen by God to lead a great nation as Nebuchadnezzar had been. Daniel 2:37,38
Belshazzar was the final regent king who ruled in place of his father, King Nabonidus who spent more time in Arabia worshipping the crescent moon god of ancient UR, then he did in Babylon worshipping Marduk.
King Nabonidus was a moon-god (Suen, pronounced Sin) worshipper who frequently traveled to Tayma (Tema), Saudi Arabia, the center of moon god worship. While he was gone the city was ruled by his son, Belshazzar. With the King gone so often, celebrations and festivals honoring Marduk were often canceled as he was not present to oversee religious ceremonies. Citizens began to tire of the absent King who spent more time in Arabia worshipping a crescent moon god than in his own kingdom worshipping Marduk.
More on the mood god, Suen or Nanna
Under the rule of Belshazzar, the absent kings son, the kingdom fell to the Persians in 539 B.C. and placed under the leadership of Cyrus the Great. Belshazzar was killed that night and his father King Nabonidus was exiled. The walls may have been fortified and impenetrable to mortal men but to one very clever mortal man given a task by the God of Israel, the wall only became a false symbol of security that entrapped those living inside. The waters of the Euphrates that ran under the wall, protecting the city from invasion were diverted, allowing the invading army to slip underneath, taking the city without a fight.
Darius the Mede was entrusted to the throne that very night. This was the night that Babylon fell, the night of the writing on the wall. This is documented in Daniel chapter 5.
The fall of Babylon is often confused with the destruction of Babylon as per prophecy but nothing of that sort happened. The city was left intact, in fact, many residents didn’t even know they were under siege until three days afterward and most welcomed the change.
The armies of Cyrus the Great ended the 66 year reign of the Chaldean dynasty of the Babylonian kingdom. 66 years was a very short time for a kingdom when compared to the Egyptian or Assyrian kingdoms. Cyrus assigned Darius the Mede to rule over the declining Babylonian kingdom. This was a peaceful takeover as most were unaware that the kingdom had been seized until three days later. The majority were sick and tired of the absent king and happy when the new king was placed. This is recorded in the Cyrus Cylinder.
Alexander made Babylon his capital city setting his plans into motion. His first order of business was to destroy the aging Etemenanki ziggurat with a plan to restore it at a later date. He also planned to build ports for new trade routes and to dock a fleet of warships on the Euphrates.
Alexander the Great had many plans for his new Babylonian home-base but died less then 13 years later at the age of 33 (323 BC) so his visions were never fulfilled. Babylon fell into a near abandoned state due to the newer trade routes on the Tigris River and eventually began to decline over time. Alexander's kingdom rose and fell within 13 years - a short time compared to other kingdoms such as Egypt or Assyria.
When the Roman empire began to rise it conquered or absorbed the remainder of the Grecian empire of Alexander the Great. By that time the Grecian empire had been divided into four separate dynasties or kingdoms. Located in Italy, the Roman kingdom never set foot on Babylonian soil or placed a ruling king within its borders. In fact it made the banks of the Euphrates river its eastern border failing to fulfill Nebuchadnezzar's prophetic dream about the fourth kingdom and the future of his kingdom.
Alexander the Great was the last king to rule from a Babylonian homebase. Daniel's fourth beast kingdom will provide the final ruling king.
Babylon continued to be a viable but dwindling city for several more centuries, but, the majestic city that had once graced the plains of Shinar was forever gone. By the time John wrote the book of Revelation, the Babylon kingdom had ceased to exist and the city was no longer the thriving city-state it once was. But, it was still in existence as she had never fully submitted to her death.
And the beast (kingdom) that you saw was, and is not, and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit (healed from its deadly head wound), and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose name were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
Revelation 13:1a I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast (kingdom) rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns.... Revelation 13:3: And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death, and his deadly wound was healed: and and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshiped the dragon which gave his power unto the beast...
It existed right up until 1100 AD never recapturing its former glory. Late in the fourth century A.D. several rabbis that were in Israel fled to Babylon due to persecution. There the rabbis wrote the Babylonian Talmud, the ancient text of Jewish sayings, ideas and stories. This was completed around 500 A.D., telling us Babylon was still a viable city, still in existence though its former glory was long gone.
By the 9th century AD, Babylon was virtually forgotten as the world continued to progress; never once giving the dying kingdom or its city in the wilderness a second thought. No other kingdoms ruled from a Babylonian homebase. leaving the feet and toes (the fourth kingdom) of Nebuchadnezzars dream unfulfilled.
…was, and is not, yet is, shall be again
Over the centuries Babylon became more and more desolate when around 1100 A.D., she began to give up the ghost. She was breathing her last breathes and finally succumbed to her fate and fell into a near death slumber that lasted well over a millennium.
Then, came Saddam. Saddam Hussein, leading member of the revolutionary Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party believed that he was the reincarnation of Nebuchadnezzar II. Hussein began a mission to rebuild the ancient city in 1983. Following the vision of Nebuchadnezzar, he attempted to resurrect the long dormant city and restore her to a former glory.
He began by rebuilding large sections of Babylon upon the ancient ruins of the old foundations. He restored temple walls reusing ancient building materials, and had begun to rebuild the palace of King Nebuchadnezzar II. He rebuilt the historic Marduk museum on its original foundation that had once housed the silver and golden cups stolen from King Solomon's temple in Jerusalem during the 605 B.C. siege. Though he did it in memory of Nebuchadnezzar, Saddam Hussein wasn’t really interested in preserving the city; he wanted to rebuild it, reinvent it and recreate it into something he could claim ownership to.
But Hussein’s timing was not in God’s plan.
Note: the extent of destruction recorded in Isaiah 13:18 did not happen the night the armies of Cyrus the Great overthrew the Chaldean empire. The extent of destruction recorded in 13:19 had not happened either, as the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is similar to the destruction recorded in Rev 18, sudden and cataclysmic. Babylon was still inhabited until 1100 AD or so until it eventually but grudgingly succumbed to death. Saddam Hussein, leader of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party (Isaiah 13:20) reused building material and foundations when he began to rebuild Babylon in1983 which contradicts several scriptures such as Jeremiah 51:26 and those already listed ... It was, (once a viable kingdom, still in existence when John wrote Revelation), it was not (the mighty kingdom it once was as it lay barren and decayed, deteriorating into the desert floor), it yet is it is still in existence though not the mighty kingdom it once was and it shall be (raised from a death-like state, revived).
If the prophecy of Babylon's destruction has not been 100% fulfilled then there must be a future fulfillment yet to come.
It was the summer of 2013 when the second rattle of breath returned to her barren lands, and the world took notice. The world watched in horror as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria reenacted the deeds of its prophet; taking child brides, public executions by beheading and torturing those who would not worship their god. They set about enforcing a Caliphate in the heart of Iraq.
Christians all over the world wondered if all the activity and bloodshed would reawaken that long dormant city to begin the fulfilment of her destiny found in the Book of Revelation. (Revelation 13:1-4a) Would Babylon begin to be reinhabited, join with other middle eastern countries and united under a banner of Islam? Would Istanbul or another middle eastern city begin to rise as a capital for a revived kingdom under the Islamic State fulfilling the prophetic feet and toes of iron and clay (the fourth kingdom) upon Nebuchadnezzar's statue of gold? And, if so, what did this mean for the world?
Was it possible to revive the kingdom of the lion, the bear and the leopard; that was, and is not, yet is; or is this a yet future and part of a much bigger prophecy to be fulfilled?
The Islamic state continued unabated under weak and docile world leaders, including former US President Barack Hussein Obama. The Islamic state carried out an ethnic cleansing of middle eastern Christians and the ancient tribes of Yazidis, gathering strength and support from Islamic strongholds. The terror and bloodshed carried out in their wake was shocking and horrific. That amount of barbarism was unheard of in todays society.
When America voted in a new President, the reign of terror ignored by the last President and previous world leaders was finally snuffed out. By 2017 the Islamic State had lost 95% of its territory and on October 26. 2019, ISIS founder Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was vaporized by U.S. Special forces in Syria. The reign of terror carried out by the most blood thirsty cult in modern times had ended.
And the desolate city of Babylon went back to her slumber.
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