The “Cyrus
of Persia” mentioned in Ezra is none other than the famous Persian king, Cyrus the
Great. Born in around 600 BC, Cyrus inherited his father’s kingdom in 559. Soon
after, he began knitting the loose tribes of his father into something more
unified and tangible. After establishing a base of power in the city of Pasargadae,
he began laying claim to more surrounding territories (1). He would go on to
build the first world empire (2).
But why
exactly is a Persian emperor so
important to the Israelites?
He was
important because he conquered Babylon, where the tribes of Israel had been
held captive for seventy years. After discovering the two remaining displaced
tribes living in the city, he allowed them to return to their homeland. According
to Biblical text, he also gave them money to rebuild their Temple (3). According
to Ezra, he did so at the command of Yahweh, who “[gave him] all the kingdoms
of the earth and he has appointed [him] to build a temple for him at Jerusalem
in Judah” (Ezra 1). Whether or not Cyrus followed the teachings of Yahweh is
unconfirmed. It is likely that he was a Zoroastrian—the religion common to
Persia at the time—and that the Hebrew people simply attributed his generous
actions to a faith in their god (2).
There is no historical doubt of
the events that transpired in Ezra, however. We know for a fact that Cyrus
freed the Hebrews, as there are extra-Biblical sources to confirm it. During excavations
of Babylon in 1887, a small barrel with an inscription from Cyrus was
discovered, detailing his decree that all captive peoples be returned to their
homelands (4).
Whether or not he was truly divinely
inspired by Yahweh, there can be no doubt of Cyrus’ integral role to the continuation
of Judaism. He freed the people from a captivity that ten tribes had been lost
to and restored their land to them. Under his long reign, the various peoples
in his empire were allowed to flourish in peace, free to carry out their own traditions
and keep their own religions. Later, Cyrus’ wise doctrine of religious and
cultural tolerance would be adopted by the Roman Empire and become greatly important
to the flourishing of early Christianity as well.
(2)
http://www.cyrusthegreat.net/
(4)
http://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=13&article=288
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