As most students of history and Biblical studies will tell you, the Persian Empire overthrew the Babylonian Empire way back in the mid-6th century BC. However, a certain theory which explains how the Persians accomplished their victory over the Babylonians is not as commonly discussed. For the city of Babylon was protected by massive walls and secured by two large leaved gates of brass that were submerged deep into the Euphrates River, which also aided the city against foreign invasion. Additionally these gates were shut at night and reinforced by huge iron bars. So, since the Persians were so easily able to march into Babylon and take the entire city in just one night, then they must have had help from within the walls of Babylon in order to penetrate the two thick gates of brass which made the city virtually impregnable. The following presentation will attempt to briefly summarize the theory of how Babylon fell by taking a deeper look into the historical records which pertain to the ancient city of Babylon and her ultimate overthrow by the Persians, who were lead by that legendary figure of history: Cyrus the Great.
Ancient Babylon was home to the pagan priesthood of the god Marduk. But the Babylonia ruler Nabonidus was despised by the priests of his realm, due to the king’s introduction of foreign gods into the empire which threatened the supremacy of the Babylonian god Marduk. Because of the adoption of new deities into the territories of Babylonia the power of the Babylonian priesthood, which administered the rights of worship and sacrifices to Marduk, found itself in great peril. Though the priests of Marduk were in danger of losing their control over politics, an opportunity arose which would secure their power and position. For when the news traveled to Babylon, concerning the threatening approach of king Cyrus’ army into the great city, a revolt broke out and Nabonidus quickly collected all the various idols of his gods and fled out from amongst the borders of Babylon.
For it was in the year 539 BC, that king Cyrus of Persia managed to enter Babylon along with the assistance of a couple of Babylonian traitors who (it can be argued) made the Persian overthrow of Babylon an inside job. For according to the writings of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, these turncoats were able to divert the Euphrates River into a new channel allowing the Persian army to march over the dry riverbed and into the city, while the Babylonians were preoccupied in the revelry and drunkenness of a party dedicated to their gods. And this story, taken directly from the historical record of ancient Babylon, is also recorded in the 5th chapter of the book of Daniel as found within the pages of the Holy Bible. For it was the proverbial “writing on the wall” that the prophet Daniel was able to decipher which proclaimed God’s judgment upon the kingdom of Babylon, and her ultimate demise as an ancient world power.
Now the two Babylonian traitors, who helped the Persian king enter the city, may in fact have been employed by the priests of Marduk. For these priests found themselves with no other choice but to tolerate the worship of the other gods brought into Babylon by Nabonidus. And even after Nabonidus had left the country, his son Belshazzar reigned in his place and he also continued in the worship of and the service to his father’s gods. This in turn only bred resentment in the hearts of the priests of Marduk against prince Belshazzar. Biblically speaking, the plot to divert the river by unlocking the gates of the city was prophesied by Jeremiah. For the prophet wrote of how the men of Babylon would not fight and that the bars of Babylon would be broken (Jeremiah 51:30). The prophet Isaiah also foretold of how God would use the king of the Persians, “..to subdue the nations…and…to open…the two leaved gates” (Isaiah 45:1). Thus through a conspiracy plotted and executed by it’s very own priesthood, was the Babylonian Empire conquered by the Persian Empire.
From what has been presented in this treatise of ancient revisionist history, it can be strongly argued that there is indeed a power which lurks behind the throne. Though the king of Babylon possessed material power over the empire, he was not all powerful. For the priesthood also held a political monopoly when it came to the religious practices and other administrative duties involving the king and the people. For in all civilizations throughout history do we see monarchy’s ultimately answering and bowing down to religious leadership. As we have seen, if the king rebels and the priests don’t get their way, then these religious conspirators put their magic to work by toppling the disobedient ruler and craftily install a figurehead (or puppet) who is keen on dancing to any tune the masters play. And ancient Babylon was a prime example of this gross abuse of power. As there is no new thing under the sun this ruling class struggle for power will continue until the end of history. For as prophesied in the Bible, the final world religious/political system is appropriately titled: MYSTERY BABYLON.
References:
Daniel, E. The History of Iran. (Westport, Connecticut: The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations, 2001).
Daniel, J. Scarlet and the Beast Vol. II. (Tyler, TX: JKI Publishing, 1994).
Zondervan. The Holy Bible, King James Version. (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2009).