Cyrus: (Heb. Ko'resh), the celebrated "King of Persia" (Elam) who was
conqueror of Babylon, and issued the decree of liberation to the Jews
(Ezra 1:1,2) He was the son of Cambyses, the prince of Persia, and was
born about B.C. 599 In the year B.C. 559 he became king of Persia,
the kingdom of Media being added to it partly by conquest. Cyrus was
a great military leader, bent on universal conquest. Babylon fell
before his army (B.C. 538) on the night of Belshazzar's feast
(Daniel 5:30) and then the ancient dominion of Assyria was also added to
his empire (cf., "Go up, O Elam",)
(Isaiah 21:2) Hitherto the great kings
of the earth had only oppressed the Jews. Cyrus was to them as a
"shepherd"
(Isaiah 44:28; 45:1) God employed him in doing service to
his ancient people. He may posibly have gained, through contact with
the Jews, some knowledge of their religion. The "first year of Cyrus"
(Ezra 1:1) is not the year of his elevation to power over the
Medes, nor over the Persians, nor the year of the fall of Babylon,
but the year succeeding the two years during which "Darius the Mede"
was viceroy in Babylon after its fall. At this time only (B.C. 536)
Cyrus became actual king over Palestine, which became a part of his
Babylonian empire. The edict of Cyrus for the rebuilding of Jerusalem
marked a great epoch in the history of the Jewish people
(2 Chronicles 36:22,23; Ezra 1:1-4; 4:3; 5:13-17; 6:3-5) This decree was discovered
"at Achmetha [R.V. marg., "Ecbatana"], in the palace that is in the
province of the Medes"
(Ezra 6:2) A chronicle drawn up just after
the conquest of Babylonia by Cyrus, gives the history of the reign of
Nabonidus (Nabunahid), the last king of Babylon, and of the fall of
the Babylonian empire. In B.C. 538 there was a revolt in Southern
Babylonia, while the army of Cyrus entered the country from the
north. In June the Babylonian army was completely defeated at Opis,
and immediately afterwards Sippara opened its gates to the conqueror.
Gobryas (Ugbaru), the governor of Kurdistan, was then sent to
Babylon, which surrendered "without fighting," and the daily services
in the temples continued without a break. In October, Cyrus himself
arrived, and proclaimed a general amnesty, which was communicated by
Gobryas to "all the province of Babylon," of which he had been made
governor. Meanwhile, Nabonidus, who had concealed himself, was
captured, but treated honourably; and when his wife died, Cambyses,
the son of Cyrus, conducted the funeral. Cyrus now assumed the title
of "king of Babylon," claimed to be the descendant of the ancient
kings, and made rich offerings to the temples. At the same time he
allowed the foreign populations who had been deported to Babylonia to
return to their old homes, carrying with them the images of their
gods. Among these populations were the Jews, who, as they had no
images, took with them the sacred vessels of the temple.
