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110) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 1:


- City of Jerusalem:


People of Jerusalem

Because Jerusalem is a holy city, uniquely revered by the three major monotheistic religions, its people have traditionally been classified according to religious affiliation. A majority of the city’s residents are either secular or traditional Jews. Muslims are the most homogeneous of the communities, and Christians—who are represented by numerous sects and churches—are the most diversified. Residential segregation is the norm, and Jews and Arabs live almost exclusively in specific districts. Among the Jews there is a further subdivision of residential districts among ultraorthodox, traditional, and secular Jews, and Armenian Christians likewise form their own enclave in the Old City.

Muslims are the most ethnically homogeneous group, being very nearly all Arabs. The Christian community is somewhat more diverse. Although the city has attracted visitors and settlers from throughout the Christian world (and Christians are by far the smallest religious group), Arabs remain the largest ethnic element among the city’s Christians. Jerusalem’s Jewish population is far and away the most ethnically diverse. Jews from every part of the Diaspora have settled in the city, adding to the extant Jewish community. Although the political conflict over the fate of the city and the broader region often has been shrouded in religious overtones, it has largely taken the shape of competing national aspirations—one Jewish Israeli and the other Palestinian Arab—and these two groups form the major political and demographic blocs within the modern city.

Jews​

Among the Jews, an important line of division is between Ashkenazim (broadly, Jews of central and eastern European origin), Sephardim (Jews of Spanish and Portuguese origin), and Mizrahim (North African or Oriental Jews). Of no less importance is the division between the Orthodox and the more secular-minded segments of the population. Secular, traditional, and ultraorthodox groups each constitute roughly one-third of the Jewish population. Religious controversy plays a large part in local politics, and disputes often erupt over issues such as Sabbath observance or kashruth (dietary law). Some ultraorthodox neighbourhoods are barred to traffic on the Sabbath.

Jerusalem is the centre of Jewish religious reverence and aspiration. The most sacred spot is the Temple Mount, on which many Orthodox Jews refrain from setting foot for fear of profaning the sanctity of the site where once stood the most sacred Holy of Holies. In addition to the Western Wall—the most important centre of prayer and pilgrimage—other holy places include the reputed tomb of King David on Mount Zion, the Mount of Olives with its ancient Jewish cemetery, and the tombs of priestly families in the Valley of Kidron. Old synagogues and study houses in the Old City have been refurbished; particularly worthy of mention is the interconnected group of four synagogues begun in the 16th century by Jews exiled from Spain. Jerusalem is one of the world’s foremost centres of rabbinic learning and contains scores of yeshivas. Notable modern religious structures include the Jerusalem Great Synagogue and the synagogue and associated institutions of the followers of the Rebbe of Belz, a Hasidic rabbi whose court is in Jerusalem.

Muslims​

Muslims formed only a minority of the Arab population of Jerusalem in the first decade of the 20th century, but by the early 21st century they outnumbered Christians by an overwhelming margin. Almost all are Sunni Muslims. Jerusalem is revered by Muslims as the third holiest place on earth, and the pilgrimage to Jerusalem (taqdīs) is viewed as an optional complement to the pilgrimage to Mecca, the hajj. Unlike the hajj, the pilgrimage to Jerusalem is undertaken individually at any time of the year. Jerusalem was also the starting point of the annual Nābī Mūsā (Prophet Moses) pilgrimage to a Muslim shrine on the road to Jericho, locally held to be the burial place of the biblical prophet. The festival, which was always timed to coincide with Easter celebrations, was at one time the largest mass pilgrimage in Palestine and played an important part of the religious ritual of Jerusalem and the surrounding area. The Nābī Mūsā pilgrimage, which was under the patronage of the Ḥusaynī family, died away in the early 1950s.

Since 1967 Al-Ḥaram al-Sharīf and the Muslim waqfs (religious endowments) have been administered by a Muslim council that does not recognize the sovereignty of Israel over East Jerusalem. The council also assumed responsibility for the Sharīʿah courts and other Muslim religious institutions that had previously been under the jurisdiction of the Council of Waqf and Muslim Affairs in Amman, Jordan. Since 1995 the Palestinian Authority (PA) has come to exercise effective control over all Muslim institutions, religious courts, and appointments to religious office in East Jerusalem.

 

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111) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 1:


- City of Jerusalem:

Christians​

Christians constitute the smallest but most religiously diverse section of the population. They number some 15,000, of whom about four-fifths are Arabs. Jerusalem is the seat of three resident patriarchs of the Eastern Orthodox churches and of many archbishops and bishops, and almost all the principal historic sects of Christendom are represented in the city in some form. The main groups are Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Protestant. The major denominations, except the Protestants, share control over the Church of the Holy Sepulchre according to a rule—known as the “status quo”—promulgated by the Ottoman sultan in 1852.

The Greek Orthodox Church maintains a patriarchate with jurisdiction over the entire Holy Land. Although the laity and parish clergy are mainly Arab, the patriarch, bishops, and regular clergy are almost all Greek. The patriarchate owns large tracts of valuable real estate both in Jerusalem and elsewhere. The Russian Orthodox Church too owns considerable properties dating to tsarist times. The Roman Catholic Church in Jerusalem, established in 1099 during the First Crusade, was dissolved when the Muslims won the city in 1244. The Franciscan order, which since 1334 has been the “Custodian of the Holy Land,” is charged with the safekeeping of Roman Catholic rights and properties in Jerusalem. The Latin patriarchate was reestablished in 1847. Of the Oriental Orthodox churches, the Armenian is the largest, its patriarchate having been established in the 6th century; other churches include the Coptic and the Ethiopian. At least 1,000 Armenians live in the city, about half of them in a compound in the Armenian quarter around the seat of the patriarchate at the Cathedral of St. James, which constitutes the largest monastic centre in the region. Smaller Christian sects with communities and institutions in Jerusalem include the Syrian Orthodox, Greek Catholic (Melchite), and Armenian Catholic churches. The small Protestant community includes Anglicans, Lutherans, and adherents of American Evangelical churches.

 

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112) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel​

Daniel 1:


- Kingdom of Judah:

Kingdom of Judah - New World Encyclopedia


The Kingdom of Judah (Hebrew מַלְכוּת יְהוּדָה, Standard Hebrew Malkut Yəhuda) was the nation formed from the territories of the tribes of Judah, Simon, and Benjamin after the United Kingdom of Israel was divided. It was named after Judah, son of Jacob. The name Judah itself means Praise of God. It is thought to have occupied an area of about 8,900 km² (3,435 square miles), although its borders fluctuated.

Judah is often referred to as the Southern Kingdom to distinguish it from the Northern Kingdom (the Kingdom of Israel) after the two entities divided. Its capital was Jerusalem. It endured as an independent kingdom, with intermittent periods of vassalage to foreign powers, from the reign of Rehoboam until the fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonians in 586 B.C.E.

The main source of our knowledge about the Kingdom of Judah is the Hebrew Bible, especially the Books of Kings and Chronicles, as well as references to historical events in the writings of the Prophets. In several cases, documents left by non-Judean rulers provide addition information and alternative perspectives to those provided by the biblical writers. The biblical story of Judah and Israel is, for many people, the history of God's Providence. It also underlies the western view of history as a linear process (as opposed to an eternally repeating cycle) and provides the foundation for the idea of the historical struggle between the forces of good and evil.

 

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113) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel​

Daniel 1:


- Kingdom of Judah:

Foundations​

The Kingdom of Judah's foundation is traditionally dated to the point at which Israel and Judah divided, shortly after the reign of King Solomon, which ended in 931/922 B.C.E.

However, it should be noted that King David had earlier been anointed king of Judah at Hebron (2 Sam 2:4). A period of civil war followed, with a unified kingdom emerging under the monarchy of David and Solomon, according to the biblical account.

After the end of Solomon's reign, a dispute arose between his son, Rehoboam, and northern leader, Jeroboam, who had been a minister of forced labor under Solomon. Jeroboam urged the young king to relax the labor requirements that Solomon had imposed on the northern tribes, saying, "Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you." Rehoboam harshly rejected the request, and the northern tribes revolted (2 Chronicles 10).

While such may have been the political and economic realities, the author of Kings makes it clear that the root cause of the division was spiritual, resulting from King Solomon's sin of idolatry. The Southern Kingdom thereafter represented his better half, demonstrating a greater degree of faithfulness to God, while the Northern Kingdom fell into a consistent pattern of tolerating and practicing idolatry.

 

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114) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel​

Daniel 1:


- Kingdom of Judah:

Political Dimension​

Northern Enmity and Alliance​

Shortly after the schism, a raid of Shishak of Egypt forced Judah briefly into submission. Shishak's forces plundered both the city and the Temple but apparently did little lasting harm. For the next sixty years the kings of Judah aimed at re-establishing their authority over the other Israelite tribes. Judah's army gained limited success under brief reign of King Abijah (Abijam). However, the latter part of the reign of the next king, Asa, faced strong opposition by King Baasha of Israel. Asa then allied himself with the Aramean (Syrian) kingdom of Damascus. Nevertheless, before Asa's death (873/870 B.C.E.), a lasting friendship was made with Israel, now under the new and powerful dynasty of Omri. A school of Yahwist prophets arose in opposition to this association, because of its corrupting effect on Judah's religious and moral purity. Nevertheless, Judah assumed a subordinate role politically until Israel was crushed by the invading Assyrians.

During this time, Judah and Israel occasionally cooperated against their common enemies, especially the Syrian power centering on Damascus.

Jehoshaphat (enthroned 873/870 B.C.E.), the son of Asa, fought side by side with Ahab of Israel in the fateful battle of Ramoth-Gilead. Although praised by the the bible (I Kings 22:41-44) for commendable devotion to Yahweh, Jehoshaphat strengthened the alliance by marrying his son Jehoram to Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and his Phoenician queen, Jezebel. Later, he collaborated with Israel in shipbuilding and trade. Jehoram succeeded his father, killing six of his own brothers to insure his reign. However, in the next generation, Jehoram's son Ahaziah, in league with the northern kingdom against Syria, was assassinated by the Yahwist zealot Jehu in the process of Jehu's usurpation of the throne of Israel. Ahaziah's mother, the aforementioned northern princess Athaliah, then carried out a bloody coup in Jerusalem, thus becoming the first and only ruling queen of Judah. Because of Athaliah's devotion to the Phoenician deity Baal, the priests of the Temple of Yahweh engineered a counter-coup against her, placing Jehoash, the young son of Ahaziah, on the throne. In the early days of Jehoash (enthroned 842/835 B.C.E.), the Syrian king Hazael of Damascus ravaged the whole country up to and including the city of Jerusalem.

 

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7) Daniel - comparing faithfulness to Yah.weh

- When we follow the three books (Job, Daniel and Samuel), we must always remember:
- their age is different!
- The context is different!- Beverage!
- They have a different social position!
- But they have the main thing that connects them together:
- Their extreme faithfulness to Yah.weh!
- I should say supreme faithfulness!
- That’s why we have to look for such a connection!
- For the three men, each detail is important to show faithfulness!
- Today it must be really difficult to understand this attitude because nothing matters!
- So think of details!
- The problem is to show faithfulness, we have to start with details!
- The Bible is full of details!
- For Yah.weh, each small detail has its importance!
- Thus the human attitude toward Yah.weh is completely wrong!
- Food!
- Beverage!
- Everything to avoid contamination!
- And Daniel is ready to do everything to avoid it!
- And it works!
- They are ten times better!
- Thus Yah.weh’s truth is so easy to get but so hard for the majority!
- So easy for men like Job, Daniel and Samuel!
- And so hard for the majority!

 

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8) Daniel - comparing faithfulness to Yah.weh

• In Daniel 2, Nebuchadnezzar has a dream!
• And he wants his wise men to tell him his dream and its interpretation!
• But there is no wise man in Babylon who is able to do it!
• So the king wants to kill them all!
• Thus human wisdom is always relative!
• The first element of wisdom is humility!
• Just this small element shows that there is hardly any human wisdom away from Yah.weh!
• And Job, Daniel and Samuel are humble!
• Discretion and tact (Daniel 2:14)!
• Daniel goes to the right persons!
• He informs his three companions and asks them to pray Yah.weh!
• Then Yah.weh answers Daniel!
• Then he thanks Yah.weh saying:
• Blessed be the name of God forever and ever!
• Thus Job, Daniel and Samuel always do the same!
• Today the big majority doesn’t do it!
• Daniel tells the king that Yah.weh has revealed him his dream and its interpretation!
• They always give back to Yah.weh what belongs to him!

 

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9) Daniel - comparing faithfulness to Yah.weh

- As a consequence, the king gives Daniel honor and gifts and he becomes ruler of the province of Babylon and administrator over the wise men of Babylon!
- As the majority would do, he could only think of him!
- But he asks the kings to give positions to his three companions!
- That’s the last element of wisdom at the difference of the big majority!
- Divine wisdom vs human wisdom!
- It is absolutely impossible to compare both!
- Human society is so far away from Yah.weh that the big majority can’t understand anything!
- They have lost the roadmap!
- The only way to try to get it back is learning from faithful servants of Yah.weh!
- But so many efforts are required that the big majority can’t even think about it!
-They prefer superficiality!
- So why should Yah.weh bother?

 

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115) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 1:


- Kingdom of Judah:

Prosperity and Power

The Syrian power soon declined, however, and Judah now began a period of prosperity, which finally made it one of the area's leading kingdoms. Jehoash's son Amaziah reconquered Edom, which had been lost under Jehoram. This secured a direct trade route to western Arabia, as well access to Red Sea trade through the Gulf of Aqaba. However, the king of Israel, Joash, perceived Amaziah's growing power as a threat and made war on Judah, capturing Amaziah, forcing the submission of Jerusalem, and pludering its temple.

With the advent of Uzziah (ascended 788/767 B.C.E.), the prosperity of Judah was renewed. Uzziah conquered much of the Philistine country and briefly brought even Moab to heel. He fortified Judah's towns, expanded its army, and successfully developed the country's natural resources. Jotham continued the vigorous regime of his father, following the example of the mighty kings of the powerful Assyrian empire.

The Assyrian Threat​

During the reign of Jotham's son Ahaz (beginning 742/732 B.C.E.), the Assyrian empire came to the fore. The northern king, Pekah, allied with Rezin of Damascus in the face of the Assyrian threat. Ahaz refused to join the coalition; under pressure, he called for help from the Assyrians. The Assyrians eventually annexed the northern half of Israel, and Damascus itself fell. Judah was spared, but it became a vassal state of Assyria. Hezekiah, son of Ahaz, is much praised by the biblical sources for enacting religious reforms that favored the Yahweh-only ethic of the Jerusalem priesthood and the prophet Isaiah. However, around 700 B.C.E., he unwisely joined in a military coalition against Assyria. Before the might of the Assyrian king Sennacherib, all of Judah's fortified cities fell, with the sole exception of Jerusalem. Many Judeans were deported, Jerusalem itself being spared when a plague broke out in the army of the invader. After Hezekiah died at a comparatively young age (697/687 B.C.E.), the reign of his son, Manasseh, fared poorly. Manasseh relaxed the religious restrictions instituted by his father, and Judah remained the vassal of Assyria. The situation did not improve under Manasseh's son, Amon.

 

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116) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 1:


- Kingdom of Judah:

Josiah's Star Rises and Falls​

In the early years of King Josiah (641/640 B.C.E.), the priestly party regained the upper hand. The young king accepted as valid the newly discovered "Book of the Law" of Moses (2 Kings 22). A bloodly purge of non-Yahwist priests soon followed, and even sacrifices to the Israelite God we banned outside of Jerusalem's official temple. Josiah presented himself as God's champion, aiming to purge the nation of the moral and spiritual corruption that had infested it as a result of Canaanite influence. If Josiah was the new Moses, the Egyptian ruler Necho II was the present-day Pharaoh. Heading the revived monarchy of Egypt, Necho aimed to supplant Assyria as the dominant force in western Asia. When Necho passed through Palestine with an invading force c. 608, Josiah boldly offered him battle at Megiddo, and was slain.

Jehoahaz, the second son of Josiah, reigned for three months, after which he was dethroned by Necho and exiled to Egypt. Josiah's eldest son, Eliakim, replaced him, ruling at Necho's pleasure as "Jehoiakim." Judah's vassalage to Egypt, however did not last long. In 607 B.C.E. Nineveh fell to the Medes, and much of the territory between Niniveh and the Mediterranean came under the new Babylonian monarchy. The Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar defeated Egypt at Carchemish in 604, and Jehoiakim became a Babylonian subject.

The Final Days​

The prophet Jeremiah counseled submission to Babylon, but in 598 B.C.E. Jehoiakim rebelled. He died soon thereafter with Jerusalem under siege. His son Jehoiachin (597) held out for three months and then surrendered. He and his entire court, including leading figures of the priesthood such as the future prophet Ezekiel, were deported.

Babylon now placed on the throne Josiah's third son, Zedekiah. Jeremiah, still in Jerusalem, again urged cooperation with the Babylonian power, which he saw as God's chastising agent for Judah's sins; but other prophets urged boldness against the foreign enemy (Jer. 28-29). Once again the Judeans rebelled. The Babylonian army marched to the gates of Jerusalem, the city was taken in July, 586 B.C.E., and the leaders of the rebellion were put to death. The Babylonians blinded Zedekiah and brought him captive into exile with a large number of his subjects. They also set fire to both the Temple and city of Jerusalem. Thus ended the royal house of David and the kingdom of Judah.

 

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117) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 1:


- Kingdom of Judah:

Spiritual Dimension​

While the above summary of the history of Judah deals with the military and political vicissitudes of its course, the biblical account presents a story in which Judah's rise and fall relates to one central theme: its fidelity to God. In this version of Judah's story, the division of the Solomon's United Kingdom is due to the fact of his idolatry and is predicted by the prophet Ahijah long before the northern rebel Jeroboam confronts Rehoboam over Solomon's oppressive labor policy.

Thereafter the kings of Judah prosper in war and peace when they "walk in the ways of [their] father David" and eschew to "sin of Jeroboam" (1 Kings 12:29-30). This sin was not his rebellion against the anointed king, Rehoboam, for that had been prophesied and even endorsed by God through Ahijah (1 Kings 11:31). Instead, it was his toleration of idolatry, his endorsement of the "high places" presided over by non-Levite priests, and especially his establishment of the royal temples at Dan and Beth-El, the latter only a few miles north of Jerusalem. In these sanctuaries he reportedly erected golden statues of bull calves.

Several Judean kings receive praise from the biblical writers, but even the good kings who destroyed the temples of Baal and tore down the "Ashera poles" did not go far enough, for they failed to destroy "high places" where unauthorized priests operated. Even in the capital, the idea that God alone should be worshiped failed to take root. Jerusalemites worshipped the bronze serpent of Moses (2 Kings 18:4). Families honored Astarte, the Queen of Heaven, by baking cakes and making drink offerings to her (Jeremiah 7:18). Male shrine prostitutes operated not only outside of Jerusalem, but even in the Temple itself in Josiah's day (2 Kings 23:7). So confused was the spiritual consciousness of the Judahites that the God spoke through Jeremiah to characterize human sacrifice as "something I did not command, nor did it enter my mind" (Jeremiah 7:31).

In the end, says the bible, Judah was not pure enough to stand in God's sight. Not even the radical reforms of King Josiah could save Judah from its fate. It must be chastised, its temple destroyed, and its people taken into exile. Only then would the Jews — for thus would the people of Judah be called henceforth — be allowed to return to Jerusalem, rebuild their Temple, and await the coming of a true king, the Messiah, the son of David.

Critical Views​

Bible critics hold that the sacred history summarized in the above section is the product of a religious ideology that emerged several centuries after the facts it describes. An accurate history of Judah and Israel, if possible at all, must be painstakingly distilled from this magnificent work of religious historiography. Tools such as literary analysis, archaeology, and historical comparisons to other documents or events yield a picture that sometimes confirms the biblical view but often contradicts it.

Quoting Sennacharib of Assyria: "Because Hezekiah, king of Judah, would not submit to my yoke, I came up against him, and by force of arms and by the might of my power I took forty-six of his strong fenced cities...Hezekiah himself I shut up in Jerusalem, his capital city, like a bird in a cage. Then upon Hezekiah there fell the fear of the power of my arms, and he sent out to me the chiefs and the elders of Jerusalem with 30 talents of gold and 800 talents of silver, and divers treasures, a rich and immense booty."

The invasion of Judah by Sennacharib of Assyria provides a good example. The Bible briefly admits (2 Kings 18-19) that Sennacharib succeeded in conquering much of Judah. However, it goes on at some length to describe God's miraculous intervention to save Jerusalem by sending a mighty angel to smite the Assyrians with a plague. The story told by Sennacherib himself in the "Taylor Prism," discovered in the ruins of the city of Nineveh, is quite different (see sidebar).

Historical critics of the Bible tell us that much of the biblical history of Judah is colored so as to portray religious issues as paramount. It is replete with legendary and mythological material, as well as being highly biased toward the viewpoint of the Yahweh-only religious faction in Jerusalem. It exaggerates the wickedness of "Canaanite" religion, unfairly denigrates the Northern Kingdom, and favors the priestly elites of Jerusalem at the expense of their geographical and religious competitors. Feminist critics add that this portrayal of Judah's history arises from male chauvinist writers who sought to repress women in general and goddess worship in particular. Various critics argue that the biblical writers' justification of repressive policies toward other ethnic and religions groups is not better than the attitude of modern-day militant Muslim sects. Recently an intellectual movement has arisen to link Judean biblical attitudes with alleged Israeli cruelty toward the Palestinian people. Many historians, of course, refrain from such moral judgments against biblical standards, pointing out that the ethical values of today cannot be imposed on ancient societies. Finally, a large number of Christian and Jewish scholars accept some of the findings of historical criticism regarding the Kingdom of Judah but insist that the contribution of Ethical Monotheism to civilization outweighs the negative aspects mentioned above.

 

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118) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 8:


- Shushan the citadel (in the province of Elam):

Shushan The Citadel With Bible In Hand

Shushan The Citadel With Bible In Hand​

Shushan the Citadel or palace of the Persian King Ahasuerus features heavily in the Bible book of Esther. Ahasuerus is better to known to history as King Xerxes I, who presided over the empire of the Medes and the Persians when it was at its height. The ancient city of Shushan also known as Susa, is located on the edge of the modern Iranian city of Shush. It was excavated beginning in the 1890’s right through to the 1960’s. Unfortunately the site has been heavily damaged by looting, primitive archeological technique as well as by the war between Iraq and Iran, 1980-1988.

The ancient city of Shushan was the capital of the kingdom of Elam until it was conquered by Cyrus the Great shortly before he went on to conquer Babylon. Before that time, Elam frequently found itself on one side or the other of the power struggle between Assyria and Babylon for regional supremacy. The Assyrians and Babylonians would deport and settle entire captive populations to various parts of their empires. Famously, the Assyrians deported the majority of the population of the northern 10 tribe kingdom of Israel during the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah. The people of Elam were among those whom the Assyrians then settled into the emptied land of Israel (Ezra 4: 9-10).

When Cyrus the Great captured Elam he brought it under Persian rule for the first time. Cyrus son and successor Cambyses II made Shushan one of the four capitals of the Persian empire. Years later the fourth king of the empire of the Medes and the Persians named Darius I (also known as Darius the Great) began building massive palaces in the capitals of Shushan and Persepolis. Shushan the citadel would mostly serve as a winter palace for the Persian kings as the extreme heat of the summer there can be very quite uncomfortable (the average temperature in Shushan during July 2018 was 45 degrees Celsius or 113 degrees Fahrenheit). The Biblical prophet Nehemiah also served at Shushan the citadel as cup bearer to King Artaxerxes, son of Ahasuerus (Xerxes I).

The walls that you can see in the image above were built on top of the ancient foundations in modern times to help visitors see the original layout of the palace. Bible readers can easily see for themselves the features of the palace described in detail in the book of Esther. Let’s take a closer look.

 

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119) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 8:


- Shushan the citadel (in the province of Elam):

1 – The Courtyard of the Garden

“And when these days were completed, the king held a banquet for seven days for all the people present in Shushan the citadel*, from the greatest to the least, in the courtyard of the garden of the king’s palace.” (Esther 1:5) *footnote: Or “Shushan the Palace”
The location of the great courtyard may be seen in the upper part of the photo. Here King Ahasuerus holds a massive sumptuous feast for his nobles, his governors and palace officials “from the greatest to the least“. During this feast, his wife Queen Vashti angers the Persian “King of Kings” by refusing to come when she is summoned. She is deposed as Queen. Esther 1:6 mentions the courtyard had “pillars of marble“. This grand audience hall had 36 Persian columns each topped with colossal ornamental pillar tops called capitals carved into the form of two kneeling bulls. The capital alone is 4 meters tall. A carefully reconstructed capital from this room may be seen at the Louvre in Paris. The columns beneath it stood 17 meters meaning the ceiling was 21 meters high (70 feet)! The room would have been an impressive location for the king’s feast.

2 – The Courtyard of the House of the Women

“Day after day Mordecai would walk in front of the courtyard of the house of the women* to learn about Esther’s welfare and about what was happening to her.” (Esther 2:11) *footnote: Or “of the harem”
This part of the site has been badly eroded and damaged by the ravages of time as well as early, more primitive archeological technique. The King’s harem, or the house of the women is believed by some to have been on the far left of the picture. The courtyard of the House of the Women is partially obstructed by trees. Beneath it and completely obstructed by the trees was the House of the Women (the harem). Here a series of apartments have been found, each with a small courtyard. Appropriately these are near the king’s apartment. The beautiful Hebrew woman Esther along with some other beautiful women from various parts of the empire were taken here for 12 months of massage, beauty treatments and a specialised diet in preparation for the king’s final selection of Queen to replace the uncooperative Vashti. With the exception of the king and a trusted eunuch, no man could enter the house of women on pain of death. For this reason Esther’s Uncle Mordecai waits anxiously outside the House of Women in the courtyard for any news concerning his niece. This courtyard is also the probable location of Queen Vashti’s banquet for noble women which was held at the same time as the Kings banquet (Es 1:9).

 

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120) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 8:


- Shushan the citadel (in the province of Elam):

3 – The Second Courtyard, one of two outer courtyards

“Later the king said: “Who is in the courtyard?” Now Haman had come into the outer courtyard of the king’s house to speak to the king about having Mordecai hanged on the stake that he had prepared for him.” (Esther 6:4)
This large outer courtyard, seen to the right of the picture, was separated by a considerable distance from the inner courtyard. This area was where supplicants who had come to see the king would wait until they were summoned. On entering the massive palace at Shushan one would have had to pass though a series of courtyards, each more impressive than the last. The waiting area was designed to awe those who entered it and to impress upon them their relative smallness and the greatness of the king that they had come to call upon.

4 – The Inner Courtyard

“On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner courtyard of the king’s house, opposite the king’s house, while the king was sitting on his royal throne in the royal house opposite the entrance.” (Esther 5:1)
Entering the Inner Courtyard without having been invited to enter was punishable by death. Esther took her life into her hands entering here without permission. Forgiveness could come only from the king who Esther knew would be able to her see from his throne room. As the Bible states, this inner courtyard faced the royal house where the king’s throne room and apartments were located.

5 – The Throne Room

“… while the king was sitting on his royal throne in the royal house opposite the entrance. As soon as the king saw Queen Esther standing in the courtyard, she gained his favor, and the king held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Esther then approached and touched the top of the scepter.” (Esther 5:1.2)
The throne room was reached from the inner courtyard by means of a long ramp. The throne is on a raised platform. From his elevated position, the king could see from his throne that Queen Esther was waiting for an audience. Although Esther had broken the law, Ahasuerus extends his royal sceptre in symbol of his pardon which she gratefully accepts by touching. The throne room was directly in front of the king’s royal apartments.

The King’s Gate

The book of Esther also mentions the King’s Gate (Esther 2:21) which is unfortunately is just outside the right of the picture. Here while yet a humble servant, Mordecai performs his duties to the king. The massive Gate which was separated by a distance from the palace complex was only discovered and excavated in the 1970’s. Inside the gate was a large statue of Xerxes father, Darius I (also known as Darius the Great). As the book of Esther states, there was a large public square in front of the gate (Esther 4:6).

Conclusions

The palace ruins confirm the details described by the writer of the book of Esther and demonstrate that the writer had first-hand knowledge of the palace. The French archeologist Jean Perrot was the world’s foremost authority on the ancient palace at Shushan. Perrot served as director of the French archaeological mission to Susa and worked at the site from 1968 till 1979. Commenting on the palace at Shushan (Susa), Perrot wrote: “One today rereads with a renewed interest the book of Esther, whose detailed description of the interior disposition of the palace of Xerxes is now in excellent accord with archaeological reality.”

 

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121) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 8:


- The province of Elam:

Elam from the McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia.


E'lam (Hebrews Eylam', עֵילָם, corresponding to the Pehlvi Airjama [see Gesenius, Thesaur. page 1016]), the name of a man and of the region settled by his posterity, also of several Hebrews, especially about the time of the Babylonian captivity.

1. (Sept. Ε᾿λάμ; Josephus ῎Ελαμος, Ant. 1:6, 4; Vulg. AElam.) Originally, like Aram, the name of a man — the son of Shem (Ge 10:22; 1Ch 1:17). B.C. post 2514. Commonly, however, it is used as the appellation of a country (Ge 14:1,9; Isa 11:11; Isa 21:2; Jer 25:25; Jer 49:34-39; Eze 32:24; Da 8:2). In Ge 14:1, it is introduced along with the kingdom of Shinar in Babylon, and in Isa 21:2, and Jer 25:25, it is connected with Media. In Ezr 4:9, the Elamites are described among the nations of the Persian empire; and in Da 8:2, Susa is said to lie on the river Ulai (Eulaeus or Choaspes), in the province of Elam. This river was the modern Karun (Layard, Nineveh and Bab. page 146), and the capital of Elam was Shushan (q.v.), one of the most powerful and magnificent cities of the primeval world. The name Elam occurs in the cuneiform inscriptions (q.v.) found on the bulls in Sennacherib's palace at Nineveh. The country was also called Nuvaki, as we learn from the monuments of Khorsabad and Besutun (Layard, Nin. and Bab. page 452).

The Elam of Scripture appears to be the province lying south of Assyria and east of Persia Proper, to which Herodotus gives the name of Cissia (3:91; verse 49, etc.), and which is in part termed Susis or Susiana by the geographers (Strab. 15:3, § 12; Ptolem. 6:3, etc.). It includes a portion of the mountainous country separating between the Mesopotamian plain and the high table-land of Iran, together with a fertile and valuable low tract at the foot of the range, between it and the Tigris. The passage of Daniel (8:2) which places Shushan (Susa) in "the province of Elam," may be regarded as decisive of this identification, which is further confirmed by the frequent mention of Elymseans in this district (Strab. 11:13, § 6; 16:1, § 17; Ptolem. 6:3; Plin. H.N. 6:26, etc.), as well as by the combinations in which Elam is found in Scripture (see Ge 14:1; Isa 21:2; Eze 32:24). It appears from Ge 10:22, that this country was originally peopled by descendants of Shem, closely allied to the Aramaeans (Syrians) and the Assyrians; and from Ge 14:1-12, it is evident that by the time of Abraham a very important power had been built up in the same region. Not only is "Chedorlaomer, king of Elam," at the head of a settled government, and able to make war at a distance of two thousand miles from his own country, but he manifestly exercises a supremacy over a number of other kings, among whom we even find Amraphel, king of Shinar, or Babylonia. It is plain, then, that at this early time the predominant power in Lower Mesopotamia was Elam, which for a while held the place possessed earlier by Babylon (Ge 10:10), and later by either Babylon or Assyria. Discoveries made in the country itself confirm this view. They exhibit to us Susa, the Elamitic capital, as one of the most ancient cities of the East, and show that its monarchs maintained, throughout almost the whole period of Babylonian and Assyrian greatness, a quasi-independent position. Traces are even thought to have been found of Chedorlaomer himself, whom some are inclined to identify with an early Babylonian monarch, who is called the "Ravager of the West," and whose name reads as Kudur-mapula. The Elamitic empire established at this time was, however, but of short duration. Babylon and Assyria proved, on the whole, stronger powers, and Elam during the period of their greatness can only be regarded as the foremost of their feudatories. Like the other subject nations she retained her own monarchs, and from time to time, for a longer or a shorter space, asserted and maintained her independence. But generally she was content to acknowledge one or other of the two leading powers as her suzerain. Towards the close of the Assyrian period she is found allied with Babylon, and engaged in hostilities with Assyria; but she seems to have declined in strength after the Assyrian empire was destroyed, and the Median and Macedonian arose upon its ruins. Elam is clearly a "province" of Babylonia in Belshazzar's time (Da 8:2), and we may presume that it had been subject to Babylon at least from the reign of Nebuchadnezzar. The desolation which Jer 49:30-34 and Eze 32:24-25 foresaw was probably this conquest, which destroyed the last semblance of Elamitic independence. It is uncertain at what time the Persians added Elam to their empire. Possibly it only fell under their dominion together with Babylon; but there is some reason to think that it may have revolted and joined the Persians before the city was besieged.

 

[JLG]

122) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 8:


- The province of Elam:

The prophet Isaiah in two places (Isa 21:2; Isa 22:6) seems to speak of Elam as taking part in the destruction of Babylon; and, unless we are to regard him with our translators as using the word loosely for Persia, we must suppose that, on the advance of Cyrus and his investment of the Chaldaean capital, Elam made common cause with the assailants. She now became merged in the Persian empire, forming a distinct satrapy (Herod. 3:91), and furnishing to the crown an annual tribute of 300 talents. Susa, her capital, was made the ordinary residence of the court, and the metropolis of the whole empire. This mark of favor did not, however, prevent revolts. Not only was the Magian revolution organized and carried out at Susa, but there seem to have been at least two Elamitic revolts in the early part of the reign of Darius Hystaspis (Behistun Inscr. col. 1, part 16, and col. 2, part 3). After these futile efforts, Elam acquiesced in her subjection, and, as a Persian province, followed the fortunes of the empire. These historic facts illustrate the prophecy of Jer 49:35-39, "And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven, and I will scatter them towards all these winds." The situation of the country exposed it to the invasions of Assyrians, Medes, and Babylonians; and it suffered from each in succession before it was finally embodied in the Persian empire. Then another part of the prophecy was also singularly fulfilled: "I will set my throne in Elam, and I will destroy from thence the king and princes." The present state of the Persian empire, in which Elam is included, may be a fulfillment of the concluding words of the passage: "But it shall come to pass in the latter days that I will bring again the captivity of Elam" (Vaux, Nineveh and Persepolis, page 85 sq.). SEE PERSIA.

Herodotus gives the name Cissia to the province of; which Susa was the capital (3:91); Strabo distinguishes between Susiana and the country of the Elymamans. The latter he extends northwards among the Zagros mountains (11:361; 15:503; 16:507). Pliny says Susiana is separated from Elymais by the River Eulaeus, and that the latter province extends from that river to the confines of Persia (Hist. Nat. 6:27). Ptolemy locates Elymais on the coast of the Persian Gulf, and regards it as part only of Susiana (Georgr. 6:3). According, to Josephus, the Elymaeans were the progenitors of the Persians (Ant. 1:6, 4); and Strabo refers to some of their scattered tribes as far north as the Caspian Sea. From these various notices, and from the incidental allusions in Scripture, we may conclude that there was a little province on the east of the Lower Tigris called Elymais; but that the Elymaeans, as a people, were anciently spread over and ruled a much wider district, to which their name was often attached. They were a warlike people, trained to arms, and especially skilled in the use of the bow (Isa 21:2; Jer 49:35); they roamed abroad like the Bedawin, and like them, too, were addicted to plunder (Strabo, 11:361). Josephus mentions a town called Elymais, which contained a famous temple dedicated to Diana, and rich in gifts and votive offerings (Ant. 22:9, 1); Appian says it was dedicated to Venus (Bochart, Opp. 1:70 sq.). Antiochus Epiphanes attempted to plunder it, but was repulsed (1 Macc. 6). It is a remarkable fact that little images of the goddess, whose Assyrian name was Anaitis, were discovered by Loftus in the mounds of Susa (Chaldea, page 379). The Elamites who were in Jerusalem at the feast of Pentecost were probably descendants of the captive tribes who had settled in Elam (Ac 2:9).

It has been repeatedly observed above that Elam is called Cissia by Herodotus, and Susiana by the Greek and Roman geographers. The latter is a term formed artificially from the capital city, but the former is a genuine territorial title, and probably marks an important fact in the history of the country. The Elamites, a Shemitic people, who were the primitive inhabitants (Ge 10:22), appear to have been invaded and conquered at a very early time by a Hamitic or Cushite race from Babylon, which was the ruling element in the territory from a date anterior to Chedorlaomer. These Cushites were called by the Greeks Cissians (Κίσσεοι) or Cossaeans (Κοσσαῖοι), and formed the dominant race, while the Elamites or Elymseans were in a depressed condition. In Scripture the country is called by its primitive title without reference to subsequent changes; in the Greek writers it takes its name from the conquerors. The Greek traditions of Memnon and his Ethiopians are based upon this Cushite conquest, and rightly connect the Cissians or Cossaeans of Susiana with the Cushite inhabitants of the upper valley of the Nile.

The fullest account of Elam, its physical geography, ruins, and history, is given in Loftus's Chaldaea and Susiana (London 1856; N.Y. 1857). The southern part of the country is flat, and towards the shore of the gulf marshy and desolate. In the north the mountain ranges of Backhtiari and Luristan rise gradually from the plain in a series of calcareous terraces, intersected by ravines of singular wildness and grandeur. Among these mountains are the sources of the Ulai (Loftus, page 308, 347 sq.). The chief towns of Elymais are now Shuster ("little Shush") and Dizful; but the greater part of the country is overrun by nomad Arabs. SEE ELAMIT.

 

[JLG]

123) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 8:


- Ulai:

What Does Ulai Mean? Bible Definition and References

the Eulaus of the Greeks; a river of Susiana. It was probably the eastern branch of the Choasper (Kerkhan), which divided into two branches some 20 miles above the city of Susa. Hence ( Daniel 8:2 Daniel 8:16 ) speaks of standing "between the banks of Ulai", i.e., between the two streams of the divided river.

u'-li, u'-lai ('ubhal 'ulay, "river Ulai"; Theodotion Daniel 8:2, Oubal, the Septuagint and Theodotion in 8:16, Oulai Latin, Eulaeus):

1. The Name and Its Forms:

A river which, running through the province of Elam, flowed through Shushan or Susa. It was from "between" this river that Daniel (8:16) heard a voice, coming apparently from the waters which flowed between its two banks.

2. Present Names and Course:

Notwithstanding that the rivers of Elam have often changed their courses, there is but little doubt that the Ulai is the Kerkhah, which, rising in the Persian plain near Nehavend (there called the Gamas-ab), is even there a great river. Turned by the mountains, it runs Northwest as far as Bisutun, receiving all the waters of Southern Kurdistan, where, as the Sein Merre, it passes through the inaccessible defiles of Luristan, its course before reaching the Kebir-Kuh being a succession of rapids. Turned aside by this mountain, it follows for about 95 miles the depression which here exists as far as the foothills of Luristan, reaching the Susian plain as a torrent; but it becomes less rapid before losing itself in the marshes of Hawizeh. The course of the stream is said to be still doubtful in places.

3. Changed Bed at Susa:

In ancient times it flowed at the foot of the citadel of Susa, but its bed is now about 1 1/4 miles to the West. The date of this change of course (during which a portion of the ruins of Susa was carried away) is uncertain, but it must have been later than the time of Alexander the Great. The stream's greatest volume follows the melting of the snows in the mountains, and floods ensue if this coincides with the advent of heavy rain. Most to be dreaded are the rare occasions when it unites with the Ab-e-Diz.

4. Assyrian References:

The Ulai (Assyrian Ulaa or Ulaia) near Susa is regarded as being shown on the sculptures of the Assyrian king Ashur-bani-pal (British Museum, Nineveh Gal.) illustrating his campaign against Te-umman. Its rapid stream bears away the bodies of men and horses, with chariots, bows and quivers. The bodies which were thrown into the stream hindered its course, and dyed its waters with their blood.

 

[JLG]

124) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 8:

- MEDES AND MEDIA​

Medes and Media | Encyclopedia.com

MEDES AND MEDIA (Heb. מָדַי; in Akkadian inscriptions: Madai), a people of Indo-Iranian origin, closely related to the Persians, who inhabited the mountainous area of Iran and the northeastern and eastern region of Mesopotamia. The Medes, located in the Kermanshah-Hamadan (Ecbatana) region, are more prominent in Assyrian texts than the Persians. The Assyrian kings distinguish two groups of Medes inside the empire, and the distant Medes (madaya rūqūti). In the biblical passage enumerating Noah's sons, Madai, the progenitor of the Medes, like those of other Indo-Iranian peoples, is included among the sons of *Japheth (Gen. 10:2). In datable sources Medes are first mentioned in the historical inscriptions of the Assyrian kings of the end of the ninth century b.c.e., Shalamaneser iii and his son Shamshi-Adad v. The Assyrian kings in military campaigns against Media, which then stretched southeast of Lake Urmia, inflicted heavy losses on its population. Although the Medes did not as yet have a central kingdom, they succeeded in repelling the Assyrian kings in sporadic encounters and by evasive tactics. In the eighth century b.c.e., *Tiglath-Pileser iii, in his campaigns, which extended from *Ararat (Urartu) to the mountains south of the Caspian Sea, subdued the Medes. Annexing Media to Assyria, he deported 65,000 of its population, whom he replaced with inhabitants of other countries. However, in the days of *Sargon ii, at the end of the eighth century b.c.e., Media, under the leadership of a Median called Dayaukku, revolted against Assyria. In Sargon's military operations conducted in 716–15 b.c.e. against the centers of revolt, Dayaukku was captured and exiled to Hamath in Syria, whereupon 22 Median rulers, submitting to the sovereignty of Assyria, presented a gift to the king. Dayaukku is undoubtedly identical with Deioces, who is mentioned by Herodotus (1:96–101) as having united the tribes of Media and as having been its first king, reigning for 53 years. However, according to contemporary Assyrian sources, he was merely the forceful local chieftain of a region lying between Assyria and Ararat. Apparently a later tradition attributed to him a royal title and the establishment of the Median Empire. Media became a united empire under the leadership of Kaštarita (according to the Persian pronunciation; in Assyrian: Kastarītu), who formed a military pact against the Assyrians in the region of the Zagros Mountains and rose to be king of Media (in the first half of the seventh century b.c.e.). The present tendency is to identify Kaštarita with Phraortes king of Media who, according to Herodotus (1:102), reigned 22 years, subdued the Persians, and was killed when advancing on Nineveh. Having consolidated their position at the end of the reign of Ashurbanipal king of Assyria (668–627 b.c.e.), the Medes, in the wars between Babylonia and Assyria in the days of the last Assyrian kings (626–616 b.c.e.), joined forces with the Babylonians, attacked Nineveh, and, after conquering it, assisted in the capture of Haran. The Medes (called in contemporary Babylonian documents Ummān manda, an old traditional term for barbarians) were then ruled by Cyaxares (i.e., native Huvaxšra; in Babylonian sources: Umakištar), who, Herodotus reports (1:100–4), defeated the Scythians. After the overthrow of Assyria, Cyaxares extended his sway over the northern part of the Assyrian Empire, as well as over large sections of Iran, Armenia, and Asia Minor. When unable in 500 b.c.e. to conquer Lydia, Cyaxares, through the mediation of the kings of Babylonia and Cilicia, made a treaty with the Lydians. This consolidation of Media under Cyaxares, constituting as it did a danger to Babylonia, finds expression in utterances of the prophets of Israel who saw in the army of Media a relentless foe rising to destroy Babylonia (Isa. 13:4–6, 17–19, 21:1–10) and uniting with other northern peoples to bring about, at God's command, the overthrow of the kingdom of the Chaldeans (Jer. 51:11–14, 25–36). Astyages (Ass. Ištumēgu) the son of Cyaxares and the last king of Media (584–550 b.c.e.) attempted to oust Babylonia from the region of Haran. However, after *Cyrus king of Persia had revolted against Astyages and defeated him, Media became part of the Persian Empire (550 b.c.e.). The revolts which broke out against Persian rule at the beginning of *Darius i's reign were unsuccessful, and Media was incorporated into two Persian satrapies (the 11th and the 18th). Nevertheless it occupied an honorable and special position in the Persian Empire, as is reflected in the biblical combination (in Esther and Daniel) of "Persia and Media" or "Media and Persia," e.g., "the seven princes of Persia and Media" (Esth. 1:14); "the kings of Media and Persia" (10:2); or "the laws of the Persians and the Medes" (1:19). The Bible apparently expresses a view, then prevalent, about the part played by the two empires in the historical events preceding the fall of Babylonia. According to this view, not only did the one empire supplement the work of the other but the Persian Empire was the natural heir of Media. Echoes of this view appear in Daniel's vision of the destruction of Babylonia by the Medes and Persians (Dan. 5:26–28; cf. 6:1, 29; 8:20) as well as in the prophecies in Isaiah and Jeremiah concerning the overthrow of Babylonia by Media (see above). It is difficult to reconcile elements of the literary sources with archaeological evidence.

 

[JLG]

125) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 8:


- Persia


Persian Empire

The Persian Empire is the name given to a series of dynasties centered in modern-day Iran that spanned several centuries—from the sixth century B.C. to the twentieth century A.D. The first Persian Empire, founded by Cyrus the Great around 550 B.C., became one of the largest empires in history, stretching from Europe’s Balkan Peninsula in the West to India’s Indus Valley in the East. This Iron Age dynasty, sometimes called the Achaemenid Empire, was a global hub of culture, religion, science, art and technology for more than 200 years before it fell to the invading armies of Alexander the Great.

Cyrus the Great​

The Persian Empire started as a collection of semi-nomadic tribes who raised sheep, goats and cattle on the Iranian plateau.

Cyrus the Great—the leader of one such tribe—began to defeat nearby kingdoms, including Media, Lydia and Babylon, joining them under one rule. He founded the first Persian Empire, also known as the Achaemenid Empire, in 550 B.C.

The first Persian Empire under Cyrus the Great soon became the world’s first superpower. It united under one government three important sites of early human civilization in the ancient world: Mesopotamia, Egypt’s Nile Valley and India’s Indus Valley.

Cyrus the Great is immortalized in the Cyrus Cylinder, a clay cylinder inscribed in 539 BC with the story of how he conquered Babylon from King Nabonidus, bringing an end to the Neo-Babylonian empire.

Darius the Great, the fourth king of the Achaemenid Empire, ruled over the Persian Empire when it was at its largest, stretching from The Caucasus and West Asia to what was then Macedonia (today’s Balkans), the Black Sea, Central Asia and even into Africa including parts of Libya and Egypt. He unified the empire through introducing standard currency and weights and measures; making Aramaic the official language and building roads.

The Behistun Inscription, a multilingual relief carved into Mount Behistun in Western Iran, extolls his virtues and was a critical key to deciphering cuneiform script. Its impact is compared to that of the Rosetta Stone, the tablet that enabled scholars to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics.

 

[JLG]

126) Geographical locations in the book of Daniel


Daniel 8:

- Persia

Where Is Persia?

At its height under Darius the Great, the Persian Empire stretched from Europe’s Balkan Peninsula—in parts of what is present day Bulgaria, Romania and Ukraine—to the Indus River Valley in northwest India and south to Egypt.

The Persians were the first people to establish regular routes of communication between three continents—Africa, Asia and Europe. They built many new roads and developed the world’s first postal service.

Persian Culture​

The ancient Persians of the Achaemenid Empire created art in many forms, including metalwork, rock carvings, weaving and architecture. As the Persian Empire expanded to encompass other artistic centers of early civilization, a new style was formed with influences from these sources.

Early Persian art included large, carved rock reliefs cut into cliffs, such as those found at Naqsh-e Rustam, an ancient cemetery filled with the tombs of Achaemenid kings. The elaborate rock murals depict equestrian scenes and battle victories.

Ancient Persians were also known for their metalwork. In the 1870s, smugglers discovered gold and silver artifacts among ruins near the Oxus River in present-day Tajikistan.

The artifacts included a small golden chariot, coins and bracelets decorated in a griffon motif. (The griffon is a mythical creature with the wings and head of an eagle and the body of a lion, and a symbol of the Persian capital of Persepolis.)

British diplomats and members of the military serving in Pakistan brought roughly 180 of these gold and silver pieces—known as the Oxus Treasure—to London where they are now housed at the British Museum.

The history of carpet weaving in Persia dates back to the nomadic tribes. The ancient Greeks prized the artistry of these hand-woven rugs—famous for their elaborate design and bright colors. Today, most Persian rugs are made of wool, silk and cotton.


Persepolis

The ancient Persian capital city of Persepolis, situated in southern Iran, ranks among the world’s greatest archeological sites. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.

The Achaemenian palaces of Persepolis were built upon massive terraces. They were decorated with ornamental facades that included the long rock relief carvings for which the ancient Persians were famous.

Persian Religion​

Many people think of Persia as synonymous with Islam, though Islam only became the dominant religion in the Persian Empire after the Arab conquests of the seventh century. The first Persian Empire was shaped by a different religion: Zoroastrianism.

Named after the Persian prophet Zoroaster (also known as Zarathustra), Zoroastrianism is one of the world's oldest monotheistic religions. It’s still practiced today as a minority religion in parts of Iran and India..

Zoroaster, who likely lived sometime between 1500 and 500 B.C., taught followers to worship one god instead of the many deities worshipped by earlier Indo-Iranian groups.

The Achaemenian kings were devout Zoroastrians. By most accounts, Cyrus the Great was a tolerant ruler who allowed his subjects to speak their own languages and practice their own religions. While he ruled by the Zoroastrian law of asha (truth and righteousness), he didn’t impose Zoroastrianism on the people of Persia’s conquered territories.

Hebrew scriptures praise Cyrus the Great for freeing the Jewish people of Babylon from captivity and allowing them to return to Jerusalem.