Posted on 01/04/2011 4:57:04 PM PST by wmfights
Thousands of years ago, the king of a great city ordered that this inscription be carved in stone at the city gate: “Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, the pious prince appointed by the will of Marduk...full of prudent deliberation... the never-tiring governor who always has at heart the worship at Esagila and Ezida... the firstborn son of Nabopolassar, King of Babylon am I.
“I had the gates built of sheer blue stone, on which bulls and dragons were elaborately painted.
“I let the temple of Marduk, highest of all, supreme of gods, a place of joy and jubilation for major and minor deities, rise as a mountain with asphalt and bricks within the boundaries of Babylon.”
Those are the words of a proud man, a man later brought low by the God of heaven.
In 1988, astrology made headlines when news leaked out that Nancy Reagan controlled the schedule of her husband, the former president, by staying in touch with an astrologer by the name of Joan Quigley. Thousands of people became interested in astrology as people sought the path to this hidden knowledge. The encyclopedia of astrology claims that no one who ever has investigated carefully this “science” has ever rejected it. Astrologers claim that it can be applied to all areas of human experience.
Astrology originated in Babylon, one of the oldest cities of the world. After the flood, God commanded the people to fill the earth (Genesis 9:1). But a descendent of Ham named Nimrod became a mighty hunter (10:9), and decided that he and his descendants would begin a kingdom (11:4) that was later called Babel (11:9). As a symbol of their unity they began a building project. Because there are no natural stones in the Plain of Shinar, (about 50 miles from present-day Baghdad), they made bricks and burned them thoroughly (11:3) to make a solid monument.
“They said, ‘Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name, otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth’” (11:4).
And thus, Babylon was begun.
Ancient Babylon
The builders of the tower of Babel disobeyed God on several counts. (1) They stayed together when God had asked them to “fill the earth.” No matter, they believed there was strength in numbers. Then, (2) they built a tower, a staircase that was to reach from earth to heaven. This is a ziggurat, used in ancient forms of worship. They believed that the stars were gods, so the closer to them the better. In defiance of God, they began to consult these heavenly objects. Finally, (3) they also sinned by desiring to “make a name for themselves.” They substituted strength in their own achievements for faith in the living God.
From these ancient beginnings, astrology (which is the doorway to the occult) began to develop. Scholars have identified dozens of techniques used in the New Age Movement today that were already practiced during the early days of Babylon. These ancients also consulted the powers; they developed power to command the supernatural and even believed in reincarnation. That’s why Babylon is always referred to in the Scriptures as a city of rebellion and false religion.
The first stage in Babylon’s history was the Tower of Babel, and under men such as Hammurabi, who ruled for 62 years, laws were codified, giving the people the opportunity to exercise freedoms. These were the days when Israel was in Egypt, struggling under the hand of the Pharaohs.
Revived Babylon (600 BC-500 BC)
After this, Babylon drifts away from the pages of Scripture for nearly a thousand years, but then it reappears in about 600 B.C. when Hezekiah foolishly let representatives of Babylon see the treasures, the utensils, and furniture of Solomon’s Temple. As Babylon grew in power, it became an enemy of Israel.
When Nebuchadnezzar became King of Babylon, he made three sieges against Jerusalem. Finally in 586 B.C. he destroyed the city and Solomon’s temple. Thousands of captives were carried off to Babylon along with the vessels of the house of the Lord. God’s people were humiliated and remained captive in Babylon about 70 years.
Daniel was one of the young men who found himself in Babylon, living in a strange country. As he walked the streets of the city, he no doubt saw the Ishtar Gate with all of its splendor; he saw the Hanging Gardens and the reconstructed Tower of Babel. This young man promised he would not “defile himself” with the culture that surrounded him (Daniel 1:8).
By the way, proud King Nebuchadnezzar eventually did come to believe in God, but only after he was brought low, living with animals in the field (5:21). In the end, we read, “Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, exalt and honor the King of heaven, for all His works are true and His ways just, and He is able to humble those who walk in pride” (4:37).
Nebuchadnezzar’s grandson, Belteshazzar, held a great feast and asked that the vessels which his grandfather, Nebuchadnezzar, had taken out of the temple in Jerusalem, be brought to him so that he might desecrate them. “Suddenly the finger of a man’s hand emerged and began writing opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, and the king saw the back of the hand that did the writing. Then the king’s face grew pale, and his thoughts alarmed him, and his hip joints went slack and his knees began knocking together” (5:5,6).
Daniel was asked to interpret the writing, and the message was: God has numbered the days of your kingdom, you have been found deficient, and your kingdom now is divided and given over to the Medes and the Persians (vv. 26-28). That prophecy was fulfilled on that very evening. Archaeologists tell us that Cyrus the Mede and his men diverted part of the water of the Euphrates which ran under the city wall causing the water level to fall and his men were able to slip under the gate into the city. The Medes and Persians were now supreme.
Once again Babylon faded as a world power. Alexander the Great tried to enlarge it, but after his reign, it fell apart. When the Turks established the Ottoman Empire, Babylon came under their control. And because they sided with Germany in World War II, that empire was divided up into separate nations including Iraq and Kuwait.
Though Babylon is no longer a world power, its occultism has spread throughout the world. Its paganism became rooted in Pergamum and Rome. And its practices infiltrated the Christian church (this will be explained more fully when we study the city of Rome).
Present Day Babylon
What about the present city of Babylon? Prior to “Desert Storm” of 1990, Saddam Hussein had begun to rebuild it, striving to duplicate the city as it looked during the days of King Nebuchadnezzar. He also minted money with his own profile on the coin, superimposed on that of Nebuchadnezzar. The reason is obvious: just as Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem, desecrated the temple, and humiliated the Jews; so, Saddam Hussein would like to conquer Israel today.
Past history sheds light on present day hostilities in the Middle East. We’ve learned that the Medes and the Persians fought together to conquer Babylon. The modern day country of Iran is ancient Persia. This country is to be sharply distinguished from Iraq,
As I mentioned, centuries before Christ, Babylon fell to the Persians and Medes. Persia is modern-day Iran; this country must be sharply distinguished from Iraq; both countries are Muslim, but the Iranians (Persians) are not Arabs. The Medes of past centuries are the Kurds whom Saddam Hussein so mercilessly oppressed. Thus, it appears as if Babylon (represented by Saddam Hussein) is repaying the Medes (Kurds) for participating with the Persians (Iranians) in capturing Babylon many centuries earlier.
Trying to understand the hostilities of the Middle East is not easy. The various countries have their own heritage and interests that are not well understood in the west. All that we know is that Babylon has perpetuated false religion in the past and will do so again in the future.
The Future of Babylon
What role will Babylon play in the future? Will the actual city be rebuilt? The book of Revelation (chapters 17 and 18) speaks about a Babylon that is yet future, a Babylon that will be so evil it will be destroyed by God. Whether these prophecies are literal or symbolic is a matter of disagreement. Those who say it will be rebuilt point out that at least a few prophecies about Babylon’s destruction have never been literally fulfilled. In Isaiah 13, the prophet says that many nations will gather together to destroy Babylon and that when this happens, God will punish the world for its evil. At that time Babylon will fall not to its neighbors, but to those who are from a far country from the “farthest horizons” (Isaiah 13:12). Jeremiah makes essentially the same predictions in chapters 51 and 52.
If Babylon is literally rebuilt, It will be because of oil. Europe is more dependent upon Middle East oil than even the United States. And whoever controls oil, controls the economy of the world. We don’t know how it might all come about, but with God, all things are possible.
The most graphic description of a future Babylon is in Revelation 17 and 18 where a woman who is clothed in purple and scarlet and rides a beast who is the anti-Christ. This woman has enough authority to control Antichrist and those countries that have come under his power. And in her hand she has a cup filled with abominations, unclean things, and immorality. And upon her forehead, a name was written, “Babylon the great, the mother of harlots and of the abominations of the earth.” Later, people rejoice because Babylon has fallen and God has repaid her for her sins.
Whether literal or symbolic, Babylon, with its occult religion, will be completely destroyed by God’s wrath.
Several things seem clear. As the end times approach, the religion of Babylon will be revived. People will be studying astrology, seeking fortune tellers, and looking into crystal balls. The worship of the stars is the most influential cult of all history. All that we need to do is to take a long look at our own culture with its “New Age” religion, with its emphasis on spirituality, but not Christ. The religion of Babylon is among us.
God mocks those who depend upon astrology for their guidance. Speaking of Babylon, Isaiah pronounced this judgment, “But evil will come upon you which you will not know how to charm away; And disaster will fall on you for which you cannot atone; and destruction about which you do not know will come on you suddenly...You are wearied with your many counsels; Let now the astrologers, those who prophesy by the stars, those who predict by the new moons, stand up and save you from what will come upon you... There is none to save you” (Isaiah 47:11-15).
In the end, the stars cannot save those who consult them. Even, those who seek the stars “for fun” are shaking their fist in the face of God. Disaster will come upon them that they will not be able to “charm away.” The religion of astrology, the religion of Babylon, is deceitful and desperately wicked.
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality” (Revelation 18:2,3).
Goodbye, Babylon!
But then they wouldn’t have been Indo-Europeans (Aryans) — and that R1b is most common in Western Europe, not Eastern Europe which has the haplogroup R1a more in common (just like Indians and Iranis). But that is an interesting point. Perhaps western Europeans have partial non-ARyanic descent?
thanks blam. caww, this is blam, the master of pre-history, he has links to far better sources than I can provide. The link to Sundaland is also particularly fascinating
Blam — I just opened that link you sent. It’s bloody amazing!! Wow! Thank you!
Around 1 AD the population of the world may have been 200 million — but if so, a staggering one third *or more* lived in the Roman Empire. My guess is, population estimates for the past are probably too low; also, the family size went up in the (mostly riverine) agricultural civilizations, and infant mortality went down. Both were also terribly high compared to now.
And yet that could be probable that 1/3rd or more lived in the roman Empire. The Roman Empire at that time covered two of the 5 big culture agglomerations (the others being the ganges valley of india, china’s Han civilisation and the Mayas) and wasn’t hit by internecine wars as in China.
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