CHAPTER XXIX.

 

BABLYLON.

 

 

IN writing concerning Antichrist, the subject of Babylon has necessarily received a prominent place.  The greater part if what we have said, however, has been concerning Babylon in Mystery.  The restoration of the literal city of Babylon has received a slight mention.  Since the restoration of that city holds such a prominent place in the subject of the Antichrist and since there are so few who on first sight will receive this truth, we believe that a special chapter on this division of the subject is necessary.  In order to properly understand the subject in hand, a glance at the location and history of Babylon should be taken.

     The origin of Babylon was Babel in the land of Shinar.  Shinar is a region in Mesopotamia, the plain between the Tigris and the Euphrates.   The extent of territory included this title is unknown, but some good authorities whom I have con­sulted believe it to have included all the land between the Tigris and the Euphrates, if no more.  Babylon has always been within the land of Shinar, but the city of Babylon has never included the whole of Shinar.  “Shinar” is derived from ‘sheni,’ ‘two,’ and ‘ar,’ or ‘nahr,’ ‘rivers.’”  “The ancient Greeks gave to the land embraced by the Tigris and Euphrates the name of Mesopotamia, which means ‘the land between the rivers.’”  Differences in geological structure divide this valley into two districts.  The northern district comprised ancient Assyria, and became the seat of a great military empire.  The southern part of the valley became known as Babylonia or Chaldea.  There was a time when the lower part of the Mesopotamia valley was filled with city states.  Each state had its patron god, and was ruled by a king.  Babylon was one of these city states.  This city gradually arose into prominence

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until the whole valley came to be ruled by it, and from the name of this city the country was called Babylon.

     For more than fifteen hundred years, Babylon continued to be the political and commercial center of an empire of changing dynasties and shifting frontiers.  In the meantime another power was slowly developing in the North.  This was the Assyrian Empire.  For a long time Assyria was practically a province of Babylon; but in 728 B. C., the latter was conquered by an Assyrian king, and passed under Assyrian control.

     About two centuries after the capture of Babylon by As­syria, the former arose into prominence again.  For a short time thereafter Babylon filled a great place in history.   This was the Babylon of Nebuchadnezzar’s day, of which we read in the book of Daniel.  The glory of this empire passed away with Nebuchadnezzar.  In 538 B. C., Cyrus, king of Persia, defeated the Babylonian army in the open field.  The strongly fortified capital city was then soon taken by the Persians.

     While the risings and fallings of the Babylonian Empire are historical records yet these points are only mountain peaks of Babylonian history.  Let no one think that between the fallings and the risings again of this empire, Babylon has been entirely forgotten.  The chronological tables give records of Babylonian kings for almost the entire time from the days of Nimrod until 331 B. C.  The capture of Babylon by Cyrus in 538 B. C., did not fulfil the prophecy of Isaiah and Jeremiah concerning the destruction of Babylon.  (See Isa. 13:  l9; Jer. 50: 40.)  That is, did not fulfil these prophecies to their broadest application.  This capture of Babylon was only a partial fufilment of those prophecies.  The prophecies mentioned speak of complete and eternal overthrow of Baby­lon while the capture by Cyrus did not mean all this; for in 1 Pet. 5:13, we read of “the church of Babylon.”  From this alone, we may learn that as late as A. D. 60 there was a Christian church at Babylon.  Moreover, this city contained many

 

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Jews in apostolic days.  One historian says that Babylon in apostolic times was “one of the greatest knots of Jews in the world.”  I have searched history for one complete and sudden overthrow of the city of Babylon, such as is depicted in the Scriptures of the destruction of that city, but so far my search has been in vain.  So I am driven to the conclusion that, in order for the prophecies of the Bible concerning the destruc­tion of this city, to be fulfilled, the literal city of Babylon must be rebuilt.

     Just here let me say, for the city of Babylon to be rebuilt does not necessarily mean that the new city will be on the exact spot where Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon stood.  We have already shown that a large tract of land was once called Baby­lonia, and a city anywhere within this tract could with pro­priety be called Babylon, and no one can deny that such will be the case in years to come.  As history reveals, Babylon has arisen and fallen at least three times already, but its site and ex­tensions have not been exactly the same every time.  Nebu­chadnezzar’s Babylon was so extensive that those in the center did not know when the extremities were captured (Jer. 51: 31).  Herodotus gives the circumference 60 miles, the whole form­ing a quadrangle, of which each side was fifteen miles.  The ruins of Babylon, as seen today, do not cover such a vast territory.  A city coming within this circumference of 60 miles certainly could with justice and propriety be called Babylon.

     “Five miles above Hillah, on the left bank of the Euphra­tes, enormous mounds mark the site of the capital of South Babylonia. . . . Scattered mounds of the same date with the general mass upon the river exist throughout the region.  The Birs Nimrod (by Smith regarded as the tower of Babel) six miles S. W. of Hillah, and six from Euphrates, is the most remarkable.”—Fausset.

       Just here I desire to give you a copy of a letter which I received in 1911 from Washington, D. C., in answer to my

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enquiry concerning the present condition of Babylon.  This letter will help us in determining facts concerning the subject in question.

 

LETTER.

 

January 25, 1911.

 

     Dear Sir:  The Commissioner of the Bureau of Education has referred to this Library your request of January 18, for information concerning “the exact condition of Babylon,” etc.

     From a recent traveler’s account of a visit to the city of Babylon we take the following:

     “We wandered through the huge ruin, balancing ourselves on the edges of low remaining walls and clambering from one court yard to another.  A jackal darted from under our feet with a shrill bark, he was answered from behind distant walls by innumerable hidden companions; an owl flew out of a dark corner and perched blinking a little way off; a great black crow hovered.  The broad walls of Babylon were indeed ut­terly broken, and her houses were indeed full of doleful creatures.  We sat down and listened to the wild beasts crying in her desolate houses; it was indeed a dwelling place for dragons, an astonishment and an hissing without an inhabitant.”

     There is a small town not far distant from Babylon, which has a population variously estimated from 10,000 to 30,000.  Regarding this “The Times Gazetteer,” 1899, says:

     “Hille, or Hilla, Asiatic Turkey, on the right bank of the Euphrates, Vilayet, and sixty‑three miles south of Bagdad, san­jak H., nearly opposite and a little to the south of the ruins of Babylon.  It is enclosed by earth ramparts and a ditch; entered by four gates, and has a citadel.  Manufactures of silks and tanneries.  It is comparatively healthy.  Population of 30,000.”

 

Very truly yours,

______________,

Librarian of Congress.

 

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     The above letter giving present facts concerning Babylon is very instructive and helpful in studying the case before us.  Hillah, mentioned in the above quotation from Faussett’s Bible Cyclopedia, is the same city mentioned in the above letter as Hille, or Hilla.  Notice that Fausett locates Hillah five miles south of the present ruins of Babylon, and six miles north of what is supposed to be the site of Nimrod’s tower.  So whether literal Babylon will ever be rebuilt or not, we here have the facts that at present there is a town of perhaps 30,000 inhabi­tants, just half way between the ruins of Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon and the exact spot where Babylon had its origin, and not over six miles from either place.  Notice that the above letter states this town of Hilla has “Manufactures of silks and tanneries.”  If you will compare this statement with Revela­tion 18: 12, 13, you will see that the merchandise of Hilla corresponds very closely with the prophecy concerning the merchandise of Babylon.  “The merchandise of . . . . fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet . . . . and beasts, and sheep and horses.”  Perhaps every article spoken of in Rev: 18: 12, 13, is not now manufactured in Hilla, but several of them are; and anyone knows that every industry mentioned in said Scripture could be introduced into that city in less than twelve months.  Indeed it seems that Hilla is just so situated, and has just such industries as to make it in future time Babylon restored.  Suppose men of wealth should give their attention to the building up and enlargement of the city of Hilla, as they are doing in thousands of other cases, how long would it take a few millionaires to make that city all that proph­ecy reveals concerning the capital city of Antichrist?  If there should be a sudden turn in affairs today, as will be when once the Bride is caught away, and all the rich men of the world should heap their treasures together, as seems to be the indication of prophecy concerning them in the last days (James 5: 3), and should put forth special effort to establish one grand commercial world center, as will have been done before the

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BABYLON.

 

 

Reign of Antichrist, and let this center be Hilla, it would take described in the 18th chapter of Revelation; and whether this city should ever include the ruins of ancient Babylon or the site of the Babel tower or not, it could with all propriety be called Babylon.  If we take in consideration what has been said in previous chapters concerning the identity of Antichrist, and remember that the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and accept the literal teachings of prophecy concerning the kingdom of Antichrist, we are almost driven to the conclusion that this position concerning the restoration of literal Babylon is the true one.

     Thus, aside from Scriptural references, of which we could give many, we see indications that Babylon will be literally restored.