PORTRAITS FROM THE PAST/ Cyrus the Great

According to our modern calendar, on the night of October 5/6, 539 B.C.E., the seemingly impossible happened to the city of Babylon, capital of the Babylonian Empire.  On that fateful  night, the city was overthrown by an army of Medes and Persians, commanded by Persian King Cyrus, also known as Cyrus the Great.  His strategy  was brilliant.

HOW CYRUS CAPTURED BABYLON

"When Cyrus set his sights on Babylon, it was already the most venerable of Middle Eastern cities-perhaps of all the cities in the world," states  the book Ancient World Leaders-Cyrus the Great.  Babylon sat on the Euphrates River, which also filled  moats surrounding the city's massive walls-a combination of defenses that made the city  seem impregnable. 

Upstream from Babylon, Cyrus' men diverted the Euphrates, causing the water level in the city to fall.  The soldiers than walked into the river to the city gates, which had been left open and took Babylon with little resistance.  According to Greek historians Herodotus and Xenophon, the Babylonians felt so secure behind their city's defenses that on the night of the attack, many were feasting, including the king!  (see the box "The Handwriting on the Wall.") Moreover, Cyrus' conquest fulfilled some amazing Bible prophecies.  

Next time: PORTRAITS FROM THE PAST - AMAZING PREDICTIONS

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