Trustworthy Prophecy - Conclusion

 Furthermore, some two centuries before Babylon's defeat, the prophet Isaiah foretold both the name of the conquering Persian king-who was not yet born-and his strategy for taking Babylon.  Isaiah wrote: "This is what Jehovah has said to his anointed one, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have taken hold of, to subdue him nations, . . . to open before him the two-leaved doors, so that even the gates will not be shut." (Isaiah 45:1) Both Isaiah and Jeremiah foretold Babylon's "rivers," or canals fed by the Euphrates River, which served as a protective moat, would be dried up. (Isaiah 44:27; Jeremiah 50:38) The Greek historian Herodotus and Xenophon confirm the Bible's prophetic accuracy, including the  fact that the Babylonian's were reveling on the very night that Cyrus took the city.  (Isaiah 21:5, 9;29:10) Having diverted the Euphrates River, Cyrus's armies entered the city through open gates along the river, encountering little resistance. In one night mighty Babylon fell!

That event, in turn, led to the amazing fulfillment of another prophecy.  The prophet Jeremiah had earlier foretold that God's people would be exiled in Babylon for 70 years. (Jeremiah 25:11, 12; 29:10) That prophecy was fulfilled right on time, and the exiles were allowed to return to their homeland. 

Next time: A Hope You Can Trust

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