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You are here: Home / 101Study Help / Background & History / Introduction to the Exile and Return

Introduction to the Exile and Return

September 8, 2020 By Krisan Marotta

Introduction to the Exile and Return | WednesdayintheWord.com

Overview and timeline of the exile of Israel and her return from captivity.

Timeline

Assyrian Kings

  • Shalmaneser II (860-825 BC) – began to “cut off” Israel
  • Adad-Nirari (808-783 BC) – took tribute from Israel (Jonah’s visit?)
  • Tiglath-Pileser III (747-727 BC) – deported most of Israel
  • Sargon II (7220705) BC – carried the rest of Israel captive
  • Sennacherib (706-681 BC) – invaded Judah; Assyrian Captivity of northern kingdom
  • Esar-Haddon (681-668 BC) – very powerful
  • Assur-banipal (668-626 BC) – most powerful and brutal
  • Weak Kings (626-605 BC) – who lead to defeat of Assyria

Fall of Judah

  • 612 BC – Babylonians and Medes conquer Assyria.
  • 605 BC – Babylonians battle Egyptians at Carchemish.
  • 605 BC – Nebuchadnezzar becomes king of Babylon; The Babylonians invade Judah; First wave of deportation of Jews to Babylon; Daniel is taken captive and begins to prophesy.
  • 601 BC – Babylonians battle Egypt, both sides suffer losses; Judah decides to realign itself with Egypt.
  • 597 BC – Jehoachin becomes king of Judah; Babylonians capture Jerusalem; Second wave of deportation to Babylon from Judah; Ezekiel is taken captive to Babylon; Zedekiah becomes king of Judah.
  • 593 BC – Ezekiel begins to prophesy.
  • 586 BC – The Babylonians destroy Jerusalem and the Temple; Jerusalem’s walls and gates are burned with fire; Third wave of Jews deported to Babylon; Babylonian Exile begins.
  • 539 BC – The Fall of Babylon; Beginning of the Persian Period to 332; The Decree of Cyrus II allowing Jews to return.
  • 516 BC – The Jews rebuild their Temple (70 years).
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Exile

Developments in Judah (2 Kings 25:22-26; Jeremiah 40-44)

  • Judah as a province of Babylon: no king; governor appoint; new captial is Mizpah.
  • Small population left in Jerusalem under hard conditions; “the poor of the land” (2 Kings 25:12).
  • Gedaliah assassinated by Ishmael (2 Kings 25:23-26; Jeremiah 40:7-41:18); governor appoint by Babylonians.
  • Jeremiah gives advice (Jeremiah 40:1-6; 42:1-43:3) to stay in land.
  • People flee to Egypt (Jeremiah 43:4-44:30); Jeremiah follows them; Babylon conquers Egypt and people further dispersed.

By the Waters of Babylon (605-539 BC)

  • Humiliation (Psalm 137).
  • Institutions remained: synagogue evolved; elders, prophets (Ezekiel) and priest maintained (Jeremiah 29).
  • Freedom of movement; Jews could buy a house and move.
  • Freedom of correspondence: could write/receive letters.
  • Possibility of government positions (e.g. Daniel).
  • Living in a fertile prosperous land with agricultural possibilities.
  • Too comfortable? (Josephus Antiquities 11.1.3).

Rise of Persia

  • Restoration predicted (e.g Jeremiah 25:11).
  • Cyrus, King of Persia, reigns 559-530 BC.
  • Cyrus conquers the Meades, Assyrians and up to India, creating a vast Persian empire.
  • Fall of Babylon (October 539 BC); Cyrus greeted as a conquering hero.
  • Edict of release (Ezra 1:1-4; Ezra 6:3-5).

Content of the Edict

  • Ezra 1 is more theological; Ezra 6 is the official record.
  • Temple to be rebuilt and cost defrayed by Cyrus (Ezra 6:8).
  • Building specifications and dimensions.
  • Return of gold and silver items taken by Nebuchadnezzar.
  • All Jews who wished could return to Judah.
  • Jews who remain in Babylon may assist project with freewill offerings.
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Return and Restoration

See: Chronologoy of Ezra-Nehemiah

First Stage of Return to Judah

  • Ezra 1-6 – Rebuilding the temple
  • Ezra 1 – edict of return
  • Ezra 2 – list of returnees; leading role for Zerubbabel (2:2); approx. 50,000 return
  • Ezra 3:1-6 – rebuilding and rededicating the altar; Mosaic worship restored
  • Ezra 3:7-13 – laying the temple foundation about 6 months after altar dedication
  • Ezra 4:1-23 – opposition to rebuilding; work stops for approximately 10 years
  • Ezra 5:1-6:15 – Encouragement to rebuild from Haggai & Zechariah; work resumes in 530 BC
  • Ezra 6:16-22 – Completed temple is dedicated and Passover celebrated
  • Ezra 7:1-8:36 – Second return of the Jews to Jerusalem; 458-457 BC (1 year)
  • Ezra 9:1-10:44 – Restoration of the people
  • Biblehub: Ezra Timeline

Second Stage of Return to Judah

  • Nehemiah 1:1-11 – Nehemiah learns Jerusalem has no walls; 445 BC
  • Nehemiah 2:1-20 – Nehemiah commissioned to return to Jerusalem
  • Nehemiah 3:1-6:19 – Building the walls amidst continued opposition
  • Nehemiah 8:1-18 – reading and exposition of the Law
  • Nehemiah 9:1:10:39 – Covenant renewal
  • Nehemiah 12:27-47 – Dedication of Jerusalem city walls
  • Nehemiah 13 – Nehemiah’s second administration; returns 432 BC to a bad situation
  • Biblehub: Nehemiah Timeline
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History

  • Alfred Edersheim: Sketches of Jewish Social Life
  • Alfred Edersheim: Old Testament History
  • Alfred Edersheim: The Temple —Its Ministry and Services 
  • Jacob Abbott: Cyrus the Great by Jacob Abbott (1904)
  • Flavius Josephus: From The Death Of Ahab To The Captivity Of The Ten Tribes (157 Years)
  • Flavius Josephus: From The Captivity Of The Ten Tribes To The First Year Of Cyrus (182 Years)
  • Flavius Josephus: From The First Of Cyrus To The Death Of Alexander The Great
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Maps

  • The New Babylonian Empire and Ezekiel – BibleHistory.com
  • The New Babylonian Empire and Egypt – BibleHistory.com
  • The Babylonian Captivity – BibleHistory.com
  • The Divided Kingdom – Biblehub.com
  • The Kingdom of Judah – Biblehub.com
  • The Captivity of Judah – Biblehub.com
  • The Restoration – Biblehub.com
  • Deportations and Returns under Assyria and Babylon -Idubiblia.org
  • Assyrian and Babylonian and Greek Empires -Idubiblia.org
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Invasions of Jerusalem

There were 4 significant invasions of Jerusalem in Old Testament history:

  1. By Shishak, king of Egypt, ca. 925 BC during the reign of Rehoboam (1 Kings 14:25-26; 2 Chronicles 12).
  2. By the Philistines and Arabians between 848–841 BC during the reign of Jehoram of Judah (2 Chronciles 21:8–20).
  3. By Jehoash, king of Israel, ca. 790 BC (2 Kings 14; 2 Chronciles 25).
  4. By Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, in the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC.
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Exile Kings in the Bible

KingdomKingReignBible Reference
AssyriaTiglath-Pileser III744-727 BC2 Kings 15:29; 2 Kings 16:7-10; 1Chronicles 5:6-26
AssyriaSargon II721-701 BC2 Kings 17:3; 2 Kings 19:9; Isaiah 20:1
AssyriaSennacherib704-681 BC(Assyrian Captivity of northern kingdom)
AssyriaEsarhaddon680-699 BCIsaiah 36:37; 2 Kings 18-19; 2 Chronicles 32
AssyriaAshurbanipal668-627 BC2 Kings 19:27; Ezra 4:2; Isaiah 37:38
BabylonNebuchadneezar II604-562 BC(Babylonian captivity of southern kingdom)
2 Kings 24-25; Jeremiah 21;
Daniel 1:5
BabylonNabonidus551-539 BCDaniel 5
BabylonBeshazzar?-539BC
Medo-PersianCyrus & Dairus529-530 BCDaniel 6; Isaiah 44:28; Isaiah 45:1; 2 Chronicles 36
Medo-PersianAhasuerus (Cambyses)529-522 BCEzra 4:6
Medo-PersianArtaxerxes (Ahasuerus)423-405 BCEsther
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More: Introduction to…

Part of the Series: Bible Study 101

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  4. 01 Habakkuk Introduction
  5. Introduction to the Northern Kingdom

Filed Under: Background & History, Introductions Tagged With: exile, history

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