Babylon, Babylonia, Babylonian

Definition

The city of Babylon was the capital of the ancient region of Babylonia, which was also part of the Babylonian Empire.

• Babylon was located along the Euphrates River, in the same region where the Tower of Babel had been built hundreds of years before.
• Sometimes the word “Babylon” refers to the entire Babylonian Empire. For example, the “king of Babylon” ruled the entire empire, not just the city.
• The Babylonians were a powerful people group who attacked the kingdom of Judah and kept the people in exile in Babylonia for 70 years.
• Part of this region was called “Chaldea” and the people living there were the “Chaldeans.” As a result, the term “Chaldea” was often used to refer to Babylonia. (See: synecdoche)

(See also: Babel, Chaldea, Judah, Nebuchadnezzar)

Bible References

• 1 Chronicles 9:1
• 2 Kings 17:24-26
• Acts 7:43
• Daniel 1:2
• Ezekiel 12:13
• Matthew 1:11
• Matthew 1:17

Examples from the Bible stories

• __20:6 About 100 years after the Assyrians destroyed the kingdom of Israel, God sent Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Babylonians, to attack the kingdom of Judah. Babylon__ was a powerful empire.
• __20:7 But after a few years, the king of Judah rebelled against Babylon. So, the Babylonians__ came back and attacked the kingdom of Judah. They captured the city of Jerusalem, destroyed the Temple, and took away all the treasures of the city and the Temple.
• __20:9 Nebuchadnezzar and his army took almost all of the people of the kingdom of Judah to Babylon__, leaving only the poorest people behind to plant the fields.
• __20:11 About seventy years later, Cyrus, the king of the Persians, defeated Babylon__.

Word Data

• Strong’s: H3778, H3779, H8152, H0894, H0895, H0896, G08970