… you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: How the oppressor has come to an end! How his fury has ended! – Isaiah 14:4

Today's Scripture Reading (March 25, 2023): Isaiah 14

His name was Nabopolassar. His origins are uncertain. Nabopolassar called himself "The son of nobody," although that seems highly improbable. It would seem impossible for someone from a completely obscure family to rise to control a nation. Power often was passed down from father to son, or they grabbed power by leading the military against the king in control of the country. We aren't even sure what nationality Nabopolassar might have been. He has been called n Chaldean, an Assyrian, and a Babylonian.

Nabopolassar was born in 658 B.C.E in the Assyrian Empire town of Uruk, in modern-day Iraq. At that time, Uruk had been part of the geographical region of Babylonia. And Babylonia had been defeated and was under the direct control of the Assyrians. But during the early days of Nabopolassar's life, Assyria found itself fighting several internal conflicts. As a result, the Empire was ripe for someone to rebel against their rule. That someone was Nabopolassar. Somehow, this "son of nobody" raised an army and began to fight for the freedom of Babylonia from their Assyrian overlords. It was just Babylon's freedom for which Nabopolassar intended to fight. But as Nabopolassar continued his battle against Assyria, Assyria continued their internal decline until suddenly it seemed that not only was Babylon free from the Empire but that they had become the Empire. For the rest of Nabopolassar's life, he would fight against Egypt, which wanted to place Assyria back in control of the area.

Nabopolassar spent his reign at war, but in 605 B.C.E., with his enemies defeated, Nabopolassar hoped that he could finally turn his attention back to the restoration of Babylon, which had been destroyed and neglected during the Assyrian era. But with this task in front of him, Nabopolassar died, and his son Nebuchadnezzar II ascended to the throne.

Nebuchadnezzar II would reign over the Babylonian Empire for the next forty-three years. But the problem was that there was no one who could follow Nebuchadnezzar. Four different kings tried to reign over the Babylonian Empire in the twenty-three years after Nebuchadnezzar's death. Still, none of them rose to the leadership ability of Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar. And Babylon would end in the same chaos that ended the Assyrian Empire before it.

Scholars seem split about whether Isaiah is speaking of the literal Babylonian Empire or a spiritual version run by Satan. But it appears from the passage's context that the literal one makes the most sense. Babylon would rise in a fury, replacing those who had once been the oppressors of the area. But that era would also come swiftly to an end, and the captives would lead a taunt over Babylon, just as Babylon had taunted the Assyrians when their Empire came to an end.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Isaiah 15 & 16