Who Was Nebuchadnezzar In The Bible?

Who was Nebuchadnezzar in the Bible? What role did he play in the Old Testament?

The Name Nebuchadnezzar’s Meaning

Akkadian name Nabu-kudurri-usur meaning “Nabu preserve my firstborn son” and Nabu could be from the Semitic root meaning “to announce” and was the name of an Assyrian and Babylonian god of wisdom, letters and writing for which the nation of Babylon was well known for. Interestingly the name Babylon or “babilu” means (gate of god). Nebuchadnezzar ruled over the kingdom that was founded in the 12th-century BC and was known as the Babylonian Empire. He was in power when this empire captured Jerusalem, and ultimately destroyed the city’s temple and deported many of its citizens, as told in the Old Testament which you can read about in 2nd Kings 25. Psalm 137:1-6 is a lament psalm about the captives being in captivity.

Who Was Nebuchadnezzar?

As was previously noted, Nebuchadnezzar was the king of Babylon who ensured the captivity of the nation of Judah and held them captive for seventy years. Israel, identified as the Northern Kingdom or the 10 Tribes of Israel, which had broken away from the nation of Israel as a whole many years before, had been earlier taken captive before by the Assyrians of whom the Babylonians had later conquered. The Babylonian Empire was at the very height of its glory and was the most important city of the whole Mesopotamia region, and really, in the civilized or known world at the time. Nebuchadnezzar’s powerful empire were the ones who built the hanging gardens of Babylon which were considered one of the ancient wonders of the world but they also built magnificent palaces, temples, mighty walls and beautiful gateways and had no natural rival in all the world.

Babylon in Peter’s Day?

Even in Peter’s day, this name was still used but as a system of government that was hostile to Christians which explains Peter’s writing “She who is at Babylon, who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings, and so does Mark, my son” (1st Pet 5:13). Babylon was long gone by this time so why did Peter use this name? It may have been because the name was representative or symbolic of a one-ruler system of government that was still holding captive God’s chosen people but these people were members of the church and not the nation of Israel or Judah as was the case in the Old Testament period (as in 2nd Kings). Such was the type of rule that dominated the Roman Empire.

Future Babylon?

Next to the Book of Jeremiah, which mentions Babylon one hundred and fifty one times and the 2nd Book of Kings which mentions this empire twenty eight times, the Book of Revelation has the 3rd most references to Babylon but it is about a future reference to this system of government. Many scholars today believe that much of Revelation was fulfilled during the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. and afterwards. The Book of Revelation mentions a second angel bringing the second of three message’s and says “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality” (Rev 14:8). The reason that Babylon is said to have “fallen, fallen” may be due to Babylon’s first fall and the coming, greater fall which occurred in the 1st century or is yet to come.

Once again in Revelation 18:2a we read the phrase “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!” and God apparently judges this harlot because “She has become a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast” (Rev 18:2b). Later it mentions that “The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nation’s fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath” (Rev 16:19). Obviously Babylon represents everything wrong with this world today as she is called “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations” (Rev 17:5). Again we can see why she falls and great is her fall as Revelation 18:10 says “You great city, you mighty city, Babylon! For in a single hour your judgment has come.” The point here is that with another great empire, this time perhaps a worldwide empire, another inferior, as in more wicked than Nebuchadnezzar, will rule and like the previous empire, this empire and her great king will utterly come crashing down, never to be seen or heard from again.

Conclusion

Nebuchadnezzar was an actual historical figure that ruled over one of the greatest empires in the world and archeological evidence has shown that what was recorded in 2nd Kings was played out in real time and history. Any nation that forsakes God and fails to follow Him will also be said of someday to have “fallen, fallen.”

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Blind Chance or Intelligent Design available on Amazon.