Cyrus II, the Great ruled from about 559-529 BC. He built one of the most expansive empires in the ancient world, not only combining ancient Media and Persia, but conquering adjacent nations and assimilating them into what became the Achaemenid Persian Empire.
After the army of Cyrus (under the command of Darius the Mede) captured Babylon in 539 BC — an event mentioned in the book of Daniel — Cyrus issued a decree that captive people could return to their homelands. Not only that, but he restored possession of their stolen sacred religious objects.
One of the original copies of his decree is preserved on the Cyrus Cylinder, which was rediscovered in Babylon where it had been placed as a foundation deposit in the Esagila temple of Marduk. This particular copy was written and tailored to a Babylonian audience. It began by claiming that Nabonidus, the previous Babylonian king, had been a religious heretic who had imposed forced labor on the free people of the city. It declared that as a reprisal and retribution the gods had chosen Cyrus as a champion, liberator, and king of the world.
This Babylonian version of the decree addressed the god Marduk and stated, “…I returned the images of the gods, who had resided there [in Babylon], to their places and I let them dwell in eternal abodes….” The Judean version of this same decree is recorded in the book of Ezra, but it was written to Judah and referred to Yahweh rather than Marduk. Different deities were referred to in different versions of the decree, depending on the specific audience. Ancient documents and related research clearly indicate that Cyrus was a religious pluralist who sought popular support by pointedly tolerating most beliefs — as long as they did not cause problems for the government or lead to rebellion.
Summary
The remarkable agreement between the Cyrus Cylinder and the decree as it was recorded in the Biblical book of Ezra demonstrates both the pluralistic policies of the Persians and the accuracy and reliability of the book of Ezra.
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying: “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. ‘Whoever there is among you of all His people, may his God be with him! Let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel; He is the God who is in Jerusalem. (Ezra 1:1-3 NASB95)
