Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream: The Great Image

King Nebuchadnezzar (meaning “Nabu protect my firstborn son”) had a dream in which he saw a colossal statue, exceedingly bright and terrifying in appearance. God used this great image to reveal the evolution of nations during the times of the Gentiles. Each part of the statue represents an empire or a period of history. The […]

King Belshazzar of Babylon

Belshazzar (Akkadian: Bel-sarra-usur) was the last ruler (strictly speaking, co-regent) of the Neo-Babylonian Kingdom. In 562 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar died, and his son Evil-Merodach succeeded him, treating the exiled King Jehoiachin kindly (Jeremiah 52:31). In 560 BC, Evil-Merodach was murdered and usurped by his brother-in-law, Nergal-Sharezer (Jeremiah 39:3). In 556 BC, Nergal-Sharezer’s son, Labashi-Marduk, succeeded […]

The Psaltery

[Daniel 3:5-6] “As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp (psaltery), and bagpipe, and all kinds of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. And whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a burning […]

The Prophet Daniel

Daniel means “God is my judge.” He is one of the four major prophets recorded in the Bible. In the past, before cuneiform could be deciphered, Daniel was thought to be a fictional character. However, in 1854, clay cylinders discovered in the ruins of the ancient Babylonian city of Ur, containing deciphered palace inscriptions, revealed […]

Background on the Book of Daniel

The Hebrew name for the Book of Daniel is “Daniel (דִּנִיֵּאל / daw-nee-yale’),” which means “God is my judge.” This title aptly reflects the book’s theme: when the defeated people were exiled to Babylon, God revealed Himself as the judge of history to both the Babylonian king (4:37) and the prophet (7:10, 22, 26). As […]

Haman

Haman (also known as Haman the Agagite, Hebrew: המן האגגי) is a significant character in the Hebrew Bible’s Book of Esther. The Persian name Haman means “magnificent” or “eminent,” and his character was as ostentatious as his name. Jewish tradition believes that “Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite” was a descendant of Agag, the Amalekite […]

Mordecai

Mordecai was a Jew from the tribe of Benjamin. According to the Book of Esther, he had been carried away captive to Babylon. Later, Mordecai served as an official in the Persian palace. He adopted his cousin, Esther (also known as Hadassah), and raised her as his own daughter. Esther was exceedingly beautiful (Esther 2:7). […]

Abiathar, the Last Priest of Eli’s Family

Abiathar was the son of Ahimelech, the priest of Nob, and a descendant of Aaron and Eli the high priests (1 Samuel 23:6). Biblical and Related Accounts: When David was fleeing from King Saul’s pursuit, he came to Ahimelech, the priest of Nob, and received help from him. When Saul learned of this, he had […]

Esther the Heroine

Esther was a queen of ancient Persia in the mid-5th century BC, a beautiful, kind, and courageous Jewish heroine. She belonged to the tribe of Benjamin and her original name was Hadassah (meaning “myrtle” or “guava”). Because her parents died, her cousin Mordecai adopted her, and she was renamed “Esther” (meaning “star”). To save the […]

Background Introduction to the Book of Esther

The Hebrew name for the Book of Esther is “Esther” (אֶסְתֵר / Estēr). This book, along with the Book of Ruth, is unique in the Bible for being named after a woman. It recounts how, after the Temple was rebuilt and before Ezra’s return, Queen Esther of Persia and her adoptive father Mordecai, under God’s […]