Persia

The name Persia comes from Parsa, the region and people in the south of modern Iran from which the dynasty founded by Cyrus the Great arose. In the Bible, Persia is the empire that conquered Babylon and freed the exiled Jews, fulfilling Jeremiah's prophecy about the end of the captivity.

Country today Iran
Periodc. 539 BC
Books where it appears2 Chronicles to Daniel
People linked to this place6
About the place

Persia was the largest empire of the ancient world, built by Cyrus the Great, who conquered Babylon in 539 BC.

Under the Persians, the territory stretched from India to Cush, and the king ruled over more than a hundred provinces from capitals such as Susa and Persepolis.

In the Bible, the rise of Persia is directly linked to the end of Judah’s exile. God moved the heart of Cyrus to decree the return of the Jews and the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem, fulfilling the prophecy of Jeremiah.

It was in the citadel of Susa, the winter capital of the Persian kings, that some of the most striking scenes of biblical history after the exile took place.

There Esther became queen and, together with her uncle Mordecai, delivered the Jewish people from a decree of extermination. There too Nehemiah, cupbearer to King Artaxerxes, was granted permission to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.

The prophet Daniel was also in Susa, where he received a vision about the end of the Persian empire itself, showing that even Persia was under the sovereign control of God.

The history of Persia in the Bible reminds us that God rules even the mightiest empires, and uses kings who do not even know him to fulfill his promises and protect his people.

Key verses

In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:

Ezra 1:1

The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kings of Media and Persia.

Daniel 8:20

This is what happened during the time of Xerxes, the Xerxes who ruled over 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush:

Esther 1:1

What happened here

Daniel receives the vision of the ram and the goat

In the citadel of Susa, Daniel saw in a vision a ram with two horns, which the angel Gabriel identified as the kings of Media and Persia, later overthrown by a goat representing Greece.

Daniel 8:1-27

Cyrus decrees the exiles' return

Moved by God, Cyrus, king of Persia, issued a written decree throughout his kingdom allowing the Jews to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. The decree fulfilled Jeremiah's prophecy about the end of the exile.

Ezra 1:1-4

Esther becomes queen of Persia

After pleasing King Xerxes more than all the other candidates, Esther received the royal crown and became queen in place of Vashti.

Esther 2:1-18

Esther and Mordecai save the Jews from extermination

Faced with Haman's plan to exterminate the Jews in every Persian province, Esther interceded before the king, Haman was executed, and Mordecai received the king's signet ring in his place. Because the original decree could not be revoked, a new decree allowed the Jews to defend themselves, and they defeated their enemies throughout the empire.

Esther 7:1-10; 8:1-17; 9:1-19

Nehemiah obtains Artaxerxes' authorization

Serving as King Artaxerxes' cupbearer in the citadel of Susa, Nehemiah requested and received the king's permission, letters and supplies to go and rebuild Jerusalem's walls.

Nehemiah 1:1; 2:1-8
Timeline
around 550 BC

In Susa, Daniel receives the vision of the ram and the goat concerning the kings of Media and Persia

539 BC

Cyrus conquers Babylon and becomes the empire's new ruler

538 BC

Cyrus decrees the Jewish exiles' return and the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem

around 479 BC

Esther becomes queen of Persia in place of Vashti

around 473 BC

Esther and Mordecai save the Jews from the extermination planned by Haman

445 BC

Nehemiah receives Artaxerxes' authorization to rebuild Jerusalem's walls

People linked to this place
C

Cyrus

Freed the Jewish exiles

E

Esther

Was queen of Persia and saved her people

M

Mordecai

Was Esther's uncle and was elevated at court

N

Nehemiah

Was the king's cupbearer in Susa

A

Artaxerxes

Was the Persian king who authorized Nehemiah

D

Daniel

Received a prophetic vision in Susa

Books where it appears

2 Chronicles

ends with the decree of Cyrus, king of Persia

Ezra

tells of Cyrus's decree and the exiles' return

Nehemiah

Nehemiah serves at the Persian court in Susa

Esther

the entire story takes place at the Persian court

Daniel

contains the prophetic vision about Media and Persia

The place today: Iran

Ancient Persia corresponds largely to modern Iran, a country whose south still preserves the name of the region of Parsa, Cyrus's homeland.

The ruins of the citadel of Susa, one of the Persian capitals where the stories of Esther, Nehemiah and Daniel took place, lie near the modern city of Shush in Khuzestan Province, southwestern Iran.

Today Iran is an Islamic republic with very little religious freedom, yet the church is growing there remarkably, largely in secret. Pray for these people, that they may know the same deliverance God gave the exiles through a pagan king.

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