Babylon's Fallen Tyrant

Evil tyrants are nothing new to the region of Babylon, present-day Iraq. One of the most vicious in history was Nebuchadnezzar (sixth century BCE), the Babylonian king who built the most powerful nation in the world by ruthlessly attacking and annexing neighboring countries.

The Tenth of Tevet commemorates the day when Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to Jerusalem. The Babylonians eventually destroyed the First Temple, slaughtered 100,000 Jews, rounded up the rest and sent them into exile.

Whenever Nebuchadnezzar made a conquest, he used the stolen wealth to build monuments to his own glory. It was in his capital city that Nebuchadnezzar built the legendary Hanging Gardens of Babylon. In testimony to his grandeur, each brick was inscribed with Nebuchadnezzar's name.

BABYLON TODAY

And so it is in our time. Saddam Hussein pronounced himself as the reincarnation of Nebuchadnezzar, and dreamed of restoring the Babylonian empire to its former size and glory.

North of the ancient city of Ur, on the Euphrates River, lies the biblical city of Babylon. Years ago, Saddam commissioned archaeologists to restore the city and its Hanging Gardens. Like Nebuchadnezzar 2,500 years earlier, each new brick was inscribed -- this time with Saddam's name.

During the course of the dig, archaeologists uncovered a plaque on the ancient city gate proclaiming Nebuchadnezzar's greatness. Saddam ordered stonemasons to place another plaque on the opposite side of the gate -- glorifying the greatness of Saddam Hussein.

With his megalomaniacal vision in place, Saddam embarked on a campaign of terror and conquest, first in Iran, then in Kuwait. Ultimately, he dreamed of recapturing Jerusalem.

In 1981, threatened by Saddam's burgeoning nuclear capability, the State of Israel sent a squadron of seven jets to destroy the Iraqi nuclear reactor at Osirak. Saddam had named the reactor "Tammuz." As is well known, Tammuz was the calamitous Jewish month when the daily offerings in the Holy Temple were suspended during Nebuchadnezzar's siege of Jerusalem, 2,500 years earlier.

DUST BINS AND SPIDER HOLES

Alas, we know the end of the story. The biblical book of Daniel (4:30) describes the downfall of Nebuchadnezzar:

He was driven from mankind; he ate grass like oxen, and his body was washed by the dew of heaven, until his hair grew like eagles' feathers and his nails were like birds' claws.

And so it was with Saddam. Driven into a hole, grimy and disheveled. Reduced, like his ancient hero, to the dustbin of history. From the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Saddam was left hanging with a noose around his neck..

On the Tenth of Tevet, we resolve to fight evil… in whatever millennium it may appear.

In the Bible (Genesis ch. 14), we read of a war between Middle East kingdoms. Abraham's nephew Lot was taken captive in this war, and Abraham -- although hopelessly outnumbered -- fought all these kings and won. It was an unlikely victory, but one that would portend well for Abraham's descendents.

One of the kingdoms mentioned in this Torah section is Shinar, identified as modern-day Baghdad. Incredibly, a skip-sequence code in this same section details Saddam's 1991 scud missile attack against Israel.

On the Tenth of Tevet, the Jewish people -- alive and well in their biblical homeland -- mark the deeds of Nebuchadnezzar and other tyrants, with determination and resolve to fight the evil oppressors… in whatever millennium they may appear.

(Hanging Gardens info from "Missiles, Masks and Miracles" by Charles Samuel)

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Published: January 3, 2004
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Visitor Comments: 19

(19) Jim Nelson, November 16, 2011 2:39 PM

Surprised that the Rabi missed the fundamental fact here- Nebuchadnezzar , after recovering from seven years of madness, recognized and endorsed the God of the prophet Daniel to all the known world! It's in your Torah- Book of Daniel

(18) Anonymous, December 30, 2008 8:09 AM

Great article

B"H Dear Rabbi Simmons, til 120, Thank you so much for a fascinating and educational article. Your spiritual insights are also extremely thought provoking and inspirational and give me a more meaningful direction for making my fast have a deeper connection to the Alm-ghty.

(17) Joey, January 3, 2007 9:44 AM

Fascinating. Utterly, utterly fascinating. God bless, and may He have mercy on that evil man's soul.

(16) george a tetreault jr , esq, January 1, 2007 12:23 AM

HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF

'Don't keep me a secret '
' Come follow me '

(15) a.b.z., December 31, 2006 11:16 PM

awaiting the final and complete redemtion

my dear friend rabbi simmons you have done it again! we all should keep in mind that this is but one of the glorious steps (that the creator has let us openly see) that the redemtion is coming and fast . may we all merit to internalize the message and as is stated in the jewish lawbooks in the laws of fast days "repent wholeheartily",so that when the redemtion arrives we will be part of it .rabbi simmons is even greater in person try and get to know him.

(14) Michael Fleischhacker, December 31, 2006 9:59 AM

Are we better off?

Saddam made a few token payments to the families of suicide bombers. The current Iraqi government openly supports Hezbollah, and may have transferred US funds to that terrorist organization.

Saddam launched a few missles at Israel. The current Iraqi government openly supports Iran's nuclear build-up. They already have agreements in place where Iran gets a share of Iraq's potential oil wealth. That means more funds to finance their nuclear arsenal.

Are we really better off?

(13) ShalomB, December 31, 2006 3:21 AM

A Summary of Evil

How did this most evil man on earth, knowing he would die in a few moments, summarize all of evil in his last words? 'Palestine is Arab.'
He knows that Israel's thriving survival is the antithesis of evil, and the enemies of Israel are the epitome of evil. Perfect clarity.

(12) ari, December 31, 2006 12:35 AM

Saddam's execution

interesting that he was hanged the day before this fast day

(11) Mark A Bello, November 8, 2004 12:00 AM

Jere 31 vs. 9..I am the father to Israel...

No enemy can prevail against Israel. My prayer is that all Israel will once again return to the Lord God Almighty and be One with him. And may we all listen to the voice of God through his prophets of old time begining with Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah...and strive to do what is right in the sight of God, our Father and our King...Amen

(10) Joshua B, November 3, 2004 12:00 AM

Once again the almighty has been in favour of us the Jewish people. The evil Saddam and his foot soliders were stopped by the Notorious USA. G-d Bless america and George W Bush for being a Beliver in the Torah and The bible and seeing the threat this evil Saddam arab.

G-d Bless America and Israel

(9) Roj, March 29, 2004 12:00 AM

The capture of Saddam -- seeing this is being in the front seat of hystory

It is a big previlege to see the big man, Saddam, fall from the top of his power. I know the stories of great tyrants and how they fall. Only my imagination help me create the stories. But with Saddam fall and capture I'm in the front seat of hystory. Who's next, please?

(8) Usaia .Bulai, January 11, 2004 12:00 AM

Thanks to the Americans. This is the last of the Babylonian empire and will never rise again.

(7) betti miner, January 8, 2004 12:00 AM

He's reduced to a hole in the ground

I was happy when the US took Saddam Hussein alive, but as the saying goes, "the bigger they are, the harder they fall". Great was his fall from the tyrant he proclaimed to be. He murdered so many people, and when I saw what he had been reduced to, a scared rat in a hole, I felt nothing but pity for him. His eyes were full of fear that the United States would kill him right then and there. We showed the world that the US has more sympathy for a criminal like him, than he did for his own people. Good riddance to that egotistic buffoon.

(6) Margie Hazell, January 7, 2004 12:00 AM

Great story

(5) David Ben-Ariel, January 5, 2004 12:00 AM

After Nebuchadnezzar comes CYRUS

May we see the spirit of Cyrus the Great inspire world leaders to assist Judah in contruction of the royal House of Prayer for ALL Peoples!

(4) Cyndi Buckey, January 5, 2004 12:00 AM

one final point

Neb got it right in the end. I have serious doubts about Saddam. According to an Iraqi council member, when asked directly what he, Saddam, planned to say to God on the Day of Judgement, Saddam began to curse in the foulest language Arabic possesses. I don't think Neb would be too proud of Saddam.

(3) Anonymous, January 5, 2004 12:00 AM

That was not the end

Neb did not end at that point, he did finally acknowledge G-d was the Great and Mighty G-d and had changed his mind concerning Him. Saddam has NOT and probably will never acknowledge that G-d is greater than himself. Thank you as most all else does seem to match. I was wondering about the correlation of Neb's reduction/and or death to Saddam's capture.

(2) Marie and John Shea, January 4, 2004 12:00 AM

Thank you for your time!

We are religious history teachers, graduates of '92 from the State University of Buffalo, NY. We enjoy receiving and reading Aish.com ...it increases our understanding of the history of the Jewish people. The more we study the more we want to know.

(1) Shmuel, January 4, 2004 12:00 AM

Thank you Rabbi Simmons!

Aish.com forgot to mention that the recommended product - "Israel: Life in the Shadow of Terror" contains articles by you and is edited by you! I think that anyone who loves and appreciates your writing should order the book!

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About the Author

Rabbi Shraga Simmons

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Rabbi Shraga Simmons spent his childhood trekking through snow in Buffalo, New York. He holds a degree in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin, and rabbinic ordination from the Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem. He is the senior editor of Aish.com and the director of JewishPathways.com.

An expert on media bias, he was the founding editor of HonestReporting.com, and is the author of David & Goliath: The Explosive Inside Story of Media Bias in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (2012). With drama and a biting edge, David & Goliath is a definitive treatment, fully resourced with over 2,000 footnotes. Readers are privy to secret negotiations with CNN executives, and how a grassroots campaign was cited by the New York Times as effecting sweeping changes in Mideast media coverage.

David & Goliath has been praised by politicians, professors and journalists: Former New York Mayor Ed Koch hails it as "Invaluable for anyone wanting the inside story," and James Taranto of the Wall Street Journal calls David & Goliath "of crucial importance for the future of the Middle East."

Rabbi Simmons lives with his wife and children in the Modi'in region of Israel.