Topical Encyclopedia
The Medes were an ancient people who inhabited the region known as Media, located in the northwestern part of present-day Iran. They are frequently mentioned in the Bible, particularly in the context of the rise and fall of empires that interacted with the Israelites.
Historical BackgroundThe Medes are first noted in historical records around the 9th century BC. They were an Indo-Iranian people who established a significant kingdom by the 7th century BC. The Median Empire reached its zenith under King Cyaxares, who is credited with uniting the various Median tribes and expanding their territory. The Medes played a crucial role in the downfall of the Assyrian Empire, allying with the Babylonians to capture Nineveh in 612 BC.
Biblical ReferencesThe Medes are mentioned in several books of the Bible, often in relation to their interactions with other empires and their role in God's unfolding plan for the nations.
1.
2 Kings 17:6 · The Medes are first mentioned in the context of the Assyrian exile of Israel. "In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and deported the Israelites to Assyria. He settled them in Halah, in Gozan on the Habor River, and in the towns of the Medes."
2.
Isaiah 13:17 · The prophet Isaiah foretells the Medes' role in the destruction of Babylon: "Behold, I will stir up against them the Medes, who have no regard for silver and no desire for gold."
3.
Jeremiah 51:11 · Jeremiah also prophesies the Medes' involvement in Babylon's downfall: "Sharpen the arrows! Take up the shields! The LORD has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, because His purpose is to destroy Babylon. For it is the vengeance of the LORD, vengeance for His temple."
4.
Daniel 5:28 · In the account of Belshazzar's feast, Daniel interprets the writing on the wall, predicting the division of the Babylonian kingdom: "Your kingdom has been divided and given over to the Medes and Persians."
5.
Daniel 6:8 · The Medes are also mentioned in the context of the laws of the Medes and Persians, which were considered unchangeable: "Now, O king, establish the decree and sign the document so that it cannot be changed, in accordance with the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed."
Role in Prophecy and God's PlanThe Medes, along with the Persians, were instrumental in the fulfillment of God's judgment against Babylon. Their rise to power and subsequent conquest of Babylon in 539 BC under Cyrus the Great marked a significant shift in the ancient Near Eastern world. This event also set the stage for the return of the Jewish exiles to Jerusalem, as decreed by Cyrus, fulfilling the prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah.
Cultural and Religious InfluenceWhile the Medes themselves did not leave a significant cultural or religious legacy compared to the Persians, their integration into the Achaemenid Empire under Cyrus the Great allowed for the spread of Zoroastrianism, which influenced the religious landscape of the region. The Medes' inclusion in the Persian Empire also facilitated the administrative and military structures that would characterize Persian rule.
ConclusionThe Medes, though not as prominently featured as other ancient empires in the biblical narrative, played a crucial role in the geopolitical shifts that impacted the Israelites. Their mention in prophetic literature underscores their significance in the divine orchestration of historical events, serving as instruments of God's judgment and restoration.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
MEDESmedz (madhi; Assyrian Amada, Mada; Achaem. Persian Mada; Medoi (Genesis 10:22 Kings 17:6;2 Kings 18:111 Chronicles 1:5Ezra 6:2Esther 1:3, 14, 18, 19;Esther 10:2Isaiah 13:17;Isaiah 21:2Jeremiah 25:25;Jeremiah 51:11, 28Daniel 5:28;Daniel 6:1, 9, 13, 16; 8:20; 9:01; 11:1)): Mentioned as Japhethites inGenesis 10:2, i.e. Aryans, and accordingly they first called themselves Arioi (Herod. vii.62), in Avestic Airya = Skt. Arya, "noble." They were closely allied in descent, language and religion with the Persians, and in secular history preceded their appearance by some centuries. Like most Aryan nations they were at first divided into small village communities each governed by its own chiefs (called in Assyrian chazanati by Assur-bani-pal: compare Herod. i.96). Shalmaneser II mentions them (Nimrod Obelisk, i.121) about 840 B.C. They then inhabited the modern A'zarbaijan (Media Atropatene). Rammanu-nirari III of Assyria (Rawlinson, Western Asiatic Inscriptions, I, 35) declares that he (810-781 B.C.) had conquered "the land of the Medes and the land of Parsua" (Persis), as well as other countries. This probably meant only a plundering expedition, as far as Media was concerned. So also Assur-nirari II (Western Asiastic Inscriptions, II, 52) in 749-748 B.C. overran Namri in Southwest Media. Tiglath-pileser IV (in Babylonian called Pulu, the "Pul" of2 Kings 15:19) and Sargon also overran parts of Media. Sargon in 716 B.C. conquered Kisheshin, Kharkhar and other parts of the country. Some of the Israelites were by him transplanted to "the cities of the Medes" (2 Kings 17:6;2 Kings 18:11; the Septuagint reading Ore, cannot be rendered "mountains" of the Medes here) after the fall of Samaria in 722 B.C. It was perhaps owing to the need of being able to resist Assyria that about 720 B.C. the Medes (in part at least) united into a kingdom under Deiokes, according to Herodotus (i.98). Sargon mentions him by the name Dayaukku, and says that he himself captured this prince (715 B.C.) and conquered his territory two years later. After his release, probably, Deiokes fortified Ecbatana (formerly Ellippi) and made it his capital. It has been held by some that Herodotus confounds the Medes here with the Manda (or Umman-Manda, "hosts of the Manda") of the inscriptions; but these were probably Aryan tribes, possibly of Scythian origin, and the names Mada and Manda may be, after all, identical. Esar-haddon in his 2nd year (679-678 B.C.) and Assurbani-pal warred with certain Median tribes, whose power was now growing formidable. They (or the Manda) had conquered Persis and formed a great confederacy. Under Kyaxares (Uvakh-shatara-Deiokes' grandson, according to Herodotus), they besieged Nineveh, but Assur-bani-pal, with the assistance of the Ashguza (? the Ashkenaz ofGenesis 10:3), another Aryan tribe, repelled them. The end of the Assyrian empire came, however, in 606 B.C., when the Manda under their king Iriba-tukte, Mamiti-arsu "lord of the city of the Medes," Kastarit of the Armenian district of Kar-kassi, the Kimmerians (Gimirra = Gomer) under Teushpa (Teispes, Chaishpish), the Minni (Manna; compareJeremiah 51:27), and the Babylonians under Nabu-pal-ucsur, stormed and destroyed Nineveh, as Nabu-nahid informs us. The last king of Assyria, Sin-sar-iskun (Sarakos), perished with his people.
Herodotus says that Deiokes was succeeded by Phraortes (Fravartish) his son, Phraortes by his son Kyaxares; and the latter in turn left his kingdom to his son Astyages whose daughter Mandane married Cambyses, father of the great Cyrus. Yet there was no Median empire (such as he describes) then, or at least it did not embrace all the Aryan tribes of Western Asia, as we see from the inscriptions that in 606 B.C., and even later, many of them were under kings and princes of their own (compareJeremiah 25:25;Jeremiah 51:11). Herodotus tells us they were divided into six tribes, of whom the Magi were one (Herod. i.101). Kyaxares warred for 5 years (590-585 B.C.) with the Lydians, the struggle being ended in May, 585, by the total eclipse of the sun foretold by Thales (Herodotus i.74).
The alliance between the Medes and the Babylonians ended with Nebuchadnezzar's reign. His successor Nabu-nahid (555 B.C.) says that in that year the Medes under Astyages (Ishtuwegu) entered Mesopotamia and besieged Haran. Soon after, however, that dynasty was overthrown; for Cyrus the Persian, whom Nabu-nahid the first time he mentions him styles Astyages' "youthful slave" (ardusu cachru), but who was even then king of Anshan (Anzan), attacked and in 549 B.C. captured Astyages, plundered Ecbatana, and became king of the Medes. Though of Persian descent, Cyrus did not, apparently, begin to reign in Persia till 546 B.C. Henceforth there was no Median empire distinguished from the Persian (nor is any such mentioned in Daniel, in spite of modern fancies). As the Medes were further advanced in civilization and preceded the Persians in sovereignty, the Greek historians generally called the whole nation "the Medes" long after Cyrus' time. Only much later are the Persians spoken of as the predominant partners. Hence, it is a sign of early date that Daniel (8:20) speaks of "Media and Persia," whereas later the Book of Esther reverses the order ("Persia and Media,"Esther 1:3, 14, 18, 19;Esther 10:2), as in the inscriptions of Darius at Behistun. Under Darius I, Phraortes (Fravartish) rebelled, claiming the throne of Media as a descendant of Kyaxares. His cause was so powerfully supported among the Medes that the rebellion was not suppressed till after a fierce struggle. He was finally taken prisoner at Raga (Rai, near Tehran), brutally mutilated, and finally impaled st Ecbatana. After that Median history merges into that of Persia. The history of the Jews in Media is referred to in Daniel and Esther. 1 Maccabees tells something of Media under the Syrian (6:56) and Parthian dominion (14:1-3; compare Josephus, Ant, XX, iii). Medes are last mentioned inActs 2:9. They are remarkable as the first leaders of the Aryan race in its struggle with the Semites for freedom and supremacy.
W. St. Clair Tisdall
Greek
3370. Medos -- a Mede, Median, an inhabitant of Media... of Assyria. Word Origin of foreign origin Definition a Mede, Median, an
inhab. of Media NASB Word Usage
Medes (1). Mede. Of foreign
...Strong's Hebrew
4074. Maday -- a son of Japheth, also his desc. and their land... and their land NASB Word Usage Madai (2),
Medes (5), Media (8), Median
(1). Madai,
Medes, Media. Of foreign derivation; Madai, a
...4076. Maday -- descendant of Japheth, also their land
... 4075, 4076. Maday. 4077 . descendant of Japheth, also their land. Transliteration:
Maday Phonetic Spelling: (maw-dah'-ee) Short Definition:Medes....Medes....
Library
TheMedes and the Second Chaldaean Empire
... CHAPTER III"THEMEDES AND THE SECOND CHALDAEAN EMPIRE. THE FALL OF NINEVEH
AND THE RISE OF THE CHALDAEAN AND MEDIAN EMPIRES"THE...
Concerning the Calamity that Befell Antiochus, King of Commagene....
... Antiochus, King Of Commagene. As Also Concerning The Alans And What Great
Mischiefs They Did To TheMedes And Armenians. 1. And now...
The Power of Assyria at Its Zenith; Esarhaddon and Assur-Bani-Pal
... CHAPTER II"THE POWER OF ASSYRIA AT ITS ZENITH; ESARHADDON AND ASSUR-BANI-PAL. THE
MEDES AND CIMMERIANS: LYDIA"THE CONQUEST OF EGYPT, OP ARABIA, AND OF ELAM....
Cyrus.
... The ram had two horns, because two nations were joined together, theMedes,
who had revolted from Nineveh, and the Persians. The...
Appendix I.
... Appendix I.MEDES AND SCYTHIANS (PP.73, 110). It is very difficult, if
not impossible, to give a correct account of the national...
Daniel in the Lions' Den
... Now, O king, give the command and sign the law that, like the law of theMedes and
Persians, it may not be changed." So King Darius signed the law and the...
Nineveh.
... army came down upon Israel in the year 722, and killing Hoshea, carried off all
the people as captives, settling them in the cities of theMedes, never more to...
The visit to Media.
... deciding such a formidable question by saying that his father was the handsomest
man in Persia, but his grandfather was the handsomest of all theMedes he had...
Hebrew Captives; Or, Mordecai and Esther.
... with the Persians. Both seemed to have become one nation; first theMedes
gaining the ascendancy, and then the Persians. But the...
the Legendary History of Egypt
... there is no opinion or tradition of knowledge among you which is white with age."
Other nations disputed their priority"the Phrygians, theMedes, or rather...
Thesaurus
Medes (15 Occurrences)... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia
MEDES. medz (madhi; Assyrian Amada, Mada;
Achaem. Persian Mada; Medoi (Genesis 10:2 2 Kings 17:6
...Media (14 Occurrences)
... Hebrews Madai, which is rendered in the Authorized Version (1) "Madai," Genesis
10:2; (2) "Medes," 2 Kings 17:6; 18:11; (3) "Media," Esther 1:3; 10:2; Isaiah 21...
Persians (6 Occurrences)
... Chronicles 36:20, 22, 23 Ezra 1:1, 2, 8; Ezra 3:7 Esther 1:19, etc.; Daniel 5:28;
Daniel 6:8, 12, 15, 28), being previously included under theMedes (Genesis 10...
Injunction (8 Occurrences)
... Daniel 6:8 Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it not
be changed, according to the law of theMedes and Persians, which doesn't alter...
Interdict (6 Occurrences)
... Daniel 6:8 Now, O king, establish the interdict, and sign the writing, that it be
not changed, according to the law of theMedes and Persians, which altereth...
Repealed (3 Occurrences)
... Esther 1:19 If it please the king, let a royal commandment go from him, and let
it be written among the laws of the Persians and theMedes, so that it cannot...
Cyrus (20 Occurrences)
... The "first year of Cyrus" (Ezra 1:1) is not the year of his elevation to power over
theMedes, nor over the Persians, nor the year of the fall of Babylon, but...
Persia (30 Occurrences)
... Esther 1:19 If it please the king, let a royal commandment go from him, and let
it be written among the laws of the Persians and theMedes, so that it cannot...
Nineveh (23 Occurrences)
... About BC 633 the Assyrian empire began to show signs of weakness, and Nineveh was
attacked by theMedes, who subsequently, about BC 625, being joined by the...
Japheth (12 Occurrences)
... be questioned that the author [of Genesis 10] has in his account of the sons of
Japheth classed together the Cymry or Celts (Gomer), theMedes (Madai), and the...
Resources
What is the significance of the Medo-Persian Empire in biblical history? | GotQuestions.orgWhen and how was Nineveh destroyed? | GotQuestions.orgWhat role does Iran play in the end times? | GotQuestions.orgBible Concordance •
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