The Babylonian exile in the sixth century B.C. was preceded by earlier deportations beginning in the eighth century by the Assyrians from both Israel and Judah. Deportation began with Tiglath-pileser III, who attacked Damascus and Galilee in 732 (2 Ki 15:29), carrying off at least 13,520 people to Assyria. Then Shalmaneser V and Sargon II besieged Samaria in 722 (2 Ki 17:6; 18:10). Sargon boasted that he carried off 27,290 (or 27,280) persons from Israel, replacing them with various other peoples from Mesopotamia and Syria.
Whereas Israel's population in the late eighth century B.C. has been estimated at 500,000 to 700,000, Judah's population in the eighth-to-sixth centuries has been estimated at between 220,000 and 300,000. Jerusalem's population likely was swelled by refugees from the north when Samaria fell in 722. At the time of Nehemiah, however, the city had contracted to 6,000 persons. Judah had escaped the attacks of Tiglath-pileser III when Azariah (Uzziah) paid tribute to the king, though Gezer was captured. But when Sennacherib attacked Judah in 701 B.C., he deported numerous Jews, especially from Lachish. His annals claim that he deported 200,150 from Judah, but this may be an error for 2,150.
The biblical references to the numbers deported by the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar are incomplete and somewhat confusing, giving rise to conflicting interpretations as to the actual number of Judeans deported. Until 1956 we had no extra-biblical evidence to confirm the attack on Judah in Nebuchadnezzar's first year. Either in that year or soon after, Daniel and his companions were carried off to Babylon.
In 597 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar carried off "all the officers and fighting men, and all the craftsmen and artisans - a total of ten thousand" (2 Ki 24:14). According to v. 16, "the king of Babylon also deported to Babylon the entire force of seven thousand fighting men . . . and a thousand craftsmen and artisans." If these figures represent only the heads of households, the total may have been closer to thirty thousand. On the other hand, Jeremiah enumerates for 597 B.C. but 3,023 captives (Jer 52:28) and for 586 only 832 captives from Jerusalem (v. 29). In 582, after the murder of Gedaliah, 745 were deported, for a grand total of 4,600 (v. 30). The smaller figures of Jeremiah probably represent only men of the most important families. Depending on one's estimate of the numbers deported and the number of returning exiles, we have widely varying estimates for the population of post-exilic Judah. An estimate of 150,000 is probably correct.
An important difference between the deportations by the Babylonians and by the Assyrians is that the Babylonians did not replace the deportees with pagan newcomers. Thus Judah, though devastated, was not contaminated with polytheism to the same degree as was Israel.
According to the biblical record, the Babylonian armies smashed Jerusalem's defenses (2 Ki 25:10), destroyed the temple and palaces (2 Ki 25:9, 13-17; Jer 52:13, 17-23), and devastated the countryside (Jer 32:43), killing many of the leaders and priests (2 Ki 25:18-21). The severity of the Babylonian devastation has been amply confirmed by archaeology, evidences of which have been uncovered at such places as Beth-Shemesh, Eglon, En Gedi, Gibeah, and Jerusalem. Thousands must have died in battle or of starvation (La 2:11-22; 4:9-10). After the deportations only the poor of the land - the vine-growers and farmers - were left (2 Ki 25:12; Jer 39:10; 40:7; 52:16), occupying the vacant lands (Jer 6:12; see comment on Ezr 4:4). A few refugees who fled to different areas drifted back (Jer 40:11-12). For the next fifty years these people eked out a precarious existence under the Babylonian yoke (La 5:2-5), subjected to ill treatment and forced labor (vv. 11-13).
During this time some limited forms of worship were continued in the ruined area of the temple (Jer 41:5). The Scriptures themselves pass over developments in Palestine and stress the contribution of the returning exiles from Babylonia.
In light of the fact that the intellectual and spiritual leaders were the ones who were deported, the Scriptures must reflect the historical situation. Judging from earlier Assyrian reliefs and texts, the men were probably marched in chains, with women and children bearing sacks of their bare possessions on wagons as they made their way to Mesopotamia. The exiled Judean king, Jehoiachin, was maintained at the Babylonian court and provided with rations (2 Ki 25:29-30).
After several years of hardship, the exiles made adjustments and even prospered (Jer 29:4-5). They were settled in various communities - e.g., on the river Kebar near Nippur, sixty miles southeast of Babylon (Eze 1:1-3; cf. Ezr 2:59-Ne 7:61). When the exiles returned, they brought with them numerous servants and animals and were able to make contributions for the sacred services (Ezr 2:65-69; 8:26; Ne 7:67-72).
With the birth of a second and a third generation, many Jews established roots in Mesopotamia and wanted to remain there. The spiritual life of the Jewish community in Mesopotamia is documented by Ezekiel, who was in exile either after 597 or 586. Ezekiel 8:1 refers to the prophet "sitting in my house and the elders of Judah were sitting before me" (cf. Eze 3:15; 14:1 20:1; 24:18; 33:30-33). Deprived of the temple, the exiles laid great stress on the observation of the Sabbath, on the laws of purity, and on prayer and fasting. It has often been suggested that the development of synagogues began in Mesopotamia during the Exile (but see Ne 8:18). The trials of the Exile purified and strengthened the faith of the Jews and cured them of idolatry.
The exiles who chose to return to Judah found their territory much diminished. The tiny enclave of Judah was surrounded by antagonistic neighbors. North of Bethel was the province of Samaria. South of Beth-Zur, Judean territory had been overrun by Idumaeans (cf. on Ezr 2:22-35). The eastern boundary followed the Jordan River, and the western boundary the Shephelah (low hills). The Philistine coast had been apportioned to Phoenician settlers. The Persians did make Judah an autonomous province with the right to mint its own coins.
Purpose and Values
Ezra and Nehemiah record the return of the Jewish exiles from Babylonia and the rebuilding of the temple and the walls around Jerusalem. These accounts highlight the importance of the temple and its personnel. Of vital importance were the attempts to keep the community pure from the syncretistic influence of the neighbors who surrounded it. In some cases Jewish communities compromised and were assimilated out of existence, as at Elephantine in Egypt. The measures taken by Ezra and Nehemiah to safeguard the Jews from commingling with non-Jews may appear harsh to modern society, but in the light of history they were necessary.
