Nebuchadnezzar

See NEBUCHADREZZAR. NEBUCHADREZZAR (7sx77333, afterwards cor- rupted into Nebuchadnezzar, 738372123, NaBouxodo- νοσόρ, Nabuchodonosor).—The Bab. Nabu-kudurri- uzur (Ὁ Nebo, defend the landmark’), the eldest son of Nabopolassar, and founder of the Bab. empire, who reigned from B.C. 604 to 561. A younger brother of his, Nebo-sum-lisir, is men- tioned in a contract-tablet dated in the reign of Nabopolassar. He seems to have been of Kald& or Chaldzean origin, like Merodach-baladan.

<Ac- cording to Abydenus (Euseb. Chron. i. 9), he married Amuhia the daughter of the ‘ Median’ (i.e. Manda) king. In B.c. 605 he defeated Pharaoh- necho in a great battle at Carchemish (now Jerablfis) on the Euphrates (Jer 467"), and drove the Egyptians out of W. Asia. Bab. power was now established as far as the frontier of Egypt, and the king of Judah became a Bab. vassal. At this moment Nabopolassar died, and Nebuch. was recalled to Babylon, where he was proclaimed king, B.c. 604. Nebuch.

now entered upon an era of wars and building. Of the wars we have hitherto learned but Tittle from the inscriptions, which are filled with accounts of his building operations. Tyre, which had revolted, was be- sieged from the 7th ΤΕΣ of his reign (Jos. c. Ap. i. 21) for 13 years, and apparently captured (but see Ezk 2918; art. BABYLONIA in vol. 1. p. 229, also Expos. Times, 1899, pp. 378, 475, 520). In the 40th year of Nebuch.’s reign (see contract-tablet in RP, new series, iv. 99f.)

, it was full of Bab. officials. After the investment of Tyre, Nebuch. marched against Jerus., where Jehoiakim had also rebelled (2 K 241). Jehoiakim was put to death (according to Jos. Ant. X. vi. 3), and his son Jehoiachin laced on the throne. Three months later he was ΠΡ ΕΤΗ and carried captive to Babylonia, his uncle Zedekiah being appointed king in his place. Zedekiah, however, intrigued with Apries of Egypt, and threw off the Bab. yoke. For the third time, accordingly, Nebuch.

invaded Judah ; the Egyp. army was forced to retreat (Jer 3758), and Jerus. was closely besieged. At the end of two ears (B.C. 586) Jerus. was taken, the palace and ὑπὸ destroyed, and the upper classes carried into exile (2 K 25'"). Zedekiah, who had escaped from the city, was captured near Jericho, and ng the above objection assumes that these compe igns are historical. For a discussion of this point see HGHL, App. TL p. 662. * Any one u brought to Nebuch.

at Riblah, near Hamath, where his eyes were put out, and his sons and chief nobles put to death. Gedaliah, a Jew, was made overnor of Judah, the Babylonian garrison there eing placed under the command of Nebuzaradan (2K 25°), It is to this period that we should probably assign the inscriptions of Nebuchadrezzar which have been found on the bank of the Nahr el-Kelb, north of Beyrout, and in the Wady Brissa, on the road to Hamath. A fragment of his annals informs us that in his 37th year (B.c.

567) he made a campaign against Amasis of Egypt, overrunning a portion of the Delta (see Jer 46!%"8, Ezk 905-30). and defeating the soldiers of ‘ Phut of the Ionians’ (Putu Ydvan). He was succeeded by his son Evil- Merodach in B.c. 561. Babylon, which had been destroyed by Senna- cherib, and rebuilt by Esarhaddon, Necaran one of the wonders of the world under Nebuchadrezzar.

He made it practically impregnable with three lines of wall, the two principal of which were called the Imgur-Bel and the Nimitti-Bel. He also sur- rounded it with a deep moat, and lined the bed of the Euphrates, which passed through the city, with brick, building walls and quays on either side.

He lavished un enormous amount of treasure on the temples of Babylonia and the other cities of Chaldzea ; built a new palace which was completed in ‘fifteen days’; and is said to have erected ‘a hanging garden’ for his ‘Median’ wife. Great canals were dug or reopened throughout Baby- lonia; a huge reservoir was constructed near Sippar for storing the water needed in irrigation ; aad a ort was founded on the shores of the Persian Gulf. ebuch.

gives an account of his architectural works in the India House inscription (translated by Ball, RP, new ser. iii. pp. 102-123). We gather from his inscriptions that he was a man of peculiarly devout and religious character (see Sayce, Religion of the Ancient Babylonians, p. 97). Cf., further, chrader, KAT? 361 ff. [COT ii. 47ff.]; Meyer, Gesch. i, 579, 587ff.; Tiele, Gesch. 410, 421 ff.; Jastrow, Rel. of Bab. and Assyria, 241 ff. A. H. SAYCE.

NEBUSHAZBAN (j2)e23;; LXX omits; Theo- dotion, quoted from the Hexapla in Q™s, has Ναβουσαζαβάν. The writing of the final 1 small, and the substitution of 1 instead in Kennicott’s MSS, is probably due to the desire to mutilate names compounded with those of heathen deities, as exemplified in the name of Abed-nego for Abed-Nedo; compare also Nimrod and Nisroch).

—This official was rub-sarts (=rabd-Sa-résu, ‘ chief captain ’ or ‘ chief of the captains’) at the time of Nebuchadnezzar’s Gy pase of Jerusalem (Jer 39"), To all appearance there were among the officials of the Ba yionian court many who bore the same title, and there is no reason to su therefore, that Ashpenaz (Dn 1) succeeded Nebushazban as rab-sadris—indeed, another oflicial of the same title is mentioned in Jer 39°.

The name Nebushazban occurs in the Assyro-Babylonian inscriptions under the form of Nabi-suzibanni, ‘ Nebo, save me,’ the first time in a list of names penton in WAT ii. 64, col, i. 1. 32, and again in Inschriften von Nabonidus, 161, 1. 6.

This latter text is dated in the 4th year of Nabonidus, that is, 34 years after the capture of Jerusalem ; and although it is not by any means impossible that the personage named may be identical with that mentioned in Jer 39%, it must be assumed, in the absence of any confirmation, that he is a different individual.

The name is uite Babylonian in its form, the first element, Nebu, being the Hebrew reproduction of the divine name Nabi (Nebo, Nebu) found in Nebuchadnezzar and Nebuzaradan (Nabi-zér-iddina). The second * This title, in accordance with the use of an clsowhere ia OT, is generally translated ‘ chief of the " 504 NEBUZARADAN NECO element, §@zib, is the imperative sing. of the Shaper of ézébu, ‘to save,’ the third element being the | pronominal suffix [anJni indicating the Ist person (object).

In all Eset proof could easily be found that the Hebrew form approximates very closely to the popular Babylonian pronunciation, in which the ¢ of Sdzié was probably suppressed (cf. Kurbanni for Kurubanni). G. PINCHES. NEBUZARADAN (rxqnr}, Νεβουζαρδάν, Bab. Nabu-zira-iddina, ‘Nebo has given a seed’), a name which is by no means uncommon in the contract- tablets. e commanded Nebuchadnezzar’s body- guard, and, after the fall of Jerus.

, was entrusted with the work of carrying out the wishes and policy of his master (2 K 255, 3), He selected the captives, and brought the leading supporters of Zedekiah to Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah ‘ive years later he was again sent to Palestine, and carried away from it into exile 745 persons (Jer 52”). This was after the murder of Gedaliah. A. H. SAYCE.