Brick reliefs of bulls and dragons, referencing Marduk the supreme god of Babylon and facing incoming visitors to protect the city from evils, look on as repairs to a dangerous staircase make the area a safer experience for tourists. The Babylonian Exile (586-538) marks an epochal dividing point in Old Testament history, standing between. How will Babylon, Iraq, be converted to the "Great City" of Revelation 17-18?2. Nevertheless, many theories persisted regarding the structure and location of the gardens. The ancient city of Babylon plays a major role in the Bible, representing a rejection of the One True God. PHOTOGRAPHIC PROOF of Visitors "passing through" Babylon 1. The Code of Hammurabi, one of the earliest recorded laws and punishment, came from Babylon. On the Date that Babylon is Finally Destroyed, for ever-after there will be no more Photographs at Babylon of Inhabitants, Arab Dwellers, Recycled Stones, Trees and Gardens, Shepherds and Sheep, or Visitors. Current plans, detailed in conceptual drawings, will address drainage issues with faades of metal netting and local stones. Damage caused by military occupation is among the many ongoing challenges to the preservation of Babylon, along with illegal encroachments and large crowds of visitors. Are there any signs of Babylon being rebuilt? Although the war significantly reduced tourism in the region, in recent years thousands of Iraqis visit the site each year. 2. https://allisrael.com/five-killed-and-15-wounded-in-alleged-israeli-airstrike-in-syria. So, terribly low oil revenues along with COVID-related lockdowns and travel restrictions flatlined economic growth and caused unemployment to spike. And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the glory of the Chaldeans' pride, Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. For that reason, many Bible students believe that the ancient city of Babylon will be resurrected to power during the Antichrist's end-time, world reign. Iraqi university students on their first visit to Babylon. A new World Monuments Fund (WMF) project in Babylon, funded as part of a $3m donation by the US embassy in Baghdad first bestowed in 2018, aims to repair and restore the famed Ishtar Gate by this summer. He told me he absolutely loved the idea of rebuilding Babylon. Since Babylon reopened in 2009, tourist numbers have fluctuated, said Alice Fordham. Now Iraqi officials are hoping to get back to the ambitious construction and investment plans they were hoping to pursue soon after the country was liberated from Saddam Hussein in the spring of. High poverty. Since 2012, WMF has been working with the Iraq State Board of Antiquities and Heritage to address the Lions presentation and protection. But it's never been listed as a modern World Heritage Site by the United Nations. Babylon-Stones founded and built Hillah, outgrowth city of Babylon. Verse Concepts. According to an About.com article, "Saddam Hussein said that Babylon's great palaces and the legendary hanging gardens of Babylon (one of the seven wonders of the ancient world) would rise from the dust.". This winter normally peak season because of the cool weather the pandemic affected the numbers and about 10,000 came. Back in the late 1970s and early 1980s, however, Saddam Hussein ordered his archaeologists and engineers to begin excavating and rebuilding the city once home to the much-feared King Nebuchadnezzar, who took over most of the known world in his day, conquered Jerusalem, destroyed the nation of Judah, and enslaved the vast majority of Jews in the world at that time. The antiquities are beautiful, said Mr. Juwad, 23, an art student. Yet, in every case, there exists PHOTOGRAPHS. BABYLON'S FINAL FALL Chart: It cannot be shown where a single one of these prophecies has been fulfilled. It has a rich past. All of this coincides exactly with the prophecies of the Old Testament and shows that Babylon must be rebuilt in the Tribulation in order to be destroyed as prophesied in "the Day of the Lord." Nebuchadnezzar II, the most powerful king of the Neo-Babylon Empire, rebuilt Babylon into a magnificent city. No, but the site was once again open to tourists in 2009. Iraqi leaders hope that eventually millions of tourists will come to visit, and real progress is being made. Last fall, the Babylon International Festivalwas held again for the first time in two decades. In 2019, UNESCO designated Babylon as a World Heritage Site. Why is it an "interpretation-imperative" that we quit skipping over the word"Chaldea" ? EDITORS NOTE: These early-stage photographs were not taken in pursuit of a Biblical agenda, but by secular sources-- explorers, archaeologists, and travelers-- with a focus on documenting the Middle East. It will be a place for creatures of the night. JANE ARRAF, BYLINE: Mohaned Ahmed is sponging the bricks around the relief of a dragon with a serpent's head. Now, that mailbox is rusting and abandoned, and police guarding the site have taken over the souvenir shop. A fascinating story is being written in the shifting sands of Arabia. All Arab News This, then, is PHOTOGRAPHIC-PROOF that Babylon has NOT YET met its Final Destruction. Babylon's remains, mounds of mud-brick buildings spread over about 30 square kilometers, are in present-day Iraq, south of Baghdad. As some of its walls crumble, preservationists are fighting to preserve the past. Inside Babylons outer city walls, Iraqs oil ministry is building a metering station for one of the three pipelines that have been laid in recent years. And contrary to all that the Bible says, Armstrong said one of the proofs of the Bible is that the City of Babylon would never be re-built. LEFT: Workers, Inhabitants, Arabs, begin work on excavating the Ishtar Gate in 1902. What's so important about the Code of Hammurabi? Iraq is making a new effort this year. According to the Book of Revelation, the city of Babylon has to be rebuilt once again. They continue to give scholars valuable insight into ancient Mesopotamia and possess immense historical, cultural, and symbolic value. UNESCO has even printed up a snazzy brochure, with Babylon listed as the premier destination, to hand out to wealthy donors.. No. There are still three existing but non-functioning oil pipelines, two of which were built in the 1970s and 80s and the third of which is more recentwork on it was blocked after the SBAH filed a lawsuit in 2012. After years of conflict, although not violence-free, Iraq is safe enough for younger Iraqis who have never seen most of their own country to come to Babylon. ARRAF: You look around and you're surrounded by these 2,500-year-old walls with mythical creatures on them. The year before, many stayed away for fear of being caught up in violence at demonstrations in nearby cities., But some local investors believe in the promise of domestic tourism in places like this that have long been under-visited, she added. The story of Babylon is the ebb and flow of slaughter and mercy, war and peace, a microcosm of human history. Workshops for SBAH members both on- and off-site through WMFs Iraq Cultural Heritage Conservation Initiative helped develop local capacity toward the future preservation of Babylon and sites across Iraq, working with local stakeholders to support their continued stewardship of these treasured places. By July 2019, so much progress had been made that Babylon was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Others think the gardens never existed, as no archaeological evidence has been found, nor was it mentioned in contemporary Babylonian texts. ARRAF: Iraq is awash in archaeological sites. The projects at the Ishtar Gate and Ninmakh Temple, launched in 2016 and 2019 respectively, will be the beneficiaries of the US embassy funding. MAKING THE NEW BABYLON A SHOWCASE OF THE NEW IRAQ. Inhabitants, 4. 3. yet there are PHOTOGRAPHS of Inhabitants at Babylon. With 148 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, Iraq is now the fifthlargest producer of oilin the world. Who are some of the Bible-prophecy experts who expect Literal Babylon to Rise Again for its Final Fall? But it's extraordinary. After a solid sacking by the Parthians in the second century C.E., Babylon never made a comeback. Two millennia of looting and warfare reduced Babylon to the barest of ruins. Is Babylon, Iraq, that "great city" of "Babylon" mentioned 5 times in Revelation 18? Baghdad can therefore be considered the successor to Babylon, though indirectly. The ancient city of Babylon is a World Heritage Site, but it faces threats old and new. Slowly but surely, we are seeing the Bible prophecies regarding Babyloncome to pass. Prophecy scholars are divided in their opinion as to whether or not the city of Babylon will literally be rebuilt again. An Iraqi conservation worker removing a layer of modern clay from a wall of the Ninmakh Temple in Babylon, revealing some of the original 2,500-year-old brick. Will people one day say of Babylon a city that didnt exist for much of the past 2,000 years Where is there another city as great as this? as John predicts in Revelation 18:18? But if Babylon of Chaldea (Iraq) has already met its prophesied Final Fall, then it would be impossible to take a photograph of any inhabitants since that "Fall". Isaiah 13:20. Consider today's edition of Stars & Stripes, a U.S. military publication. After a yearlong delay because of the pandemic, the World Monuments Fund team is back in Babylon, deciding how best to address the damage in places where trying to chisel out the concrete could do still more harm. It was one of the cities founded by King Nimrod, according to Genesis 10:9-10. The local tourist board says the best recent year for Iraqi tourists was 2017, when more than 35,000 visited. Iraqi Jews are believed to have descended from the Jewish community, taken captive to Babilonia. Iraq is making a new effort this year. In February 2021, National Public Radio reportedon the state of tourism in Babylon. Verse Concepts. 1.7K 234K views 15 years ago The New Babylon (Sep 1997) In the sixth century BC, Babylon, was the greatest city in the world. I should acknowledge up front that those who reject the teachings of the Bible understandably have a difficult time imagining a season of peace and prosperity emerging in Iraq. THEREFOREBabylon of Chaldea Must Rise Again. Rev 16:19 - The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. Construction, too, has taken a toll over the years. Today there are 193 members, representing countries from all over the world. Jesus ChristTo Him who loves us, and released us from our sins by His blood, (Revelation 1:5, " And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost." Many historians now believe that the fabled Hanging Gardens of Babylon may actually have been built 300 miles (482 kilometers) away in Nineveh by King Sennacherib of the Assyrian Empire, rather than Nebuchadnezzar. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Skeptics and cynics abound, to be sure, but the fact is Babylon is being rebuilt right now, in part with U.S. taxpayer funds. When we say "Whaaaaaaaaat"!, that is not what my eyes see", we're told "not to believe our lying eyes". As soaring melodies from a concert at the amphitheatre built by Saddam Hussein in the 1980s, on the ruins of a third-century BC foundation, drifted over from the newly revived Babylon festival, the WMF programme director Jeff Allen toldThe Art Newspaper: The project will help usher in new tourism initiatives designed to enhance the visitor experience and help the local economy. The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus was built and rebuilt over the course of many years . It will never be rebuilt. Later, the Persian empire was defeated by Alexander the Great, and the Greeks ruled the earth. Prophecies about Babylon in Jeremiah (and the entire Old Testament) specify "Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans" (Jer 50:1; Isa 13:19, etc.). Dave Roos But many of the bricks are crumbling, and as the water table rises, entire walls are in danger of falling. 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