Well, I will start by contrasting Cruelization and Civilization. (Yes, I made up a word.) As I have studied the ancient empires of the Hittites, Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon then added in Persia, Greece, and Rome I really had to think about our modern term “civil”.
Yes, these empires have contributed to modern society. But have we put on rose-colored glasses because of these contributions and ignored why they were able to pass these contributions on? They were not “civil” in their “ization” of their contemporaries. Archaeology has found evidence of trade and the exchange of ideas and information in the Levant before the Assyrians. That is when Egypt and the Hittites were battling each other. Bullies, however, will be bullies and it was not limited to major empires; Abram faced that problem when he rescued Lot in Genesis 14. Elam is specifically mentioned in the bully group.
These empires not only battled each other; they learned from each other. (Who you listen to or read may spin things slightly different.) Egypt and the Hittites along with the lower Tigris and Euphrates River region seem to be the first major players in building societies. An unknown group referred to as the Sea People showed up from the west and plunged the Levant into a dark age; cities were destroyed, trade ended, and art-work stopped. Assyria rose up to fill the vacuum; they used iron/steel to make weapons (from the Hittites) and rose to great power. They also started a full-time army that did not have to go and gather crops. Add in writing on tablets, efficient routes of communication within the empire, and a consistent administration of the kingdom, Assyria forced themselves on the region. They took what they wanted by demanding tribute or they just wiped cities and people groups off of the map. They also practiced wholesale movement of conquered peoples to new areas, that type of slavery wiped out national identity. Besides taking what they wanted from you it also gave them control of trade from the east to the Mediterranean.
My Point of View
God made this world for His purposes. Adam and Eve messed that up. Even with our freewill, God has directed HIStory for His purpose. He gave us the Hebrew/Jewish people and His Word to give us insight into that plan. The rise and fall of these great empires should be proof of that and His timing.
Most of the experts I have watched or read acknowledge parts of the Bible and use it when it suits their purpose. The Prophets that reference these empires and especially Assyria are noted and sometimes agreed with on their historical facts. Many experts love to try and find things to disprove the Bible that is being sighted as fact. The timeline seems to be a favorite attack point; assign different dates that make it seem that the prophets are not telling what is to come but what has happened. Ground Number 2 in the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13) seems to fit many of them.
A Case in Point
Sennacherib (2 Chronicles 32, 2 Kings 18,19,20:20, and Isaiah 36+37, his Nineveh is also in Jonah) is a good study. He would have made a good poster child for socialist dictators. He built up his three major cities, even diverting a river to water his gardens and lake, with high walls and giant palaces. If he did not get what he wanted he went and took it. On one such excursion to Sidon and Tyre he kept going to Israel. His first stop was Lachish. He was so proud of the destruction it went on his palace walls in Nineveh. That relief shows whole families being carted off and people impaled on stakes. Archaeology attest to the devastation from the siege. (A moment of comparison. Vlad the Impaler/Dracula also put people on stakes, but Sennacherib has a better reputation. In Romania, Vlad is a national hero.)
The rescue of Jerusalem is documented by non-Bible sources, so his attitude and boasting did not help when he insulted God. It took several years but his sons did kill him. When the Assyrian Empire fell to the Medes it was not pretty or nice; bodies were left (and found) at the city gates were the warriors fell. No one moved them or buried them, no one was left, sand storms and time did the work.
Micah 1:13 is about Lachish. She was a source of sin for Daughter Zion. She is also mentioned again when Babylon invaded Judah.
God Used Assyria
It may seem strange to say Assyria was enemy of Israel and that God used them. God wanted a righteous relationship with Israel and still does. When you read through the “Prophets” it is easy to see that many in Israel was not following the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They would obey the call to follow God for awhile and then go back to worshipping the demon gods of the countries they interacted with. The northern Tribes had even made their own gods and priest. You have to wonder if they kept any part of the Law of Moses. God sent many prophets to warn them and bring them back. When they refused, He had Assyria take them away from His Land and out of His sight (Isaiah 8). Sennacherib did some of this in the attack of Judah, especially Lachish. Isaiah 10:5-19 talks about Assyria and their punishment for going overboard on attacking nations.
Much of the “sin” Judah did was in the time of Assyria. These sins had finally reached the breakpoint under Babylon. Babylon beat Assyria and Egypt and inherited Judah; they carried out the punishment on them when Jerusalem was destroyed. Christians, we need to wake up and not do what ancient Judah did, God wants us to have a righteous relationship with Him.
Mark's Bible Study 