Protos

Where is Babylon in the Bible?

Babylon, also known as Babel, was an ancient city located in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) along the Euphrates River. It served as the capital of the Babylonian Empire, one of the most powerful empires in the ancient Near East. Babylon appears in 241 verses across 18 books of the Bible.

Lion in glazed brick on wall of the Processional Way leading to the Ishtar Gate of Babylon (Nebuchadnezzar II)
Lion in glazed brick on wall of the Processional Way leading to the Ishtar Gate of Babylon (Nebuchadnezzar II) · Carole Raddato from FRANKFURT, Germany, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

What happened at Babylon?

Babylon, also known as Babel, was an ancient city located in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) along the Euphrates River. It served as the capital of the Babylonian Empire, one of the most powerful empires in the ancient Near East. The city first appears in the Bible in Genesis 10:10 as part of Nimrod's kingdom and is identified as the location of the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:9). Throughout the Old Testament, Babylon is mentioned as a major political and military power, often in conflict with Israel and Judah. The city became the dominant power in the region under King Nebuchadnezzar II, who conquered Judah, destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple, and exiled many Jews to Babylon (2Kings 24-25; 2Chronicles 36). The Babylonian captivity lasted for 70 years, as prophesied by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 25:11; 29:10). Several Old Testament prophets, including Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, prophesied against Babylon, foretelling its eventual downfall (Isaiah 13-14; Jeremiah 50-51; Ezekiel 26-32). In these prophecies, Babylon is sometimes referred to by other names, such as Sheshak (Jeremiah 25:26; 51:41), Merathaim (Jeremiah 50:21), and Pekod (Jeremiah 50:21; Ezk.23.23), which are believed to be code names or references to specific regions within the Babylonian Empire. After the Persians conquered Babylon in 539 BC, the city gradually declined in importance. In the New Testament, Babylon is used symbolically to represent worldly power and opposition to God (Revelation 14:8; 16:19; 17:5; 18:2, 10, 21).

Definition text: STEPBible · Tyndale House Cambridge. Licensed CC BY 4.0. Lightly edited for length and formatting.

Compiled by Protos: the verse list on this page. Where one name belongs to more than one person or place, each of them gets a separate entry.

Where does Babylon appear in the Bible?

Babylon is referenced in 241 verses across 18 books. Every passage below is about this one, not just every verse the word turns up in.

Jeremiah 1332 Kings 28Daniel 15Isaiah 13Ezekiel 12Ezra 122 Chronicles 7Revelation 6Matthew 3Psalms 3Nehemiah 21 Chronicles 1

Showing the first 24 of 241.

Open all 241 references in Protos

What else appears in these passages?

These turn up in the same passages as Babylon.

NebuchadnezzarJerusalemChaldeansZedekiahLORDJeremiah

Common questions

How many times does the Bible mention Babylon?

Babylon appears in 241 verses across 18 books, most often in Jeremiah, which accounts for 133 of them.

Which books of the Bible mention Babylon?

Jeremiah, 2 Kings, Daniel, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Ezra, 2 Chronicles, Revelation, and 10 more.

Where can I read every verse about Babylon?

This page lists 24 of them. Protos carries all 241, and opens this entry on the verse you are reading rather than in a separate tab.

Read it in context

Read Jeremiah with Babylon explained on the verse.

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