highest glory under Nebuchadrezzar, the conqueror of Judah--all these
are described in the inscriptions, or, at least, illuminated by them.
{141} In a similar way the inscriptions, though not mentioning the
Jewish exiles in Babylonia, illuminate the biblical records in many
respects. Fortunately, also, the inscriptions furnish a good idea of
the events leading to the downfall of Babylon, which resulted in the
restoration of many exiles to Judah; and the restoration itself assumes
a new significance in the light of the inscriptions; for the permission
to return granted by Cyrus to the Jews is seen to be in accord with the
general policy of the conqueror to secure the good-will of the peoples
deported by the Babylonians by restoring them to their own homes. The
historical situation of the age may suggest another reason for the
kindly treatment of the Jews. It was inevitable that sooner or later
Cyrus, or his successors, should come into conflict with Egypt. At
such time it would be of immense value to him to have near the border
of Egypt a nation upon whose fidelity and gratitude he could rely.
Archaeology has not thrown any direct light on the condition of the
Jews in Palestine under the Persian rule. On the other hand, we know a
great deal about conditions in Babylonia during that period, and within
the past decade several important documents written on papyrus have
been found in Egypt which furnish indisputable evidence that the island
of Elephantine, opposite Assuan, a short distance north of the first
cataract {142} of the Nile, was the seat of a Jewish colony at least as
early as the reign of Cambyses, king of Persia (B.C. 529-521).[16]

This concludes the survey of the archaeological material of a historical
nature. It is seen that during the period from the division of the
kingdom subsequent to the death of Solomon to the reestablishment of
the Jews in Palestine after the exile the inscriptions furnish most
interesting and instructive illustrations of events mentioned or
alluded to in the Old Testament. As a result the history and also the
prophecy of the Old Testament have been removed from the isolated
position in which they previously seemed to stand. They are now seen
to be connected by many links with the great movements taking place in
the world without.

The question as to the bearing of the archaeological historical records
on the historical records of the Old Testament remains to be
considered.