Jews in the Persian Empire and the Achaemenid period

Under the Achaemenid Persian Empire, the Jews exiled in Babylon experienced a major turning point in their history. According to biblical tradition and the edict attributed to Cyrus the Great, the exiles were permitted to return to Judea and rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem, completed during the reign of Darius. The books of Ezra and Nehemiah recount this restoration of religious life and the community of Judea, marked by the rebuilding of the walls and the promulgation of the Law. The book of Esther sets its narrative at the Persian court and establishes the festival of Purim. A significant Jewish community moreover remained in the Babylonian and Persian orbit, laying the foundations of the great eastern diaspora that would play a decisive role in the centuries to come.

Sources & resources

• Encyclopaedia Judaica — 2e éd., Keter/Macmillan
• Sefaria ↗