Incwadi Ongayethemba—Ingxenye 4

AMANXIWA ezigodlo namathuna asebukhosini amane anikeza amazwibela obukhazikhazi, amandla nengcebo yombuso wasendulo ombaxambili wamaMede namaPheresiya. Ngaphambi kokuba le mibuso emibili ibumbane, amaMede kwakuyiwona mbuso okhonyayo. Kodwa ngo-550 B.C.E., amaMede aba ngaphansi kokulawula kwenkosi yasePheresiya uKoresi II, owabe eseba inkosi yombuso wamaMede namaPheresiya. Njengoba usendaweni esenyakatho nePersian Gulf, lo mbuso omkhulu wagcina usuqala oLwandle lwase-Aegean uye eGibhithe uze uyofinyelela enyakatho-ntshonalanga yeNdiya futhi wawuhlanganisa nezwe lakwaJuda.

AmaMede namaPheresiya abusa izwe lakwaJuda iminyaka engaphezu kwengu-200—kusukela ekugumbuqelweni kweBhabhiloni ngo-539 B.C.E. kwaze kwaba yilapho amaMede namaPheresiya enqotshwa amaGreki ngo-331 B.C.E. Izincwadi eziningana zeBhayibheli zikhuluma ngezenzakalo eziphawulekayo ezenzeka phakathi naleso sikhathi.

IBhayibheli lisitshela ukuthi iNkosi uKoresi II yakhulula amaJuda ayeyizithunjwa eBhabhiloni, yawavumela ukuba abuyele eJerusalema ayokwakha kabusha ithempeli likaNkulunkulu elalibhidlizwe abaseBhabhiloni ngo-607 B.C.E. (Ezra 1:1-7; 6:3-5) Kunombhalo wobumba ofakazela lokhu okuthiwa uMbhalo kaKoresi, owatholakala emanxiweni aseBhabhiloni lasendulo ngo-1879. Lo mbhalo ubiza uKoresi ngegama futhi uchaze nenqubo yakhe yokubuyisela abantu ababekade bethunjiwe nezinto ababezikhulekela emazweni abo endabuko. Umlobi weBhayibheli u-Isaya waloba amazwi kaJehova ayisiprofetho ngokuphathelene noKoresi: “‘Uyokufeza konke engikujabulelayo’; ngisho nangokusho kwami ngeJerusalema ukuthi, ‘Lizokwakhiwa kabusha,’ nangethempeli ukuthi, ‘Siyobekwa isisekelo sakho.’”—Isaya 44:28.

Empeleni, uKoresi wayala ukuba imali yokuvuselela ithempeli ‘ithathwe endlini yenkosi,’ kusho u-Ezra 6:3, 4. Lo mbiko omangalisayo uyavumelana nomlando wezwe. “Kwakuyinqubo engaguquki yamakhosi asePheresiya ukusiza ekuvuseleleni izindawo zokukhulekela embusweni wawo,” kusho incwadi ethi Persia and the Bible.

IBhayibheli lisitshela ukuthi ngokuhamba kwesikhathi abaphikisi bamaJuda babhalela uDariyu Omkhulu (obizwa nangokuthi uDariyu I) bemangalela amaJuda ngokusho kwawo ukuthi uKoresi wayegunyaze ukuvuselelwa kwethempeli. UDariyu wayala ukuba kufunwe umbhalo wokuqala owawunalo myalo. Waba yini umphumela? Umqulu owawunomyalo kaKoresi watholakala e-Akimetha, inhloko-dolobha. Esabela kulokhu, uDariyu wabhala: “Mina, Dariyu, ngikhipha umyalo. Mawenziwe [umsebenzi wokwakha kabusha ithempeli] ngokushesha.” Kwabe sekunqamuka-ke ukuphikiswa komsebenzi.a—Ezra 6:2, 7, 12, 13.

Umlando wezwe uyayisekela le mininingwane. Okokuqala, i-Akimetha kwakuyindawo uKoresi ayehlala kuyo ehlobo, futhi kungenzeka wawukhipha elapho lo myalo. Okunye ukuthi, imivubukulo ibonisa ukuthi amakhosi amaMede namaPheresiya ayenesithakazelo esikhulu ezindabeni zenkolo ngaphansi kombuso wawo futhi abhala izincwadi zokuxazulula izingxabano.

Ephusheni eliphefumulelwe ngokwaphezulu, umprofethi uDaniyeli wabona izilo ezine ziphuma ngokulandelana olwandle, ngasinye simelela imibuso yomhlaba eyayizolandelana. Isilo sokuqala, ibhubesi elinamaphiko, lalimelela iBhabhiloni. Esesibili ‘sasifana nebhere.’ Ukulandisa kuyaqhubeka: “Yilokhu okwakushiwo kuso, ‘Vuka, udle inyama eningi.’” (Daniyeli 7:5) Ibhere elesabekayo lalimelela amaMede namaPheresiya.

Ngokuvumelana nesiprofetho sikaDaniyeli, amaMede namaPheresiya abonisa iphango elinganeliseki lokunqoba. Ngemva nje kokuba uDaniyeli ebone umbono, uKoresi wanqoba amaMede wabe esephonsela iLidiya neBhabhiloni inselele. Indodana yakhe uCambyses II yanqoba iGibhithe. Kamuva ababusi bamaMede namaPheresiya bawunweba ngokwengeziwe umbuso.

Singaqiniseka kanjani ngale ncazelo? Embonweni ohlukile kodwa ohlobene nalo, uDaniyeli wabona inqama “iqhubukushela ngasentshonalanga nangasenyakatho nangaseningizimu.” Lesi siprofetho sagcwaliseka lapho amaMede namaPheresiya ‘eqhubukusha’ ezinye izizwe, kuhlanganise neBhabhiloni. Ingelosi kaNkulunkulu yawuchaza lo mbono, yathi kuDaniyeli: “Inqama oyibonile enezimpondo ezimbili imelela amakhosi aseMediya nasePheresiya.”—Daniyeli 8:3, 4, 20.

Ngaphezu kwalokho, kusasele iminyaka engamakhulu amabili ngaphambi kokunqotshwa kweBhabhiloni, umprofethi u-Isaya wabikezela negama lenkosi yasePheresiya enqobayo—eyayingakazalwa ngaleso sikhathi—washo nokuthi yayiyosebenzisa yiphi indlela ekunqobeni iBhabhiloni. Wabhala: “Yilokhu uJehova akushilo kogcotshiweyo wakhe, kuKoresi, osandla sakhe sokunene engisibambile, ukuze nginqobe phambi kwakhe izizwe, . . . ukuze ngivule phambi kwakhe iminyango enezicabha ezimbili, kangangokuthi ngisho namasango ngeke avalwe.” (Isaya 45:1) Bobabili u-Isaya noJeremiya babikezela ukuthi “imifula” yaseBhabhiloni noma imiselekazi eyayithelelwa uMfula i-Ewufrathe owawuyisivikelo, yayizokusha. (Isaya 44:27; Jeremiya 50:38) Izazi-mlando ezingamaGreki uHerodotus noXenophon ziyakufakazela ukunemba kwesiprofetho seBhayibheli, kuhlanganise nokuthi abaseBhabhiloni babezitika edilini ngabo kanye ubusuku uKoresi anqoba ngabo umuzi. (Isaya 21:5, 9; Daniyeli 5:1-4, 30) Ngemva kokuba ephambukise uMfula i-Ewufrathe, amabutho kaKoresi angena emzini ngamasango ayevulekile angasemfuleni, ngaphandle kweziphazamiso ezingako. Ngobusuku obubodwa, iBhabhiloni elinamandla lawa!

Lesi senzakalo saholela ekugcwalisekeni okumangalisayo kwesinye futhi isiprofetho. Ngaphambili, uJeremiya wayebikezele ukuthi abantu bakaNkulunkulu babezodingiselwa eBhabhiloni iminyaka engu-70. (Jeremiya 25:11, 12; 29:10) Leso siprofetho sagcwaliseka ngaso kanye isikhathi esifanele, futhi ababethunjiwe bavunyelwa ukubuyela ezweni labo.

Ngemva nje kokuba amaMede namaPheresiya enqobe iBhabhiloni, uDaniyeli waloba isiprofetho esisisiza siqonde isenzakalo esibaluleke kakhulu ekugcwalisekeni kwenjongo kaNkulunkulu ngesintu. Ingelosi uGabriyeli yamtshela ngokuqondile uDaniyeli ukuthi uMesiya—‘inzalo’ ethenjisiwe kuGenesise 3:15—wayezovela nini! Ingelosi kaNkulunkulu yathi: “Kusukela ekuphumeni kwezwi lokuba kubuyiselwe futhi kwakhiwe kabusha iJerusalema kuze kufike uMesiya uMholi, kuyoba ngamasonto ayisikhombisa, namasonto angamashumi ayisithupha nambili,” ingqikithi yamasonto angu-69. (Daniyeli 9:25) Yaqala nini le nkathi engokwesiprofetho?

Nakuba uKoresi avumela amaJuda ukuba abuyele ezweni lawo ngokushesha ngemva kokuwa kweBhabhiloni, eminyakeni eminingi kamuva iJerusalema nezindonga zalo kwakuseyincithakalo. Ngo-455 B.C.E., iNkosi u-Aritahishashita yanika umphathi-ndebe wayo uNehemiya imvume yokubuyela eJerusalema nokuhola emsebenzini wokwakha kabusha. (Nehemiya 2:1-6) Lokhu kwaba ukuqala kwamasonto angu-69.

Nokho, amasonto ayisikhombisa kwakungewona amasonto angokoqobo akhiwa izinsuku eziyisikhombisa kodwa kwakungamasonto eminyaka. Empeleni ezinye izinguqulo zeBhayibheli zihumusha inkulumo ethi “amasonto” ngokuthi “amasonto eminyaka.”b (Daniyeli 9:24, 25) UMesiya wayeyovela ngemva ‘kwamasonto’ angu-69 akhiwa iminyaka engu-7 isonto ngalinye—okuyiminyaka engu-483 isiyonke. Lesi siprofetho sagcwaliseka ngo-29 C.E. ngenkathi uJesu ebhapathizwa, khona kanye emva kweminyaka engu-483 kusukela ku-455 B.C.E.c

Ukugcwaliseka okunembile kwesiprofetho sikaDaniyeli kunezela ebufakazini obuningi obuqinisekisa ukuthi uJesu unguMesiya. Lobu bufakazi buqinisekisa nethemba lethu ngekusasa. NjengeNkosi yoMbuso kaNkulunkulu wasezulwini, uJesu uyoqeda ukubusa komuntu okunokhahlo. Ngemva kwalokho, uyogcwalisa nezinye iziprofetho zeBhayibheli eziningi, kuhlanganise nalezo ezikhuluma ngokuvuselwa kwabafile ekuphileni okungapheli ePharadesi emhlabeni.—Daniyeli 12:2; Johane 5:28, 29; IsAmbulo 21:3-5.