Lexical Definition

‎פָּרַס‎ Pâraç (paw-ras') Persia ^N:N--L
of foreign origin

Persia, Persians.

• § Persian = see Persia "pure" or "splendid"
• Paras (i.e. Persia), an Eastern country, including its inhabitants

1) the empire Persia; encompassed the territory from India on the east to Egypt and Thrace on the west, and included, besides portions of Europe and Africa, the whole of western Asia between the Black Sea, the Caucasus, the Caspian and the Jaxartes on the north, the Arabian desert, the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean on the south
1a) Persia proper was bounded on the west by Susiana or Elam, on the north by Media, on the south by the Persian Gulf and on the east by Carmania
2) the people of the Persian empire

Extended Information

• Persia proper was bounded on the west by Susiana or Elam, on the north by Media, on the south by the Persian Gulf and on the east by Carmania
• Persian, of Persia "pure" or "splendid"

Brown-Driver-Briggs

‎פָּרַס‎₂₈ proper name, of a territory Persia, περσῶν (genitive), Dan 11:2 τῇ Περσίδι (ᵐ5 and Θ), 2Chr 36:20 Μήδων (Old Persian Pârsa, Persian, Persia, Spieg^{APK 231}, New Persian , ; Arabic ; — ‎׳‎‎פ‎ 2Chr 36:22 +, ‎פָּרָ֑ס‎ v2Chr 36:20 +; — in late literature, 2Chr 36:20, v2Chr 36:22, 22, 23 = Ezra 1:1 (twice in verse); Ezra 1:2; Dan 10:1 + 11 t. Ezra Daniel + (with ‎מָדַי‎) Esth 1:3; Esth 1:14; Esth 1:18; Esth 1:19; Esth 10:2; Dan 8:20 ‎׳‎‎פ‎ Ezek 27:10; Ezek 38:5 is doubted by Toy (who, Ezek 27:10, reads ‎כּוּשׁ‎, after Gr), but Krae defends.

Brown-Driver-Briggs References

Profile

Persia • An empire that ruled over the exiled Jews

Persia was the empire that conquered Babylon and allowed the exiled Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple.

• A location first mentioned at 2Ch.36.20;
• referred to as Persia or Persian פָּרַס, or Persia or Persian פָּרַס, or Persian (KJV= Apharsite, NIV= Persia) אֲפָרְסַי, or Persian פַּרְסִי, or Persian פַּרְסִי.
  

Persia, also known as the Achaemenid Empire, was a major world power that ruled over a vast territory from the 6th to the 4th centuries BC. In the Bible, Persia is mentioned in the context of the Jewish exile and the subsequent return to Jerusalem. The Babylonian Empire, which had destroyed Jerusalem and taken the Jews into captivity, fell to the Persians under Cyrus the Great (2 Chr. 36:20, 22-23; Ezra 1:1-2). Cyrus issued a decree allowing the exiled Jews to return to their homeland and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem (Ezra 1:1-4). The Persian kings Darius I and Artaxerxes I also played significant roles in supporting the rebuilding efforts (Ezra 4:24; 6:14).

The book of Esther is set in the Persian capital of Susa during the reign of Ahasuerus (Xerxes I), and it describes how Esther, a Jewish woman, became queen and saved her people from a plot to destroy them (Esther 1:3, 14, 18; 10:2). The prophets Ezekiel and Daniel also mention Persia in their visions and prophecies (Ezek. 27:10; 38:5; Dan. 8:20; 10:1, 13, 20; 11:2). Persia is portrayed as a powerful empire that God used to fulfill His purposes for His people, even though the Persians themselves were not followers of the God of Israel.

All entries for Persia: פָּרַס ☩ פָּרַס ☩ אֲפָרְסַי ☩ פַּרְסִי ☩ פַּרְסִי