And when He made clear - glorified and exalted is He - that He is capable of humiliating the mighty after the greatness of his might; He made clear that He is able to bring him low after a long period of his humiliation; if He purifies him from his filth; and refines him from his sins; He said (exalted is He) - indicating by the tool of delay the greatness of this lowering; by breaking it from the usual patterns -: ﴿Then We returned﴾; meaning: by what We have of greatness; and He hastened for them the glad tidings; by His saying (exalted is He): ﴿For you﴾; meaning: specifically; ﴿the return﴾; meaning: the return; and the greatness; and He made clear that this is with the might; by His saying - glorified and exalted is He -: ﴿Upon them﴾; some of the interpreters said: in the time of David - peace be upon him - ﴿And We aided you﴾; meaning: We supported you; (p-311) by Our greatness; ﴿with wealth﴾; that you may use to fight your enemies; ﴿and sons﴾; meaning: you are strengthened by them; ﴿and We made you﴾; meaning: by Our greatness; ﴿more﴾; meaning: than your enemy; ﴿a multitude﴾; meaning: people who will march with you; if you call upon them for battle; and similar important matters; and it appears that what is meant here this time is not what was at the hands of David - peace be upon him -; because Allah says - in this second instance -: ﴿And let them enter the mosque as they entered it the first time﴾ [Al-Isra: 7] and David - peace be upon him - established the mosque and did not complete it; rather, it was completed by his son Solomon - peace be upon them both; and what misled those who said that is that the Children of Israel were oppressed before David - peace be upon him - by the Philistines; and others; then their deliverance was at his hands - peace be upon him - as was indicated in Surah Al-Baqarah; He said - in the Psalms; in the thirteenth psalm -: (Who will give Zion salvation for Israel? When the Lord restores the captivity of His people, Jacob will rejoice; and Israel will be glad); and in the forty-third: (O Allah; indeed we have heard with our ears; (p-312) and our fathers have told us of the deeds that You did in their days of old; so let us glorify You, O our God, every day; and let us thank Your name forever; now You have made us weak; and have cast us away; and You were not, O Lord, accompanying our armies; but You have returned us on our heels from our enemies; and our haters have seized us; You have made us a prey like sheep; You have spread us among the nations; You have sold Your people for no price; You have diminished their number; You have made us a reproach among our neighbors; a laughingstock and a jest for those around us; we have become a byword among the nations; and a shaking of the heads among the peoples; my sorrow is before me all day long; shame has covered my face; from the sound of the reviler; O Allah; indeed all this has befallen us and we have not forgotten Your name; nor have we broken Your covenant; nor have we turned our hearts away from You; You have turned our intention away from Your paths; You have brought us to desolate places; You have covered us with the shadows of death; and we have not forgotten You, O Lord); and He said - in the seventy-eighth psalm; and the one after it -: (O Allah; indeed the nations have entered Your inheritance and have defiled Your holy temple; they have made Jerusalem a heap like a watchtower; and have made the corpses of Your servants (p-313) food for the birds of the sky; and the flesh of Your saints for the beasts of the earth; they have shed their blood like water around Jerusalem; and there is no one to bury them; we have become a reproach to our neighbors; a laughingstock and a jest for those around us; how long, O Lord, will You be angry? Your wrath burns like fire forever; pour out Your rage upon the nations that do not know You; and upon the kingdoms that do not call upon Your name; for they have devoured Jacob and laid waste his dwelling; do not remember our former sins; but let Your mercy come quickly upon us; for we have become very weak; be our helper, O our God and Savior; and we will glorify Your name, O Lord; save us and forgive our sins; for the sake of Your glorious name; lest the nations say: Where is their God? At that time the peoples will know and our eyes will see the vengeance for the blood of Your slain servants; and let the sighing of the captives come before You; and like the greatness of Your arm, save Your slain children; repay our neighbors in their bosom sevenfold; for the reproach with which they have reproached You, O Lord! We are Your people; and the sheep of Your pasture; we thank You forever; and we declare Your praises from generation to generation; listen, O Shepherd of (p-314) Israel, who guided Joseph like a lamb; look, O You who sits upon the cherubim; manifest Yourself before Ephraim and Benjamin; and Manasseh; and show Your might; and come to our rescue; O Allah; come and shine Your face upon us; and save us; O Allah, our Lord, the Mighty; how long will You be angry at the prayer of Your servants; and feed them bread with their tears; and give them drink in full measure of tears; You have made us a reproach to our neighbors; and our enemies have mocked us; O Allah, Lord of hosts; come to us and shine Your face upon us and save us; You brought the vine out of Egypt; You drove out the nations; and planted it; You made a way before it; You established its roots; the earth was filled with it; its shadow covered the mountains and its branches upon the cedars of Allah; likewise its roots extended to the sea; and to the rivers its shoots; then indeed You broke down its fence; and all who pass by plucked it up; the wild boar has ravaged it; and the beasts of the field have fed upon it; O Allah, Lord of hosts; have mercy upon us; and look from heaven; and see and tend to this vine; and repair the planting which Your right hand has planted and the son of man whom You have strengthened; and let those who have burned it with fire perish by Your wrath; and let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand and upon the son of man; whom (p-315) You have chosen for Yourself; do not draw us away from You; and save us that we may glorify Your name; O Allah, Lord of hosts; have mercy upon us and shine Your face upon us; and save us); and in the eighty-fourth: (You were pleased, O Lord, with Your land; and You restored the captivity of Jacob; You forgave the sins of Your people; You covered all their transgressions; You calmed all Your wrath; and You turned away the fierceness of Your anger); and in the eighty-eighth: (Holy is Israel; our King by revelation; You spoke to Your prophet; and said: Indeed, I have made a helper for the strong; I have raised a chosen one from My people; and I found David My servant; I anointed him with the oil of My holiness; My hand helped him; and My arm strengthened him; his enemy will not harm him; and the son of iniquity will not humiliate him; and I cut off his enemies from before him; and to those who angered him, I subdued; My faithfulness and My mercy are with him; and in My name his horn will be exalted; I made a way for him in the seas; and in the rivers his right hand; he calls upon Me: You are my Father and my God; my helper; and my salvation; and I will make him the firstborn, the highest of all the kings of the earth; and I will keep My mercy upon him forever); then He said: (And You have rejected and cast off (p-316) Your Messiah; and You have broken the covenant of Your servant on earth; and defiled his sanctuary; and destroyed all his fence; and all his fortresses You have hidden; he has become a reproach among his neighbors; You have raised the right hand of his enemies; You have made all his haters rejoice; You have turned back the victory of his sword; You did not help him in battle; You have abolished his valor; You have cast down his throne to the ground; You have shortened the days of his years; You have poured sorrow upon him; so how long will You be angry, O Lord? Forever Your wrath burns like fire; remember Your creation for me; for You did not create man in vain; who is the man who lives and does not see death; or saves his soul from hell? O Allah; where is Your ancient mercy which You swore by Your right to David - peace be upon him? O Allah, Your enemies have reproached the traces of Your Messiah; blessed be the Lord forever; it will be, it will be); and in the fifth after the hundred: (Save us, O our God, and gather us from the nations; that we may give thanks to Your holy name; and boast in Your praise; blessed be (p-317) the Lord, the God of Israel; from now and forever; all the people say: It will be); and in the twenty-fifth after the hundred: (When the Lord restores the captivity of Zion, we became like those who dream; then our mouths will be filled with joy; and our tongues with praise; there it will be said among the nations: The Lord has done great things for these; the Lord has done great things for us; and we became glad; O Lord, restore our captivity like the streams of the south; those who sow in tears; will reap in joy; they went forth weeping, bearing their seed; and they will come back rejoicing, bringing their sheaves); and in the thirty-sixth after the hundred: by the rivers of Babylon we sat there; and we wept when we remembered Zion; and we hung our harps upon the willows in the midst of it; for those who had taken us captive asked us there for a song of praise; and those who went away said: Sing to us one of the songs of Zion; how shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land? If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill; and let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, and if I do not prefer to rise to Jerusalem at the beginning of my joy; remember, O Lord, the sons of Edom (p-318) on the day of Jerusalem; those who said: Lay it bare to its foundation; O daughter of Babylon, the desolate; blessed is he who rewards you for your deed against us; blessed is he who takes your children and dashes them against the rock.

And this which is in this psalm is an indication of what will befall them from Bukhṭanṣar. It has been previously mentioned multiple times that what is conveyed from these ancient books with a term that suggests a deficiency, like 'the father,' and similar terms, cannot be used in our Shari'ah, even if it is considered correct by them. The apparent evidence mentioned in the Quran in this instance is what occurred in the days of 'Uzayr - peace be upon him - at the hands of Kūrash, the king of the Persians - as will come, if Allah, glorified and exalted is He, wills. Those who initially conquered them were the troops of Bukhṭanṣar - as has been previously stated. In the Book of the Prophets of the Children of Israel who were after Musa - peace be upon him - Allah, glorified and exalted is He, revealed to Irmiyā ibn Ḥalqiyyā, one of the scholars who were in 'Anāthūth in the land of Benjamin during the reign of Yūshiyā, the king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his kingship, warning them that if they did not repent from the innovations they had introduced, He would unleash upon them the king of Babylon. He continued to warn them in this manner and informed them of the evil that would befall them due to their sins until the days of Yawāqīm ibn Yūshiyā were completed. In the eleventh year of Ṣidqiyyā ibn Yūshiyā, until the day Jerusalem was besieged in the fifth month, which is the month of Ab. He informed them that the king of Babylon would capture Ṣidqiyyā, the king of the Jews, and lead him along with the captives to Babylon. They would remain in captivity for seventy years, then Allah, glorified and exalted is He, would return them to the Sacred House.

Jeremiah - peace be upon him - said: "Indeed, Allah (the Most High) said to me: (Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you; and I appointed you a prophet to the nations before you came out of the womb; and I made you a prophet for the peoples); so I said: I ask You, O Lord; and my God; to excuse me; for I do not know how to speak; for I am a youth; then the Lord said to me: (Do not say: I am a youth; for you will go to all to whom I send you; and you will speak all that I command you; so deliver it; and do not fear them; for I am with you; I will rescue you from every calamity); and indeed the Lord stretched out His hand and brought it close to my mouth; and the Lord said to me: (I have put My words in your mouth; know that I have appointed you today over all the kingdoms of the nations; to uproot; and to tear down; and to destroy; and to demolish; and to build; and to plant); then the Lord revealed to me and said: (What do you see, O Jeremiah?); so I said: I saw a branch of an almond tree; then the Lord said to me: (What a good thing you have seen! For I am hastening to fulfill My words); then the Lord revealed to me a second time: (What do you see?); so I said: A boiling pot is set; and its face is toward the north; then the Lord said to me: (From the north evil will break forth and descend upon all the land that belongs to Judah; behold, I am sending you to call all the clans of the kingdoms of the north); says the Lord: (And they will come, and each man will cast down his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem; and they will surround its wall; as it turns; and all the villages of Judah; and I will take vengeance on them with My judgments and My decrees; for all their wickedness; and for their evil deeds; for they have forsaken Me; and burned incense to strange gods; and bowed down to the work of their own hands; but as for you, gird up your loins; and arise and speak to them all the words that I command you; and do not fear them; nor show favor to them; lest I break you before them and humble you; and I have made you today like a fortified city; and like an iron pillar; and I have made you like bronze walls against all the land; and against all the kings of Judah; and against its princes; and against its priests; and against all the people of the land; for if they fight against you, they will not overcome you; for I am with you; and I will rescue you from them)."

And he has continued to speak among them with words like this, in the utmost eloquence and tenderness; such that it shatters hearts; and it breaks the souls; and it causes tears to flow; towards four scrolls; were it not for the fear of boredom and the dislike of prolongation, I would have brought forth much of it; and the false prophets would speak among them contrary to that; from what reassures them; until they struck Jeremiah to make him stop speaking like that; but he was not able to stop it; and he said to a person among the prophets whose name was Hananiah: Indeed, the Lord did not send you; you have entrusted this people to falsehood; and for this reason the Lord says: Behold, I will cast you from the face of the earth; and in this year you shall die; because you have spoken with sin before the Lord; and Hananiah the false prophet died in that year; in the seventh month; then the warning of Jeremiah increased for them; until they imprisoned him; then indeed Allah (glorified and exalted is He) commanded him to write for them what He revealed to him in a scroll; and to send it to them; so he called Baruch son of Neriah the scribe and commanded him to write what the Lord had spoken to him; and he said to him: Here I am imprisoned; and I cannot enter the house of the Lord; so take this scroll and enter you into the house of the Lord on the day of fasting; and read it to them; for it is the words of the Lord; perhaps they will turn back from the path of evil; and the Lord will cease from the evil which He has spoken against them; for great is the wrath and anger which the Lord has spoken against this people; so Baruch did that; so they took the scroll from his hand and delivered it to King Jehoiakim son of Josiah; so he tore it; and burned it with fire; so Allah commanded him to write another scroll like it; and to add what Allah commands him; and among it that Jehoiakim king of Judah shall have no one to sit on the throne of David - blessings be upon him -; and his carcass shall be thrown in the heat by day; and in the frost by night; and I command concerning him and his descendants; and concerning his servants; and I will come against Jerusalem; and against its inhabitants; and against the house of Judah; with all the evil which I have spoken against them; because they have not listened to My voice.

And when Zedekiah ruled over the Jews; and it was the tenth year of his rule; which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon; the armies of the king of Babylon surrounded Jerusalem; and Jeremiah the prophet was imprisoned in the house of the king's guard; Zedekiah, the king of Judah, had imprisoned him there; and said to him: Why do you prophesy and say: Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am giving this city and Zedekiah, the king of Judah, into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it; and no one will escape from the hands of the Chaldeans; for the Lord is giving it; He is giving him into the hand of the king of Babylon; and he will speak to him mouth to mouth; and his eyes to his eyes; and he will take you to Babylon? Then Allah revealed to Jeremiah; while he was imprisoned; and said: The Lord says: Behold, I am giving this city to the king of Babylon, and he will burn it with fire; and you will not escape from his hands; but you will surely be taken; and you will be delivered to him; and your eyes will look into his eyes; and your mouth will speak to his mouth; and you will go to Babylon; but listen, O Zedekiah, king of Judah, to the word of the Lord; thus says the Lord concerning you: You will not die by the sword; but you will die a death of peace; and as those who lamented over your forefathers, the former kings who were before you; they will lament over you; and say: Alas, my lord! For this saying that I have spoken, the Lord has said; all of this; and the armies of the king of Babylon are besieging Jerusalem and fighting against it.

Then Zedekiah sent to Pharaoh in Egypt to seek help from him; and his army went out; but when the Chaldeans heard of them, they withdrew from Jerusalem; and the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah that thus says the Lord; the God of Israel to the king of Judah who sent to the army of Pharaoh to help him: Behold, now the army of Pharaoh is returning to the land of Egypt; and the Chaldeans will return; and they will fight against this city; and they will besiege it; and they will burn it with fire; thus says the Lord; do not think in your hearts that the Chaldeans who have withdrawn from you will not return; rather, they will return; and they will burn the city with fire; then the Jews accused Jeremiah of wanting to flee to the Chaldeans; so they beat him and threw him into prison; and the king Zedekiah brought him out and asked him secretly in the house about the word of the Lord; and he said to him: You will be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon; and he said to him: What have I sinned against you; and against your servants; and against this people; that you have thrown me into prison? And where are those who prophesied to you that the king of Babylon will not come upon you nor upon this land? So he returned him to prison; and did not bring him down to the pit; for he was unable to oppose the nobles of his kingdom.

Then Jeremiah said: Thus says the Lord: Whoever dwells in this village by the war will go by hunger and death; but whoever goes out to the Chaldeans will save his life and live; thus says the Lord. Then the nobles said: This man should be killed; for he weakens the hands of the fighting men who remain in the village; and the hands of the people; when he says this word. Then King Zedekiah said: He is already in your hands; he cannot change this word; and the king was not able to say anything to them. So they took Jeremiah and threw him into the pit of Malchiah the son of the king, in the house of the prison; and the pit had no water in it; but mud; so Jeremiah sank in the mud. And an Ethiopian servant of the king heard it; and he was a faithful man; so he said to the king: O my lord; what these people have done to the prophet is evil; for they have thrown him into a pit; and he is about to die. So the king said: Take with you from here thirty men; and go and lift Jeremiah out of the pit before he dies. And the king's servant took men and went into the treasury that was beneath the king's house; and took from there old rags and ropes and brought them to Jeremiah with the rope; and said to him: Take these rags; and put them under your armpits; so that the rope does not harm you; and Jeremiah did so. And they lifted him out of the pit; and they set him in the house of the prison; and the king sent and brought Jeremiah to him; and placed him inside three chambers; a chamber within a chamber; and said to him: I ask you not to conceal anything from me. Jeremiah said to Zedekiah: I fear that you will kill me; and if I advise you, you will not obey me. Zedekiah said: As surely as the Lord lives who created me; I will not kill you; nor will I deliver you into the hands of the men who seek your life. Then Jeremiah said: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: If you go out to the nobles of the king of Babylon, you will surely save your life; and this village will be spared; and you and your sons will live; but if you do not go out to them, this village will be given into the hands of the Chaldeans; and they will burn it with fire; and you will not escape from their hands. Then the king said to Jeremiah: I am afraid of the Jews, lest I go out to the Chaldeans; for they might deliver me into their hands and mock me. Jeremiah said: They will not deliver you into their hands; listen to the word of the Lord for your benefit, that you may save your life. And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah while he was confined in the guard's house: Go and say to the Ethiopian servant who is with the king: Thus says the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing evil upon this village; and they will be before you on that day; and I will save you, says the Lord; and you will not be delivered into the hands of the people who do not fear Allah; nor will you fall in battle; but you will save yourself because you have trusted in what the Lord has said.

And Jeremiah sat in the house of the prison until the day when the Chaldeans took Jerusalem; in the ninth year of Zedekiah, king of Judah; in the tenth month; and on the ninth of the month, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came with all his armies to Jerusalem; and they encamped against it; and in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fifth month, the city was broken up; so all the nobles of the king of Babylon came to the middle gate; and when Zedekiah saw that they had sat in the middle gate; and the soldiers had fled; and they went out by night; the king also went out from the gate which is between the two walls in the way of the plain; and when he had gone to the plain, the Chaldean soldiers pursued him on the trail; and they caught him in the plain of Jericho; and his armies separated from him; and they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon; in Riblah; from the land of Hamath; and the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah and all the nobles of Judah; and he blinded Zedekiah's eyes and bound him in chains to take him to Babylon; and the house of the king was burned; and the houses of the people with fire; and he broke down the wall surrounding Jerusalem; and likewise the rest of the people; those who remained in the city; and those who fled to him he sent to Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard; so he went with them to Babylon; and the poor of the people - those who had nothing - he left in the land of Judah; and he appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam son of Shaphan over them; and Nebuchadnezzar, the captain of the guard, commanded that they take Jeremiah; and he said: Let your eye be upon him; and do not do him any harm; and whatever he says to you, do it; so he sent to Jeremiah and took him from the house of the prison; and he gave him to Gedaliah son of Ahikam son of Shaphan to take him back to his house; and Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, said to Jeremiah: Your God who spoke this evil against this city; and he did as he said; because you have sinned against the Lord; and you have not obeyed His voice; so He has brought this matter upon you; and as for you, behold, I have released you from the chains that were in your hands; so if you wish to come with me to Babylon, come; and if you wish, remain; for this land is all before you; wherever it is good for you; and wherever it seems good in your eyes, go to it; but if not, sit by Gedaliah son of Ahikam son of Shaphan whom Nebuchadnezzar has appointed in Judah; and the captain of the guard gave him gifts on the way; and he sent him away in peace; so Jeremiah went to Gedaliah son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and he sat with him among the people whom the king of Babylon had left in the land.

This is what indicated the people of great strength whom Allah has empowered against them. As for what indicated Allah's mercy towards them, it is in the history of Yusuf ibn Karyun that when the Romans heard that Bukh-tanassar, the king of Babylon, had conquered the city of Jerusalem, their fear of the Chaldeans increased. So they sent messengers and gifts to Bukh-tanassar, and they requested safety and peace from him. He granted them safety and made a covenant with them for their obedience and loyalty, so they felt secure and believed. The wars ceased from them until the time of Darius the king. The reason for the wars between the Romans and the Chaldeans was that the Chaldeans were hostile to the Greeks, so the Romans aided the Greeks. The Chaldeans became angry about that and fought the people of Rome. The wars continued between them to this extent. When Allah, the Exalted, criticized the Chaldeans for their prolonged tyranny and decreed the end of their kingdom and the expiration of their state, as the prophets - peace be upon them - had informed, He stirred against them from the kings of the nations two great kings; one of them was Darius, the king of Media, and the other was Cyrus, the king of Persia. Cyrus, the king of Persia, married the daughter of Darius, and they agreed on disobeying the Chaldeans. They showed enmity towards Balthasar, the son of Bukh-tanassar, their king. Then he marched to Babylon with a strong army. Balthasar sent a large army against them. A great war ensued between them, in which many from both sides were killed. Then Balthasar's army was defeated and they fled. Cyrus and Darius pursued them to a day's journey from Babylon, and they killed many of them. Darius and Cyrus remained in that location. Then Balthasar sent to them a thousand leaders from his commanders, along with all his elite and giants. They left Babylon at the end of the day and marched through the night, so they reached the camp of Darius and Cyrus by morning. They ambushed them and killed a great number of them. Darius was defeated, while Cyrus stood firm and fought the Chaldeans, preventing them from pursuing Darius's army. The war continued between them throughout the day. Then the Chaldeans prevailed over the Persians and killed a group of them, so the Persians were defeated. The commanders of Balthasar returned to him victorious and triumphant. Balthasar's joy was immense because of that, and he prepared a great feast for his commanders, providing for them abundantly. He brought forth beautiful vessels of silver and gold and excelled in honoring them. He attended with them a drinking assembly, where he ate and drank, and their joy and his joy grew. When the drink took hold of him, he wanted to increase in honoring his companions and their joy, so he ordered the vessels of gold and silver that his grandfather Bukh-tanassar, the king, had taken from the sanctuary of the House of the Holy, and had transported with the exiled children of Israel to Babylon, to be brought forth. Those vessels were brought in the presence of Balthasar. He drank from them wine and served his commanders, his women, and his concubines. They began to glorify their idols and praise them. He said: So Allah - glorified is He - became angry about that and disliked what Balthasar did in disrespecting the vessels of the sanctuary. He did not fear Allah, nor did he thank Him for what He had granted him over his enemies. So He sent an angel and commanded him to write in the presence of Balthasar words in red that included a mention of what Allah had decreed against him and his kingdom. The angel came by the command of Allah - the Exalted and Majestic - and wrote the words on the wall of the assembly, opposite the lampstand. He saw the fingers of the angel writing, but he did not see the rest of his body. Those fingers were of intense brightness and light. When he saw them, he was astonished, and a great terror and fright overtook him, and all his body trembled violently. All his soldiers were terrified, and he did not understand that writing, nor did he find among his companions anyone who could read it, for the script was Chaldean and the wording was Hebrew.

So he ordered the bringing of Daniel the Prophet - blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon him - and he recited it; and he explained it; and said: "O King; you have made a great mistake by using the sacred vessels of Allah with the hands of your soldiers; and your companions; and they have defiled them; and for this reason Allah has become angry; and He sent His angel; until he wrote these words; to inform you of what He intends to do; as for these written words, they are: (Weighed, Measured, and Divided); and their explanation is that Allah has measured the duration of your kingdom which He has established for you and found it has come to an end; (p-334) and finished; and nothing remains of it; and He has weighed you in the balance and found you wanting; meaning that He tested you with kindness towards you; and victory over your enemies; and found you ungrateful for His kindness; and you did not praise Him; rather you glorified the idols; and as for the explanation of (Divided); indeed Allah has decreed and judged the removal of the kingdom from you; and its transfer to Cyrus and Darius." He said: So when Belshazzar heard what Daniel said, his fear increased; and his terror; and his leaders also trembled; and they were greatly frightened; and they returned to their homes while they were afraid; so when Belshazzar slept that night, a servant from his servants came to him and killed him on his bed; and took his head and went to Darius and Cyrus; and informed them of the news of Belshazzar; and what he had done in using the sacred vessels; and the news of the writing which the angel had written before him; and Daniel's explanation of it; and what he informed him of regarding the end of his kingdom; and the transfer of his state to the kings of Media; and Persia; because of his using the sacred vessels; so when Darius and Cyrus heard what he informed them of; and they looked at the head of Belshazzar, they thanked Allah - the Exalted and Majestic -; and acknowledged His power; and they increased in glorifying Him; and praising Him; and Cyrus vowed that he would build the House of Allah in Jerusalem; and return those vessels; and release the Jewish exiles to return to their land; then Cyrus and Darius set out from their locations; and entered Babylon; and killed all its people; with the most severe (p-335) killing; and the greatest punishment; thus what the prophets - peace be upon them - informed of Allah's vengeance (the Exalted) against the Chaldeans; and the people of Babylon; and their punishment for what they did with the vessels of His sanctity was fulfilled; then Darius and Cyrus divided the kingdom of the Chaldeans; so Darius took the city of Babylon and its territories; and took possession of the palace of Belshazzar; and sat on his throne; and Cyrus took all the kingdom of the Chaldeans which is not Babylon; and its territories; and the matter was established between them on that; and Darius at that time was old; so his duration did not last long; so when he died, the nobles of Media and Persia agreed to make Cyrus their king; and since that time the king of Media and Persia became one; and the matter remained as such; and did not change; and when Cyrus took possession of the kingdom of the Chaldeans; and sat on the throne of Babylon; and was made king over Media and Persia; Allah stirred him (the Exalted) in the first year of his kingship; so he remembered his vow which he had vowed that he would release the exiles of the Children of Israel to return to their land; and that he would build the sanctity of Allah; and return His vessels to Him; so he ordered the bringing of the elders of the exiles and their leaders; and informed them of what he had resolved upon regarding the building of the House of the Sanctuary; and their release; and said to them: Whoever among the exiles of the Jews wishes to go to the city of Jerusalem to build the temple which was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar; let him go; and seek help from Allah - the Exalted and Majestic - for He will assist him; and I, Cyrus, am the servant of the great God, I release from my treasures all that is needed from wealth; and tools; for the construction of the House of the Lord; which He granted me victory over the Chaldeans; and gave me their kingdom; he said: So when the elders of the exiles heard Cyrus's words, their joy increased because of that; and they thanked Allah - the Exalted and Majestic - for His kindness; and they set out to the city of the House of the Sanctuary; and with them was a large group; and among them was Ezra the priest - peace be upon him - and Nehemiah; and Mordecai; and Joshua; and the other leaders of the exiles; and their dignitaries; so they built the House of Allah according to the measure which Cyrus had prescribed for them; and they built the altar according to its requirements and limits; and they offered the sacrifices according to their requirements; and Cyrus would release to them every year what they needed for the service of the House of Allah; from wealth; and wheat; and oil; and wine; and sheep; and cattle; and he released to them a great amount of wealth; and the matter continued to proceed in this manner throughout the kingdom of the Persians; he said: Then the matter of Cyrus grew; and Allah extended His hand over all the nations and kingdoms; and opened for him the fortified strongholds; and gave him the treasures of the earth; (p-337) and its riches; and he continued to be victorious wherever he turned; as Allah (the Exalted) informed through the hand of the prophet Isaiah - peace be upon him - that He would do that with Cyrus; for the sake of His kindness to the Children of Israel.

He said - in the Book of the Prophets; in the Prophethood of Isaiah son of Amoz -: (Thus says the Lord: I am the One who has nullified the signs of the diviners; and I will make all their divinations ignorance; and I will bring the wise back to their backwardness; and I will declare their works to the people; and I will establish the word of My servants; and I will fulfill the saying of My messengers; for He said to Jerusalem: It shall be inhabited; and to the villages of Judah: They shall be built and their ruins shall be inhabited; and He says to the abyss to be destroyed; and the rivers thereof shall dry up; and He says to Cyrus: Watch, so that all My will may be fulfilled; and command the building of Jerusalem; and establish its temples; thus says the Lord to His Messiah; and Cyrus, who is taking him by his right hand; so that the nations may submit to him; and he may appear over the kings forever; I will open the doors before him; and the gates shall not be closed before him; I am walking before him; and I will make the difficult easy for him; I will break the gates of bronze; and I will shatter the bars of iron; and I will give him the treasures that are in the darkness; and the hidden things that are stored; so that he may know that I am the Lord who called him before his birth; the God of Israel; for the sake of My servant Jacob and Israel My chosen; I have called you by your name; and I have named you before you know Me; I am the Lord; and there is no god besides Me); this is the end of what is in the Book of the Prophets.

Cyrus continued to do good to the Children of Israel until he died. After him, his son, Tamkisha, executed what his father had done of kindness to the Jews. He released much wealth to them, in honor of the House of Allah. Those who came after him from the kings of the Persians continued in that way. They would release what Cyrus had released for the relatives and others. They honored the House of Allah and revered it, seeking blessings from it. Until the time of Ahshuerus - who is Ardashir the king - the condition of the Jews changed during his time due to a minister he appointed from the Amalekites, named Haman. Then Allah (glorified and exalted is He) turned his heart against them because of a wife he had from the Jews. Their affairs remained straight while they were under the authority of the Persians, until Alexander the Second became king. Ibn Kathir said in Surah Al-Kahf: he is the one who is dated from the kingdom of the Romans. He had been before Christ for about three hundred years. He was the Macedonian Greek Roman. He became king after the killing of his father, Philip. He was twenty years old when he became king. He was wise and knowledgeable in all sciences. The one who taught him wisdom was the wise Aristotle. Alexander would consult him in his affairs and would refer to his opinion and deliberate with his planning. He did not resemble his father or his mother. His face was like the face of a lion. His eyes were different; the right one was black looking downward, and the left one was a clear color, like the eye of a cat, looking upward. His teeth were sharp and thin, like the teeth of a dog. He was brave, bold, and daring from his youth. When he opened the lands of the Maghreb and returned from them, he aimed for the lands of Ash-Sham and directed himself towards the Holy House. He was met by the angel of the Lord, who commanded him to honor the Holy Place and its people. He did so. Then he aimed for Darius the Second, the king of the Persians. When he approached Nablus, Sanballat the Samaritan, its owner, came out to him and brought him much wealth and gifts. Then he proceeded to Darius and killed him. Then he went to the king of India, and likewise. Then he went to the rising of the sun. He loved to see the ends of the earth, so he traveled in it and saw from the nations and wonders what is mentioned in his biographies. He returned and died in Babylon. Then the affairs of the Jews were sometimes under the rule of the Greeks, who ruled after Alexander. Then the Romans overcame them, so the Jews were under their control. They would stand and sit at times, until events increased among them, and calamities and trials grew. Corruption spread, and the Khawarij multiplied among them. Killing, treachery, plunder, and raids became continuous. They killed Zechariah and his son Yahya - peace be upon them. They conspired to kill the Messiah, the son of Mary - peace be upon him. So Allah (glorified and exalted is He) raised him to Himself. Then He sent upon them Titus, the Caesar, who destroyed them and devastated the house for the second time - as will come. Then no matter has arisen for the Jews until now.