The people of Babylon were referred to as the Babylonians. Babylon was an ancient city situated between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
Until its fall to Persia, it was one of the most prominent and prosperous ancient kingdoms.
The Babylonians led by King Nebuchadnezzar defeated and captured the people of Israel, as recorded in the Bible in 2 Chronicles
[The LORD] brought up against them the king of the Babylonians, who killed
their young men with the sword in the sanctuary, and spared neither young
man nor young woman, old man or aged. God handed all of them over to Nebuchadnezzar. 2 CHRONICLES 36:17
As powerful as they were, ultimately the Babylonians functioned as a tool in the hand of God. Unfortunately, God eventually needed to use that tool to bring judgment on His people.
The Babylonians lived in the southern part of what is now known as Iraq, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. They gained prominence under the reign of Hammurabi, who united several smaller states and
codified the laws of the nation. Around 729 BC the Assyrians began to rule over them, but by 612 BC the Babylonians had joined with the Persians to break free from their grip and take over much of their
kingdom, including the regions of Israel and Judah.
Soon after this, the Babylonians became directly involved in Judean affairs as different kings rebelled against them. The Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar eventually attacked the capital city of Jerusalem in 586BC, destroyed the city and the temple, and exiled virtually all the
leading citizens to Babylon.
By 539 BC, King Cyrus of Persia captured the city of Babylon and decreed that all the Jews who had been exiled there could return to Judea.
The capital of Babylonia was Babylon, which was located about fifty-five miles south of modern-day Baghdad. The walls of this city were immense, but Cyrus of Persia conquered the city by diverting
the flow of the Euphrates River, which ran under the walls, thereby enabling his soldiers to enter the city.