The Chronicles finish the Hebrew Bible. Ezra’s first paragraph is put here so the book ends in hope!
What did this mean, “until the rule of the kingdom of Persia” (2 Chron 36:20)? The Chaldeans had swept Israel away to Mesopotamia. The Assyrians had assimilated Chaldea into their empire. Then Babylon, the new superpower, had removed the prime of Judah’s society to their land. But the night Belshazzar died, the Persians took his empire, and inherited the Jewish exiles. We read, “In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia” (v 22). Remarkable, isn’t it! The nation in covenant with God wouldn’t listen to Him, either through His Word or by His prophets. But Cyrus did! And what was so important that Israel must remain in captivity for 70 years “until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths” (v 21)? These two “untils” are vital to the story. God’s power had brought Israel out of Egypt. God’s grace had made a covenant with them. God’s glory had filled the sanctuary in their midst. God’s faithfulness had preserved them from their enemy. When He gave them Canaan, He told them not to plow and plant every seventh year, leaving the land fallow (Lev 25:3-4). This they had not done for 490 years, and so owed the true Landowner 70 Sabbath years. Thus the length of their captivity. By striking contrast, notice these words: “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the earth the Lord God of heaven has given me” (2 Chron 36:23). Isn’t this remarkable? This Gentile king recognized that the earth and everything in it was the Lord’s! This the Jews had failed to acknowledge. Thus God would use a Gentile monarch to help “build Him a house at Jerusalem” as a rebuilt stage for our blessed Messiah-King!