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It is not without significance that the treasurer who handed over their temple prosperity to the Jews was named "Mithredath" — a word that means "given by Mithra," or "devoted to Mithra." This suggests that the Persian sun-god was honoured among the servants of Cyrus, and yet that one who by name at least was especially associated with this divinity was constrained to honour the God of Israel. Next to Judaism and Christianity, the worship of Mithra showed the greatest vitality of all religions in Western Asia, and later even in Europe. So vigorous was it as recently as the commencement of the Christian era, that M. Renan has remarked that if the Roman world had not become Christian it would have become Mithrastic. In the homage paid by Mithredath to the God of Israel may we not see an image of the recognition of the claims of the Supreme by our priests of the sun — Kepler, Newton, Faraday?

(Walter F. Adeney, M. D.)

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KJV: Also Cyrus the king brought forth the vessels of the house of the LORD, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in the house of his gods;

WEB: Also Cyrus the king brought forth the vessels of the house of Yahweh, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put in the house of his gods;