Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion today drew a parallel between the declaration by the Persian King Cyrus permitting the Babylonian Jews to return to Palestine in the sixth century B. C. E. and the Balfour Declaration recognizing a Jewish national home in Palestine in 1917.
Addressing a special convention of the Israel Bible Research Society held at Lydda to mark the 2,500th anniversary of the return of the Jews from Babylonian exile, Mr. Ben Gurion said that in both cases–the Cyrus decree and the Balfour declaration–it was not until Jewish strength came into being that full independence was achieved.
In the case of the Cyrus decree, he declared, full Jewish independence came four centuries later with the victories of the Maccabees. Similarly, the Balfour Declaration was followed by full Jewish independence with the establishment of the State of Israel and the successes of the Israel Army.
Leading scholars addressed the convention on various aspects of the Cyrus decree and its effect on Jewish history. Similar meetings will be held in other parts of the country, especially in centers of settlement by Persian Jews.
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