This is symbolic of what has happened historically when the Israel and the Jews were cursed by empires,
individuals, and nations. Just compare now to when Cyrus led the Medo-Persian empire. He was more or less
tolerant of the Jews and their traditions even if his motivations were self-serving or rooted in self-interest,
they had an advanced civilization and for the most part were prosperous. Only fools would attribute these
"natural calamities" strictly to nature.