Cyrus, Persian King

It is amazing how much ancient history is given to us in the Old Testament.  The book of Chronicles ends with a few words about Cyrus, the first Persian king of the Persian Dynasty:  "Thus says Cyrus king of Persia:  All the kingdoms of the earth the Lord God of heaven has given me.  And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem which is in Judah.  Who is there among you of all His people?  May the Lord his God be with him, and let him go up!"  Cyrus is talking about his plan to see that the temple of God is rebuilt in Jerusalem.

Going back a bit in time, the Persian Empire follows the rule of the Babylonians.  The Babylonians had taken the Jewish people of Judah into captivity and removed them from their land, taking them to Babylon.  But when Cyrus comes into power, he makes this decree, stated above, that he wants to let the Jewish people return to their homeland and rebuild.  This seems like a noble thing for him to do, but we will find out that God is directing Cyrus, that God is control....as He always is.

It is particularly interesting to note that the prophet Isaiah had predicted these events, this return of the Jews to their homeland and rebuilding.  But we must remember that Isaiah lived some 150 years before this occurred.  Isaiah was prophesying at the direction of God; he even named Cyrus as the king, well before Cyrus was born, even before Cyrus' mother was born.  We read the words of Isaiah beginning in Is. 44:28, "Who says of Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd, and he shall perform all My pleasure, even saying to Jerusalem, "You shall be built," and to the temple, "Your foundation shall be laid." '  Thus says the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held--to subdue nations before him and loose the armor of kings to open before him the double doors so that the gates will not be shut: I will go before you.....that you may know that I , the Lord, who call you by your name, am the God of Israel.....I am the Lord, and there is no other...."

In this passage where Isaiah is predicting the king of Persia, he is also quoting God, stating that God is in control; that God controls kings.  We are assured of this in Proverbs 21, "The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes."  God is in control; He was then...He is now.  God is amazing!  The Bible, the Word of God, is amazing!

Thanks for reading.  Have a great week!