Isaiah 45: Cyrus Who?

"Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped to subdue the nations before him and strip kings of their robes, to open doors before him - and the gates shall not be closed" (vs. 1).  After reading Isaiah 45, you could be forgiven for asking, "Cyrus who?"  That's probably what Isaiah's original audience asked, too!

We first hear of Cyrus at the end of the previous chapter.  "Who says of  Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and he shall carry out all my purpose" (Isaiah 44:28).  As you can tell from such passages, Cyrus is looked upon as a hero in the Old Testament.  But at the time of Isaiah's writings, Cyrus was still several generations ahead!

Here's why Isaiah is so excited and pro-Cyrus: The Lord's plan for Judah involves a conquering by Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian Empire.  This will be devastating event for the Jews.  The temple will be destroyed, the walls of Jerusalem broken down, and the nobles carted off to Babylon in exile.  The "Babylonian Captivity" is a period that will seriously scar God's people.

Like the northern kingdom of Israel before her, Judah will be at risk of "being lost" through inter-marriage with other peoples.  The Babylonians will press hard to assimilate the Jews into the rest of the Empire.  For seventy years, Jerusalem will be under the thumb of other nations and be left defenseless.

But a time is coming even beyond that trouble, the prophet Isaiah could foretell, when the Babylonian Empire would fall to the Persians.  The new king, Cyrus, would reverse the policies of the Babylonians and allow the Jews to return home to Jerusalem.  He would decree that they would have the right to rebuild the walls around Jerusalem and be free of religious persecution from others.  Through Isaiah, the Lord has this to say of Cyrus, "I have aroused Cyrus in righteousness, and I will make all his paths straight; he shall build my city and set my exiles free, not for price or reward, says the Lord of hosts" (vs. 13).

Although a Gentile himself, Cyrus will come to be regarded as a champion for the Jews.  As Isaiah writes of him, "For the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen, I call you by your name, I surname you, though you do not know me.  I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides me there is no god.  I arm you, though you do not know me" (vs. 4-5).  Cyrus is probably one of the most well-regarded non-Jews in the Old Testament.

Even though none of this has yet happened - and even Babylon itself is not yet a threat to Judah - Isaiah is able to reveal a time of coming deliverance that God will work through his servant Cyrus.  That's who Cyrus is!