My Walk With Him: Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed: “I will go before you and level the exalted places, I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron, I will give you the treasures of darkness and the hoards in secret places, that you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of Israel, who call you by your name.

Tuesday, June 21, 2022

Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed: “I will go before you and level the exalted places, I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron, I will give you the treasures of darkness and the hoards in secret places, that you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of Israel, who call you by your name.

Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed: “I will go before you and level the exalted places, I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron, I will give you the treasures of darkness and the hoards in secret places, that you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of Israel, who call you by your name. Isaiah 45:1-3

I resumed my deep dive of Isaiah, based on the Precept Upon Precept study series. Today, I continue with Lesson 17, which examines Isaiah chapters 44-46. My focus for today is Day 2(a), which looks at Isaiah 44:24-45 and the role of King Cyrus of Persia. My study looked at the following scriptures to provide a more complete view of Cyrus:

2 Chronicles 36:11-23: "Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus"
Jeremiah 25:12, 29:10-11: Prophecy that after 25 years, the Lord will punish the king of Babylon; God promising freedom of Jewish exiles in Babylon and return to Jerusalem
Ezra 1:1-11, 5:11-6:15: Description of Cyrus' decree to free exiles for them to rebuild Jerusalem; leadership by tribes of Judah, Benjamin and Levites, freewill offerings and return of temple treasures taken by Nebuchadnezzar; Darius reinforcing Cyrus' words to rebuild Jerusalem
Daniel 1:21, 6:28: Daniel prospers during both reigns of Cyrus and Darius

The study also encouraged use of extra-Biblical sources to better understand Cyrus and this source describes Cyrus as conciliatory towards conquered peoples, allowing local customs, including worship.

Upon review of all sources, of course primarily from other OT sources, we see a fulfillment of Isaiah's (Isaiah 45) prophecy of Cyrus' conquest of Babylon and a return of the exiles to rebuild the sacked city of Jerusalem and the temple. God is faithful - we can trust in His promises.

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are great and You are faithful - I can trust in You and You keep Your promises. Thank You Jesus! I am not deserving of the blessings that You pour out from Your faithfulness. My sin is great and it continues. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith. Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.