Isaiah 44: 28 to 45: 1-6, 15
He says of Cyrus, "He is My shepherd. He will do everything I want him to do:" he says about Jerusalem, "It shall be rebuilt," and he says about the Temple, "Your foundation will be laid."
This is what the Lord says about Cyrus, His annointed one:
"I have held him by his right hand so he could conquer the nations ahead of him, strip kings of their power, and open doors ahead of him so that the gates would not be shut.
"I will go ahead of you, Cyrus, and smooth out the rough places. I will break down the bronze doors and cut through the iron bars. I will give you treasures from dark places and hidden stockpiles.
"Then you will know that I, the Lord God of Israel, have called you by name.
"For the sake of My servant Jacob, Israel, My chosen one, I have called you by name. I have given you a title of honor, although you don't know Me.
"I am the Lord, and there is no other. There is no other god besides Me. I will strengthen you, although you don't know Me.
"So that from the East to the West people will know that there is no god except Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other."
"I prepared Cyrus for My righteous purpose. I will make all his roads straight. He will build My city and let My exiles go free without any payment or any reward," says the Lord of Armies.
It is amazing that God would tell Isaiah to write about this king by name. Isaiah lived and wrote from 740 to 680 B.C., and Ezra and Nehemiah, who recorded the fulfillment of this prophecy, wrote from 456 to 425 B.C.; so Isaiah wrote about Cyrus about 200 years before he was born.
This is proof that God is God, and He moves Nations and kingdoms to do His will in fulfilling His Plan of the Ages; even kings and leaders of Nations who don't even recognize Him as the only Supreme God of the Universe! He sets up and puts down, and He causes these people to do what He planned out ahead of time, even when they think it's all their own idea.
And Cyrus did all these things, and succeeded just as God said He would.
God has not changed, or changed His tactics. He knows all things (He is omniscient) because He designed all of Creation and planned out the whole progression of Time from before the beginning to after the end. And He's laid it all out for us in the 66 books of the Bible, the written Word of God.
We think we're having all our own ideas and thoughts, and making all our own decisions and choices freely. And we do have choices. And we do make our decisions freely. Within His parameters. We are free to choose what we want to do, but we are not free to choose what consequences will result from our decisions.
We can choose to do what is according to His plan for others' benefit--or if we choose not to expose ourselves to what we think will be detrimental to ourselves, God will use someone else who chooses His way to benefit the others He wanted to bless. (See Esther 4:14.)
And He still has all the Nations' leaders--all the kings and prime ministers and presidents and dictators and sheiks--in His hand, and He directs them in whatever role He puts them in. He knows who will do good, and He knows who has rejected Him and will do evil against their people.
He is setting up the World system even now, to be prepared and ready for when Jesus returns. All according to how He has told us, in His Word. Everything He has said will happen, will happen. And everyone He calls to Salvation will hear and respond, until all His sheep will be gathered into one fold, as He said (John 10:16). Then the end will come (Matthew 24:14).
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
