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Ezra 1 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
It is fascinating to consider the faith of Cyrus, King of Persia. Was he a believer in the one true God? The passage here mentions that “the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia.” Obviously, we know that God can use whatever and whomever He wants to complete His will. Cyrus used the name of God as leverage and justify his position, status, and title, however, as Hank has written, we cannot assume he was a changed man based on some of his other dealings.
As any leader of the time would have done, King Cyrus definitely leveraged his political posture with every move he made. However, the ancient writer, Josephus gives us some additional details into the person of King Cyrus. Apparently, he was partial to the Jews because he was shown the prophecies from Isaiah in which his conquests were predicted. Since he was distinguished by the God of the Jews, he was grateful and willing to give the Jews their temple back.
“It is I who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd! And he will perform all My desire.’ And he declares of Jerusalem, ‘She will be built,’ And of the temple, ‘Your foundation will be laid.'”
Isaiah 44:28 NASB
Thus says the LORD to Cyrus His anointed, Whom I have taken by the right hand, To subdue nations before him And to loose the loins of kings; To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:
Isaiah 45:1 NASB
These amazing words were penned 150 years before Cyrus was even born! Cyrus also surrounded himself with great men, such as Daniel, who would have served under the rule of the king. Many speculate it could have been Daniel who personally pointed out these prophecies from Isaiah.
Whatever the case, Cyrus was an influential leader who God used mightily. These should be encouraging words for us because, as Americans, we are coming upon an election year. No matter who is put at the state and federal level of our government, we are commanded to pray for our leaders. We pray for them because ultimately God is over them. And we learn from this chapter that even if they are not explicitly professing faith in God, He can certainly still use them to accomplish His great and mighty plan.