Bible Commentaries
Isaiah 45

Verses 1-3

Isa 45:1-3

Isaiah 45:1-3

This chapter is a continuation of the revelation in the previous chapter. This is a prophecy concerning Cyrus of the Medo-Persian Empire, and how God delivered into his hands many nations, the wealth he procured, and how all his enemies were subdued (Isaiah 45:1-3); to whom Cyrus was indebted for all those wonderful victories (Isaiah 45:4-6); God reveals himself as the one true and only Deity who made light and darkness, refuting the absurd theory of the Persians that there were two gods, one of the good, and the other of the evil (Isaiah 45:7-8); the foolishness of those who question the mysterious providence of God in his relationship with his children (Isaiah 45:9-12); the remainder of the chapter has references to the absurdity of idolatry, a few allusions to the dark, lying oracles of the pagans, and certain passages which refer to the deliverance of God’s people by Cyrus, but which are to be more fully fulfilled in that glorious salvation by the Messiah, which, it is declared, shall be of universal extent and everlasting duration (Isaiah 45:13-25).

Isaiah 45:1-3

"Thus saith Jehovah to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him, and I will loose the loins of kings; to open the doors before him, and the gates shall not be shut: I will go before thee, and make the rough places smooth; I will break in pieces the doors of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron; and I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that it is I, Jehovah, who call thee by thy name, even the God of Israel."

"To his anointed ..." (Isaiah 45:1). The ceremony of anointing was used in the elevation of Jewish kings; but no similar ceremony was known among the pagans; and some have wondered what is meant here. It means that Cyrus was consecrated to carry out the purpose of God in the release of the Jews and termination of their captivity. We agree with Dummelow that the "surname" God gave Cyrus refers probably to "Anointed (Isaiah 45:1) or to Shepherd (Isaiah 44:28).”

"Subdue nations ..." (Isaiah 45:1). "Xenophon gave the following list of nations conquered by Cyrus: The Syrians, Assyrians, Arabians, Cappadocians, Phrygians, Lydians, Carians, Phoenicians, and the Babylonians.” The significant thing about this list of nations is that Cyrus himself acknowledged in his decree that Jehovah had indeed given him all of those nations (Ezra 1:2).

Another important implication of this first verse is inherent in the name of Cyrus as God’s anointed. Archer pointed out that, "Cyrus stands as a type of Jesus Christ; and many of the promises to Cyrus have their spiritual fulfillment in the life and ministry of Our Redeemer.”

"No one but an omniscient Being could have predicted 150 years before they occurred, that such events would take place; and these verses are one of the many prophecies which demonstrate in the most particular manner that Isaiah was inspired of God.”

"I will break in pieces the gates of brass ..." (Isaiah 45:2). Some of the most inconsequential, nit-picking, picayune objections to this prophecy are registered in the writings of Cheyne. He made light of the prophecy of Cyrus as follows:

"The prophet does not say `a child shall be born, Cyrus by name,’ but assumes his existence, and predicts that he, rather than some scion of the house of David would be the instrument of the Jews’ deliverance ... He assumes rather than predicts the existence of Cyrus; and he omits to mention by how many years, if any, his announcement preceded the birth of the Deliverer!”

The reason God’s prophecy omitted the prophecy of the birth of Cyrus was that his ancestry was not important, as it was in the instance of God’s predicting the birth of Josiah some three hundred years before the event (2 Kings 13:2), because Cyrus was not of the house of David. Like another great Type of the Son of God, Melchizedek, Cyrus stands historically as a solitary individual, and as an object of wonder, exactly as does Melchizedek. God’s wisdom is displayed in this far more effectively than any mention of when or of whom Cyrus was born could possibly have done it.

Furthermore, when Cheyne also cited the fact that the brass gates of Babylon were not broken in pieces, as prophesied here, but were made useless by the drying up of the Euphrates, as an instance "of the non-fulfillment of prophecy,” it appears to this writer that cavil reached some kind of a climax! The true meaning of the prophecy was not that Cyrus would literally break into pieces the 100 brass gates of Babylon, but that they would afford him no greater difficulty than if they had been so destroyed. "Herodotus tells us that Babylon had twenty-five massive brass gates, supported by brass frames, on each of the four sides of the city, one hundred brass gates in all.” Critics only exhibit their own frustration by such criticisms as these.

"I will give thee the treasures of darkness ..." (Isaiah 45:3). The exact fulfillment of this came in the vast quantities of pure gold and other valuables that Cyrus took from the kings whom he conquered, of whom, especially, was Croesus, the wealthiest monarch of all antiquity. "The Roman historian Pliny stated that Cyrus in the conquest of Asia obtained 34,000 pounds of pure gold, besides many other treasures.” Archer has given an estimate of the value of that in dollars, as calculated about 1960; but of course it would be about eight times as much in 1990, due to the inflation of the price of gold. The figure that Archer gave is $630,000,000, taken from the wealth of Croesus alone!

Verses 4-7

Isa 45:4-7

Isaiah 45:4-7

"For Jacob my servant’s sake, and Israel my chosen, I have called thee by thy name: I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me. I am Jehovah, and there is none else; besides me there is no God. I will gird thee, though thou hast not known me; that they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none besides me: I am Jehovah, and there is none else. I form the light and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil; I am Jehovah that doeth all these things."

The very special favor shown to Cyrus here on God’s part was apparently motivated by three considerations: (1) that Cyrus, the most powerful monarch on earth, might acknowledge the true God; (2) that Israel might be benefited and continued as a separate nation by the termination of their captivity; and (3) that the attention of all the world might be attracted, and that the unity of God might be manifested to all the earth.

These objectives were fully realized. Cyrus did indeed acknowledge God. "The hand of Jehovah was so manifest in his conquests that Cyrus himself acknowledged that they were of Jehovah.” The last two verses of 2Chronicles and the first paragraph of the Book of Ezra fully confirm this.

The statement in Isaiah 45:7 that God creates evil should not be misunderstood. As Kidner pointed out, "The Hebrew word (for evil) is too general a term to suggest that God is the author of wickedness...Some see here an attack upon Zoroastrian dualism, with its rival gods of good and evil; these verses are also equally opposed to polytheism, the target of most of the invective in these chapters.” When God speaks of his creating evil here, he is speaking of the disasters and calamities that he brings upon the enemies of his purpose. "This cannot mean that God creates moral evil, but it refers to the judgments God sends into history. He is speaking of the distress and disaster which men experience from God as a consequence of their sin (See Amos 3:6).”

Isaiah 45:8

"Distill, ye heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness: let the earth open, that it may bring forth salvation, and let it cause righteousness to spring up together; I, Jehovah, have created it."

All creation, heaven and earth alike, are summoned to rejoice together in the righteousness and glory that shall fall upon all men as a consequence of God’s rescue and deliverance of His people. What a tragedy it was, however, that the rescued nation proved to be an altogether inadequate and ineffective instrument in the achievement of such glorious things as God intended. "Consequently, the commands of this verse were not fully carried out until the coming of the Ideal Servant.”

"That there was a partial fulfillment of this on the return of Israel to Canaan, there can be no doubt ... but there is a richness and fullness in Isaiah 45:8, that is not met by anything that occurred in the return of the exiles.” Only the preaching of the Gospel of Christ brought results which justify the language of this verse.

Isaiah 45:1-4 ANOINTED: The word translated anointed is the Hebrew word meshikho a form of the word messiah. It is astounding to learn that Jehovah has “anointed” a pagan emperor to become a “messiah” for His people. Yet, the Lord has used many “servants” from among the heathen (see Daniel 7, 8, Jeremiah 27:1-11) to fulfill His redemptive plan. It is apparent that Cyrus, in his deliverance of Israel, served as a type of the Messiah-Servant to come, Jesus Christ (see special study on Types in this volume). Cyrus was not born for more than a hundred years after this prophecy. Cyrus was born in a little province in north-western Elam and just south of Media. He came to power in about 559 B.C. He was actually Cyrus II, a descendant of Achaemenes (700–675 B.C.). Cyrus’ own cylinder indicates he was thoroughly imbued with the idea that he was the man of destiny: (the opening lines are quoted here)

“Through all the lands he (Marduk) searched, he saw him (Cyrus), and he sought the righteous prince, after his own heart, whom he took by the hand. Cyrus, king of Anshan, he called by name; to sovereignty over the whole world he appointed him.”

The rule of Cyrus meant for all the conquered world a renewed and continuous political prosperity and a religious liberty unknown in the annals of other rulers. He was the protector and the bounteous promoter of the welfare of his subjects. Their deities and their methods of worship were graciously restored, and dignified by elevating them to their former positions. The peoples, also, who had been forcibly deported from their native lands, were restored by the king’s decrees. This generous policy, in contrast with that of preceding rulers, gave Cyrus great influence and power over his subjects. Part of his popularity may have been due to the fact that he was an Aryan (Caucasian), with newer and freer ideas than those of Semitic potentates.

There is an interesting statement in Josephus to the effect that Cyrus read Isaiah’s prophecy and was influenced by it to free the Jews (Antiq. XI.1.2.). It is not impossible! Cyrus was a man interested in the religion, culture, and history of all his subjects. In his proclamation (Ezra 1:1 f; 2 Chronicles 36:22 f) Cyrus attributes his actions to a knowledge of what Jehovah “commanded” him to do. There were, as we have mentioned, other reasons for Cyrus’ actions; (1) it was national policy to “restore peoples to their own dwelling places.” (2) Palestine had been from time immemorial a buffer state between southwestern Asia and Egypt. To occupy and hold the strong fortress of Jerusalem was the first step toward the conquest of the rival power. If Cyrus could secure that advantage by aiding the Jews to rebuild and hold it, he would be setting up one battlement in the face of Egypt’s army. For one of his next strokes, after Babylon, would be at the rival imperial power on the Nile.

There are three distinct reasons God uses Cyrus and speaks so intimately to him nearly 200 years before his birth:

(a) Cyrus is to know that the God of Israel is the only God there is, (Isaiah 45:3).

(b) Cyrus is to serve Jehovah for the sake of Israel, (Isaiah 45:4).

(c) Cyrus is to serve Jehovah in order that all men may know Jehovah is the only God there is, (Isaiah 45:6).

It is apparent that Cyrus was never converted to monotheism or the worship of Jehovah as the only God, for in many of his proclamations, he acknowledges Marduk as god. Whatever Cyrus accomplished, it was because Jehovah, sovereign Lord of all creation, permitted him to do it. Not only did Jehovah permit it, He assisted Cyrus in its accomplishment (cf. Jeremiah 27:1-11).

Isaiah 45:5-8 ALMIGHTY: This is one of the great passages of the Bible teaching that God is immanent in His creation. God has not created the universe and wound it like a clock, only to go off somewhere and let it run itself. He is personally and directly involved in its day-by-day operation.

a. In Christ, all things consist, or hold together, Colossians 1:17

b. He upholds all things by the word of His power, Hebrews 1:3

c. He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, Matthew 5:45

d. He gives rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, Acts 14:17

e. His wrath is revealed from heaven, Romans 1:18-32, “in the things that have been made.”

f. In everything God works for good with those who love him, Romans 8:28-29

g. All that happens in history and nature is under the sovereign Throne of God and the Lamb (cf. Revelation 4-9).

If there is one thing made abundantly clear from the prophets (and confirmed by the New Testament) it is that God is sovereign of both weal and woe. Is God in the whirlwind? Yes! (Nahum 1:3; Zechariah 9:14). Is God in the earthquake? Yes! (Isaiah 29:6; Acts 16:26; Matthew 24:7; Revelation 6:12; Revelation 8:5, etc.). God is in locusts plagues, fires, floods, famines, droughts, plagues. “Does evil befall a city except the Lord hath done it?” (Amos 3:6). When some “good” comes everyone is agreed it is directly from the Lord. When some “woe” comes let us be equally assured it is from the Lord. Do tornadoes, earthquakes and famines mean those who are “victimized” are worse sinners than others? No! Jesus cleared that up in Luke 13. Whatever happens, wherever it happens, it is God’s message to a cursed and doomed universe to repent! All who do not repent will likewise perish! What of those who are repenting and yet perish? They “come out of their great tribulation” (Revelation 7:13-17); they are “rested from their labors” (Revelation 14:13); and their works follow after them. They are blessed! There is only one part of God’s creation granted the sovereign exercise of free will—man! All the rest of His creation is under His direct operation. “Nature” is simply a word used by man to evade this fundamental issue that it is God who is Creator and Sustainer. But both good and evil, no matter with whom they originate, are never out of God’s control. Even Satan’s deliberate evil and the freely chosen evil deeds of men are under His control and are being used (and will be ultimately used) to serve His sovereign purposes and redound to His Absolute glory! Both the weal and woe of God is designed to lead man to repentance (cf. Romans 1:18 with Romans 2:4); see Isaiah 14:24-27; Isaiah 44:24-28; Jeremiah 27:1-11; Job 2:1-6; 2 Corinthians 12:1-10; Daniel 2:20-23. Do men still rule by God’s sovereign permission? Does God still send famines, earthquakes, fires, floods, whirlwinds, sun and rain, fruit and harvest season? Yes! He is the same God today He was thousands of years ago! Men still choose sin and evil rebellion because God has granted them the freedom to make that choice, and God is in no way to blame for their choice nor is He the author of their evil. But rest assured their evil will in no way triumph over the sovereign will of God. It is His will that their impenitent, unforgiven evil shall be punished forever—and so it will be! Furthermore, their evil in this life is permitted by Him and used as chastening, warning, perfecting, strengthening agents upon all who will put their trust in Him.

Verse eight appears to be Isaiah’s own surrender to the expressed sovereignty of God just proclaimed. It is, as it were, a prayer of Isaiah looking forward to the prospective mission of Cyrus and its salvation for the people of God. Isaiah prays that God’s whole universe join in with God’s program of redemption for Israel and the nations. Let all of God’s creation bring forth and pour down spiritual blessings in heavenly gifts, according to the will and in the power of Jehovah, whose ultimate purpose is a new spiritual creation. Any man who believes and contemplates the absolute sovereignty of Jehovah as expressed by Isaiah here must be led to the same adoring prayer!

Verses 9-13

Isa 45:9-13

Isaiah 45:9-10

"Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! A potsherd among the potsherds of the earth! Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands? Woe unto him that saith unto a father, what begettest thou? or to a woman, With what travailest thou?"

"That the infidel and discontented portion of the Jewish people is here intended, seems beyond dispute. No arguments could more forcibly evince the extreme arrogance and folly of creatures pretending to scan and carp at the plans of Divine Providence." The apostle Paul quoted these words from Isaiah (Romans 9:20-21) and applied the passage there to the incredible folly of God’s creatures complaining and murmuring against the doings of their Maker. Right here is another complete refutation of the silly postulation of some "Second Isaiah’s" having written these prophecies. If there had ever been such a "Second Isaiah" as that imagined by critics, he would most certainly have belonged to the "establishment" of the chosen people; otherwise, he would never have been heard. But that "establishment" was precisely the reservoir of the critical attitude toward God which surfaces here. The corollary of this is that, in a thousand years, the "establishment" could never have produced such a conception as that of a pagan ruler such as Cyrus being chosen as God’s anointed to deliver the people from slavery. This verse nine removes any possibility that we are dealing with anything other than the true prophecies of Isaiah in these wonderful chapters.

Regarding the question of what the objection among the infidel Jews actually was, Hailey and many others explain it as a rebellion against the idea that God "would raise up Cyrus, a heathen, to deliver Israel." Some have suggested that they accused God of bungling their delivery by its long delay, or by his failure to prevent it altogether! What a stupid folly it is that mortal men would dare to murmur such criticisms against the infinite God!

Isaiah 45:11-13

"Thus saith Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker: Ask me of the things that are to come; concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands, command ye me. I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens; and all their host have I commanded. I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will make straight all his ways: he shall build my city, and he shall let my exiles go free, not for price, nor for reward, saith Jehovah of hosts."

Here is God’s thundering answer to the murmuring and complaining Jews who desired indeed their deliverance but would have preferred it to come as they had perhaps imagined rather than as God had decided to provide it. God here reminded them that if they wished to know God’s will and God’s plans concerning his children, they should consult the Word of God, not their own speculations. He reminded them that he was the Maker, the Creator, the Ruler and the Sustainer of the whole universe, that he commanded the host of heaven, and that he had also raised up Cyrus to deliver Israel and to rebuild God’s City (Jerusalem), and that was exactly what was going to happen, whether or not Israel liked it! Moreover, God here promised that he would protect and guide Cyrus in the doing of those things prophesied. He would "make straight all of his ways."

Isaiah 45:9-11 PRESUMPTION: God knows His former prophecy that Cyrus, a pagan emperor, is to be His anointed servant to deliver God’s people, will meet with incredulity. It would not be easy for a Jew to accept the idea that a pagan monarch could be God’s “anointed”! That Jehovah, God of Israel, would ever give success to a goyim (Gentile) was unacceptable (cf. Habakkuk 1:12 to Habakkuk 2:5; Luke 4:16-30). But the rejection of God’s word is moral rebellion and inexcusable. God has demonstrated in the past that He may do anything He wishes to do. He has demonstrated that when He speaks it comes to pass. Those who thus “contend” with Him are like kheres (earthenware pots) talking back to their yatsar (former) (cf. Isaiah 29:16; Jeremiah 18:1 ff; Romans 9:20; Isaiah 10:15). God pronounces woe on such presumption. It is insolent disobedience to question God’s word as if to say, God, what do you think you are doing by anointing a Gentile—you can’t do that! The phrase, “He hath no hands” implies the skeptic is charging God with ineptitude, as if God is going to make a mess of things by anointing Cyrus. Actually, it is the skeptic who is absurd. For a man to advise God is as ridiculous as an unborn child telling its parents they cannot conceive it or bring it to birth. The two verbs shealvuni (ask) and tetsavvuni (command) are imperatives. This may be translated as either command or question. We have chosen to understand it as a rhetorically satirical question from God to the skeptic. “You dare to question Me about My prophecies? You presume to command Me what to do about My redemptive program for My covenant people?” And all this presumptive meddling in God’s preannounced program is an attempted remonstrance with God about things that have not yet come to pass!

Isaiah 45:12-13 PROCLAMATION: God reiterates His sovereignty. He is omnipotent and omniscient. He is so by right of His Creatorship. He made earth, man, heaven, angels and everything that exists. Everything that exists is at His command—even a Gentile emperor! But more significantly, Israel is His to command. God’s prophecy of deliverance by Cyrus is a command to Israel. Her proper response is obedience—not presumptive skepticism. What God is going to do with Cyrus is on account of God’s righteousness—not Cyrus’ goodness. The Lord plainly states that Cyrus shall be His servant to rebuild Jerusalem and to free the captive Jews. There were four decrees by Persian rulers authorizing the Jews to return, rebuild and reinstitute their commonwealth. Cyrus made the first decree in 536 B.C. and it is recorded in Ezra 1:2-4. The astounding thing about this statement of Isaiah (Isaiah 45:13) is that it was made approximately 150 years before the fact! This is proof positive of the supernatural character of the book of Isaiah! It is also of great significance that Isaiah predicts the motivation for Cyrus’ freeing of the Jews and his part in rebuilding their nation will not be for “price nor reward.” Cyrus will not have to be “paid off,” or “bribed.” The Jews will not be released for ransom. Zechariah’s prophecy reveals that God will keep the world at peace so the Jews may rebuild their temple and their cities—“not by power, nor by might, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord,” (cf. Zechariah 4:5-14). It is nothing short of amazing that a powerful emperor like Cyrus would free his captives without a struggle and by his own imperial edict. It would be totally unexpected behavior in a world ruler of those days. To allow some 100,000 people, who in 70 years had become an integral part of the economic, political and social system of the empire, to pick up and leave suddenly would cause unimaginable problems. But as uncommon and unimaginable as it may have seemed then, it happened—just as it was predicted. God “stirred up the spirit” of Cyrus and the Jews were returned to Palestine. No great army overpowered Persia; no exchange of money took place; there was not even a “summit meeting” of diplomats working out a release of the captives. Only the amazing power of the fulfillment of the Word of God being demonstrated!

Note the following things about the return from the captivity:

a. It was begun in 536 B.C., exactly 70 years after the first captivity of Judah in 606 B.C. This exact 70 years was predicted by God’s prophets (cf. Jeremiah 25:11-12; Daniel 9:2)!

b. It was instituted by Cyrus, emperor of Persia; He was predicted to be the instigator of the return 150 years before he was born, (Isaiah 45:1-13)!

c. The release of the Jews from Persia would in no way profit the emperor Cyrus. There would be no “pay-off.” As a matter of fact, Cyrus decreed that people of his realm should contribute to the financial needs of the Jews to help them rebuild their nation (cf. Ezra 1:1-4)!

d. Not only were the Jews released from captivity, they were charged by the Persian emperor to reinstitute their commonwealth. This meant they were to return to self-governing nationhood (cf. Ezra 7:11-26)!

When Isaiah was making this prophecy of the release of the exiles by the hand of Cyrus, the people of Judah had not yet been taken captive! In fact, their captivity was yet some 50 years away! The point is that Isaiah’s people are refusing to believe they are going away into captivity. How much more incredible to believe they will someday be released and returned to their land by an unborn, uncrowned emperor of an unformed empire. One only has to read the book of Jeremiah (esp. Jeremiah 27-28) to understand the stubborn incredulity of the people of Judah about their subjugation to Babylon. The prediction of the prophets that God’s covenant people would be taken into exile was almost totally unacceptable to the populace. The prophets who told God’s truth were considered traitors!

Mankind, on the whole, changes little in its attitude toward God’s promises that the kingdoms of this world are doomed. Few believed Jesus when He predicted the destruction of Jerusalem—not even the disciples (cf. Matthew 23:37 to Matthew 24:28); not many believed the predictions of John the apostle that Rome would fall (cf. Revelation 6-20; esp. ch. 17–18); and there will continue to be “scoffers, following their own passions and saying, ‘Where is the promise of his coming?’ . . .” (cf, 2 Peter 3:1-13). But the word of the Lord is sure! The return of the Jews by Cyrus proves it! Let us heed Isaiah, “Will you question me about my children, or command me concerning the work of my hands?” (Isaiah 45:11). God will do as He has said, and no one (not even Cyrus) will deter Him! God has spoken! Man’s only intelligent, hopeful response is obedience. Even when God’s declarations are prophetic and, as yet, non-existent man must believe and act accordingly!

Verses 14-17

Isa 45:14-17

Isaiah 45:14-17

"Thus saith Jehovah, the labor of Egypt, and the merchandise of Ethiopia, and the Sabaeans, men of stature, shall come over unto thee, and they shall be thine: they shall go after thee; in chains they shall come over; and they shall fall down unto thee, saying, Surely God is in thee there is none else, besides him there is no God. Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour. They shall be put to shame, yea, confounded, all of them; they shall go into confusion together that are makers of idols. But Israel shall be saved by Jehovah with an everlasting salvation: ye shall not be put to shame nor confounded world without end."

Isaiah 45:14 here is a picture of the coming of the Gentiles into the New Israel, the Church of God. That Christians of every name and of every race and nation do actually bow themselves down to Christ and worship Him is actually going on right now all over the world; and since Christ is the True Israel, they are actually bowing down and worshipping the Israel of this passage. The mention of "chains" is not a reference to anything literal, but indicates that, "The surrender of these people to Christ will be as total as that of prisoners of war, but in reality their surrender will spring from conviction and issue in salvation," and will not be the result of any kind of physical restraint whatever. This illustration of former enemies coming and falling down and worshipping "Israel" is also specifically presented again in Revelation 3:9. See my comment on that New Testament instance of the same thing, Vol. 12 of our New Testament Series, p. 80.

The last two verses indicate the ultimate glory of Israel as exhibited in the "Israel of God" under the glorious terms of the New Covenant, in which the universal Brotherhood of the saints in Christ shall appear, Jews and Gentiles together, where no racial requirements are either needed or honored, and where every man shall give an account of himself to God, and where there is no respecter of persons or races, and "Whosoever will may come!"

The confusion and shame of idolaters which is prophesied in Isaiah 45:16 has indeed already been fulfilled. "From the time of the conquest of Babylon, idolatry began to decline; and shortly after the Christian era, in consequence of the spread of the Gospel, it disappeared from the best sections of Asia, Africa, and Europe." With the Edict of Theodosius, Emperor of Rome, in 380 A.D. paganism with its elaborate system of temples, priests, sacrifices, etc. was officially outlawed for all of what is known as Western Civilization.

Throughout all of these last twenty-seven chapters, Isaiah’s message points more and more to Jesus Christ and the reign of Messiah and less and less to the physical return of captive Jews from Babylon.

Isaiah 45:14 CONVERSION: What is predicted in this verse will come as a consequence of what has been said about believing and obeying the promise of deliverance from the captivity through Cryus. God is going to form a new Israel by the process of judgment (captivity) and redemption (return). He is going to prepare a remnant of faithful believers through which He may bring the Messiah and redeem the whole world. This messianic advent is not going to occur immediately after the return from captivity. There is no necessity to force the passage to say that. But the release of the captives and the restoration of the Jewish commonwealth will be the beginning of that total process which culminates in the first coming of Christ (cf. Daniel 9:24-27). The figurative picture of many nations coming to Israel with their treasures is a favorite expression of Isaiah to predict the messianic age (cf. Isaiah 2:2-4; Isaiah 18:7; Isaiah 19:16-25; Isaiah 23:18; Isaiah 60:5-22; Isaiah 61:5-11, etc.). It would demand too much to force this passage to a literal meaning. We have here a prediction that the inveterate enemies of Israel will, as a result of Israel’s return to her homeland, willingly turn over to Israel their wealth, willingly surrender to Israel “in chains,” and willingly beseech Israel to be allowed to join in the worship of Israel’s God. Such action has certainly never occurred by political or military persuasion. It could only be the result of conversion. Isaiah is predicting that the “new” Israel, resulting from the restored and repenting messianic remnant, will one day see the “wealth” of its enemies willingly surrendered to it. This “new” Israel will also see men of all nations, Gentiles, becoming bondservants to Jehovah and His kingdom. Gentiles will one day recognize that there is only One true God, and He is Jehovah, and they will beg to be joined to His people. Cyrus’ release of the exiles will serve this purpose. Isaiah does not tell us all the events of history that will transpire between Cyrus and the conversion of the Gentiles to the “new” Israel. That is not relevant here. The point of Isaiah’s message here is that Jehovah is sovereign—He is supreme. Jehovah is a God of purpose and order, the prophet affirms and Jehovah’s ultimate purpose is the redemption, not just of a 100,000 exiles from Mesopotamia, but of the whole world.

Isaiah 45:15-17 CERTITUDE: Isaiah now moves to an expression of awe and praise for the unsearchableness of God’s ways. The Hebrew word misettatter is translated “hidest thyself,” and is similar to the Greek word musterion (“mystery”) which means simply, unknown, or unrevealed. God is knowable when He reveals Himself. But there are depths to the character and mind of God that finite man could never know even if they were revealed to him. Man, living in a physical, time-space, temporal capsule is incapable of comprehending a non-physical, non-time-space, non-temporary existence. God reveals as much of Himself as man needs and is able to assimilate for the purpose of redemption and salvation and sanctification. Beyond that man is at a loss to know, not because God is unwilling, but because man is incapable (cf. Isaiah 55:6-11; John 16:12; Romans 11:33; 1 Corinthians 2:6-13). God’s predictions that He will work through a pagan ruler (Cyrus) to return the exiles and that from this will come a “new” Israel which will incorporate “slaves” who have willingly surrendered from Egypt, Ethiopia, etc., is “unsearchable” and “inscrutable,” God works in His plan of redemption according to His sovereign will (this is the message of Romans 9-11). Man may understand enough of God’s nature to know He is sovereign. But what man needs more than understanding is belief and obedience.

Incomprehensible as it may seem, the work of God through the new Israel, begun with the return of the exiles by Cyrus, will result in a great demonstration of the futility of idolatry. It seems altogether incongruous that a great pagan emperor who worships idols would begin a work that would ultimately expose the shamefulness of idolatry, but that is the meaning of Isaiah 45:16. In contrast with the chaos and hopelessness of idolatry, the new Israel will know the orderliness and salvation of the One True God. The Israel of God will never know shame or confusion—her salvation and hope will outlast time. The Israel of Isaiah’s day was to put its hope in this as a certitude because Jehovah is the God of order and purpose. His ways are not reducible to human reasoning or human experience, but He has revealed His nature sufficiently that human beings may trust Him completely to have their redemption and glorification as His purpose in everything He does and says. Faith in the certitude of God’s purpose would be the only thing that would sustain Isaiah’s people through Babylonian captivity and the long centuries of “indignation” until the coming of the Messiah.

Verses 18-19

Isa 45:18-19

Isaiah 45:18-19

"For thus saith Jehovah that created the heavens, the God that formed the earth and made it, that established it and created it not for a waste, that formed it to be inhabited: I am Jehovah, and there is none else. I have not spoken in secret, in a place in the land of darkness; I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain: I Jehovah speak righteousness, I declare things that are right."

Here is the heavenly answer to the objection of the unbelieving leadership of captive Israel to the effect that "God was a God who hid himself’ (Isaiah 45:15). The revelation of God through his Holy Word is altogether sufficient for mortal men, as this passage flatly declares. Furthermore, God’s oracles are not dim and equivocal pronouncements such as the Delphic oracle to Croesus; but they are plain, truthful, and enlightening.

These two verses set forth the two great witnesses of God’s love and concern for fallen mankind. The very manner in which the earth itself has been created, and made so wonderfully suitable for human habitation (in Isaiah 45:18) are exactly the very same grounds of Paul’s appeal in Antioch of Pisidia (Acts 14:17) to the effect that the fruitful seasons of the earth were evidence that "God has not left himself without witness."

Isaiah 45:19 appeals to the revelation of God’s Word that idols are nothing and that only Jehovah is the One and Only True God; and besides him, there is no other.

Isaiah 45:18-19 COHERENCE: Isaiah continues the theme of purpose-fulness. God made the world for order and purpose. He did not intend it to be perverted and turned into chaos by rebellion and sin. But man made “waste” of God’s creation when he believed Satan and disobeyed God. This is Isaiah’s message in Isaiah 45:18. The implication is that God will, through the work begun by Cyrus and the returned exiles, proceed to restore order and purpose to His creation. Restoration of order is the message of Romans 1-8; it is the message of Hebrews 2:5-18. Man once had dominion over an ordered, purposeful, paradise; he forfeited it by sin and his paradise became a “futility” (cf. Romans 8:20); Christ’s meritorious work paid the redemptive price for man and his planet and one day this redemption will be consummated (Hebrews 2:5-18), and man redeemed by covenant relationship to his Maker will once again have dominion over Paradise. This is the ultimate purpose of Jehovah and the goal of the work of Cyrus and the returned exiles! The coherent reunion of man with his Maker and man with his surroundings is the goal of God. Man in oneness with his God and with his fellow man is what Jesus fervently prayed for and died for (cf. John 17:1 ff). Only God could accomplish that. And He would accomplish it through things unsearchable and inscrutable to the wisdom of men—the gospel of the cross (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:10-31). All the philosophies and political schemes of men put together will never accomplish what God can do through the “foolishness” of the message of the cross of Christ—that is, reunite man in a divine coherence with his Maker!

Although the ways and means by which God does this may not be fully understood, the fact that He is going to do it is no secret! This is what the prophet says in Isaiah 45:19. Jehovah makes every possible effort to reveal Himself. He wants men to trust Him and love Him and obey Him. He is not like the pagan gods and their devotees whose one aim seems to be to conceal. Those who worshiped idols and practiced sorcery found themselves being told their gods could only be discovered by secret rituals and then only a select few could know the rituals. Most Gentiles understood clearly that their gods were simply creatures of mythology and fantasy. Most were skeptical of any reality connected with religion. Jehovah is not like that! When He speaks He speaks truth. When He acts, what He does is right and real. He spoke in revelation to man. “In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets . . .” (Hebrews 1:1). There was no dearth of communication from Jehovah, both in word and deed, even to the day of Isaiah. He declared His purposefulness and faithfulness over and over. Now, Isaiah is calling upon his contemporaries to believe Jehovah is speaking again, openly, plainly and purposefully.

Verses 20-25

Isa 45:20-25

Isaiah 45:20-25

"Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, ye that escaped of the nations: they have no knowledge that carry the wood of their graven image, and pray unto a god that cannot save. Declare ye, and bring it forth; yea, let them take counsel together: who hath showed this from ancient time? who hath declared it of old? have not I, Jehovah? and there is no God else besides me, a just God and a Saviour; there is none besides me. Look unto me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else. By myself have I sworn, the word is gone forth from my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue swear. Only in Jehovah, it is said of me, is righteousness and strength; even to him shall men come; and all they that were incensed against him shall be put to shame. In Jehovah shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory."

The Old Israel is hardly in this passage at all, for it is addressed "unto them that escaped of the nations," to all of the redeemed of the whole earth, as indicated in Isaiah 45:22.

Note also that the last two verses here have the expressions "Only in Jehovah," and "In Jehovah shall all the seed of Israel be blessed," these being the exact parallels of the great Pauline conception of salvation "in the Lord," "in Christ," "in him," "in the Beloved," and equivalent expressions, which are found "one hundred-sixty nine times in Paul’s New Testament writings."

There is a widespread misunderstanding of what is meant by Isaiah 45:23. Wardle thought that the meaning is, "Every man shall swear allegiance to God"; However, the New Testament usage of this passage shows more clearly what the Spirit says. "At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:10-11). Also, in Revelation 6:14-17, we are given a more intimate glimpse of the nature of that confession which even the most wicked of men shall eventually make.

This passage also teaches that "no Israelite shall be saved apart from his union with Jehovah and "in Jehovah," a status that has never been attained by any person who ever lived apart from his being baptized "into Christ" (Romans 6:3-5; 1 Corinthians 12:13; and Galatians 3:27); because Christ is indeed "God come in the flesh." He is actually called "God," no less than ten times in the Greek New Testament (John 1:1; John 1:18; John 20:28; Acts 20:28; Hebrews 1:8; Philippians 2:6; Romans 9:5; 1 Timothy 3:16; Titus 2:13; and 1 John 5:20, etc.). Thus, in these verses the great climax of Isaiah’s prophecies is fully realized in the glorious salvation to all men in the New Covenant. "The religion of Israel is to become the religion of all mankind; and this anticipation finds its fulfillment in the Christian dispensation," and this is proved by Paul’s application of these verses to Christ in Philippians 2:10-11, and in Romans 14:11.

We should not overlook the fact that this passage "also abolishes the last vestiges of nationalism in the true religion." It is also inherent in the same truth that the last vestiges of racism have also been forever removed in the true religion. No man will ever be saved on account of his race, or denied salvation on the basis of it. "Preach the Gospel to the whole creation; he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved." (Mark 16:16).

Isaiah 45:20-21 INDICTMENT: These verses continue and amplify the train of thought that has gone before concerning the long-range, culminating result of Jehovah’s redemptive work begun with Cyrus’ freeing of the Jewish exiles. This redemptive work of God will have a world-wide outreach. All those Gentiles who repent of their idolatry and acknowledge, in faith, the sovereignty of Jehovah will be saved. The Hebrew word hikavetzu, translated “assemble yourselves,” is stronger than merely “assemble.” It means “form yourselves into a specific group.” Those that are “escaped” among the goiyim (Gentiles) are the future people from all nations who will have seen the culmination of the work begun in the return from the captivities (the institution of the messianic kingdom through Jesus Christ), recognize the sovereignty of the God of Israel, wish to escape His judgment and choose to accept His offer of salvation. In other words, it is the church of the New Testament. Isaiah is affirming (in predictive-present) that a specific group of goiyim will thus choose to escape the judgment upon all religions except that of Jehovah which will be made apparent to honest-minded believers through the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. There is salvation in no one else (Acts 4:12) and this will be confirmed and affirmed centuries after Isaiah predicts it here. Many of the Gentiles would, when the new Israel (the church) began to proclaim its gospel, acknowledge the futility of their pagan religions and their own lostness (cf. Acts 19:11-20). The indictment of Jehovah is that idols cannot save and those who worship them are without knowledge of the truth.

Many of the goiyim would challenge that last statement! Even some of the Jews of Isaiah’s day would find it objectionable. Through the centuries from Isaiah until Christ, the whole Gentile world remained in ignorance and superstition and idolatry. Even after the resurrection of Christ men continued to cling to their idols and human philosophies (cf. Acts 17:16-33). Hundreds of millions of people today worship gods of wood and stone that cannot save them. But the sovereignty of God is demonstrated, as Isaiah 45:21 states, through the fulfillment of God’s prophetic word (cf. 2 Peter 1:16-21). Jehovah offers the goiyim an opportunity to “state their case” and even invites them to pool their “counsel” and see if they can gainsay the predictions of Jehovah through His prophets. Jehovah alone knows the future and He has demonstrated it from the beginning of time by predicting events great and small in minute detail, thousands of years before their fulfillment. Much of this was prior to Isaiah’s time! There was plenty of evidence even in Isaiah’s day that Jehovah’s word always came to pass. Isaiah himself was able to believe in the Christ as the culminating work of Jehovah (cf. John 12:36-43); Abraham saw the day of Christ by faith and rejoiced (John 8:56-59). But most certainly, when the prophecies Jehovah made by Isaiah gained their fulfillment, the Gentiles would have every possible proof that Jehovah is God and there is no other!

Isaiah 45:22-25 INVITATION: The Hebrew word peneu means turn, thus Isaiah 45:22 should read, “Turn unto me, and be ye saved.” There are two other Hebrew words also used to mean turn—shuv and nacham. Peneu means more literally, “turn to or towards; follow; turn to face something or someone.” Peneu is the imperative of panah, so it is Jehovah’s command that all the world turn to Him for salvation. The word translated “be ye saved” is heuashe’u, the imperative of yasha’, and so the Lord is here expressing His deep desire that all men be saved (1 Timothy 2:3; 2 Peter 3:9). It is really Jehovah’s tender insistance that all the world face up to the fact that He is the only God and Savior of mankind there is! Isaiah is truly the spokesman of the Old Testament for the universality of the gospel. God’s outreach is to the ends of the earth. The Lord’s hand is not shortened that it cannot save (cf. Isaiah 59:1-3), it is man’s sin (rebellion) that keeps him from being saved. In other words, man’s salvation is complete and readily available but in the final analysis, it is up to man. He must choose. He must accept the covenant terms.

The salvation of all mankind. is of great significance. It is what all of history functions for; it is that for which God has stirred up the spirit of Cyrus to return the exiles. Man’s redemption and regeneration is that for which God longs, plans, works and sacrifices (even His own Son). It is His total goal. So He supports His invitation to all the world with an oath. He swears by Himself. There is nothing greater to swear by (cf. Hebrews 6:13-20) He swears on His eternality (cf. Genesis 22:16; Romans 14:11). The crucifixion and resurrection of Christ was the greatest, most specific and thoroughly confirmed oath of God ever made. It was there, in history, God validated the certainty of all His promises and the faithfulness of His own nature (cf. 2 Corinthians 1:19-21; Hebrews 6:17 f) when He “interposed” Himself with an oath. God, in the flesh, dying and coming to life again by His own power! Once and for all God proved through the empty tomb that He is the resurrection and the life. He proved that no one comes to the Father but by Jesus Christ. With absolute historic certainty God proved there that every word of His comes to pass in righteousness. He also proved that eventually every knee must bow and every tongue confess that He is God (cf. Romans 14:11; Philippians 2:10 f.). While time lasts, men are free to acknowledge His sovereignty or deny it. But when time ceases to be and men inhabit the eternal destinies they have freely chosen, they will all acknowledge His sovereignty. Eventually every thing created must acknowledge His Lordship. Some, as Isaiah 45:24 points out, will confess His righteousness and strength and come to Him (for salvation). Others, incensed, hateful and rebellious to the end will know and acknowledge His sovereignty but will be “put to shame.”

Jehovah will justify (vindicate) all the seed of Israel and glorify them. In our context (the work of God, begun with Cyrus, culminating in redemption for the whole world) this “seed” must refer to the spiritual Israel (cf. Romans 2:28-29; Romans 4:13-25; Galatians 3:6-9; Galatians 3:27-29; Galatians 6:14-16). All, both Jew and Gentile, who “turn” to Jehovah for salvation by faith will have that faith vindicated when God, “bringing many sons to glory” (Hebrews 2:10), finishes His work at the consummation of it all. Right now we are being changed, by faith, from one degree of glory to another (2 Corinthians 3:18). One day, when time ceases to be, we shall have all the glory our Great God has prepared for us—then our faith will be vindicated! God is sovereign in salvation!