Sermon - Pentecost 21 - Isaiah 45:1-7

 

Our readings today have some interesting content related to civil or government rulers.  In the Gospel reading, we have the famous principle of Jesus, “render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”  Of course, here Jesus is not only teaching his people that it is right to pay taxes, but also implies that Caesar is to respected by Christians as God’s appointed ruler.  A broader treatment of the topic might bring in the idea of the two kingdoms by which God rules the world – the left-hand kingdom of civil government, and the right-hand kingdom of Gospel and church.  We could note how, as Romans 13 teaches, all governments and rulers are appointed by God and are his agents.  And the same would be true for our Old Testament reading from Isaiah 45.

Let’s look a bit closer at Cyrus today, and see there not only God’s hand moving behind the rise and fall of empires, but also a foreshadowing of the true king of kings who stands at the center of Scripture and our faith, our Lord Jesus Christ.  We’ll do some history, and then we’ll talk typology.

Isaiah, who wrote these words of prophecy, lived about 100 years before Cyrus.  And yet, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Isaiah even calls this Persian king by name!  It’s one of the more specific and astounding prophecies of the Old Testament.  It’s so amazing, that, of course, the Biblical critics and skeptical scholars have sought to explain it away – saying that these prophecies must have been written later, you know, by Isaiah’s disciples who then claimed them as a prediction.  But the Scriptures do not lie, and of course God can and does tell us future events which are sure to come true – the virgin birth, that Christ was born in Bethlehem, that a voice crying in the wilderness would go before him, and on and on.

We know from history that Cyrus II, called “Cyrus the Great” came to power as a Persian king, and then conquered the Median empire, the Lydian empire, and most of Asia Minor (which is modern day Turkey).  This, of course, included the promised land – and also Babylon, where the people of Israel had been in exile some 80 years.

Cyrus was a different kind of emperor than the Babylonians before him, and changed their policy when it came to conquered peoples.  We read the famous “Decree of Cyrus” in Ezra 1:

Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. 3 Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel—he is the God who is in Jerusalem.

And so, through Cyrus, the Lord God provided rescue for his people.  Even though Cyrus was a pagan, and “does not know the Lord”, he still is God’s appointed servant to do this, for the benefit of God’s people.  Cyrus was, like all rulers, appointed by God.  But in this case God had a special purpose for him as part of the plan of salvation.

Of course, the people of Israel would return, rebuild Jerusalem, rebuild its temple, and this set the stage for the coming of the Christ some 500 years down the road. 

But there’s more to it than just the history for the sake of history. Here we have a reminder that the hand of God is active behind the rise and fall of nations and empires.  He makes war and makes war to cease, breaks the bow, shatters the spear, burns the chariot with fire.  He appoints rulers, and then appoints different rulers. 

And though we are not privy to the specifics of his reasoning or just how he is working in the events of the world, yes, even in the wars between unbelieving nations – yet we trust our God who is the king of kings to accomplish his good purposes.  We believe his promise that in all things he works for good for those who love him.  We can apply this understanding to the news of the day, whether it be violence in the Middle East, or war in Ukraine.  The Lord reigns.  Jesus is on the throne.

And finally, as we always consider the Old Testament in light of Christ, for these scriptures are they which testify to him:  we can see in Cyrus a type, or a foreshadowing of Christ.

The hints are fairly obvious.  Cyrus is called, in verse 1, God’s “anointed”.  And of course the Hebrew word for that is, “Messiah”.  The anointed one of God.  The one set aside by God for a special purpose.  For Cyrus it was to end the exile and send the Jews home.  But we have a greater anointed one in Jesus.  He is set apart as THE Messiah.  The one who ends our exile of sin, and sends us to the promised land of eternal salvation in the courts of heaven.

Cyrus sent the Jews to rebuild the temple.  Jesus said, “Destroy this temple and I will rebuild it in three days”.  And by this Jesus meant his body.  Destroyed on the cross, given over to death, the dwelling of God with man in Christ was snuffed out like a candle.  But to that grave he took our sin, and death itself.  And he left them behind in the tomb.  Raised to life again, the temple of his body is rebuilt, glorious and powerful, never to die again.

In a way, the exile was cathartic for the Jewish people. God has a way of bringing us through trouble and hardship in order discipline his people, and purify them as in a fiery crucible.  So he did for the Jews.  They came back from exile recommitted to Yahweh as the only God and Lord.  And while they had other struggles, never again did they join the pagan worship of the nations. 

The temple that the Jews built after their return from exile would stand for almost 600 years, but then it would be destroyed again by the Romans.  Once again, the nations rise and fall at God’s command.  And never again would a temple stand on that site. 

But from Jerusalem would go forth the Gospel, to all nations, to the ends of the earth, so that all may hear and believe and have life in his name.  And just as Jesus said, we worship now not here or there, but in Spirit and in truth.

Just as God cleared the obstacles for Cyrus on his ascent to the throne, so also God blesses the preaching of the Gospel as it takes its course around the world.  He chose other men, and set them aside as apostles and evangelists, preachers and missionaries.  If he has to depose rulers and rearrange nations to do it, that is his business.  But his word will accomplish its purpose.

But perhaps the greatest hurdle to face is not some earthly ruler, or hostile kingdom, but each sinful heart.  Not the bronze walls or iron gates of a mighty citadel, but the hard heart of man.  The bonds of sin are chains we cannot break, they are iron bars we cannot burst or lift.  We are, by nature, born into captivity.  We are, by our own fault, exiles and castaways.   

Such were you and I, until God called us by name.  Until he washed us in the baptismal waters, and led us by the hand to his holy church. 

And now, all of us are set aside, appointed and anointed, as a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his treasured possession.  He even defeats our enemies before us and all around us – sin, death, devil, no matter.  Christ the anointed one, the greater Cyrus, is our champion, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  He is the Lord, there is no other.