000 Allen FMT (i-xxii) - The Presbyterian Leader

so great a sin it is gracious and merciful of God to free us from having to
look God in the face.
Isaiah 45:1–7* (Paired)
Proper 24 [29]/Year A 103
Second Isaiah faced the difficult prospect of convincing an exiled people
that YHWH would restore Israel to life and blessing in the land of promise.
But how to do this in a situation that was under the control of Marduk and
his Babylonian worshipers? (See the Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany/
Year B and the First Sundays after the Epiphany/Years A and C.)
Isaiah had proclaimed that Israel had learned from its hard experience
of exile: “comfort my people, says your God . . . and cry to her that she
has served her term, that her penalty is paid” (40:1–2). Now, God will act
redemptively on Israel’s behalf. Today’s reading is the Cyrus prophecy and
begins with 44:24: “Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, who formed you
in the womb . . . who says of Jerusalem, ‘It shall be inhabited,’ and of the
cities of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt’” (vv. 24–26). God says of Cyrus:
“He is my shepherd, and he shall carry out all my purpose” (v. 28).
The key to today’s reading lies in YHWH’s purpose to bring about
kindhearted justice for all peoples and particularly for Israel. Militarily
victorious, Cyrus conquered Croesus of Lydia in 546 CE and combined
Persia and Media into a united kingdom. As a progressive ruler he understood
that it was in his interest to see to the well-being of other peoples.
Although Cyrus worshiped Marduk, he served YHWH’s purpose of considerate
justice. “For the sake of . . . Israel my chosen, I call you by your
name . . . though you do not know me” (45:4).
The Lord starkly announces that Cyrus is “his anointed,” that is, his messiah
(45:1). “Messiah” means “the anointed one,” and Isaiah identifies
Cyrus as God’s messiah to restore the people Israel to the land of Israel,
eretz Yisrael. This messiah is about the business of doing this-worldly
things: returning Israel to its land, financing that return, and reconstructing
its infrastructure and institutions, including the Temple. Jerusalem
“shall be rebuilt” and the “foundation [of the Temple] shall be laid” (44:28).
For Second Isaiah, YHWH could use foreign rulers who did not know
YHWH to carry out YHWH’s purposes, to discipline Israel, and to
restore the people. Second Isaiah was sophisticated, quite aware that
Cyrus was not a faithful servant of YHWH. Without knowing it, Cyrus
was carrying out God’s purposes with respect to the people Israel. Isaiah
prompts us to ask whether other peoples and their leaders are, in God’s
providence, trying to teach us lessons that we need to learn.