Watchman Radio Hour

David Shultz: Welcome to the Watchman Radio Hour, coming to you from Portland, Oregon, here in the beautiful Northwest. This is David Shultz, your announcer. The Watchman Radio Hour is a production of Watchman Radio Ministries International, an evangelistic ministry reaching out to the peoples of the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. And now here is our speaker, Alex Dodson, to bring you this week's message from God's word.

Alex Dodson: Our scripture reading for today begins in Isaiah chapter 44, beginning to read in verse 28. Let us hear the word of God. Who says of Cyrus, "He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please." He will say of Jerusalem, "Let it be rebuilt," and of the temple, "Let its foundations be laid."

This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut. "I will go before you and will level the mountains and will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.

I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name. For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my chosen, I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me.

I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting, men may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other."

Our Father in heaven, we thank you for the Bible that you have given to us. We thank you that it is your infallible word and that we can put our full confidence in all that it says. And now, O Father, as we come to study your word, we pray that you will send your Holy Spirit in great power and conviction. In Christ's name we pray, amen.

Today we are beginning a short series on this great chapter 45 of Isaiah. It tells about the rise of Cyrus, King of Persia, whom God used to deliver his people from Babylon and bring them back to the land of Israel to rebuild the temple and begin getting ready for the coming of the Messiah. God used Cyrus to do it. He was a Gentile king, and God used him for his own purposes, even though he did not know God.

Beginning in Isaiah 44:28 it says, who says of Cyrus, "He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please." He will say of Jerusalem, "Let it be rebuilt," and of the temple, "Let its foundation be laid." Though Cyrus did not know it, he was preparing the way for the Messiah to come. He would open the way for the temple to be rebuilt, and this would be the temple that the Messiah would come to.

The temple was rebuilt, and Haggai gave this great prophecy about this new temple. In Haggai 2, verses 1 through 9, it says, on the 21st day of the seventh month, the word of the Lord came through the prophet Haggai. "Speak to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, to Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people. Ask them, 'Who of you is left who saw this house in its former glory? How does it look to you now? Does it not seem like nothing?

But now be strong, O Zerubbabel,' declares the Lord. 'Be strong, O Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land,' declares the Lord, 'and work. For I am with you,' declares the Lord Almighty. 'This is what I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt. And my spirit remains among you. Do not fear.'

This is what the Lord Almighty says: 'In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. I will shake all nations, and the desired of all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,' says the Lord Almighty. 'The silver is mine and the gold is mine,' declares the Lord Almighty. 'The glory of the present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,' says the Lord Almighty. 'And in this place I will grant peace,' declares the Lord Almighty."

It was to this new temple that Jesus came and he filled it with his glory by being there. Cyrus was the one who opened the way for it. Because of what Cyrus did, the gospel would go out to the whole world, to all the nations. All the nations would hear of the Messiah and multitudes would come to him.

Our text is Isaiah 45, verses 5 and 6, which says, "I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting, men may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other." Cyrus prepared the way for the worldwide proclamation of the gospel.

God has his plan and he is carrying it out. Jesus came just as the prophets said he would. He came to his temple and filled it with his glory, the temple that Cyrus gave orders to build. God has worked throughout history to carry out his plan, and he is still working today. The gospel is going out to the nations, just as Isaiah prophesied so long ago.

Today the gospel is coming to you. You have the privilege to hear that Jesus came and he went to the cross to die for your sins. He invites you right now to come and accept him as Lord and Master of your life and to trust him for your salvation. Now let us see, in the first place today, that God made Cyrus a great king.

Verse 5 says this: "I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you," talking to Cyrus. "I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me." God raised up a great king. Isaiah prophesied 210 years before Cyrus conquered Babylon. Cyrus conquered many nations. He went on to conquer Babylon and become the king of the whole Medo-Persian kingdom. It was God who gave him his power and dominion.

Again we read in Isaiah 45, beginning in verse 1: "This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him, to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut. I will go before you and will level mountains. I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.

For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my chosen, I summon you, Cyrus, by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me. I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me." Adam Clarke, in his commentary commenting on verse 2, says the gates of brass, that is, valves of brass. Eusebius says that the wall of Babylon had brazen gates, and Herodotus says in the wall all around there are a hundred gates all of brass, and so in like manner are the sides and lintels.

The gates likewise within the city opening to the river from the several streets were of brass, as were those of the Temple of Belus, according to Herodotus. The New Bible Dictionary says by 550 BC, he had defeated Astyages and become king of the Medes, a title ascribed to him, to Cyrus, by the Babylonian Nabonidus. He conquered Croesus and his kingdom of Lydia in 549 BC and marched through Assyria.

A few years later he was already threatening Babylonia, but it was not until the 16th of October 539 BC that the Persians with Gobryas entered Babylon, having diverted the river and thus been able to penetrate the city along the dried-up riverbed to effect a surprise. 17 days later Cyrus himself entered the city amid scenes of jubilation. Now Daniel prophesied all of this. Let's look at Daniel's prophecy of the coming of the end of the Babylonian king.

We find it in Daniel chapter 5, and I want to read what that chapter has to say about this event. It says King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine with them. He was the son of Nabonidus and co-regent with him of Babylon. It goes on to say while Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them.

So they brought in the gold goblets that had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines drank from them. As they drank the wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone. Suddenly, the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall near the lampstand in the royal palace.

The king watched the hand as it wrote. His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his knees began to knock together and his legs were giving way. Then the Bible says the king called out for the enchanters, astrologers, and diviners of his kingdom to be brought in, and he said to the wise men of Babylon, "Whoever reads this writing and tells me what it means will be clothed in purple and have a gold chain placed around his neck, and he will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom."

See, they were already co-regents, and whoever interpreted the dream would be the third highest in the kingdom. Then all the king's wise men came in, but they could not read the writing or tell the king what it meant. So King Belshazzar became even more terrified and his face grew more pale. His nobles were baffled. Then Daniel says the queen, hearing the voices of the king and his nobles, came into the banquet hall.

"O King, live forever," she said. "Don't be alarmed. Don't look so pale. There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. In the time of your father he was found to have insight and intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods. King Nebuchadnezzar your father, your father the king, I say, appointed him chief of the magicians, enchanters, astrologers, and diviners.

This man Daniel, whom the king called Belteshazzar, was found to have a keen mind and knowledge and understanding, and also the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve difficult problems. Call for Daniel, and he will tell you what the writing means." So Daniel was brought before the king, and the king said to him, "Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father the king brought from Judah?

I have heard that the spirit of the gods is in you and that you have insight, intelligence, and outstanding wisdom. The wise men and enchanters were brought before me to read this writing and tell me what it means, but they could not explain it. Now I have heard that you are able to give interpretations and to solve difficult problems. If you can read this writing and tell me what it means, you will be clothed in purple around your neck and you will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom."

Then Daniel answered the king, "You may keep your gifts for yourself and give your rewards to someone else. Nevertheless, I will read the writing for the king and tell him what it means. O King, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. Because of the high position he gave him, all the peoples and nations and men of every language dreaded and feared him.

Those the king wanted to put to death, he put to death. Those he wanted to spare, he spared. Those he wanted to promote, he promoted. And those he wanted to humble, he humbled. But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory.

He was driven away from people and given the mind of an animal. He lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like cattle, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over the kingdom of men and sets over them anyone he wishes.

But you his son, O Belshazzar, have not humbled yourself, though you knew all this. Instead you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank from them. You praised the gods of silver and of gold, and of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand.

You did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways. Therefore he sent the hand that wrote this inscription. This is the inscription that was written: mene, mene, tekel, parsin. This is what these words mean: mene—God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. Tekel—you have been weighed in the balances and found wanting. Peres—your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians."

Then at Belshazzar's command, Daniel was clothed in purple, a gold chain was placed around his neck, and he was proclaimed the third highest ruler in the kingdom. That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain, and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom at the age of sixty-two.

Now, it says Darius the Mede took over. It doesn't say Cyrus. But Darius the Mede was named here in Daniel as king of the Medo-Persian kingdom. Yet we know that King Cyrus conquered the Babylonian kingdom. Steven Anderson, in his book Darius the Mede: A Reappraisal, does a great job in explaining this and showing that Darius the Mede was a co-regent with Cyrus of the Medo-Persian kingdom at this time of the takeover of the Babylonian kingdom.

He was co-regent with Cyrus until 537 BC when Cyrus became the one sole king of the Medo-Persian kingdom, according to Steven Anderson's research on this subject. Now let us see in the second place that Cyrus's mission laid the foundation for the worldwide spread of the gospel. Verse 6 of Isaiah 45 says, "So that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting, men may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other."

Cyrus sent the Jews back to the land of Israel to build the temple to prepare for the coming of the Messiah. In Isaiah 44:28 it says, who says of Cyrus, "He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please. He will say of Jerusalem, 'Let it be rebuilt,' and of the temple, 'Let its foundations be laid.'" And then in Isaiah 45:4 it says, "For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my chosen, I summon you, Cyrus, by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me."

In Isaiah 45:13 it says, "I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness. I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price or a reward," says the Lord Almighty. Isaiah prophesied all of this 200 years before it actually happened. Jeremiah had prophesied that the Jews would be in captivity for 70 years. At the end of the 70 years, Cyrus gives the orders to send the Jews back to their homeland.

In 2 Chronicles 36, verses 22 and 23, it says, in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing. "This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: 'The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Anyone of his people among you—may the Lord his God be with him, and let him go up.'"

Cyrus also authorized the returning of the temple vessels. For it says in Ezra chapter 1, verse 7, moreover, King Cyrus brought out the articles belonging to the temple of the Lord. These are the ones that the former king in Babylon had drunk from with all of his people. Cyrus brings them out. These are the ones that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and had placed them in the temple of his god.

Cyrus king of Persia had them brought by Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. This was the inventory: gold dishes 30, silver dishes 1,000, silver pans 29, gold bowls 30, matching silver bowls 410, other articles 1,000. In all there were 5,400 articles of gold and of silver. Sheshbazzar brought all these along when the exiles came up from Babylon to Jerusalem.

Cyrus also authorized the collecting of materials for the construction of the temple. In Ezra 3:7 it says, then they gave money to the masons and carpenters and gave food and drink and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre, so that they would bring cedar logs by sea from Lebanon to Joppa, as authorized by Cyrus king of Persia.

Edward J. Young writes the ultimate reason for Cyrus's victories was that God was carrying out his purposes of redemption. It was his will that his people should return from Babylon to Palestine and that there the Christ should be born. Cyrus then in doing all this was laying the foundation for the coming of the Messiah and the spread of the gospel to all the nations.

And then let us see that Cyrus prepared the way for the gospel to go into all the world. Again, verse 6 says, "So that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting, men may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other." Keil and Delitzsch write the third and last object of this predicted and realized success of the oppressor of nations and deliverer of Israel is the acknowledgment of Jehovah, spreading over the Gentile world from the rising to the setting of the sun—that is, in every direction.

And Edward J. Young again says, Cyrus was raised up that the Jews might return to Palestine and that Christ might then be born in Bethlehem, and that when redemption had been accomplished and its message proclaimed, there might be a universal acknowledgment that the God of Israel is the true God. That prophecy would find fulfillment in the conversion of mankind, and more particularly at that time when every knee should bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

That future redemption was accomplished by Christ on the cross and the gospel announces that redemption right now to all the world. Now let us see in the third place that Cyrus's mission pointed the way to a one world Savior. Verse 6 again says, "So that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting, men may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other."

There is only one God and Savior. 1 Timothy 2:5 says, for there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. John 14:6, Jesus answered, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Acts 4:12, salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. The gospel declares this one true Savior, Jesus Christ.

It is to him and him alone that we must look for salvation. People all over the world would know the one true God. J.A. Alexander says what was said before of Cyrus in particular is now said of men in general, that they must be convinced in this way that the God of Israel is the one true God. A day is coming and already begun when this one true God will be known in every nation all over the world.

Malachi 1:11 says, "My name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name, because my name will be great among the nations," says the Lord Almighty. Habakkuk 2:14 says, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

In John 12, verses 31 and 32, it says, "Now is the time for judgment on this world. Now the prince of this world will be driven out. But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." Jesus has been lifted up on the cross and purchased our salvation, and now we lift him up in the gospel and invite all to come to him for salvation.

2 Peter 3:9 says, the Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance. The Lord will return at the last day and then the last judgment will take place. Yet now he is sending forth the gospel calling all to repent and turn to Christ. Now is the day of salvation.

One day it will be too late. One day the judgment will come. Now is the time to repent. Now is the time to be saved. Don't let another day go by without repenting. Come now to Christ. It makes no difference who you are. You may be old or young. You may be very educated or not so educated. It makes no difference what the color of your skin is or what country you are from. God is no respecter of persons.

He invites all to come to Christ. In Isaiah 55, verses 1 and 2, it says, "Come all you who are thirsty, come to the waters, and you who have no money, come buy and eat. Come buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why spend money on what is not bread and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare."

Revelation 22:17 says the Spirit and the bride say "Come!" and let him who hears say "Come!" and whoever is thirsty, let him come, and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. Come now. Come now to Christ. He wants you to come. He invites you to come. Repent and believe the gospel. And we invite you right now to pray this simple prayer.

Dear Lord Jesus, I confess that I have sinned in your sight. I come now repenting of my sins and I accept you as my Savior and Lord. If you prayed that prayer, may God fill you with his Spirit and lead you throughout your life. O Father in heaven, we pray that you will bless those who prayed that prayer, and we pray that many will come to know you as their Lord and Savior. In Christ's name we pray, amen.

David Shultz: Thanks for listening to the Watchman Radio Hour. We invite you to come again next week to hear another timely message from God's word. We are Watchman Radio Ministries International, reaching out to the peoples of the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ.