Comments on Isaiah 45 With the conclusion of three rhetorically and textually connected chapters (ch. 42-44) that focus on the Lord's justice and mercy as shown to Israel, what follows is a chapter that introduces the Lord's relationship with the Gentiles. Previously, Isaiah has commented a little bit on the assimilation of the righteous remnant of the nations into Israel. But, in this chapter, Isaiah goes well beyond the assimilation theme to identify a Gentile as His anointed servant. This chapter is exceptionally important for two reasons. It preserves a complete set of symbols associated with the endowment of kingship. And, it identifies that a Gentile may stand in the position of an Israelite if the Lord sees fit. In the preceding chapters of this block (ch. 40-44, esp. 41) we hear the Lord identify Israel as His servant and then relate certain covenant relationships between He and they. Now, Isaiah presents a Gentile as enjoying the very same relationship with the Lord as David enjoyed. As such, it necessarily implies that the adoption to Israel that non-Israelites can participate in puts them on equal ground as the Israelites with regard to covenant blessings. This chapter easily divides into three major sections, as follows: v. 1-6 Cyrus is made the delivering king. v. 7-8 Substantiation of v. 1-6. v. 9-13 Lord castigates those who question His wisdom. v. 14-25 The only true deliverer is the Lord. v. 1-6 With the impeachment of the Davidic line of authority for kingship over Israel (cf. 39:5-8), the Lord will provide deliverers to Israel as He sees fit in order to accomplish His purposes. In this case, a Gentile is raised up in an ultra specific prophecy to deliver Israel from Babylon and show all nations of the earth the power of the Lord. This prophecy is quite astonishing given the prediction of 39:5-8 which states Babylon will sack Jerusalem. So, not only is Isaiah predicting that event, he is also predicting Judah's delivery from that captivity. Needless, to say it is ironic in the extreme that modern commentators, both Jewish and Christian, refuse to recognize this as the writings of Isaiah as a result of this future prediction. The Encylopaedia Judaica under the entry for Cyrus states: An explanation of the relations between Cyrus and the Jews rests upon an understanding of his general policy, particularly in Babylon itself. This policy was based upon benevolence toward the conquered, support and sympathy for their gods, and a correction of the injustices done to them by their previous ruler Nabodnius, or in the case of the Jews of Babylon, by Nebuchadnezzar. In conformity with this policy, he restored the Babylonian gods to their temples, reconstructed temples that had been neglected in the time of his predecessor and even returned exiles to their homes. His policy towards the Jews was similar to that towards the Babylonians, These principles find expression in the Hebrew edict issued to the Jews of Babylon (538 B.C.E.), which appears in Ezra 1:2-4 (see also 2 Chron. 36:23). There Cyrus attributes his decision to erect the temple to a command of God, just as he attributed his actions in Babylon to an order of Marduk. An additional document of his concerning the erection of the Temple is more administrative in nature and deals with architectural and financial details of building (Ezra 6:3-5); this document is even written in Aramaic, the administrative language. SA a result of the permission given by Cyrus, some of the Babylonian exiles returned to Judah, and with their return a new chapter in the history of Israel began--the period of the Second Temple. v1-4 The WB states, "This royal oracle in v. 1-4 closely follows the terms used at enthronement and the ritual enacted there. (The undeviating practice followed in the case of royalty was the regular repetition of the enthronement to confirm the kind in his dominion.) Psalm 2 and 110 also reflect the ritual.... This is what [Isaiah] says about Yahweh's actions with Cyrus: Cyrus is Yahweh's anointed (v. 1) He holds him by the right hand (v. 1) He calls him by name (v. 3 and 4) He gives him a name of honor (v. 4) He girds him (v. 5) All of these indicate acts connected with the royal ritual, and are attested as such both within Israel and beyond her." Now, carefully consider the correlation between the above investment of authority upon Cyrus and that which occurs in the Temple. According to this, who is Cyrus a type of? Answer: 3 Ne. 21. v1b "Whose right hand He has grasped", the AB says, "To grasp by the right hand is a sign of friendship: when done by a superior, it signifies full acceptance". It is also obviously an act of condescension on the part of the Lord. Compare this statement with that in 41:8-13 where Israel is given the Lord's right hand. v1d See the JPS footnotes for the interpretation of this line. v3d "call you by name", the AB says, "Designated power over another, or a vocation to a particular mission, as of Israel (43:1)". v4-5 Even though Cyrus does not know the Lord, promises are spoken to him that are similar to those granted to Israelite kings, cf. Ps. 2:8-10 and 72:8-10. The Israelite king is a deliverer (ct. 3:6-7). Cyrus is being treated the same as an Israelite king even though he is a Gentile. v4a The Lord sets bounds to Cyrus' call. The call issued to Cyrus is for "the sake of My servant Jacob". v6 indicates that Cyrus' purpose is two fold. First, to deliver Israel from Babylon and second to make known to all the world the Lord's providence on behalf of His people. v. 7-8 is a chiasm that substantiates the preceding v. 1-6. The idea of presenting a Gentile as an equivalent to a king of the Davidic line is an astounding one to an Israelite. The idea that the Lord would go outside of Israel to produce a king and deliverer for Israel seems to fly in the face of everything natural Israel has held dear regarding their natural lineage. It does, and the Lord points out to them that He will do as He sees fit in this passage. This passage also symbolically invokes the actions of the Lord as Creator, Judge, and Vindicator. The chiasm is as follows with the first half of the chiasm representing malediction and the second half representing benediction: A - (v. 7a) Creator of light and dark. B - (v. 7b-c) Creator of covenant curses. C - (v. 8a) They (i.e. v. 7a-c) pour down from above. C - (v. 8b) Victory pours down from above. B - (v. 8c-d) Creator of covenant blessing. A - (v. 8e) Creator of victory an triumph. The purpose of the chiasm is to remind Israel of the Lev. 26 and Deut. 28 litany of covenant curses and blessings designed to get Israel to stay with the Lord (esp. cp. Lev. 26:4, Deut. 28:29). The Lord's whole goal is to get Israel to be His people and He will use whatever means possible to do that in order to accomplish His purpose. If they rebel against Him to the point where the royal Davidic line is impeached, then He will use a Gentile king to accomplish His purpose. The Lord will not be thwarted in achieving the redemption of Israel, even if He has to go outside of Israel to do it. Thus, this little reference to the theme of Lev. 26 and Deut. 28 reminds natural Israel that its their own fault that He has had to go outside of them in order to redeem them. v7 This verse has caused some commentators problems because it presents the Lord as being a creator of both good and evil. The religio-philosophical definition of God has Him being all-kind and all-friendly all the time and totally antithesis to "evil" as He is completely good. This kind of stuff simply does not fit with the Scriptural descriptions of God. God is the friend of the righteous and the adversary of the evil (cf. 63:10, 66:4, Num. 23:32), just as Satan is the friend of the evil and the adversary of the righteous. God does not force or bring about evil, He acts as adversary of those who choose to be evil thereby bringing judgements upon themselves, cp. Num. 22:22 where the angel of the Lord is called "adversary". v7b "weal", The Masorah has "salom" which translates into "well- being", while 1QIsa has "tob", which translates into "good". The 1QIsa version has a more obvious antithesis. v8a-b Compare Ps. 85:11. v9-13 Those among Israel who question the Lord's resorting to a Gentile to bring about His purposes are mocked. v9-11 Repeatedly throughout the ch. 40-47 block the symbolism of the Lord as Creator is employed. Here it is once again evoked and Isaiah tells those critical of his prophecy that they are in no position to council the Lord in His ways. To do so is sheer folly, as if a child in the womb questions its father and mother, or a vessel in the hands of a potter turns to the potter and says "What are you doing?". Nobody on earth is in any position whatsoever to council the Lord in His ways. Those who are critical of the Lord here are in all likelihood those of natural Israel, namely Judah. There are sure to be incensed at Isaiah's statement that a Gentile is to be the Lord's anointed. This would be supported by the v. 7-8 strophe that appears between v. 1-6 and v. 9-13 as the v. 7-8 strophe is specifically commenting on the covenant relationship between the Lord and natural Israel. v9 echoes 5:21 and 40:13-14. For the potter and pottery metaphor, cp. 29:16, Job 10:9. Paul paraphrases this verse in Romans 9:20. v11b The two name titles here also appear in the trial speech in 43:14-15 which has a redemption from Babylon theme. v11c See the JPS footnote on this line. It indicates the line is an imperative, or a command. v13 Isaiah makes it clear that Cyrus' actions are a manifestation of the Lord's power and Cyrus does His bidding. v13d Reminiscent of the Exodus from Egypt. v13e "Without price and without payment", Cyrus is to release Israel from the Babylonian captivity for reasons other than personal gain. This would appear to be as a type of 55:1. While Cyrus appears to have obtained loot from Babylon's sack (v. 3), he did not personally profit from releasing Judah. v. 14-25 The Lord is the sole deliverer of Israel and will draw all nations to Israel at the final day. All peoples will abandon their idols and confess that the Lord alone is their Delivering God. The chiasm is as follows: A - (v. 14a-g) Nations delivered to Israel B - (v. 14h-i) The nations confess that only among Israel is God C - (v. 15) The Lord is with Israel D - (v. 16-17) Israel vindicated while idolaters debased E - (v. 18a-f) The earth not created to be a chaos (tohu) F - (v. 18g) I am (YHWH) the Lord, and there is none else E - (v. 19) Not told to seek the Lord in futility (tohu) D - (v. 20-21e) Lord alone is Lord while idols debased C - (v. 21f-h) There is no other Lord B - (v. 22) The Lord asks all ends of the earth to turn to Him A - (v. 23-25) Israel prevails as all people acknowledge the Lord v14 On the Gentiles going up to Israel and delivering up their wealth, cp. 49:18, 54:11-12, 60:13-14, 62:3, Mal. 3:17, Exod. 28:17-21. Isa. 54:11-12 gets quoted in 3 Ne. 22 and Mal. 3:17 gets quoted in 3 Ne. 24 so those sections in 3 Ne. are dealing with the same subject, namely the gathering of Israel and the Gentile's involvement. Paul apparently paraphrases this verse in 1 Cor. 14:25. v14b-c regarding the three nations referenced here the AB states, "All three names come from northeast Africa, and they are probably chosen because they represent the most remote regions known to the Israelites. These peoples make an explicit profession of [YHWH worship]; this is the first time in the OT such a profession appears. The confession of Naaman (2 Kings 5) is made by an individual, not by a people." See 43:3 for a reference to the same three nations. This submission to Israel is a submission to Israel's God and not a result of some military conquest. v14i "There is no other god at all!" Compare Deut. 32:37-41 and Moses 1:6 and 12. A proclamation that Israel's God is the Lord, Israel has no other Savior. v15a "concealed Himself", this is a difficult line to interpret. The AB offers "Yahweh is hidden with Israel, a small and defeated nation". The complementary verse in the chiasm (v. 21f-h) does nothing to help us determine the meaning. Perhaps it is hinting at the Lord's turning away from Israel in times of their rebellion, so the Lord "hides His face" from them, cp. Deut 32:19-22. v18-19 form a couplet that play on the Hebrew word "tohu". In v. 18 the word "tohu" is in reference to the 34:11 ruined Edom, the Gen. 1:2 "formless void", and the ruined earth of Jer. 4:23 (all three use the term "tohu"). The Lord's intent was not to create such a desolate disaster, but to have a peopled earth, and those people are to be His covenant people. However, in v. 19 "tohu" is used to mean "nothingness", the WB says, "Tohu means nothingness, that which is empty, can also have the sense of 'futile'--the meaning would then be 'Seek me in vain'". Thus, the meaning of the couplet is "I created the earth to be inhabited and I have created Israel to inhabit it". v19a-b These two lines are probably in reference to necromancy and occult divination as well as secret combinations, cp. 29:15-16. In any case, the Lord has revealed Himself to His people and they rejected Him, He did not hide from them. v20-21 are derivative of the preceding chapter's trial speeches wherein the Lord proves the idols of the nations are worthless, cp. 41:1-5, 41:21-29, 43:8-15, 44:6-8, 48:1-5. However, in this case the remnants of various nations besides Israel are summoned and questioned regarding their idol gods. Israel abandoned the Lord for the idol gods of other nations, and now the tattered remnants of these nations come and tell Israel their gods are nothing. One would assume an eschatological reading on this text and place it in a setting of post Day of the Lord as that is when the Lord will strike and decimate the nations of the earth. v20b "remnants of the nations", the WB renders this phrase "survivors of the nations" and states, "The Hebrew word for 'survivors' always presupposes battle...from which those conquered have made their escape. Thus, the people here addressed and summoned into court are such as have escaped from a lost battle, from the downfall of a state". v21 Compare John 13:19. v23 Compare Mosiah 16:1-4, Mosiah 27:31, Phili. 2:11. v24 On the reference to obtaining victory and might from the Lord, cp. 40:28-31. v25 The Lord is once again identified as the Savior of Israel. In conclusion, note the heavy emphasis on the salvation of the Gentile nations intermingled with the salvation of the Israelites. Both group's salvation are inextricably linked, just as 3 Ne. 21 informs us.