Isaiah 45:24

Those who accept God’s invitation to come to him will then understand the real purpose of their lives. But people who still refuse God’s offer will suffer the loss of everything.

Lord ~ God’s personal name in the Bible. In the original language, God’s name ‘Lord’ means ‘head over all’ and ‘God always’.
idol ~ home-made image of a god.
woe ~ a very sad cry because much pain is to come.
clay ~ kind of earth that a potter uses. Clay is soft when it is wet. But it becomes hard when it is dry.
Jerusalem ~ at the time of David and Solomon, the capital of the country called Israel. During the time of Isaiah, Jerusalem was the capital of the country called Judah.
Jews ~ people who belong to the countries called Judah and Israel; people who belong to the 12 tribes of Israel.
tribe ~ group of the later family of one father.
Israelites ~ God’s special people, also called the ‘Jews’. He freed them when they were slaves in Egypt. He gave them the land called Israel and Judah. But they had to leave that land as a punishment when they refused to obey God. However, God promised that he would free them again.
Jews ~ people who belong to the countries called Judah and Israel; people who belong to the 12 tribes of Israel.
tribe ~ group of the later family of one father.'human, human being ~ a person.

1. Isaiah: New *Heavens and a New Earth

God’s Servant Saves God’s People

Isaiah Chapter s 41 to 55

Gordon Churchyard

The words in square brackets, […], are not in the *Hebrew Bible. They make the book easier to understand in English. Isaiah wrote his book in the *Hebrew language. Words in round brackets, (…) are explanations.

Chapter 45

1. King Cyrus the *Lord’s servant

v1 The *LORD will say this to Cyrus, whom he has *anointed. I (the *Lord) will hold his right hand. Then he will defeat the nations wherever he goes. He will strip their *armour from kings. He will open doors in front of him, so that the gates will not be closed.

v2 [God will say,] ‘I will go in front of you. I will make the mountains level. I will break down *bronze gates and I will cut through iron bars.

v3 Also, I will give you the valuable things [that people hide] in dark places. [I will give you] the expensive things that they store in secret. Then you will know that I am the *LORD. [I am] the God of Israel who will send for you by [your] name.

v4 I will send for you by [your] name, because of my servant Jacob. Also, [I will send for you] because of Israel whom I have chosen. And I will give you an honourable name, although you will not recognise me.

v5 I am the *LORD and there is no other [*LORD]. There is no God apart from me. I will make you strong, although you will not recognise me.

v6 Then, from the sunrise to the sunset, people will know that there is no [God] apart from me. I am the *Lord and there is no other [*Lord]

v7 I made light and I created darkness. I make [people] successful and I create (bring about) trouble. I [am] the *LORD. I do all these things.’

v8 ‘Skies above [us], rain down [on us]! Let the clouds drop showers of goodness [on us]. Let the earth open [to receive them]. Let safety spring up [like a plant]. Let goodness grow with it. I, [who am] the *LORD, created it.’

v9 Bad [things will happen] to people who quarrel with their *Maker. [They are like] bits of pot [that are lying] among other bits of pot on the ground. Does the *clay say this to the *potter? ‘What are you making?’ Or does your work [say], ‘He has no hands.’

v10 Bad [things will happen] to people who say this to their fathers. ‘What have you been father to?’ And [bad things will happen to people] who say this to their mothers. ‘What have you given birth to?’

v11 The *LORD says this about things that will happen in the future. [The *LORD is] the *Holy [God] of Israel and its *Maker. [He says this].

‘Are you asking me questions about my children?

Are you giving me orders about what my hands have made?

v12 It is I who made the earth. Then I created people on it. [It was] I, my own hands, that stretched out the skies [like a curtain]. I arranged all [the stars].

v13 My goodness will make [Cyrus] into a great leader. I will make all his paths straight. He will rebuild my city [called Jerusalem] and he will free my *exiles. He will not get money or a reward for this’. So says the *LORD of Everything.

v14 This is what the *LORD is saying. ‘This is what will come to you. And it will become yours.

• Everything that [the people in] Egypt make.

• Everything that [the people from] Cush sell.

• The tall people from Sabea.

They will walk behind you. They will come to you with chains [that tie them]. They will kneel in front of you. They will urge you [to help them]. They will say, “Surely God is with you. And there is no other [God]. There is no God apart from him.” ’

v15 It is true! You are a God who hides himself! [You are] the God who makes Israel safe!

v16 Everybody who makes *idols will be ashamed. They will have no honour. Together, they will have no honour.

v17 The *LORD will make Israel safe. This safety will always last. You will never be ashamed, or have no honour. This will always be true.

v18 Because this is what the *LORD says. He [is the *LORD who] created the *heavens. He is God. He formed and made the earth. He built it. He did not create it to be empty. He made it for people to live in. He says, ‘I am the *LORD. And there is nobody else [who is *LORD].

v19 I have not spoken in secret. [I have not spoken] from somewhere that is a dark land. I did not say this to the people whose *ancestor is Jacob. “Look for me, but do not find me.” I am the *LORD. I speak the truth. I declare what is right.

v20 Gather [yourselves] together! Come! Group [yourselves together], you people who are running away from the nations. The people who carry wooden *idols know nothing. They pray to gods who cannot make them safe.

v21 Declare [it to us!] And tell us [what will happen]! Also, decide this together. Who said a long time ago that this would happen? Who declared it in the distant past? It was I, the *LORD! There is no God apart from me. I am a *righteous God who saves [my people]. There is no [other God] but me.

v22 Turn to me and I will make you safe. [Do this], everybody on the earth. [Do this] because I am God. And there is no other [God but me].

v23 I, myself, have made a promise. Because I am honest I have said this. I will change nothing that I have said. Everybody will kneel in front of me. People will make their promises in every language in my [name].

v24 People will say this about me. “Only the *LORD has *righteousness and strength.” Everybody who was angry with him (God) will come to [God]. [That person] will be ashamed.

v25 In [their relationship with] the *LORD, everybody who has Israel as an *ancestor will be *righteous. And [because of him,] they will be very, very happy.’

1. Notes

This chapter continues the section that starts in Isaiah 44:24. Read Isaiah 44:24-28 before you read Isaiah chapter 45. This will help you to understand Isaiah chapter 45.

Verse 1 Read the note on 44:28 which is about Cyrus. ‘*Anointed’ is a special Bible word. The *Jews poured vegetable oil onto men when they made them into kings. We say that they ‘*anointed’ them. Such kings were called ‘the *LORD’s *anointed’. It did not mean that they were very good. It did not mean that they did their work well. It meant that God put them apart, or separate, for his own purposes. Because he uses the word ‘*anointed’ here, Isaiah is reminding people about King David. David was a great leader.

‘Hold his right hand’ means these things.

• God chose Cyrus.

• God helped Cyrus.
• God led Cyrus.

As a result, Cyrus very quickly defeated his enemies. ‘Defeat, strip, open, not closed’ are words that give us a description. It is a description of someone who won battles rapidly. ‘*Armour’ is what a soldier wears to protect himself. Kings probably wore special *armour. Some Bible students think that ‘the doors’ and ‘the gates’ meant the entrances into Babylon. The River Euphrates was an important defence for Babylon. Cyrus sent the water from the river another way. Then his army could enter Babylon easily. That was how Cyrus defeated Babylon.

Verse 2 Bible students are not sure what the word ‘mountains’ here really means. It may mean a block that prevents travel along a road. It would stop people. Whatever it is, Cyrus’ soldiers would remove it. ‘*Bronze’ is a mixture of two metals called copper and tin.

Verse 3 ‘Send for you’ here and in verse 4 almost means ‘order you’. The valuable and expensive things should have proved to Cyrus who the real God is. Sadly, they did not, as the ends of verses 4 and 5 tell us.

Verses 4-5 Cyrus said that his god called Marduk gave him success. He believed that there were other gods too. But he did not believe in the *LORD, who is the one real God. God knew that Cyrus would not recognise him. Cyrus would not know who really gave him his success. Cyrus would not know God.

Verse 6 ‘Sunrise to sunset’ is *Hebrew poetry for ‘east to west’. It really means all the world that people knew at that time.

Verse 7 ‘Light and darkness’ may mean sunrise and sunset. But they may be a description of ‘pleasant and unpleasant things’. ‘Trouble’ means the bad things that Cyrus will do. He will defeat and destroy countries. The success here is the success of Cyrus. Cyrus was successful because he was like a tool in God’s hands. God said, ‘I will hold his hand’, verse 1.

Verse 8 This verse is a prayer for showers from the skies. These showers will produce fruits that will show God’s kindness to the world. It is as if Isaiah cannot wait for Cyrus to do his work! Even as rain makes plants grow, Isaiah wants ‘God’s rain’ (in other words, God’s kindness) to come from the skies. The result is that good things will happen. These good things are goodness and safety. They will be like plants that grow from the earth. The *Hebrew word for goodness really means ‘*righteousness’. The *Hebrew word for safety really means ‘salvation’. These are both special Bible words. ‘*Righteousness’ means this. ‘What happens when people always do right and good things.’ ‘Salvation’ means ‘the safety that God gives to people. He gives it to them when they trust in him.’ Only God himself can create these two things. In his book ‘The *Prophecy of Isaiah’, Alec Motyer says that ‘*righteousness’ means ‘absolutely right purposes’.

Verses 9-13 In this section, Isaiah imagines certain people. Some of them did not believe that Cyrus would be ‘the *LORD’s *anointed’. They had this opinion because Cyrus was not a *Jew. There is a note on ‘the *LORD’s *anointed’ in verse 1. Isaiah says two things.

• You have no right to ask the *potter questions if you are a pot. You have no right to ask your parents questions if you are their child. In other words, you must not argue with them in a manner that denies their relationship with you.

• Similarly, you have no right to ask God questions. In other words, you must not argue with what he has decided. He has decided to appoint Cyrus to do his work.

Verse 9. ‘Bad (things will happen)’ is ‘*hoy’ in the *Hebrew language. Read the note on ‘*hoy’ in Isaiah 28:1. ‘Maker’ is a name for God, who made everything. ‘*Clay’ is that part of the earth out of which people make pots. We call these people ‘potters’. Some Bible students translate ‘he has no hands’ like this. ‘It has no handles’.

Verse 10. When a woman ‘gives birth’ she has a baby.

Verse 11 ‘What will happen in the future’ is in verse 13. Cyrus will be a great leader. ‘*Holy’ means ‘very, very good’. God is so good that he is separate from everybody else. So, ‘*holy’ can also mean ‘separate’. The two questions refer back to verses 10 and 9 in that order. The first question probably means ‘do not ask me questions.’ The second question probably means ‘do not give me orders.’

Verse 13 ‘Straight paths’ means that Cyrus will have no difficulties. God will give him success because Cyrus is serving God. Of course, he does not know this, verses 4-5. The *exiles were the *Jewish people who lived in Babylon. The *Babylonians would take them from Judah. They did not want to live in Babylon when they first went there. Later, when Cyrus sent them home, many preferred to stay in Babylon!

Verse 14 The *Hebrew word for ‘you’ in this verse is female. This means that it does not refer to Cyrus. Instead, it means Jerusalem, which Isaiah always refers to as female. Cush and Sabea were southern parts of Egypt. Neither Israel nor Cyrus defeated Egypt. Therefore, some Bible students think that this is a description of future events. It is what will happen on Jesus’ return to the earth. The people from foreign nations will be willing to serve the God of Israel. The chains are just a description of their love for God. Isaiah 2:2-4 has a similar description.

Other Bible students do not agree. They think that the verse refers to a later King of Persia. He was called Cambyses. He did defeat Egypt, in 525 *B.C. (*B.C. means ‘years Before Christ came to the earth’.) ‘God’ would then be Cambyses’ god. These Bible students change the female *Hebrew word for ‘you’ to a male word.

Verses 15-17 The speakers in these verses may be the people from Egypt, or the people in Jerusalem. Bible students are not sure. But the words are true, whoever says them. God may seem to hide himself. But that does not prevent his rule of the world. ‘*Idols’ are false gods. The *Hebrew word for ‘*idols’ really means ‘shapes on the outside’. There is nothing inside them; they cannot help anyone.

Verses 18-25 These verses finish the section that started at verse 9. Verse 22 emphasises the main subject of Isaiah chapter 45.

Verse 18 Again, we can imagine God as a *potter, as in verse 9. He has a definite design.

Verse 19 This is God’s answer to verse 15. God has not hidden himself! Today we find God’s truth in the Bible. An *ancestor is a member of your family many years ago.

Verse 20 Who are the people who are ‘running away from the nations’? Bible students have two answers.

• People who are escaping from Cyrus and his army.

• People who are ‘escaping’ from the nations’ *idols.

Both may be true, but the second is the important answer for us today. ‘To ‘escape’ from *idols is a description. It means that people are not serving false gods any longer.

Verse 21 God answers his own questions. But when was ‘a long time ago’ and ‘in the distant past’? If God is referring to Cyrus in verse 20, then God told these things to Isaiah in 700 *B.C. But perhaps God is referring to ‘people who are escaping from *idols’. Then it probably refers to the occasion when God spoke to Abraham, 2000 *B.C. The important thing is this. God could say what would happen. *Idols could not. For ‘*righteous’, read the notes on verse 24.

Verse 22 Here is the message that the servant, Israel, did not often tell the nations. It was the message that God’s special servant, Jesus, told to everybody. He still does! The message is that people everywhere should turn to God. They should trust him and they should serve him as their only God. He alone can save people. He alone is God.

Verse 23 This verse starts with the same *Hebrew words that God said to Abraham in Genesis 22:16. This shows that verse 21 may be about Abraham’s time. ‘Everybody’ will kneel in front of God, and ‘people’ will make promises. This means people in every country in the world, not just people in Israel. ‘Kneel’ means that the person will *worship God. ‘*Worship’ means this. A person will tell God that he is very great and important. ‘Promise’ means that a person will say their beliefs aloud. This reminds us of Romans 10:9. Perhaps Paul repeated some words from this verse in Philippians 2:10. Therefore Paul taught us that Jesus is the *LORD God in Isaiah 45:23.

Verse 24 ‘*Righteous’ means ‘very, very good’, or ‘always does the right things’. Only God is really *righteous. But in verse 25, God considers that his people are *righteous too. ‘*Righteousness’ means ‘complete goodness’ or ‘the result when people always do right and good things’. Read again the note on verse 8. In this verse, the *Hebrew word for ‘*righteousness’ is plural. This emphasises the meaning of the word. The *Hebrew word for ‘honest’ in verse 23 is the same word that we have translated ‘*righteous’ in verse 25.

It is possible to translate ‘angry with him’ as ‘angry with himself’. So people who *worship *idols will be angry with themselves. They will be angry because they, themselves, decided to do that. They have not done it just because their parents made them do it.

Verse 25 The ‘everybody’ here is the ‘everybody’ of verse 22. This means that people from all nations can belong to Israel. Paul explains this in Galatians 3:7. The *Hebrew words for ‘has Israel as an *ancestor’ are ‘seed of (or children of) Israel’. Psalms 87 explains this. ‘Seed’ is an important Bible word. As plants grow from seed, so people are called the ‘seed’ of their *ancestors. This includes Jesus Christ. Read the note on ‘seed’ in Something to do after Isaiah chapter 62.

2. Something to do

1. Read some verses which mention these things.

• ‘the *LORD’s *anointed’, (Isaiah 45:1). 1 Samuel 24:6 and 26:11; Psalms 2:2.

• God’s promise to all the nations of the world, (Isaiah 45:6 and Isaiah 45:22). Genesis 12:1-3; Genesis 22:18; Psalms 72:8-11.

• people who kneel in front of God, (Isaiah 45:23). Romans 14:11; Ephesians 3:14; Philippians 2:10.

2. Study Psalms 87 and the notes on it in the EasyEnglish Psalms.

3. Learn to say Isaiah 45:8 by heart. In other words, learn to repeat it so that you do not have to look at the words. The *Jews believed that you thought in your heart. ‘By heart’ therefore means ‘in your mind’.

8. heavens ~ another word for ‘skies’. It can also mean the place where God lives and the skies above us.
   Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
   LORD ~ LORD is a special name of God. In the Hebrew language it is YHWH. It may mean ‘always alive’. So LORD is a sign that the Hebrew word is YHWH.
   lord ~ master. When it has a capital L (that is, ‘Lord’) it is a name for God.
   Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
   LORD ~ LORD is a special name of God. In the Hebrew language it is YHWH. It may mean ‘always alive’. So LORD is a sign that the Hebrew word is YHWH.
   lord ~ master. When it has a capital L (that is, ‘Lord’) it is a name for God.
   Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
   anoint ~ to pour oil on someone. This is an ancient ceremony to appoint someone to do an important task (for example, to be a king or a priest). That person is then called ‘the anointed’, ‘the messiah’ (in Hebrew) or ‘the Christ’ (in Greek).
   messiah ~ a leader such as a king. With a capital M (that is, ‘Messiah’), it means Jesus for Christians.
   Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
   Greek ~ the language that people spoke in Greece.
   armour ~ the special clothes that a soldier uses to protect himself during a battle.
   bronze ~ a hard yellowish brown metal. It is a mixture of two metals called copper and tin.
   Maker ~ a name for God, who made (created) everything.
   clay ~ the soft, sticky earth that people use to make pots.
   potter ~ a person who makes pots out of clay.
   clay ~ the soft, sticky earth that people use to make pots.
   holy ~ very, very good. Only God is really holy. He is so holy that he is separate from everybody else.
   exile ~ a person whom enemies force to live away from his own home or country. Or, the place where that person has to live.
   idol ~ a false god that people made.
   heavens ~ another word for ‘skies’. It can also mean the place where God lives and the skies above us.
   ancestor ~ a past member of your family, perhaps in previous centuries.
   righteous ~ very, very good. Only God is really righteous (always right) but he calls his people righteous too.
   righteousness ~ great goodness.
   anoint ~ to pour oil on someone. This is an ancient ceremony to appoint someone to do an important task (for example, to be a king or a priest). That person is then called ‘the anointed’, ‘the messiah’ (in Hebrew) or ‘the Christ’ (in Greek).
   messiah ~ a leader such as a king. With a capital M (that is, ‘Messiah’), it means Jesus for Christians.
   Hebrew ~ the language that Isaiah spoke.
   Greek ~ the language that people spoke in Greece.
   Jews ~ the people that lived in Judah (which sounds like ‘Jew-dah’) and Israel.
   armour ~ the special clothes that a soldier uses to protect himself during a battle.
   bronze ~ a hard yellowish brown metal. It is a mixture of two metals called copper and tin.
   righteousness ~ great goodness.
   prophecy ~ the words of a prophet.
   prophet ~ someone who says what God is saying.
   hoy ~ a word that asks the reader to give attention to something.
   clay ~ the soft, sticky earth that people use to make pots.
   holy ~ very, very good. Only God is really holy. He is so holy that he is separate from everybody else.
   Jewish ~ a description of something that has a relationship to the Jews.
   Jews ~ the people that lived in Judah (which sounds like ‘Jew-dah’) and Israel.
   Babylonian ~ a person from the country called Babylonia, or anything that has a relationship with that country.
   idol ~ a false god that people made.
   worship ~ to tell God (or a false god) that he is wonderful; and also, to tell him that you love him.
   worship ~ to tell God (or a false god) that he is wonderful; and also, to tell him that you love him.
   righteous ~ very, very good. Only God is really righteous (always right) but he calls his people righteous too.