Isaiah 45:1-7

Through the prophet God says: "I will go before you and will level the mountains so that you may know that I am the LORD, the one who calls you by name."

The prophecy of Isaiah presents God speaking through the prophet to Cyrus, king of Persia. The Persians will defeat the Babylonians and release the Israelites in Babylon from captivity, so they may return to Judah. Because Cyrus will accomplish this, he is called "anointed" (in Hebrew "messiah" or in Greek "christ"). The passage affirms that the defeat of the Babylonians and the return of the Israelites to Judah is the will of the LORD and is being accomplished by Cyrus, because he is God's messiah (anointed one).

Most Christians are surprised to find a Persian king referred to as "messiah" in the Old Testament, which in the original Greek Bible would make Cyrus God's "christ." But this is the literal or plain meaning of the text. The church interprets this passage to mean that Cyrus is God's chosen instrument and reserves the word "Christ" for Jesus alone. The church never read this passage from Isaiah literally, but has always imposed its understanding of Jesus Christ on the text.

Grace and peace...Bob