Time after Pentecost · Proper 24 · Year A
Isaiah 45:1-7
Jerusalem to Be Inhabited
October 18, 2026
Overview & Insights
“This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus… I am the Lord, and there is no other.” (Isaiah 45:1, 5)
Cyrus, Yahweh’s Anointed Shepherd: We have noted that the two sections on the restoration of a blind and deaf servant (43:22–44:23 and 42:18–43:21) paralleled one another, but that the former lacked an equivalent to the last paragraph (43:14–21). This parallel ending now follows, in 44:24–45:8, with its lyrical postscript (45:8) marking it as an ending. Yet 43:22–44:23 did have a different sort of lyrical postscript (44:23). For 44:24–45:8 also marks a beginning. It makes an announcement whose significance 44:24–45:25 as a whole explores. First, it handles the opposition that it expects the announcement to receive within the community (45:9–13). Then it points up the positive implications of the announcement for Israel (45:14–17) and for the world (45:18–25).
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Commentary
Commentary on Isaiah 45:1-7 Working Preacher
The Lutheran home commentary on God's sovereign use of Cyrus and his sole deity.
Isaiah 45 - Cyrus, the LORD's Anointed Enduring Word · David Guzik
A verse-by-verse evangelical study of God's call of Cyrus and his claim to be the only God.
Isaiah Commentaries and Sermons Precept Austin
A gateway to inductive word studies and cross references across Isaiah.
Isaiah 45:1 Commentaries BibleHub
Classic commentaries gathered verse by verse on the anointing of Cyrus.
Isaiah 45:1 Verse-by-Verse Commentary StudyLight
A large library of expositors stacked verse by verse for a further voice on the passage.
Background & Word Study
Isaiah 45 (Hebrew and English) Sefaria
The Hebrew of the passage alongside English with linked Jewish commentary.
Isaiah 45:1 Interlinear BibleHub
The Hebrew of the passage word by word with parsing and lexical helps.
Overview: Isaiah 40-66 BibleProject
An animated overview of second Isaiah that frames God's use of Cyrus for the exiles.
The Church Fathers
Questions preachers ask
Why does God call Cyrus his anointed?
Isaiah announces that God will use Cyrus, a pagan Persian king, as his instrument to free the exiles, proof that the Lord alone rules history: “I form the light and create darkness.” It pairs with “give to Caesar” and God’s sovereignty over every earthly ruler.
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