The Encourager
“God's Mysterious Ways - Jeff Curtis”
God’s Mysterious Ways
By Jeff Curtis
According to the first chapter of Ezra, in about 538BC, the Persian king Cyrus the Great issued the that allowed the Jews to return to their own land after they had spent many years in captivity. What can we learn about God and His dealings with man from Ezra chapter 1?
God’s Power is Sovereign: Cyrus issued the decree that allowed the Jews to return, but God caused him to do so. This is made clear in the text; “The Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation throughout all his kingdom” (1:1). Isaiah predicted that God would use Cyrus to bring His people home, calling the ruler by name almost two hundred years before Cyrus began his rule (Isa. 44-45). Jeremiah by inspiration had predicted that, after 70 years in captivity, the Jews would be allowed to return to their own land (Jer. 24:11; 29:4-10). God brought fulfillment of these prophecies through Cyrus.
Today, Christians can take comfort in knowing that even when evil seems to reign on the earth, God rules over the rulers and allows them to rule only because it suits His purposes. In the end, because God is sovereign, His cause will triumph.
God Keeps His Promises: The text says that Cyrus allowed the Jews to return “in order to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah” (1:1); Jer.29:10). God had promised to bring back His people from captivity in 70 years, and He kept that promise.
This, of course, is a constant characteristic of God. “The promise of the Lord proves true” (2Sam. 22:31; 2Pet.3:9). God kept His promise to Abraham, even thought twenty-five years passed between the time He made His promise to and the time that the promised son Isaac was born. God kept His promise to bring Israel into Canaan, in spite of Israel’s sins. In the same way, we can be sure that God will keep His promises now and in the future. He will save those who obey the gospel (Acts 2:38; 2Thess.1:6-10). He will take into heaven those who are faithful to Him (Rev.2:10).
God Accomplishes His Purposes: In the case of Cyrus and the Jews, God’s purpose required that the Jews return to their own land. This emphasizes the connection between the land that God gave Israel and the promise to bring the Messiah into the world. When the Messiah came, the purpose was accomplished; therefore, from New Testament times on, Israel has had no special God-given right to the “Holy Land.”
God Works in the World Through His Providence: In Bible times, God sometimes worked in the world through miracles. Miracles were real. They were historical; they happened at certain times in definite places. However, even then God sometimes worked non-miraculously, or providentially. Joseph’s experiences provide examples of both the miraculous and the non-miraculous, or providential, working of God to accomplish His purposes.
Ezra chapter 1 teaches us several important truths about God: He has power over the kings of the world, He keeps His promises, He accomplishes His purposes, and He works through His providence. Knowing these truths, Christians can rest better at night, even when evil seems to be winning on every hand, even when the days are dismal. They know that behind the blackness of the hour stands the Almighty God, who will ultimately – as He did in the days of Ezra – triumph over the evil one, win the victory, and bring His people home.
