the Fourth Week after Easter
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Daily Devotionals
Day by Day Devotional - Year 3 of 5
Isaiah 45:1-13
The LORD has declared that He will use Cyrus to carry out all His good pleasure (read again Isaiah 44:28). This king, who was to bring an end to the captivity of the people at Babylon, is called by his name long before the beginning of that captivity and consequently long before his birth! God’s mercy, then, kept this "saviour" in reserve, so to speak, during the whole time of Israel’s punishment. In the form of a personal revelation to Cyrus, the LORD seizes the opportunity to confirm that there is no God beside Himself (v. 5; cf. 1 Corinthians 8:4-6; Ephesians 4:6). So it is not only to the Jews that God has made Himself known but also to the Gentiles of whom we are part. Long before we were born, before the creation of the world, in eternity, your name and mine were in His mind. He also determined to carry out all His good pleasure through us at the appropriate time . . . which is the present moment (Ephesians 3:8-10). Does each one of us, each in our situation and according to our ability, match up to what God expects of us? (cf. Acts 13:36 in connection with David).
Vv. 9, 10, about which the apostle was certainly thinking while writing Romans 9:20, confirm the folly of those people who strive with this Creator and sovereign God.
