Isaiah 45:1-13

This is what the LORD says to His anointed, to Cyrus [king of Persia], Whose right hand I have held To subdue nations before him, And I will ungird the loins of kings [disarming them]; To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: “I will go before you and level the mountains; I will shatter the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron. “I will give you the treasures of darkness [the hoarded treasures] And the hidden riches of secret places, So that you may know that it is I, The LORD, the God of Israel, who calls you (Cyrus the Great) by your name. “For the sake of Jacob My servant, And of Israel My chosen, I have also called you by your name; I have given you an honorable name Though you have not known Me. “I am the LORD, and there is no one else; There is no God except Me. I will embrace and arm you, though you have not known Me, That people may know from the rising to the setting of the sun [the world over] That there is no one except Me. I am the LORD, and there is no other, The One forming light and creating darkness, Causing peace and creating disaster; I am the LORD who does all these things. ¶“Rain down, O heavens, from above, Let the clouds pour down righteousness [all the blessings of God]; Let the earth open up, let salvation bear fruit, And righteousness spring up with it; I, the LORD, have created it. ¶“Woe (judgment is coming) to him who quarrels with his Maker— A [worthless] piece of broken pottery among other broken pieces [equally worthless]! Shall the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you doing?’ Or does the thing say, ‘He has no hands’? [Rom 9:20] “Woe (judgment is coming) to him who says to a father, ‘What are you fathering?’ Or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor?’ ” For the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker says this, “Ask Me about the things to come concerning My sons, And give Me orders concerning the work of My hands. “I made the earth and created man upon it. My hands, stretched out the heavens, And I commanded all their host. “I have stirred up Cyrus and put him into action in righteousness [to accomplish My purpose] And I will make all his ways smooth; He will build My city and let My exiles go, Without any payment or reward,” says the LORD of hosts.