Whoever is among you of His entire people–may his God be with him–let him go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah and build the Temple of the Lord, God of Israel– He is the God!– which is in Jerusalem.
Ezra 1:2
With historic events, i.e. the liberation of the people, joyous expressions occur. Naming children and roads after the individual’s commandeering such events is not uncommon.
After the 2003 Iraq War, the New York Post reported that a newborn child was named George Bush Faris. The George Bush moniker over time likely lost its shine. In a 2016 poll, 90 percent of young Iraqis viewed the United States unfavorably. Intercept.
Some names, however- even after thousands of years, still resonate; they never lose their brightness.
One of these names is Cyrus. In my family, Cy is a generational name. My mother’s uncle was a Cy, and there are others.
Cy, however, is not a name of Jewish origin. Rather, it comes from the ancient Persian Empire. It honors a non-Jewish foreign leader- Cyrus the Great. He was responsible for creating the Persian dynasty. He had a reputation of tolerance towards the inhabitants of the lands he conquered as far as customs and religion.
Within scripture, the Persian Leader is so revered that he is considered a Messiah. [“Thus said the Lord to His anointed one, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped.” Isaiah 45:1.] Permitted the Judeans to return to Judea to build the Second Temple was his achievement. The First Temple had been destroyed by the Babylonians.
With this in mind, the passage of interest will be explored as to both its importance and relevance.
The Passage of Interest
With this background, this Post’s Biblical Literacy Passage is as follows:
“In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, upon the conclusion the Lord’s prophecy by the mouth of Jeremiah, the Lord aroused the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, and he issued a proclamation throughout his kingdom– and in writing as well, saying: “Thus said Cyrus king of Persia: All of the kingdoms of earth has the Lord, God of heaven, given to me and He commanded me to build a Temple in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.” Ezra 1:1-3
This passage essentially signaled an end to the first diaspora. It would lead to the construction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. Without Cyrus’ action, the world would be quite a different place in many different ways. His actions shaped Western Civilization and religion; Judaism, Christianity and Islam all were impacted by Cyrus.
Modern Relevance
This passage provides scriptural background to the present Middle-East conflict. Israel’s connection to Iran is not solely based upon this modern period of acrimony. The history of the two nations is not solely about Iranian Islamic Republic. Rather, Israel’s connection to Iran is both ancient and positive.
Without this biblical perspective, this the modern conflict looks as is it is a battle between two immortal enemies. The biblical reality, however, is that Israel is forever indebted to the Persian Empire and its people.
Thus, as with the Abraham Accords, another scriptural figure- Cyrus the Great- will be evoked in the nations’ normalization. Cyrus’ success will likely be referred to as a pathway to a future of peace and prosperity.
Thus, events from the 5th Century BCE- when Cyrus allowed for the Judeans to return to re-build the Temple in Jerusalem- provides perspective to the current conflict.
Conclusion
Scripture, in some instances, brings an additional and important perspective with respect to current world events. Both the history and theology arising from ancient times provides an extraordinary viewpoint to understand what is occurring.
To look at the current conflict without appreciation of the past history is in grave error. Just as with the Abraham Accords which normalized relations between Israel and Arab nations, the current conflict involves parties with a positive shared history.
In the end, this past history will be a source of healing to the region. Hopefully, it will bring peace and prosperity to the region. As such, any diplomat working on this eventual peace process would be remiss without appreciating scripture’s relationship to the conflict.
Be well!!
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