“I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.”
My Notes
What Does Isaiah 41:25 Mean?
"I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay." God describes raising up Cyrus of Persia — though not yet named (he's named in 45:1). Cyrus comes from the north and the east (Persia is northeast of Israel), he'll invoke God's name (even without fully knowing him), and he'll trample princes the way a potter treads clay. The imagery combines military power (crushing princes) with divine calling (invoking God's name).
The most startling detail: a pagan king will "call upon my name." Not because he converts to Israelite religion, but because God's sovereignty operates through rulers who don't fully understand the God whose purposes they serve.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Where might God be using a 'Cyrus' in your world — a non-believer accomplishing divine purposes?
- 2.How does God's use of pagan instruments expand your view of his sovereignty?
- 3.What does Cyrus 'calling upon God's name' without fully knowing God teach about how God works through unlikely people?
- 4.Where are you limiting God's work to 'his people' when he might be working through unexpected instruments?
Devotional
God raises a pagan king and the pagan king calls on God's name. Not because the king had a conversion experience. Because God's sovereignty is so thorough that even rulers who don't know him end up serving him — and invoking his name while doing it.
Cyrus of Persia — the king who will conquer Babylon and release the Jewish exiles — is described here as God's instrument before he's born. Raised up. Called. Directed. Using God's name. Trampling princes like wet clay. All orchestrated by the God Cyrus doesn't personally worship.
He shall come upon princes as upon mortar. The imagery is of a potter at work — standing in clay, kneading it with feet, working it into submission. Cyrus will do this to kings and princes. Not because he's inherently powerful. Because the God who raised him up gave him the ability to trample what others couldn't touch.
The theological implications are massive: God uses pagan instruments. He raises up rulers outside the covenant to accomplish purposes inside the covenant. Cyrus will free Israel. Cyrus will fund the temple rebuilding. Cyrus will issue the decree that begins the restoration. And Cyrus will do all of it without being a believer in the conventional sense.
This demolishes the idea that God only works through 'his people.' He works through anyone he raises up — believing or not, aware or not, willing or not. The pagan king who tramples princes like clay is as much God's instrument as the prophet who speaks his word. The sovereignty is total. The instrument is whoever God chooses.
The king who's shaping your world right now — the CEO, the politician, the decision-maker — might be a Cyrus. Raised up by God. Serving God's purposes. Without knowing it.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
I have raised up one from the north,.... Either one people, or one person; a mighty king, as the Targum; meaning either…
I have raised up one - In the previous verses God had shown that the idols had no power of predicting future events. He…
The Lord, by the prophet, here repeats the challenge to idolaters to make out the pretentions of their idols: "Produce…
The general argument is now brought to bear on the particular case of the raising up of Cyrus.
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture