Isa 45:1-4 | NETfull | STEP | This is what the Lord says to his chosen one, to Cyrus, whose right hand I hold in order to subdue nations before him, and disarm kings, to open doors before him, so gates remain unclosed:

Isaiah 45:1-4

1 This is what the Lord says to his chosen ^{▼▼ Heb “anointed” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NCV “his appointed king.”} one,
to Cyrus, whose right hand I hold ^{▼▼ The “right hand” is a symbol of activity and strength; the Lord directs Cyrus’ activities and assures his success.}
in order to subdue nations before him,
and disarm kings, ^{▼▼ Heb “and the belts of kings I will loosen”; NRSV “strip kings of their robes”; NIV “strip kings of their armor.”}
to open doors before him,
so gates remain unclosed:
2 “I will go before you
and level mountains. ^{▼▼ The form הֲדוּרִים (hadurim) makes little, if any, sense here. It is probably a corruption of an original הָרָרִים (hararim, “mountains”), the reduplicated form of הָר (har, “mountain”).}
Bronze doors I will shatter
and iron bars ^{▼▼ That is, on the gates. Cf. CEV “break the iron bars on bronze gates.”} I will hack through.
3 I will give you hidden treasures, ^{▼▼ Heb “treasures of darkness” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); TEV “treasures from dark, secret places.”}
riches stashed away in secret places,
so you may recognize that I am the Lord,
the one who calls you by name, the God of Israel.
4 For the sake of my servant Jacob,
Israel, my chosen one,
I call you by name
and give you a title of respect, even though you do not recognize ^{▼▼ Or “know” (NCV, NRSV, TEV, NLT); NIV “acknowledge.”} me.