Isa 41:2-4 | TNotes | STEP | 41:2 This king from the east was Cyrus, the Persian king who conquered Babylon in 539 BC and permitted the Jews to return to their land and rebuild Jerusalem (538 BC ; Ezra 1:1-4 ). Isaiah’s prophecies about Cyrus (see Isa 44:28–45:13 ; 48:14-15 ) encouraged Israel to look to the Lord as sovereign over all of human history, including the actions of great kings. • Who gives this man victory over many nations? As victorious as the conquering Cyrus was, he was still subject to the Lord.

41:2 ^a This king from the east was Cyrus, the Persian king who conquered Babylon in 539 BC and permitted the Jews to return to their land and rebuild Jerusalem (538 BC; Ezra 1:1-4 ^b). Isaiah’s prophecies about Cyrus (see Isa 44:28–45:13 ^c; 48:14-15 ^d) encouraged Israel to look to the Lord as sovereign over all of human history, including the actions of great kings.

• Who gives this man victory over many nations? As victorious as the conquering Cyrus was, he was still subject to the Lord.
41:4 ^e each new generation from the beginning of time: God is sovereign over all things. From the beginning he has unfolded each stage of history according to his plan.

• In the book of Revelation, Jesus identifies himself as the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End (Rev 1:8 ^f, 17 ^g; 2:8 ^h; 21:6 ⁱ; 22:13 ^j).

• I alone am he: The Lord alone is God (see also Isa 43:10 ^k, 13 ^l; 46:4 ^m; 48:12 ⁿ; Deut 32:39 ^o). Jesus used similar expressions for himself (see John 6:35 ^p; 8:12 ^q, 24 ^r; 9:5 ^s; 10:7 ^t, 9 ^u, 11 ^v, 14 ^w; 11:25 ^x; 14:6 ^y; 15:1 ^z, 5 ^aa).