For Jacob my servant’s sake, and Israel mine elect, I have even called thee by thy name: I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me.
Parallel translations
- WEB For Jacob my servant’s sake, and Israel my chosen, I have called you by your name. I have given you a title, though you have not known me.
- BSB For the sake of Jacob My servant and Israel My chosen one, I call you by name; I have given you a title of honor, though you have not known Me.
- NKJV For Jacob My servant’s sake, And Israel My elect, I have even called you by your name; I have named you, though you have not known Me.
- NASB “For the sake of Jacob My servant, And Israel My chosen one, I have also called you by your name; I have given you a title of honor Though you have not known Me.
- NLT “And why have I called you for this work? Why did I call you by name when you did not know me? It is for the sake of Jacob my servant, Israel my chosen one.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God names and equips Cyrus the Persian king for Israel's sake, even though Cyrus does not know him. God works through unbelievers to keep his covenant promises.
Overview
Continuing the Cyrus oracle, Yahweh declares he has summoned this pagan king by name long before his rise, purely for the sake of Jacob/Israel, his chosen servant. The point is that history serves God's redemptive purposes for his people, not the merits of the instruments he uses. It anticipates the gospel pattern in which God sovereignly orchestrates world events to deliver his elect, supremely in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Isa 41:8–9But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.
- Exod 19:5–6Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:
- Isa 44:1Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen:
- Rom 11:7What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded.
- Acts 17:23For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.
- Isa 43:14Thus saith the LORD, your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; For your sake I have sent to Babylon, and have brought down all their nobles, and the Chaldeans, whose cry is in the ships.
- Gal 4:8–9Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.
- Mark 13:20And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days.
- Matt 24:22And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.
- Jer 50:17–20Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones.
- Isa 44:28That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid.
- Rom 9:6Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel:
- Isa 43:3–4For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee.
- Eph 2:12That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:
- 1 Th 4:5Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God:
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Isaiah sees him most clearly: the virgin's son Immanuel, the child on David's throne, the shoot from Jesse, the light to the nations, and above all the Suffering Servant pierced for our transgressions (ch. 53).
How Isaiah 45:4 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.