The fragment Yeshaya 45 verses 1-7:
כֹּה-אָמַר יְהוָה, לִמְשִׁיחוֹ לְכוֹרֶשׁ אֲשֶׁר-הֶחֱזַקְתִּי בִימִינוֹ לְרַד-לְפָנָיו גּוֹיִם, וּמָתְנֵי מְלָכִים, אֲפַתֵּחַ--לִפְתֹּחַ לְפָנָיו דְּלָתַיִם, וּשְׁעָרִים לֹא יִסָּגֵרוּ.
אֲנִי לְפָנֶיךָ אֵלֵךְ, וַהֲדוּרִים אושר (אֲיַשֵּׁר); דַּלְתוֹת נְחוּשָׁה אֲשַׁבֵּר, וּבְרִיחֵי בַרְזֶל אֲגַדֵּעַ.
וְנָתַתִּי לְךָ אוֹצְרוֹת חֹשֶׁךְ, וּמַטְמֻנֵי מִסְתָּרִים: לְמַעַן תֵּדַע, כִּי-אֲנִי יְהוָה הַקּוֹרֵא בְשִׁמְךָ--אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל.
לְמַעַן עַבְדִּי יַעֲקֹב, וְיִשְׂרָאֵל בְּחִירִי; וָאֶקְרָא לְךָ בִּשְׁמֶךָ, אֲכַנְּךָ וְלֹא יְדַעְתָּנִי.
אֲנִי יְהוָה וְאֵין עוֹד, זוּלָתִי אֵין אֱלֹהִים; אֲאַזֶּרְךָ, וְלֹא יְדַעְתָּנִי.
לְמַעַן יֵדְעוּ, מִמִּזְרַח-שֶׁמֶשׁ וּמִמַּעֲרָבָה, כִּי-אֶפֶס, בִּלְעָדָי: אֲנִי יְהוָה, וְאֵין עוֹד.
יוֹצֵר אוֹר וּבוֹרֵא חֹשֶׁךְ, עֹשֶׂה שָׁלוֹם וּבוֹרֵא רָע; אֲנִי יְהוָה, עֹשֶׂה כָל-אֵלֶּה
The last verse appears in
our list. The English Standard Version is as follows:
Thus says the Lord to phis anointed, to Cyrus,
whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
and to loose the belts of kings,
to open doors before him
that gates may not be closed:
“I will go before you
and level the exalted places,
I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
and cut through the bars of iron,
I will give you the treasures of darkness
and the hoards in secret places,
that you may know that it is I, the Lord,
the God of Israel, who call you by your name.
For the sake of my servant Jacob,
and Israel my chosen,
I call you by your name,
I name you, though you did not know me.
I am the Lord, and there is no other,
besides me there is no God;
I equip you, though you did not know me,
that people may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is none besides me;
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form light and create darkness;
I make well-being and create calamity;
I am the Lord, who does all these things.
Hashem speaks to Cyrus. "I call you by your name, I name you, though you did not know me." "I equip you, though you did not know me." For a awesome purpose, a world-wide purpose. People do not know it, to its full extent, even today, 2500 years later. But they will know, 'from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me." "That you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of Israel, who call you by your name. For the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen." "I form light," the light is My presence, "and create darkness," the darkness is My absence.
Cyrus believed in Zoroastrianism, in which light and darkness, good and bad, are two distinct forces. The prophet finds Zoroastrianism convincing but for this exception: I am the Lord, the God of Israel, I form light and create darkness. I make Shalom and I create evil. The above is an attempt to correct Cyrus. That is why it says in
the same chapter 45, that Hashem [Bore Hashamayim] Hu Haelohim in כִּי כֹה אָמַר-יְהוָה בּוֹרֵא הַשָּׁמַיִם הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים. And אֲנִי יְהוָה, וְאֵין עוֹד, I am Hashem, there is no other. And אֲנִי יְהוָה דֹּבֵר צֶדֶק, I am Hashem, I am speaker of Tzedek, the Truth. The prophet speaks to his own people over the head of Cyrus, saying, Hashem Hu Haelohim is the universal force of good of Zoroastrianism, the speaker of Tzedek. Chazal added that the Sofei Teivot of בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים form the word אמת, truth (Shabbat 55a).
The difference between the prophet, Zerubavel, and Cyrus, is that, according to the prophet, eschatologically the good side will win, in this world, because ultimately it is the only side. It is ironic that the Torah of Zerubavel was succeeded by the Torah of P, whereas in Iran, the country of Zoroastrianism, the Islam took power. The dark sides won, it seems. Now, Iran threatens to destroy Israel with a nuclear bomb. Israel's hope is the
Torah of Zerubavel, which is also the Torah of Ramchal. Hashem is the Good, Tzedek, the Truth, and He will win, because "there is no other." This is the approach of the Good, the Jewish approach. "I declare what is right." He is מַגִּיד מֵישָׁרִים, and we are to be right, totally honest, like our G-d. Our leaders, including the
Rabbanim, have to be honest about what is called the Torah. Let us start now, this Pesach.
Pesach Sameach!
