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Verse 1 “Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying,”

Therefore, it all begins with God stirring Cyrus, a heathen king of Persia. No doubt he had heard of some of the prophecies of Daniel who was there. Jeremiah is mentioned here also, and did you know that Isaiah mentioned Cyrus one hundred and fifty years before he was born? It was in Cyrus’ very first year as king and it was so important that he put it in writing after he made proclamation. It is recorded in 2 Chronicles 36:22,23 and has been discovered by archaeologists as recently as in 1879

Yes Isaiah 44:28 – 45:7 says, “Who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd, And he shall perform all My pleasure, Saying to Jerusalem, “You shall be built,” And to the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.” ‘ Thus says the Lord to His anointed, To Cyrus, whose right hand I have held — To subdue nations before him And loose the armour of kings, To open before him the double doors, So that the gates will not be shut:  ‘I will go before you And make the crooked places straight; I will break in pieces the gates of bronze And cut the bars of iron.  I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places, That you may know that I, the Lord, Who call you by your name, Am the God of Israel. 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. I am the Lord, and there is no other; There is no God besides Me. I will gird you, though you have not known Me, That they may know from the rising of the sun to its setting That there is none besides Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other; I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, the Lord, do all these things.’”

God knows everything about us before we are born. Read Psalm 139 which confirms that.

In verses 2-4 we have the decree, “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the earth the LORD God of heaven has given me. And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem which is in Judah. Who is among you of all His people? May his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of the LORD God of Israel (He is God), which is in Jerusalem. And whoever is left in any place where he dwells, let the men of his place help him with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, besides the freewill offerings for the house of God which is in Jerusalem.”

It is an amazing admission by this heathen king, that the LORD God of heaven had given him the kingdoms. It is inconceivable that none of God’s people and the prophets had not pointed these words out to Cyrus. If only present-day rulers and leaders recognised that all they have is given to them by God and thus they are responsible to Him for the decisions they make.

Cyrus commanded that the Jews should return to their own land and also to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem in accordance with what God had told him. So not only did Cyrus acknowledge that God had given him his kingdom but also that God had told him to do this, and he was obedient to The God of heaven. Considering that he was an unbeliever it is amazing that he should do this.

Cyrus encouraged all to go back to Jerusalem, sadly only a small number took up the offer. Isaiah said that only a remnant would return and only a remnant did.

The details and prophecies are recorded in the books of Kings, Chronicles. Jeremiah and Lamentations if you care to read them.

“Then the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, with all whose spirits God had moved, arose to go up and build the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem. And all those who were around them encouraged them with articles of silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with precious things, besides all that was willingly offered.” (v5,6)

I understand that the houses of Judah and Benjamin are named because they were the most numerous who went back, but there were some other people. Those who went back were encouraged by the gifts that were willingly given to them. Their going back would not be easy, they faced enemies, a city in ruins and a long arduous journey. Even those, the majority, who stayed behind were glad that some had gone to rebuild the temple.

King Cyrus not only told the Jews to go home but he also gave back to them the articles of the house of The LORD (2 Chronicles 36:18) which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from Jerusalem and put in the house of his gods (v7-11). Persia’s treasurer Mithredath brought them out and counted them before Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. Some believe that Sheshbazzar was possibly a partner of his, or it was another name for Zerubbabel, (Daniel and his four friends were given Babylonian names, see the book of Daniel). Sheshbazzar took the articles with those who returned to Jerusalem.


Counting them showed that they were valuable articles and giving them back showed Cyrus’ generosity.

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About this site

I am not a qualified theologian; I am an ordinary guy who just loves reading and studying the Bible. I recognise the importance of preaching and teaching what the Bible says because it is God’s inspired message to our world. In my lifetime of around seven decades, I have listened to the some of the finest Bible teachers and preachers and learned a lot from them. I have used the New King James Version of the Bible. Please pray that God will help you to understand it. Make your own notes if that helps you. This is not meant to be a commentary or a paraphrase. I simply want to share a few thoughts which I hope will be a help to you. Make sure that you have a bible open alongside. You may not agree with my comments. If you don’t, please read the Bible and study it for yourself and ask The LORD to guide you into all truth.

One thing has come home to me that the more I read the Bible is how it all fits together. There may be up to forty different writers/speakers but there is only ONE AUTHOR, God Himself.

A bit about me –

I was born into a Christian home but my father had a mining accident and died three months before I was born. I was brought up by a godly mother and grandparents with a largely wider Christian family around us.

I have been a member of only two churches in my lifetime, both of which faithfully teach the Bible, the Word of God. I was raised at Cave Browne Evangelical Church, Ashton-in-Makerfield near Wigan (Now Hope Church, Ashton). I realised at a young age that I was a sinner and received Jesus Christ as my Saviour at the age of eight.

I was a member there until 1970 by which time I had married Dorothy, my wonderful wife, and we had two sons. We moved to Warrington, Lancashire (now Cheshire since 1974) and quickly became members of Bethesda Evangelical Church, Stockton Heath, where we remain. (See below for our Statement of Faith)

I held leadership positions in both churches and was an elder for twenty-eight years at my present church, as well as musical director, organist, pianist at each church for over fifty years in total.

Over the last sixty years I have served the Lord in one way or another. I started work at the age of sixteen and was employed in the Magistrates’ Courts for the next forty-three years, taking early retirement in 2005. After meeting a former alcoholic who had become a Christian, and whose life had been changed by The Lord Jesus Christ beyond recognition, we wrote a book, published in 2007, which we entitled Alcohol Thriller or Killer. Having gathered sponsorship we supplied copies to every prison in the UK and some elsewhere.

As a result, we were invited to tell our story at around twenty prisons throughout the UK. We completed this ministry in 2010 after which I became involved with Christian Prison Resourcing going to prisons leading Bible Studies, which I continue to do. Our passion is to see prisoners’ lives transformed, their relationships restored and their communities rebuilt as they understand the good news of Jesus Christ. I have seen many prisoners find a personal faith in Jesus Christ and witnessed the change this brings in their lives.

During all this I have had the ever-present support of my wife, Dorothy. Our sons are both married, and we have six grandchildren.

JOHN HAYES

Bethesda’s Statement of Faith

We Believe:

 In the Divine inspiration, authority and sufficiency of the Holy Scriptures. 

 That God exists eternally in three Persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit to whom equal honour is due.

 That Jesus Christ, unique Son of God, became man, being begotten of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. 

 That He died for our sins, was buried and rose again for our justification. 

 That He ascended to the right hand of God and is now the all-sufficient High Priest of His people.

 That He will return personally to receive His people and judge the world in righteousness.

 That humanity has fallen and needs the Holy Spirit’s work of regeneration and sanctification.

 That fellowship with God may be restored by repentance towards God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

 That at death a person’s soul does not cease to exist or become unconscious.

 That the dead will be raised either to life or condemnation and that the blessedness of the forgiven and the    punishment of the unforgiven will be alike eternal.  

Our practices:

We baptise believers by immersion on their personal confession of faith, and we commemorate the Lord’s death in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper (Communion) every Sunday.  

Our Goal – Is to honour and worship the Lord Jesus Christ by: 

  • Proclaiming God’s good news of forgiveness and new life through the Lord Jesus.
  • Promoting faithful Christian living.
  • Preserving pure Christian truth through the teaching of the Bible.
  • Providing for God’s people.

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