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THE TREASURES OF DARKNESS

 

“And I will give thee the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places…” Isaiah 45:3(a) (KJV).

 

The Persian king who conquered ancient Babylon and received those treasures was actually named by God 150 years before he was born! The Prophet Isaiah recorded that prophecy in the following passage:

 

“Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut; 2 I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron: 3 And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the LORD, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel. 4 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” Isaiah 45:1-4 (KJV, emphasis mine).

 

Bishop Ussher’s date for this particular passage in the Book of Isaiah is 712 B.C. and Cyrus did not begin his reign until 550 B.C. So God told His people the name (or title) of the man who would release them well over a hundred years prior to their being taken captive by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon!

 

It is most interesting that the king’s name/title in the Persian language was khorschid, meaning “the sun.” It is rendered “Cyrus” in our Bibles because the Latin Vulgate transliterated it as such from the Greek word kuros in the Septuagint. And as a metaphor for “enlightenment” the sun was worshipped as a god in ancient Persia where kings often took such names to honor their deities. But what we want to emphasize is that there is great irony in the fact that God “surnamed” him—that is, providentially caused him to adopt a “nickname” associated with the sun and spiritual enlightenment. And while it is possible his actual name was lost in antiquity (some scholars believe “Cyrus” was merely a dynastic title), we are convinced there is more to this individual’s place in history than one might think!

 

After the civil war that divided their nation, God judged His people harshly and because of their lapse into idolatry, the ten northern tribes who retained the name Israel were taken into captivity first. (The two southern tribes became the Kingdom of Judah and did not receive their punishment until years later). So from 745-727 B.C. the Assyrians deported many thousands from among the northern tribes to various areas within their empire. This type of deportation was employed only as a last resort for groups that stubbornly refused to be governed and the people eventually lost their national identity because they were assimilated into the cultures of the areas to which they were sent. But contrary to occult teaching that says the ten tribes were “lost” in the process, many godly individuals from each of those tribes had previously immigrated to Judah in order to continue their worship at the Temple in Jerusalem.  So when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took Judah captive in 586 B.C., those people from the northern tribes who had moved to Judah were taken captive along with the rest and the tribal identities of all twelve definitely remained intact.

 

Note that in the passage from Isaiah 45 God says Cyrus was His “anointed” and in an earlier passage from Chapter 44 he was said to be God’s “shepherd”:

 

“Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself; 25 That frustrateth the tokens of the liars, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish; 26 That confirmeth the word of his servant, and performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built, and I will raise up the decayed places thereof: 27 That saith to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers: 28 That 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” Isaiah 44:24-28 (KJV, emphasis mine).

 

The Hebrew word translated “anointed” in 45:1 is māshîaḥ and is the sole instance in the Bible of the term being applied to a Gentile. All others refer to Israel’s Messiah directly or by spiritual type. Also the descriptive term of “shepherd” applied in 44:28 is interesting in that Cyrus was raised by shepherds in an effort to keep him from being killed by his own father, who had a dream that the child would be a threat to his throne. So why do you suppose God used such terminology to describe a pagan King of Persia? Was he in fact a type of God’s Christ as many conservative Bible teachers have claimed? I personally do not believe that was the case because his actions show that he was never a believer even though he was providentially caused to know that Yahweh was the God of Israel (Isaiah 45:3). He became a “shepherd and messiah” by allowing a godly remnant of the Jews to return to Jerusalem, but when we take into consideration all that he did  at that time, it is fairly obvious he remained in spiritual darkness and the degree of that darkness was actually multiplied by the “treasures” God gave him!

 

What is almost universally overlooked by Bible commentators is that Cyrus did not limit his beneficence to just those Jews. Had that been the case, questioning his motives would be much more difficult. But history paints us a picture of a political genius who recognized the worth of trying to pacify conquered peoples rather than enslaving them—a practice that Alexander the Great continued after him. And that principle was the reason behind Cyrus sending contingents from all “religious” elements within his empire back to their original homelands. Idols taken as the spoils of war were restored to the various pagan priests so they could go home and resume business as usual and where the Jews were concerned, the gold and silver vessels taken from the Temple (Daniel 5:2) were returned to them. So the “shepherd and messiah” aspects of Cyrus toward the Jews must be viewed in that context. There was a pronounced ecumenical flavor to the whole affair in that the king viewed all religions as being equal.

 

The Babylonian Empire had become a melting pot for every false religious belief known to man and it appears the Jewish mystical practice known as Kabbalah had its origin there, even though the widespread practice of it did not occur until years later. Also it has been claimed by some writers that Persian Zoroastrianism was corrupted by the Chaldean Magi after Cyrus conquered the Babylonians and through that apostasy the tenets of occult Gnosticism spread to all those religions. And when all of them were allowed to return to their homelands, the seeds of Gnosticism were spread throughout the world. Then after the Grecian Empire came into power by virtue of the conquests of Alexander the Great, the philosopher Plato formulated the Hermetic/Gnostic principles that are still being taught today by “illuminated” Rosicrucianism and Freemasonry.

 

So what were the “treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places” that God gave Cyrus? While the consensus among Bible teachers is that this passage refers to the vast wealth of Babylon, I must disagree with that overly simplistic point of view because how could winning a battle and gaining such riches cause Cyrus to know that Yahweh was the God of Israel? It seems reasonable to conclude that a stupendous miracle would have been required to elicit such an acknowledgement from that pagan king. But from Cyrus’ point of view, taking Babylon without much of a fight was certainly unusual but not supernatural even though there were some “fortuitous” events of which Isaiah had prophesied that took place, such as the city gates facing the river being left open. (The Persian troops diverted the Euphrates River into a canal and then at night waded in thigh-deep water to those gates where they were able to enter the city). His plan all along was to take the city by force and I just do not believe having a relatively easy time of it would cause him to acknowledge the God of Israel.

 

However, if the man Daniel whom Nebuchadnezzar had placed over all the “wise men” of Babylon revealed to Cyrus the occult Babylonian mysteries and thus “illuminated” him, that impartation of knowledge by one of God’s servants appears to be a more logical explanation of how Cyrus was caused to know the reality of Yahweh. We must remember that the Prophet Daniel’s influence and administration continued on through the reign of Darius the Mede, whom Cyrus placed on the throne for the first two years after Babylon was conquered. And while the Bible gives no specifics on the exact nature of the “treasures of darkness,” the occult connotation of the phrase itself is fairly obvious. Also we see from the following passage that Daniel’s influence lasted well into the reign of Cyrus and the following decree by Darius (which would doubtless have served to strengthen the knowledge of God’s existence in the eyes of Cyrus) was occasioned by the miraculous deliverance of Daniel from the den of lions:

 

“Then King Darius wrote to all peoples, nations, and languages [in his realm] that dwelt in all the earth: May peace be multiplied to you! 26 I make a decree that in all my royal dominion men must tremble and fear before the God of Daniel, for He is the living God, enduring and steadfast forever, and His kingdom shall not be destroyed and His dominion shall be even to the end [of the world]. 27 He is a Savior and Deliverer, and He works signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth—He Who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions. 28 So this [man] Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian” Daniel 6:25-28 (Amplified Bible, emphasis mine).

 

So Cyrus was definitely a type of christ, but not the Christ of God! His actions regarding the pagan religions are in essence a mirror image of what the Gnostic christ—the antichrist of the Bible—will do when he comes to power. The elements of Gnosticism dispersed throughout the world by Cyrus will be drawn together into a state religion by the man of sin. And in the following passages we see his role of “false shepherd”:

 

“For behold, I will raise up a false shepherd in the land; the lost and perishing he will not miss or visit, the young and scattered he will not go to seek, the wounded and broken he will not heal, nor will he feed those that are sound and strong; but he will eat the flesh of the fat ones and break off their hoofs [to consume all the flesh]. 17 Woe to the worthless and foolish shepherd who deserts the flock! The sword shall smite his arm and his right eye; his arm shall be utterly withered and his right eye utterly blinded” Zechariah 11:16-17 (Amplified Bible).

 

“And at the latter end of their kingdom, when the transgressors [the apostate Jews] have reached the fullness [of their wickedness, taxing the limits of God’s mercy], a king of fierce countenance and understanding dark trickery and craftiness shall stand up. 24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power; and he shall corrupt and destroy astonishingly and shall prosper and do his own pleasure, and he shall corrupt and destroy the mighty men and the holy people (the people of the saints). 25 And through his policy he shall cause trickery to prosper in his hand; he shall magnify himself in his heart and mind, and in their security he will corrupt and destroy many. He shall also stand up against the Prince of princes, but he shall be broken and that by no [human] hand” Daniel 8:23-25 (Amplified Bible, emphasis mine).

 

As part of God’s judgment the antichrist will experience some sort of attack on his person—perhaps an assassination attempt—and will lose the use of one arm and his right eye, thereby rendering him a person of “fierce countenance.” And I am convinced his name or title will also have an association with the sun just like Cyrus, because as Satan incarnate he will be the ultimate illuminated man!

 

But God has long since warned those who seek such illumination because that quest for the “treasures of darkness” involves a reversal of truth:

 

“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!” Isaiah 5:20 (Amplified Bible).

 

 

If you have been born again and received Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, but have been very lukewarm in your spiritual walk with Him, you need to immediately ask Him for forgiveness and for renewal. He will instantly forgive you, and fill your heart with the joy of the Holy Spirit. Then, you need to begin a daily walk of prayer and personal Bible Study.

If you have never placed your trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior, but have come to sense His reality and the approaching End of the Age, and want to receive His FREE Gift of Eternal Life, you can do so now, in the privacy of your home. Once you truly believe in Him as Lord and Savior, you are spiritually Born Again, and are as assured of Heaven as if you were already there. Then, you can rest assured that the Kingdom of Antichrist will not touch you spiritually. If you would like to become Born Again, turn to our Salvation Page now.

We hope you have been blessed by this ministry, which seeks to educate and warn people, so that they can see the coming New World Order Kingdom of Antichrist in their daily news.

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