The Invisible, Sovereign Hand

God works on a grander scale than what meets the human eye. Recognizing His invisible hand at work behind the scenes, Ezra wrote that the Lord “turned the heart of the king of Assyria toward them [the Jews] to encourage them in the work of the house of God” (Ezra 6:22). From this we can conclude that God Himself, the one true Ruler, governed this unbelieving king’s every decision, whether directly causing it or divinely permitting it. It was God who “put such a thing as this in the king’s heart, to adorn the house of the Lord” (Ezra 7:27). In this instance, God used a pagan potentate to assist in the restoration of His own house of worship.

So complete is God’s control over unbelieving monarchs that He referred to Cyrus, the pagan ruler of Persia, as “My shepherd” who “will perform all My desire.” Although Cyrus was an unconverted ruler, God referred to him as the one “whom I have taken by the right hand” (Isaiah 44:28-45:1). From this, we learn that God rules all earthly rulers—even unregenerate kings—to carry out His purposes on a global scale. He even raised up Pharaoh, the Egyptian ruler, and used him to bring glory to His own name.

Excerpt taken from Made in Our Image, by Steven Lawson.