God’s Foreknowledge and Free Will

In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing: “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the LORD their God be with them.'” (2 Chronicles 36:22-23).

God claims He is in complete control of everything that goes on. Jesus says in Matthew 10:29, “Not even a sparrow, worth only half a penny, can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it.”

God’s foreknowledge is proof that He is in complete control. In Isaiah 45, God calls a man named Cyrus by name. God says Cyrus will be a mighty king of a powerful nation and he is going to set free Israel and rebuild God’s city-meaning Jerusalem. God even says Cyrus is going to pay for this himself! All that may not sound to impressive unless you know that the Jews are in Jerusalem at the time Isaiah wrote this, and would continue to live there for about another 150 years! 

Isaiah lived around 700bc. Jerusalem did not fall to the Babylonians until 586BC and it was another 70 years until the events in 2 Chronicles 36 took place! How many decisions and events did God need to know about, and know for certain, in order to announce with confidence the name, station, and decrees of a man who would not even be born for another 175 years!

Prayer

Father, Your sovereign care for Your people through the ages is clear in Scripture. Help me to trust that Your sovereign care continues in my life today.