Would you look in 2 Chronicles chapter 36. Jehoiakim was verse 5. Jehoiakim was 20 and five years old when he began to reign. And he reigned 11 years in Jerusalem. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God. Against him came up Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and bound him in fetters to carry him to Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar also carried off the vessels of the house of the Lord to Babylon and put them in his temple at Babylon.

Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim and his abominations which he did and that which was found in him, behold, they're written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah and Jehoiachin. His son reigned in his stead. And Jehoiachin was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months and 10 days in Jerusalem. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. And when the year was expired, King Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon and the goodly vessels of the house of the Lord and made Zedekiah his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem. Zedekiah was one and 20 years old when he began to reign and reigned 11 years in Jerusalem. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah, the prophet, speaking from the mouth of the Lord.

Now, Jeremiah, we're going to see this in Jeremiah 25, had prophesied that Nebuchadnezzar was going to come in and sack Israel. And they would be in the land of Babylon for 70 years, 70 years, a long time. I'm 66. And many of these people were called upon to go back to Jerusalem when they'd never been there. Their whole life had been in Babylon and they're going to be called to go back to rebuild the walls and the temple.

Verse 14, moreover, all the chief of the priests of the people transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen and polluted the house of the Lord, which he had hallowed in Jerusalem. And the Lord God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers rising up be times and sending because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place. But they mocked the messengers of God. and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord rose up against his people, till there was no remedy.

Therefore he brought upon them the king of the Chaldees, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of the sanctuary, and had no compassion upon young man or maiden, old man or him that stooped for age. He gave them all into his hand, And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the King and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon. And they burnt the house of God, the temple that Solomon had built in its magnificence. And they break down the wall of Jerusalem and burn all the places thereof with fire and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof. And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon. where they were servants to him and his sons into the reign of the kingdom of Persia to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah into the land had enjoyed her Sabbath for as long as she laid desolate, she kept Sabbath to fulfill three score and 10 years, 70 years sent away.

Now, in the first year Cyrus, king of Persia, he had defeated Nebuchadnezzar. And now he was in control, and the children of Israel were under his thumb. Now in the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, that the word of the Lord spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, thus saith Cyrus, king of Persia, all the kingdoms of the earth, hath the Lord God, Jehovah God of heaven given me. And he hath charged me to build him an house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people? The Lord his God be with him and let him go up."

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. And he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, but it also in writing saying, thus saith Cyrus, King of Persia, the Lord God of heaven had given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He was the most powerful man in the world. He controlled everybody. And he had charged me to build a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Remember, it had been knocked down and burned with fire. And he's sending these people back to build his house after the 70 years of captivity. Who is there among all of his people? 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, for he is the God which is in Jerusalem.

Now the story of Ezra and Nehemiah and Esther all took place during this 70 year captivity. had said this would take place, would you turn to Jeremiah chapter 25 for a moment? Jeremiah 25, beginning in verse eight. Therefore, thus saith the Lord of hosts, because you've not heard my words speaking to the children of Israel, behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the Lord, and Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land and against the inhabitants thereof and against all these nations round about and will utterly destroy them and make them in astonishment. and a hissing and a perpetual desolation. Moreover, I'll take from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the candle. And this whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment. These nations shall serve the King of Babylon 70 years. And it shall come to pass when the 70 years are accomplished that I will punish the King of Babylon and that nation, saith the Lord, for their iniquity and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations."

Now, Jeremiah said, through your disobedience, you're gonna be carried off. You're gonna be there 70 years, and then I'm gonna punish the people that carried you off. Now, everything God says is. Everything God says will happen happens.

Now what about this man, Cyrus, whose spirit the Lord stirred up to do this? I'm going to spend the rest of our time as an introduction to this, looking at Isaiah 45. Dave, I don't know if you knew I was going to preach on that. Don't think you did, but that's what we're going to look at. This prophecy with regard to this man, Cyrus, whom the Lord stirred up. And this is a passage of scripture that a lot of people Have a hard time with particularly verse seven. I formed the light. I create darkness. I make peace. I create evil. I, the Lord do all these things. And that's the only God you can trust. That's the only God you can worship. this God now. Isaiah chapter 45. Let's begin in verse 28 of chapter 44. Like I said, this is going to serve as the introduction to studying Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther and they're such glorious books, but we're even verse 28. Isaiah 44. This is God speaking that saith of Cyrus, he's my shepherd. and shall perform all my pleasure. You can see where Cyrus is, glorious type of Christ. He calls him my shepherd, and he's gonna perform all my pleasure. Even saying to Jerusalem, thou shalt be built. That place that Nebuchadnezzar had knocked down and burned the temple and knocked down the walls, it was nothing but a heap of rubble. Thou shalt be built into the temple, thy foundation shall be laid.

Now thus say the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus. Now, let me remind you, this was prophesied 200 years before he was born. During Isaiah's prophecy, it was 700 some years before the birth of Christ. This happened around 500 years before the birth of Christ. So he's speaking of something that has not yet taken place. And look what he says. Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have hold, to subdue nations before him. I'll loose the loins of kings to open for him the two lead gates, and the gate shall not be shut. This is a reference to Cyrus, the king of Persia, coming and defeating Nebuchadnezzar and his descendants. And as a matter of fact, all this is recorded in secular literature about how inexplicably Babylon let their gates open. The king of Persia, Cyrus, comes in and destroys his kingdom. That's actually in secular history. And all of his success, the Lord says, I'm in control of it. I'm in control of everything. Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, his right hand I've holden, to subdue nations before him. The only reason you succeeded is because of me. I'll loose the loins of kings to open before him the two leave gates. That's talking about something that actually took place. These gates were left open. Cyrus and his armies come in and defeat Babylon. And now the children of Israel are under Cyrus' control. And the gate shall not be shut. And they weren't shut. That's how they came in and defeated him.

Verse two. I will go before thee. Cyrus didn't know it at the time. As a matter of fact, he was not born yet. But God says, I'll go before thee. Everything you're going to do, I'm in utter sovereign control of. I will go before thee. And make the crooked places straight, I will break in pieces the gates of brass and cut and sunder the bars of iron. There's nothing that can stand against me." Cyrus, as Nebuchadnezzar was, was God's pawn. Do you know everybody's God's pawn? Performing his will so his decrees might be accomplished. Nebuchadnezzar was God's pawn. Nebuchadnezzar understood that. You know, Nebuchadnezzar wrote a chapter in the Bible. He wrote the fourth chapter of Daniel. He's the one who said, he doeth according to his will in the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth and none can stay his hand or say unto him, what doest thou? These men were in God's hand. I'll go before him. Nothing shall be able to resist him.

Verse three. And I will give thee the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places. You're going to have all these riches that thou mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by name and the God of Israel." I love this. Why was Cyrus named Cyrus? Because the Lord named him Cyrus. The name you have, your parents didn't give it to you. They thought they did. But it's the name the Lord gave you, just like he gave Cyrus. And here's why I'm gonna do this, verse four. For Jacob, my servant's sake. And Israel, mine elect. I've even called thee by thy name, I've surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me.

Cyrus, here's why I'm using you. For Jacob, my servant's sake. For Israel, mine elect. Now, Election was just as prominent in the Old Testament as it is in the New Testament. He speaks of mine elect, according as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him. Cyrus, everything you do, you're doing for the elect's sake.

Now that's God's speech. That's God speaking. For Jacob, verse four, for Jacob my servant's sake, and Israel my elect, I have called thee by thy name, I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me. I am the Lord, and there is none else. There is no God beside me. I girded thee, though thou hast not known me. I am Jehovah.

Now I want to try to I enter this fearfully even talking about his name, but what his name means, Jehovah. That's the name he gives himself, Jehovah. It's taken out of when he said to Moses, when Moses said, who am I gonna say sent me? I am that I am. Tell them I am hath sent thee. Jehovah means the self-existent one.

Now, every one of the living God's attributes come out of his self-existence. This is how important his name is. He didn't need anything outside of himself for his will to be done. I mean, that was demonstrated in the creation. When he willed creation into existence, he didn't have anything to work with. He simply willed it, and there it was.

His self-existence is seen in Providence. In that he doesn't need something to take place before his will can be done. He doesn't have to wait and see what's going to happen. He doesn't have to have contingencies like us. We'll wait. Well, if this happens, then I'll do this. If it doesn't happen, not the Lord. He has nothing outside of himself that he needs. He causes his will to be done.

Now, because he is self-existent, he's sovereign. He doesn't need anything outside of his person to make sure his will comes to pass because he's self existence. He's all wise and all knowing. He never learns anything. He has all knowledge. He doesn't have to wait to find out something before he can act in a certain way.

Because he's self-existent, he's all-powerful. He doesn't need anything outside of himself to give him power to do something. That's what Jehovah means. The self-existent one. There's only one self-existent, independent being. I love to think of him in that light. How dependent me and you are? We're dependent upon him for our next breath. We're completely dependent upon him to be saved. We're completely dependent on him who is independent.

That is the God we worship, the self-existent one. There's no one beside me, there's none else, there's no God beside me. I go to thee though thou hast not known me. Look in Isaiah 46 for just a moment, verse nine. Remember the former things of old for I am God and there is none else. I am God and there's none like me.

Why is idolatry so evil? Because it's trying to bring God down to our level. There's no one to compare him to. He's utterly unique. He's other. He's holy. He's the God of glory. There's none like What a glorious thing that he's made himself known to me, to whereby his grace, I can bow before him. There's none like him.

Whatever he does is right. Holy, glorious. Go on reading. I am God and there's none like me.

But verse 10, declaring the end, what's going to take place from the beginning. And from ancient times, eternity, the things that are not yet done, saying, my counsel shall stand. I will do all my pleasure. Calling a ravenous bird from the east, a man that executes my counsel from a far country. Well, that's Cyrus. That's Nebuchadnezzar, a man from a far country. He calls to execute his counsel. I have spoken it. I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it. I will also do it. there's none like him. Verse six, that they may know from the rising of the sun and from the west where it goes down, there's none beside me. I am the Lord and there is none else. And that's exactly what he said with regard to what Cyrus spoke of.

Now, here's this verse, verse seven. This is God speaking. He says, I form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I, the Lord, do all these things. This is God being God. That's the only way I know how to describe it. This is God being God. This is the only God you can trust. A God that is not this God is an idol, a figment of man's imagination, a God that cannot save.

Now look in verse 20 of this same chapter, Isaiah 45. Assemble yourselves and come, draw near together, ye that escaped of the nations. They have no knowledge that set up the wood of their graven image and pray unto a God that cannot save." Now, if I'm praying to a God that can't save me unless I do something, I'm praying to an idol. and nothing more. I'm praying to a God that cannot save, a non-existent God, the figment of my depraved imagination. This is the only God, the God who's described here in Isaiah 45. I form the light, I create darkness, I make peace, I create evil, I the Lord do all of these things.

Now for many years, It's dealt with in Job, the oldest book in the Bible. Unbelieving men have struggled with what they call the problem of good and evil. Kind of like there's a yin and a yang, good versus evil with God. If God is good and if he's all powerful, how can he let these tragic things happen? And there's not one of us that hadn't thought about that. You think of the suffering that goes on, the crime that goes on, the wickedness that goes on, the suffering people have to experience. You think of some of the things children have to experience. You think of the horrible, the pain, the disease, the evil, all the horrible things. If God is good and God is all powerful, how can he let these things take place? And when I'm saying this, I'm saying this, I hope, in great sympathy of the suffering people experience. And I just, it's not like, Watch out, you know, God's in control of everything. No, there's an empathy. There's a sadness that you see in all these things that are so wretched. Well, if God's good, how can you let that happen?

Here's the problem with that. You've got an evil man sitting in judgment on the God of glory and saying, if I was God, I wouldn't do this way. What you're saying is I am better than God. Everybody that makes that objection, they're saying, I am better than God. I am more moral than God. If it were me, none of this would take place. And what is so ironic, you have a very sinful, selfish man. And that's the only man who say things like this. And I'm one of them. But you have a sinful, selfish man who could do much more to relieve people, and they don't do it. But oh, they'll come up with this philosophical question, how can a good God let evil take place?

I love Romans 9, where the man says, if he hardened my heart, how can he hold me responsible? Why does he yet find fault? I bet every one of us have asked that before. If he hard my heart, how can he hold me responsible? Nay, but, O man, who are you to reply against God? Shall the thing form, say to him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay of the same lump to make one vessel into honor? and another unto dishonor.

Whatever God does is right. Now here's where we come. I trust his character. I don't understand why all these things take place. And probably I think that if it were my power to stop him, I'd do it. I think stuff like that. But God knows infinitely more than me. He knows everything. And whatever he does, we trust his character. Whatever he does is right, just, holy, and true.

Now, if God's not in control of all of this, that means he's not in control. And what's the alternative to that? Something else, someone else is in control. He doeth according to his will in the armies of heaven, You know what's going on in heaven? His will is being done joyously, willingly, and among the inhabitants of the earth. And none can stay his hand or saying to him, what are you doing? Give an account for yourself. He is God. And he says, I formed the light. And I create darkness, I make peace, and I create evil. Now let's, I the Lord do all these things.

Now, Genesis 1, 1, and 2, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. I love that verse. All truth is found in that one verse. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. And then in verse two, it says, and the earth was without form and void, and darkness covered the face of the deep.

Now, does that mean God created the heaven and the earth without form and void and in darkness? Well, if that's what it means, yeah, I believe that. I don't, can't give an explanation for that. That's the way he created it. And he, he obviously wasn't finished his creation, but some have thought, and I don't know whether this is a, some have thought something catastrophic took place between Genesis 1.1 and Genesis 1.2. God created the heavens and the earth and the earth became without form and void. Some think that this could have been the fall of Satan. It could have been something catastrophic. I don't know. It could be looked upon that way. But the point is, there was darkness upon the face of the deep.

I think that's talking about the fall of man. And God, the Holy Spirit, brooded on the waters, moved on the waters, and God said, light be, and light was. I form the light. I love the power of light. If this room is in darkness, you turn the lights on. Where's the darkness go? It's gone. I form the light, I create darkness. What is darkness? It's the absence of light. I form the light, I create darkness.

Now, I think it's very interesting that in the genus account, when it says light be and light was, the sun and the moon were not created until the fourth day. Somebody says, explain that to me. Yeah, I can't really do that. It was created the fourth day. I believe that light refers to the Lord Jesus Christ. The whole work of the Trinity is expressed in those two verses. But God says, I form the light, I create darkness, I make peace, I create evil. I love the way the Lord says, I make peace. He's the God of peace. Having made peace through the blood of his cross. He's the God of peace. Christ is the Prince of peace. The Holy Spirit, the dove, symbolic of peace as He comes down upon the Lord. God is the God of peace and He made peace. And look at what He did to make peace. Having made peace through the blood of His cross, He sent His Son to die to make peace. And that's exactly what He did.

And when somebody says, when somebody is judging God, how does God let this happen? How did he give his son? What love, what grace, what mercy did he give his son? Having made peace, and this peace is not talking about just good relationships where you're not stressed out and strained around people, but you feel you're not threatened. That's a good kind of peace, but this peace is infinitely better. This is the peace of justification. He was delivered for our offenses, raised again for our justification, therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

And if I'm justified, what that means is I've never sinned. Let me repeat, I've said this many times over the years, justification is not just as if I've never sinned, because it's just as if I've never sinned, I've sinned. Justification is I never sinned. My sin's put away, it's gone, it's blotted out. And that's what gives me peace, to know that I have no sin to give an account for before God. It's all been put away, it's been blotted out. He said, I make peace, the God of peace.

And he said, I create evil. Are you safe? This is God speaking. I create evil. Now, many people have taken that and said, well, what he does is he permits evil. He permits evil. Now, that line of thinking means it was there, and then he permitted it to do what it was gonna do, that it was already there alongside with him. That cannot be, and that's not the language he uses. He says, I create evil.

Shall there be evil in the city? The prophet Amos said, and hath not the Lord done it? Now there's no doubt these calamities, this is a minor calamity, but what took place a couple of days ago when the water burst in the church and caused all kinds of problems. Who did that? The Lord did it. The Lord did it. And you can say that about everything else too. The Lord did it. And the only reason there is evil is because of the will of God. And I'm not talking about calamities. I'm talking about sin, evil.

The Lord said that, Adam, in the day you eat thereof, you shall surely die. He didn't say if you eat. He said when you do. This was all a part of God's eternal decree. I love Revelation 13, 8, where Christ is called the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Before time began, Christ was the Lamb slain. This is God's eternal purpose. And if he created evil, somebody says, you're making God the author of evil. I hate it when people say that. I'm not making God anything. He is who he is. And whatever he does is right. And the difference between Me and you and him is he brings good out of evil all the time. We may not see it, but it's gonna happen.

And the greatest instance of this is the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. What is the most evil thing to ever take place? When men in hatred to Jesus Christ nailed him to a cross to put him to death. That is the most evil event that ever took place. What is the most glorious event to ever take place? The exact same thing. The cross is the most godlike thing God ever did and how would we know the character of God without the cross? How would we know the mercy of God if there were not sin that he forgives, that he puts away, where he justifies sinners? How would we know? How would we know about his love? How would we know about his justice? Oh, the cross of Christ is a full manifestation of the character of God.

Yes. He said. I form the light, I create darkness, I make peace, I create evil. That's what he said. Someone says, or you said, no, he said it. He's in absolute control of all things. And we worship him. The only God you can worship is this God. Amen. The only God you can worship is this God. The only God you can trust is this God. The alternative to this is utter anarchy, chaos, who knows what's gonna happen. But God is God. He says, I form the light. I create darkness. I make peace. I create evil. I, the Lord, do all these things.

Now, what's my response to this? Bow down. Whatever he does is right. I don't have to have an explanation for what he does. He knows what he's doing. And we trust him. Does that mean we're indifferent about the sorrow that comes through life? Of course not. And remember this. Sin is behind all suffering and sorrow. It is. Does that mean if somebody gets sick it's because of some sinfulness in their life? If you think like that, you're thinking wrong. You're so far off base to think that about anybody because you ought to be thinking about yourself rather than somebody else's sins. The Bible doesn't tell other people how to live, it tells you how to live.

And indeed, we are not indifferent, and we want to help people in whatever tragedy they have to experience that the Lord sends their way. But this is the fact. Like Joseph said to his brethren, you meant it for evil. There's nothing that can justify what they did when they maliciously sold their brother into slavery. fooled their father, take his coat, put blood on it, and say, is this your son's coat? How cruel, how heartless these men were. And Joseph said, you meant it for evil. But God meant it for good. And we can say this about everything. God meant it for good. And the wise man in Ecclesiastes said, He has made everything beautiful in His time. And we're gonna find out one of these days more clearly than we do now. We know it by faith now, but we're gonna find out more clearly that He meant it for good, and He has the power to make that good come to pass.