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Change of Allegiance  /  Yahweh is a Warrior  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 6
God calls Cyrus “my shepherd” and even “my anointed” (messiah-language) while Cyrus remains a pagan ruler; what does this do to the way you reserve spiritual language for “our side,” and how might early Christians have heard that compared with how modern Christians talk about leaders they like?
Another way to ask: God calls Cyrus “my shepherd” and “my anointed” even though he was a pagan. How does that challenge the way we use spiritual words mainly for leaders “on our side”?

Direct Answer Dean’s example of Cyrus challenges the instinct to reserve holy language for leaders we approve of; God can attach exalted titles to a pagan ruler strictly because He is using him, not because the ruler is spiritually “one of us.”

Support from Transcript:

  • Dean calls Cyrus “an even more interesting one,” noting God says, “He is my shepherd,” and also “Thus saith the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus.”
  • He points out “anointed” is the same word “we get Messiah from,” emphasizing how startling the language is for a pagan king.
  • Cyrus is described as a tool for God’s purposes: “to subdue nations… open… the double doors,” and to enable Jerusalem and the temple to be rebuilt.
  • Dean uses Cyrus to reinforce the core principle: God “uses ungodly nations” and rulers in governing history.
  • Dean’s broader caution applies: divine use “does not mean that God is pleased with them,” just as with Nebuchadnezzar and Pilate.
Discussion Follow-ups If God can call Cyrus “my anointed,” what does that say about Christians declaring a favored modern politician “God’s man”—and what careful distinctions would Dean insist on?

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