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Unbelieving men think there is no God, or if they will consider that perhaps a Creator exists, they do not believe He is involved in the affairs of mankind. Such people believe that the prophecies were written post-fulfillment or are merely fanciful imaginations created to inspire or give hope of deliverance from threatening circumstances. The prophecy concerning Cyrus has led critics to claim that at least two men wrote Isaiah. Lacking evidence of the second man's name, they call him "Deutero-Isaiah," meaning "Second Isaiah." Isaiah stands at the pinnacle of Old Testament prophecy. His is not only the longest prophetic book, but it is also the most highly acclaimed for its literary genius. He had a long ministry that apparently began in the year King Uzziah of Judah died (c. 740 BC ) and spanned the reigns of Uzziah's son, Jotham, his grandson, Ahaz, his great-grandson, Hezekiah, apparently continuing until sometime after the death of King Sennacherib of Assyria (681 BC ). By this time Isaiah was in his ninth decade, and Jewish tradition claims he met his end when Hezekiah's son, Manasseh, ordered him sawn in two!
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Sovereignty of God: Part Five
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