What Old Testament examples show God's control over leaders, similar to Acts 25:1? Scene Setter: Acts 25:1 and God’s Quiet Direction “Three days after Festus arrived in the province, he went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem.” Luke gives no fanfare, yet the Lord is steering a Roman governor’s travel schedule so Paul will ultimately testify in Rome (cf. Acts 23:11). Scripture brims with earlier moments where God just as surely moves kings and governors to accomplish His purposes. Joseph and an Unlikely Promotion — Genesis 41 • Pharaoh’s dreams trouble him, and “Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon” (41:14). • After Joseph interprets, Pharaoh announces, “You shall be over my house…only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you” (41:40). • God uses one pagan ruler’s insomnia and curiosity to save nations from famine and relocate His covenant family to Egypt, paving the way for the Exodus. An Obstinate Pharaoh on God’s Leash — Exodus 4–14 • “I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go.” (4:21) • Ten plagues, a parted sea, and an overthrown army later, Israel is free. • Even Pharaoh’s stubbornness serves the divine timetable: “so My name may be proclaimed in all the earth” (9:16). Cyrus, a Pagan King with a Divine Mission — Isaiah 45:1; Ezra 1:1 • Written 150 years in advance: “This is what the LORD says to Cyrus His anointed…to subdue nations before him” (Isaiah 45:1). • Fulfillment: “The LORD stirred the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation…‘The LORD, the God of heaven…has appointed me to build Him a house at Jerusalem.’” (Ezra 1:1-2) Nebuchadnezzar Humbled and Redirected — Daniel 4 • Heaven decrees, “The Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom He wishes” (4:17). • After seven years of madness, the emperor testifies, “All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as He pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth.” (4:35) Darius Signs a Gospel Tract — Daniel 6:25-27 • Convinced by Daniel’s deliverance from lions, the Median king writes worldwide, “He is the living God, enduring forever…His kingdom shall never be destroyed.” • An imperial decree turns into a public sermon exalting Israel’s God. A Sleepless Night Spares a Nation — Esther 6 • “That night the king could not sleep, so he ordered the book of the chronicles to be read.” (6:1) • The reading just “happens” to recount Mordecai’s unrewarded service, flipping Haman’s plot and preserving the Jewish people. Timeless Principle — Proverbs 21:1 “The king’s heart is a watercourse in the hand of the LORD; He directs it wherever He pleases.” Why It Matters Today – The same sovereign hand that guided Festus, Pharaoh, Cyrus, and every other ruler still turns hearts and calendars for His people’s good and His gospel’s advance. – Political headlines may change daily, yet the throne above never wavers; humanity’s highest authorities remain God’s unwitting servants, just as Scripture faithfully records. |
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