Bible Strands
Isaiah 45:3
I will give you the treasures of darkness and the riches hidden in secret places, so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who calls you by name.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The LORD speaks directly to Cyrus, the Persian king, promising him victory over fortified cities and the spoils of war. Cyrus is unnamed in this verse but identified in context as the one who "has not known" God (v.4).
The words — אוֹצְרוֹת חֹשֶׁךְ (otzrot cho'shekh), "treasures of darkness," pairs stored wealth with the realm of darkness rather than merely "hidden riches." The image is of riches located in a place of no light, not simply concealed.
The thread — The "calling by name" motif appears in Exodus 33:17 ("I know you by name") and Isaiah 48:15 ("I have called him"), where God's personal knowledge and naming of an agent precedes his success.
Why it lands — The purpose clause ("so that you may know") is aimed at Cyrus but implicates the reader: God's power operates through those who do not recognize Him. It asks the reader to hold that divine sovereignty is not contingent on human acknowledgment.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.
Cross-references
- Isaiah 48:15 I, even I, have spoken; yes, I have called him. I have brought him, and he will succeed in his mission.
- Isaiah 43:1 But now, this is what the LORD says—He who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine!
- Exodus 33:17 So the LORD said to Moses, “I will do this very thing you have asked, for you have found favor in My sight, and I know you by name.”
- Exodus 33:12 Then Moses said to the LORD, “Look, You have been telling me, ‘Lead this people up,’ but You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have found favor in My sight.’
- Ezra 1:2 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, who has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, has appointed me to build a house for Him at Jerusalem in Judah.
- Jeremiah 50:37 A sword is against her horses and chariots and against all the foreigners in her midst, and they will become like women. A sword is against her treasuries, and they will be plundered.
- Jeremiah 51:53 Even if Babylon ascends to the heavens and fortifies her lofty stronghold, the destroyers I send will come against her,” declares the LORD.
- Isaiah 49:1 Listen to Me, O islands; pay attention, O distant peoples: The LORD called Me from the womb; from the body of My mother He named Me.
- Ezekiel 29:19 Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who will carry off its wealth, seize its spoil, and remove its plunder. This will be the wages for his army.
- Jeremiah 27:5 By My great power and outstretched arm, I made the earth and the men and beasts on the face of it, and I give it to whom I please.