1. Ezra 1:2 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

To what does the phrase “God of heaven” refer?

Ezra 1:2 (ESV)

2 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

The author of Ezra takes a title that the Persians gave to Ahura Mazda and proclaims that the Lord is actually the God of heaven. This is the first time in the Bible that the term God of heaven is used as a description of God who has revealed himself in the Bible.1 The phrase God of heaven refers to the heavenly sphere in which God holds sway over events on earth.2