Be it BFFs, a high school clique, a fraternal organization, a neighborhood, rival teams, or even countries, one or more persons are considered ‘in’ and others are not. In Isaiah 45:1,4-6, we see two such groups: the Israelites and the non-Israelites, the pagans. King Cyrus, a pagan, was not part of the Israelites’ ‘in-crowd,’ nor they, his. Yet God chose Cyrus to do God’s will.
This brief reading teaches us much. For example, there’s never only one ‘in-crowd.’ Those who believe they are part of the ‘in-crowd’ are not part of another group that feels the same. Also, God doesn’t operate by human rules and expectations. Instead of having only a relationship with the Israelites, as they might expect, God selects and thus honors Cyrus.
Perhaps we should also be open to all people, those within and not within whatever group we might feel is our ‘in-crowd.’