Jews Allowed to Rebuild the Temple

Today I read Ezra 1 and 2 where Cyrus, the king of Persia, listens to the Lord and is told to allow as many of the Israelites as desire to do so, to return to Jerusalem and build the temple of God again.  The rest of chapter 1 tells how Cyrus gathers the items that Nebuchadnezzar stole from the temple when he sacked Jerusalem.  Chapter 2 lists all the people who heeded the call to return and rebuild the temple of which there were more than 42,000 of them.  I am really impressed by Cyrus, he is truly a man who feared God and wanted to do what he had been told.  I'm sure there were plenty of them throughout history but we don't always get to hear about them, especially in the Bible which focuses primarily on the Hebrews and their struggles throughout the ages.  It is nice to be reminded that not only were there good people in other cultures, but they feared God also.  Until tomorrow.