Le messie en transition. Les textes traitant de Cyrus dans le cadre littéraire et historique du Deutéro-Ésaïe

After a clarifying glance on the Messianic terminology in the Hebrew Bible (I), the traditional view is described using the royal psalms which introduce the Davidic king as conqueror of the nations and ruler of the world legitimated by God (II). On this background, an analysis of the Cyrus texts in Second Isaiah is able to trace the evolution and transformations of the term “Messiah” and the Messianic concepts connected therewith (III). Four aspects of the messianic profile of Cyrus are accentuated : (1) The call and the accompaniment by God with Cyrus remaining passive on the one hand, (2) as well as the pacification of and the victory over the nations with Cyrus playing an active role on the other hand ; (3) the declarations on the reconstruction of the city and the temple then follow, (4) and finally are contextualized in the passages describing Yahweh’s power in history. Taken together, the history of the “Messianic” tradition exposes the Messiah in transition (IV) : The most fundamental transformatio...