Esther 1 Who's in Charge
Who’s In Charge?
Esther 1
Today we begin a series on the life of Esther from the book of Esther.
History Books:
Joshua/Judges/1&2 Sam/ Kings & Chron
Then three history books after fall of Israel & Judah taken into Babylonian captivity
70 years later Babylon conquered by Persia and Jews permitted to go home
Some went back: Ezra, Nehemiah
Some stayed: Esther.
Esther chapter 1:
(But her name does not appear in the first chapter nor do we see her on stage until next week’s message.)
For now she remains at home doing the things a typical Jewish teenage girl would do living in Persia several hundred years before Christ.
Have you ever found it difficult to live:
Living upright in a downright irreligious world.
Living with Christian morals in a ‘dog-eat-dog’ world.
Peter’s first letter: – live such good lives that when others want to slander you, they must make up lies.
But is seems that if I maintain my integrity, I will lose the contract, I will not get the grades, I will not get the promotion.
What we do not want to lose is God: our relationship with Him.
As we look at our series there will be echoes of two specific books: an in-depth commentary by Frederic Bush,
and a devotional by Chuck Swindoll.
The story of Esther examines a new perspective on what is fair.
Sometimes it merely requires us to wait patiently on God until he steps in to prove he was working his plan out all along.
Upon reading the entire story of Esther one will discover that the name of God is not mentioned. Yet there is a sense that God is not far away. Instead it is God that is actually in charge of events in the kingdom of Exerxes.
Charles Swindoll says: “God’s presence is not as intriguing as His absence.
Who of us has not longed for a word from God,
searched for a glimpse of His power,
or yearned for the reassurance of His presence,
only to feel that He seems absent from the moment?
Distant.
Preoccupied.
Maybe even unconcerned.
Yet later, we realize how very present He was all along.”
In chapter 1 of Esther, the author sets the scene with great gusto desiring for the listener (or reader) to catch his irony. The author wants us to see what is not obvious at first:
to see the emptiness of the opulent court
and to discover God behind the scenes.
The author paints the scene of the courts of King Exerxes in such exaggerated tones that it needs to be read in a mocking voice.
As the author narrates, he sets up an irony that begs the question: “Who is really in charge here?”
Is it the king?
Or some other unseen power?
Listen to the author’s description of the wealth and power of Exerxes in Esther 1:1-8. (translation from Frederic Bush’s commentary on Esther).
“1 ¶ This is what happened during the time of Xerxes,
(that’s his Greek name – in Hebrew his name is Ahasuerus) – the Xerxes who ruled over 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush:
(In other words, this King Exerxes had power over the entire known world – you should be impressed.)
2 At that time King Xerxes reigned from his royal throne in the citadel of Susa,
3 and in the third year of his reign he gave a banquet for all his nobles and officials.
The military leaders of Persia and Media,
the princes, and the nobles of the provinces were present.
4 For a full 180 days he displayed the vast wealth of his kingdom and the splendor and glory of his majesty.
5 When these days were over, the king gave a banquet, lasting seven days, in the enclosed garden of the king’s palace, for all the people from the least to the greatest, who were in the citadel of Susa.
6 (And, oh, you should have seen the room)
The garden had hangings of white and blue linen,
fastened with cords of white linen and purple material to silver rings on marble pillars.
There were couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl and other costly stones.
7 Wine was served in goblets of gold,
each one different from the other,
and the royal wine was abundant, in keeping with the king’s liberality.
8 By the king’s command each guest was allowed to drink in his own way, for the king instructed all the wine stewards to serve each man what he wished.”
The author is almost at a loss for words as he tries to describe banquet that the king has planned to display his vast wealth and power. But in his groping for words it becomes evident that he does so with an edge of sarcasm.
His attitude about the king’s attempt to display his glory is the same as the Psalmist of our Responsive Reading this morning. In Psalm 2 we read that “The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.” (Psalm 2:4)
The question, “Who is really in charge here?” is one that we need to ask in all circumstances of life – and death. It is a question whose answer we discover by faith and that gives us the ability to live godly lives in an ungodly environment.
It is a question that the worship leader, Asaph, asked week by week as he led the Israelite worship in the time of King David. In Psalm 73 he talks about the temptation to envy the arrogant when he notices their prosperity.
He describes them as always carefree and they increase their wealth.
He laments: “Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.”
He found his answer to this inner conflict when he entered the sanctuary of God.
There he understood their final destiny.
There he was reminded of the ultimate purpose and good on earth – God was always with him. He needed nothing else.
He concludes with this prayer:
“Those who are far from you will perish;
you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.
But as for me, it is good to be near God.
I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge;
I will tell of all your deeds.” (Ps. 73:27,28)
I believe that the attitude of the worship leader, Asaph, is the key to the reading and the understanding of the book of Esther.
Read with this question, “Who’s really in charge?”
and the confidence of God’s answer by faith is the key for the living of the Christian life today.
Let’s go back to the story in Esther – enter into the picture the Queen – Vashti. Our author paints her in contrast to the king.
She is the only one in his entire kingdom he cannot control. She is not controlled by his display of power.
She alone shows the power to defy the king.
“9 Queen Vashti also gave a banquet for the women in the royal palace of King Xerxes.
10 ¶ On the seventh day,(of the king’s banquet) when King Xerxes was in high spirits from wine, he commanded the seven eunuchs who served him— Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar and Carcas—
(don’t laugh, I know these names sound foreign to Jewish ears.)
11 to bring before him Queen Vashti, wearing her royal crown, in order to display her beauty to the people and nobles, for she was lovely to look at.
12 But when the attendants delivered the king’s command, Queen Vashti refused to come. Then the king became furious and burned with anger.”
The queen is shown in contrast to the king. Her banquet is quiet. She chooses to go against the king’s wishes. She chose to be free.
In the midst of an unsavory scene she was brave enough to say no to that which was blatantly wrong.
In resisting this insulting act of indignity, she took a stand against the greatest power in her universe! Good for her!
What is happening here?
The queen has been summoned by the king. To defy him could mean a loss of position – which is exactly what King Exerxes chose to do. It is possible she might even be facing death.
What was so difficult from the command of the king that Vashti was willing to risk all in defying him?
After the second 7-day banquet, concluding a ½ year banquet, the king is now drunk. He has only one more treasure in his kingdom to brag about before his men who were showing their pleasure by also now being drunk with the king’s wine.
This treasure was his own beautiful wife.
He chose in his folly to put her on display like a piece of property. Perhaps she would be expected to dance before them to show off her beauty.
What has been asked of her by her husband was not submission but sexual slavery. But marriage does not give any man the right or license to fulfill his basest fantasies by using his wife as a sexual object.
Vashti has made a courageous decision.
Perhaps you have been in such a dilemma as the queen now faced.
[Your teacher has taught you sexual values that go against Biblical morals and now wants you to repeat them back on an exam or a report to the class. The teacher holds the marking scheme and could prevent you from having the grades needed for your future goals. What should you do?]
Your employer asks you to perform a task that seems like no one will get hurt – but it goes against your principles. What should you do? Who will know anyway? Plus it’s the employer’s responsibility, not yours. Is it worth it to lose my job just to keep my own integrity in such a small matter?
Let’s scam the system and save a buck r two – or keep to ourselves the taxes we really owe our government. It’s a corrupt government anyway. Who’s to know? Jesus was asked a similar question. He lived in a time of foreign, corrupt, dictatorship. The tax system was corrupt and they were overtaxed. He answered, “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s. Don’t follow the popular opinion of “everybody’s doing it.” Choose to live the godly principles of Roman’s 13.
Vashti chose – and she lost – or did she?
There may be dire consequences to going against the power of our culture, or popular opinion, but our author portrays Queen Vashti and her decision as superior.
Listen to the King’s edict:
“13 Since it was customary for the king to consult experts in matters of law and justice, he spoke with the wise men who understood the times
14 and were closest to the king— Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena and Memucan, (O.K. so I can’t pronounce these peculiar names – sorry!)
the seven nobles of Persia and Media who had special access to the king and were highest in the kingdom.
15 "According to law, what must be done to Queen Vashti?" he asked. "She has not obeyed the command of King Xerxes that the eunuchs have taken to her."
16 Then Memucan replied in the presence of the king and the nobles, "Queen Vashti has done wrong, not only against the king but also against all the nobles and the peoples of all the provinces of King Xerxes.
17 For the queen’s conduct will become known to all the women, and so they will despise their husbands and say, ‘King Xerxes commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him, but she would not come.’
18 This very day the Persian and Median women of the nobility who have heard about the queen’s conduct will respond to all the king’s nobles in the same way. There will be no end of disrespect and discord.
19 "Therefore, if it pleases the king, let him issue a royal decree and let it be written in the laws of Persia and Media, which cannot be repealed, that Vashti is never again to enter the presence of King Xerxes. Also let the king give her royal position to someone else who is better than she.
20 Then when the king’s edict is proclaimed throughout all his vast realm, all the women will respect their husbands, from the least to the greatest."
21 The king and his nobles were pleased with this advice, so the king did as Memucan proposed.
22 He sent dispatches to all parts of the kingdom, to each province in its own script and to each people in its own language, proclaiming in each people’s tongue that every man should be ruler over his own household.”
Vashti got her wish – she did not want to come into the king’s presence – now he has ordered her not to see him again.
The king feared what would happen if the women heard of the queen’s insult and so ordered that everyone know about it!
The king could not exercise power over his own wife and ended up ordering that all women must obey their husbands!
Talk about a foolish decree!
The Persian Empire is ruled by law, but it is not a law that can bring much assurance of stability or justice to those who stand under its mandates.
It is on the one hand, irrevocable, but, on the other hand, its source is the will and whim of a weak and unstable despot who seems to care about little other than his own pride and pleasure.
Is the king really in charge here?
The king of Persia is portrayed at the beginning of the chapter as a “mighty lion” of Persia – powerful and significant. He ends up drunk, threatened by his wife’s resistance, and is scrambling to stay in charge.
Proverbs 21:1 “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases.”
When all is said and done, God is in control. He watches the antics of the proud and laughs. At the end of the story, God wins. Let us choose wisely.
When ungodly people rule the day: our workplace, our schools, our governments,
then we live in a society fraught with danger.
But when we come to the sanctuary we discover that our God is greater and above and beyond all this temporary attempts at pomp and power.
God cares about us and desires to honor the one who honors him in all their ways.
And we have not even met Esther, the central figure of the book. She is still at home totally unaware of the movements of God to prepare a vacancy in the palace he is planning for her to fulfill. She is simply living her life and carrying out her day-to-day responsibilities. Is she in for a big surprise!
For God has been working behind the scenes. He is moving and pushing and rearranging events and changing minds until he brings out of even the most carnal and secular of settings a decisions that will set his perfect plan in place.
God is in sovereign control, not only in the events in Esther’s day, but in the events of our own day.
In the midst of those circumstances that have you baffled, wondering what you’re going to do, or even how you’re going to go on, you can rest assured that God’s power and sovereign control are already at work.
Whether it be the crushing blows that drive you to your knees, or the joyous triumphs that send your heart winging,
God is still at work.
God never knows frustration.
He never has to scratch His head, wondering what in the world He’s going to do with people like us, or with the nations of the world.
So let us keep the “long-view” in mind.
God is quietly working His plan and purpose even in the courts of ungodly rulers or heads of governments – even when they seem to make unfair, rash or foolish decisions. God is always at work.
His ways are so different from ours.
Don’t’ panic. Trust God.
Although invisible, God remains invincible.
“In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your path.”
[William Cowper lived in the 18th Century. At the age of 32, wracked by a deep depression and despair, Cowper decided finally o take matters into his own hands and kill himself. He hired a carriage to take him to the Thames River. The carriage driver, a total stranger, seeing what the desperate man intended, grabbed him and kept him from jumping into the swift current of the broad tidal river.
Back alone in his home, Cowper took poison. Someone found him in time to provide the necessary antidote.
That night he took a knife and fell on it, and would you believe…the blade broke.
Early the next morning he hung himself. But a neighbor, concerned about Cowper, found him and cut him down before he died.
Because of the unfathomable, unsearchable, inscrutable power of God, invisible though it was, William Cowper was unable to take matters in his own hands…he couldn’t even take his own life!
Suffering from acute depression and metal distress, verging on insanity, he turned increasingly to Christ and Christ alone for consolation. Later, he struck up a friendship with the great John Newton who wrote the hymn “Amazing Grace.” 13 years after his attempts at suicide, Cowper himself began writing hymns.
One of the hymns:
God Moves in a Mysterious Way
God moves in a mysterious way.
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm
Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs,
And works His sovereign will.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense
But trust Him for His grace
Behind a frowning providence,
He hides a smiling face.
William Cowper.