Esther 6: Sleepless in Susa

Intro - On Bible Reading

Happy New Year!

As we start this new year, provides a great opportunity to consider a plan for reading your Bible

If you have been around Covenant Life for a while, you have probably heard Pastor Ken talk about the Robert Murray M’Cheyne Bible reading plan and I know several of you who have done that plan

Personally, I tend to fluctuate from plans to read through the whole Bible and taking a deep dive in a specific book of the Bible

Let me offer a couple of suggestions

Do it in community: last year I texted a few friends and told them I wanted to do a read through the Bible in a year and asked if they would join me

Set up a group in the Bible app so we could see each other’s progress and make comments about the reading back and forth

Great encouragement and accountability!

When I would slip behind a few days in the reading, knowing other guys were doing the reading helped keep me motivated

Read through the Bible: if you have never read the whole Bible, I encourage you to do that

Whether it be in a year or longer, doesn’t much matter to me

But there is great value in having read the whole Bible

That is why I go back to that every couple of years

Use a plan: Don’t just open your Bible and read whatever page you open to

Be a little more strategic than that

Quarterly reading and devotionals from Scripture Union

M’Cheyne reading plan

For me, I am going to study a book of the Bible that I’ve never done a deep dive on this year and so last night I went into the Bible app and searched for reading plans focused on that book

Really, it was that idea of a deep dive in my personal reading of the book of Esther that started me down the road here

Several years ago now I decided to study Esther and started reading every commentary I could get my hands on, listening to every sermon I could find online

Spent about 9 months of my personal Bible study in the book of Esther really saturating in it

A Play in 3 Acts

As we have seen in our periodic, we get to it occasionally, series in Esther, it is a beautifully told story

It’s literary quality actually has caused some to question its historicity - whether these events really occured or not

But that is part of why we have attempted to place the narrative of Esther in historical context - King Ahasuerus, or King Xerxes, is known as the violent king responsible for the failed attack on Sparta

And we traced the history of tensions between Mordecai the Jew and Haman the Agagite

So while it is a well told story, it is also a historically true one

To the point of its literary structure, Esther reads as a play in 3 acts

Each act features feasts and banquets (which we have seen throughout)

And each act ends with gallows - the large impaling poles of death - forerunner of crucifixion

First Act

King Ahasuerus throws a massive feast to plan their upcoming attack on Sparta

In the course of that party, the king mandates that the queen, Vashti, appear before the king and his officials as a showpiece and she declines

She is deposed as queen and the king begins search for new queen

Of all the young women in the land, the king selects Esther and she is named queen

Meanwhile, her cousin, Mordecai, who had raised her, uncovers a plot to assassinate the king

The conspiracy is uncovered, the king’s life spared

The conspirators are hanged on the gallows

End of first act

Second Act

Second Act opens with the revealing of a devilish plot from Haman the Agagite to commit genocide and exterminate all the Jews

What he didn’t know is that the new queen, Esther, is herself a Jew

She devises a plan to seek to protect her people and risks her own life appearing before the king uninvited

To what end does she take that enormous risk?

To invite the king - and Haman - to a feast

Time for another party

Now even the king isn’t oblivious enough to think she risked her life to ask him to dinner, so he asks again what she wants and offers to give her whatever she asks for

She appears on the verge of sharing her real thoughts when she stops and, instead, invites them to dinner again the following night

Haman leaves dinner on top of the world

Just finished private dining with the king and queen and invited back to do it again the following night

But his mood is crushed when he sees Mordecai and, at the recommendation of his wife and friends, has a gallows built 75 feet tall to kill Mordecai

End of the Second Act

Transition

So here we are, this morning, to look at the opening of the Third Act, the climatic scene in the narrative

If you are able, please stand for the reading of Esther chapter 6

Esther 6 ESV

On that night the king could not sleep. And he gave orders to bring the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, and they were read before the king. And it was found written how Mordecai had told about Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, and who had sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. And the king said, “What honor or distinction has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?” The king’s young men who attended him said, “Nothing has been done for him.” And the king said, “Who is in the court?” Now Haman had just entered the outer court of the king’s palace to speak to the king about having Mordecai hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for him. And the king’s young men told him, “Haman is there, standing in the court.” And the king said, “Let him come in.” So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?” And Haman said to himself, “Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?” And Haman said to the king, “For the man whom the king delights to honor, let royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, and the horse that the king has ridden, and on whose head a royal crown is set. And let the robes and the horse be handed over to one of the king’s most noble officials. Let them dress the man whom the king delights to honor, and let them lead him on the horse through the square of the city, proclaiming before him: ‘Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.’ ” Then the king said to Haman, “Hurry; take the robes and the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king’s gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.” So Haman took the robes and the horse, and he dressed Mordecai and led him through the square of the city, proclaiming before him, “Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.” Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate. But Haman hurried to his house, mourning and with his head covered. And Haman told his wife Zeresh and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then his wise men and his wife Zeresh said to him, “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of the Jewish people, you will not overcome him but will surely fall before him.” While they were yet talking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived and hurried to bring Haman to the feast that Esther had prepared.

Sleepless in Susa

The Second Act ends with Haman ordering the building of the 75 foot gallows with the intent to go to the king in the morning to ask permission to kill Mordecai

Our Third Act begins back at the palace

The king could not sleep

Esther 6:1 “On that night the king could not sleep. And he gave orders to bring the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, and they were read before the king.”

Notice: the text never tells us why he couldn’t sleep

Maybe he had a bad dream

Maybe he was anxious, his mind racing about matters of state (ok, so given what we know about this guy, that seems unlikely)

My favorite theory: The noise coming from outside of the palace of banging of hammers and construction kept him awake?

Wouldn’t it be a delicious irony that the reason he couldn’t sleep was because Haman was making too much noise constructing the gallows?

Regardless of the reason, two important observations

God often uses sleepless nights from the king as part of his plan

Dan 2:1 “In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his spirit was troubled, and his sleep left him.”

Dan 6:18 “Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; no diversions were brought to him, and sleep fled from him.”

While the reason for the sleepless night was not recorded, his choice of middle of the night activities is important

What Xerxes chose to do, since he wasn’t sleeping

Consider all the options that he had available to him

Call for entertainers (or diversions as the Daniel verse I just read called them)

Call for a girl to come and, umm, help him relax

Have another glass of wine

Ask a musician to sing him lullabies until he fell asleep (think of Saul calling for David to play the lyre for him in 1 Samuel 16)

But he chose none of those options

So what did he do?

He called for the official historian to come and read the record of his reign as king

Of all the options, he chose to listen to a history book?

But not, as we might assume, because history books are boring and that would help him fall asleep

Rather, the official records were written in such a way, shall we say, to be flattering to the king

That is, on this sleepless night in Susa, he wanted to hear how great he was, how much he had accomplished as king

He wanted to hear the stories of his grandeur!

The King Honors Mordecai

Record of Mordecai Saving the King’s Life (6:2-3)

So of all the records of the king’s life and reign, what does the historian just happen to read?

The account of Mordecai foiling a plot to assassinate the king 5 years earlier

Esther 6:3 “And the king said, “What honor or distinction has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?” The king’s young men who attended him said, “Nothing has been done for him.””

Xerxes immediately notices that no mention was made of a reward for Mordecai, so he goes out of his way to ask

Maybe the historian just skipped that part, though that would seem unlikely as the whole point of the records (and reading the records) was to show off just how great the king is

Certainly highlighting the king’s generosity toward a loyal servant who saved his life is a good way to do so

Nope - no honor or reward or recognition had been given to Mordecai

Haman’s Recommendation for a Just Reward (6:4-9)

Esther 6:4 “And the king said, “Who is in the court?” Now Haman had just entered the outer court of the king’s palace to speak to the king about having Mordecai hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for him.”

So the king asks who is in the courtyard

Remember that really, at no point in all of the narrative, does Xerxes make any decisions on his own

This is no exception: which of his advisors is nearby?

Haman, hoping to get a start on hanging Mordecai, wanted to be the first to see the king that day, so he arrived really early

Many commentators believe, based on the way the story was told, that Haman actually arrived before sunrise

They tell the king that Haman is in the court

Perfect, thinks Xerxes - get Haman in here right now

Esther 6:6 “So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?” And Haman said to himself, “Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?””

Haman arrives and the king asks Haman for a recommendation on how to honor someone

So imagine the Haman emotional rollercoaster here

He arrived early to request the execution of his nemesis

And now, even better, the king is wanting to honor someone

I mean, certainly Haman is thinking his day just went from good to better here because, obviously, while he didn’t say it, this was just the king’s subtle way of asking Haman what he should do for Haman

Things are looking up, up, up!

Haman offers a 5 step plan for how to honor someone

Esther 6:9 “And let the robes and the horse be handed over to one of the king’s most noble officials. Let them dress the man whom the king delights to honor, and let them lead him on the horse through the square of the city, proclaiming before him: ‘Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.’ ””

Step 1: Clothe him in royal robes (that the king has worn)

Step 2: Put him on a royal horse (that the king has ridden)

Step 3: Put a royal crown on his head

Step 4: Have a royal official parade this man around the city

Step 5: Have the royal official declare, “Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor”

Don’t you get the feeling that Haman is wondering how far he can push this?

At the end of the day, Haman is positioning himself as king

Just as he demanded people bow to him back in chapter 3

Now he wants to wear the royal robes and crown and ride a royal horse

"Yeah, do that for Mordecai” (6:10-11)

Esther 6:10-11 “Then the king said to Haman, “Hurry; take the robes and the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king’s gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.” So Haman took the robes and the horse, and he dressed Mordecai and led him through the square of the city, proclaiming before him, “Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.””

King likes Haman’s proposal and tells him to go and do it exactly - “leave out nothing” - as he recommended… for Mordecai!

Quick aside: Notice here that the king calls him “Mordecai the Jew”

This is the first public statement about Mordecai being a Jew and the first indication that the king knew this

But remember, somehow they still don’t realize that Esther, Mordecai’s cousin, is a Jew!

Parading Mordecai around the city has to be the worst, most humiliating moment of Haman’s life, right?

Now, not only is Mordecai not dead, but he is being honored!

How can he, an Agagite and avowed enemy of the Jews, parade around Mordecai in honor? Humiliating!

And, certainly, Haman can’t turn around and ask for Mordecai’s head immediately after the king honored him in the highest possible way!

Reversals

In our last message in Esther, we looked at the idea of reversals, how one of the marks of the story-telling of Esther is how things are undone or reversed from earlier in the story

One example is that Queen Vashti was banished for not coming when calling for

Then Queen Esther dares to go before the king when she had not been called for

Here here, we get one of the great reversals in Esther

Mordecai refused to bow to Haman (3:2)

Now Haman is declaring Mordecai’s honor

What sweet irony in that reversal!

Unexpectedly Wise Counsel (6:12-14)

Esther 6:12-13 “Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate. But Haman hurried to his house, mourning and with his head covered. And Haman told his wife Zeresh and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then his wise men and his wife Zeresh said to him, “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of the Jewish people, you will not overcome him but will surely fall before him.””

After the parade, Mordecai goes back to the king’s gate

Notice that after the parade, Mordecai goes right back to work

This doesn’t really faze him

He doesn’t get a big head

He doesn’t start bragging (as Haman certainly would have!)

Two quick reversals

Reversal: Last we saw Mordecai in the city, he stopped ath the king’s gate and was wearing sackcloth and ashes

Now he is wearing royal clothes and going out from the parade

Reversal: Mordecai is now clothed in royal clothes, but Haman covers his head in shame

Back at Haman’s house

His wife and friends are there, presumably waiting to hear what happened when he went in to see the king

Did Xerxes grant his request to kill Mordecai?

He tells them everything and they respond with unbelievably wise… and completely unexpected… insight

Really, where does this even come from?

Maybe they know some of the history between the Jews and the Agagites

Maybe they heard some of the stories about God’s deliverance many, many years ago

Maybe they knew the stories about Daniel

Reversal: Just 24 hours earlier they were the ones telling him to build gallows to kill Mordecai!

Esther 6:13-14 “And Haman told his wife Zeresh and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then his wise men and his wife Zeresh said to him, “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of the Jewish people, you will not overcome him but will surely fall before him.” While they were yet talking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived and hurried to bring Haman to the feast that Esther had prepared.”

Notice: Even before the words finished coming out of their mouths, there was a knock at the door to take Haman to the queen’s banquet

The fulfillment of their words comes sooner than any of them could have possibly imagined!

Transition

Having walked back through the narrative, want us to focus on two important insights from this passage

First, the idea of God’s providence

Second, the risk of exalting yourself

On Providence

As we have seen, one of the great themes of the book of Esther is the providence of God

Observe just some of the “coincidences” that occur just in chapters 5-7

Esther just happens to change midstream her response and invite Xerxes and Haman to a second dinner instead of sharing her request then

The king just happens to have a bad night of sleep

The king just happens to decide to have the royal history read to him

It just happens to be the servant reads the section on Mordecai saving his life 5 years earlier

Haman just happens to be the first one in the courtyard that day

Then note some of the other “coincidences” in the book of Esther

Vashti just happens to decide to take a stand on that fateful night

Memucan just happens to suggest deposing Vashti and picking a new queen

Esther just happens to be one of the girls picked for the The Persian Bachelor

Hegai just happens to take to Esther and promote her to the best place in the Harem

Xerxes just happens to fall for Esther and pick her as queen

Xerxes just happens to forget to honor Mordecai for saving his life

The list could go on and on

Yes, the name of God is never mentioned in Esther

But we see him ever at work, slowly moving all the pieces into just the right places

In Esther, God’s name is concealed, but his providence is revealed

What is God’s providence?

God’s providence is his completely holy, wise, and powerful preserving and governing every creature and every action (WSC 11).

Sometimes God uses miracles… more often he uses providence

His day to day sovereign control of all things that happen

Challenge for us: We like miracles – those times where God amazingly steps in and acts in unexpected ways

But can we rest in God’s providence, his normal, day to day, good and faithful control over us and the world?

On Exaltation

King Xerxes asks a fascinating question: “What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?”

Haman, thinking this question was certainly the king’s “wink, wink, nod, nod, know what I mean, know what I mean” why of asking what reward Haman wanted, positioned himself to be king

He wanted all the fame and acclamation and reward of the king

Haman was exalting himself

And really, isn’t this the core of all sin?

All the way back in the Garden, Adam and Eve eating the fruit so they could be more like God?

They attempted to exalt themselves into the place of God

Adam and Eve failed

Haman failed

And so do we every time we try and exalt and elevate ourselves?

Reversal: The gospel is the greatest of all reversals

God’s plan was not for humanity - you and me - exalt ourselves to God’s place

Rather God humiliated himself by descending to our place

Phil 2:5-11 “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

All Xerxes could offer were temporal rewards to Mordecai

But who is it that the Great King delights to honor?

Jesus, his only Son and our Savior

How: By exalting him to the highest place

Jesus, the Son of God, was humiliated by becoming a man and dying on a cross - for you and for me - and then he did not fight for or argue for or petition for his own exaltation

The Great High King, God the Father, exalted him as the One worthy to be bowed down to

Pray

Communion

Fence the table - specifically speak to kids

Must be interviewed and approved for Communion by the elders

Ms Blythe and Mike and I are having conversations on having a class coming soon to learn more about Communion and help prepare you for it