Esther 1
Notes
Transcript
Intro
Intro
Today we are starting a new series where we deep dive the book of Esther
Here is the cool thing about Esther, it is one of only two books that don’t mention the name of God. Song of Solomon being the other
The temptation for a lot of Christians then is to ignore it, and skip over it
Saying we don’t need it - if God is not here why use it?
Some theologians even questioned it’s inclusion into the Bible. If it doesn’t have God why use it?
Well hopefully throughout today - and the rest of the series you will see the importance of this book
King Xerxes
King Xerxes
1 Now in the days of Ahasuerus, the Ahasuerus who reigned from India to Ethiopia over 127 provinces, 2 in those days when King Ahasuerus sat on his royal throne in Susa, the citadel,
Starting out in Esther we meet a king named Ahasuerus
Ahasuerus is his Hebrew name
Another name, the one we will refer to him is Xerxes, which is his Greek name
We see right off the bat that Xerxes is King, and that his rule is from India to Ethiopia - over 127 provinces
Historians tell us that Xerxes was the son of Darius
Darius built the kingdom and then in his old age passed down the kingdom to Xerxes
In that time period that would be the “entire world”
Many people have tried to rule the world, but very few actually has
Yet Xerxes would be one of them
He would be at this time, the most powerful man on the face of the earth
Think Joe Biden, Vlad Putin, and Kim Jong Un all combined
That was how powerful Xerxes was
He basically ruled from Sudan all the way up to Pakistan today, all the way over to Greece.
That means he was the ruler over Egypt, Libya, Israel, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Greece, and Sudan. One man!
To the people he was considered a god
So what would Xerxes do with the money?
What did he do with the fame and “god-hood” that he assumed?
Parties
Parties
3 in the third year of his reign he gave a feast for all his officials and servants. The army of Persia and Media and the nobles and governors of the provinces were before him, 4 while he showed the riches of his royal glory and the splendor and pomp of his greatness for many days, 180 days.
He threw parties
Big parties
MAJOR parties
Commentaries tell us that the amount of people that would go to the party was roughly 15,000 people
15,000 people!
You might wonder - how did he manage to keep rule over all the “world”
Very simple - you bring in the leaders, the armies, the governors, and you feed them
You give them riches
You give them glory
When you buy people off they tend to do whatever you want
And don’t miss this - the parties he would throw for these people would last 180 days!
That’s a 6 month - half the year - party
Feeding, giving riches, celebrating all these people
Then look what he does
5 And when these days were completed, the king gave for all the people present in Susa the citadel, both great and small, a feast lasting for seven days in the court of the garden of the king’s palace. 6 There were white cotton curtains and violet hangings fastened with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rods and marble pillars, and also couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and precious stones. 7 Drinks were served in golden vessels, vessels of different kinds, and the royal wine was lavished according to the bounty of the king. 8 And drinking was according to this edict: “There is no compulsion.” For the king had given orders to all the staff of his palace to do as each man desired. 9 Queen Vashti also gave a feast for the women in the palace that belonged to King Ahasuerus.
He then moved the party to everyone in the city
How do you stop people from rioting? Simple - throw a party
He exercised his wealth - showing off all that the kingdom had
He provided for the food and drink
Both men and women celebrated a King who considered himself a god
They were celebrating Xerxes - that he was a god
Vashti’s refusal
Vashti’s refusal
10 On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha and Abagtha, Zethar and Carkas, the seven eunuchs who served in the presence of King Ahasuerus, 11 to bring Queen Vashti before the king with her royal crown, in order to show the peoples and the princes her beauty, for she was lovely to look at. 12 But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command delivered by the eunuchs. At this the king became enraged, and his anger burned within him.
Near the end of the party Xerxes calls for his Queen to come out and show off to all the people
To “flaunt her stuff” in front of them
Ultimately to prove once again that he is god because, he got her
To show off how good he was because of her beauty
Yet she doesn’t do it
We are unsure why decided not to - she just didn’t
Because of this disrespect Xerxes the king who believes he is a god become enraged
Maybe the first time in his life that he has ever been told “No”
Maybe the first time he didn’t get what he wanted
The first time he wasn’t waited on hand and foot
The decree
The decree
13 Then the king said to the wise men who knew the times (for this was the king’s procedure toward all who were versed in law and judgment, 14 the men next to him being Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media, who saw the king’s face, and sat first in the kingdom): 15 “According to the law, what is to be done to Queen Vashti, because she has not performed the command of King Ahasuerus delivered by the eunuchs?” 16 Then Memucan said in the presence of the king and the officials, “Not only against the king has Queen Vashti done wrong, but also against all the officials and all the peoples who are in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus. 17 For the queen’s behavior will be made known to all women, causing them to look at their husbands with contempt, since they will say, ‘King Ahasuerus commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him, and she did not come.’ 18 This very day the noble women of Persia and Media who have heard of the queen’s behavior will say the same to all the king’s officials, and there will be contempt and wrath in plenty. 19 If it please the king, let a royal order go out from him, and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and the Medes so that it may not be repealed, that Vashti is never again to come before King Ahasuerus. And let the king give her royal position to another who is better than she. 20 So when the decree made by the king is proclaimed throughout all his kingdom, for it is vast, all women will give honor to their husbands, high and low alike.” 21 This advice pleased the king and the princes, and the king did as Memucan proposed. 22 He sent letters to all the royal provinces, to every province in its own script and to every people in its own language, that every man be master in his own household and speak according to the language of his people.
Because of Vashti’s refusal and the kings anger he brought in a group of men to help him decide what to do
They say - “since she rebelled all women everywhere will rebel because the queen rebelled
We must make a rule that terrifies the women and keeps them under our rule” - Jamie Translation
So they decide to strip Queen Vashti of title and role
And instead decide to search for a new queen to with the “god” king Xerxes
Tie into Jesus
Tie into Jesus
There is a lot we see in Chapter 1
We see Xerxes is claiming to be a god
180 day party with 15,000 people
A search for a new queen
But here is what you may have missed
Jesus is the better king
You may have missed the fact that Jesus is the better king
Xerxes claims to be king of kings - claims to rule the earth
He would be considered a god
But Jesus is the better king
Look at the parallels between the two
Xerxes: son of Darius
Jesus: son of God
Xerxes: never tasted poverty nor humility
Jesus: tasted both poverty and humility to identify with us.
Xerxes: used his power to abuse women
Jesus: used his power to honor women
Xerxes: spent his entire life being served
Jesus: spent his entire life serving others
Xerxes: killed his enemies with an army of millions
Jesus: died for his enemies, saving billions
Xerxes: died and was buried
Jesus: died and was raised again
9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.
We’re nothing compared to God
Xerxes thought himself a God
He showed off his riches with parties, 180 days with 15,000 people
Flexed the gold and marble and purple curtains
Believing that he was the greatest
Yet here we are in 2023 and nobody has heard of King Ahasuerus/Xerxes, nor do they bow down to him
Yet everyone has heard about Jesus
Everyone has heard of God
5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
Apart from God we can do nothing, are nothing, and mean nothing
Xerxes thought himself great, yet he disappeared just like everyone else
Apart from God we are nothing
God works even in the mundane
We look at Esther and think that God is not moving or working
We don’t see God mentioned and so we so quickly forget
There is no miracle, no walking on water, no plagues, no crossing the red sea
There is nothing “special” or “miraculous” about this
God’s name does not have to be mentioned nor explicit miracles done in order for us to see his providential handiwork
Yet God is working
Mark Dever (A theologian and pastor or Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington DC) says it this way, “(Esther) is one of the longest sustained meditations on the sovereignty and providence of God in the whole Bible. It is really just one long narrative illustration of Romans 8:28”
28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
Why did Xerxes throw a party, to show that no matter how great he might have been he is forgotten
Why was he considered a god, to show that he is nothing in comparison to Jehovah God
Why did Queen Vashti disobey Xerxes? To make way for Esther to become Queen
As we will see later God uses Esther to save her people
Conclusion
Conclusion
Jesus is the better King
No one, not even King Xerxes, can compare
Man-kinds riches are nothing compared to God
Without God we will all be forgotten one day
God works even in the mundane
Even if we don’t see him or his miracles, he is still sovereignly in control