Esther #1

Introduction:

Connection:

Do you ever wonder what in the world God is doing in our modern society? How in the world is God in control here? Why is our political world so corrupt? How am I supposed to live faithfully today? How is God at work in our world? in our country? in our province? in our city? Is God really in control here? When things rise and fall, is God behind them? Will God fulfill his promises in such hard times?

If so, then you’re not alone. Questions like these have assailed the people of God through the ages. The good news is that there are answers—satisfying answers from God Himself in the Word. God is never absent, and God is never idle: He is always working, even behind the scenes…

Theme

The Rise and Fall of Queens

Need

We live in a hostile world full of pagan rulers, leaders, and citizens. Our society is crumbling, the moral fabric of our culture is disintegrating, and we often feel like God isn’t active or working in our land anymore. We need to know that even when God might seem absent, that He is working all things for His purposes.

Purpose

To comfort the church in God’s sovereign hand, even over pagan rulers; to encourage the church to trust in God’s promises, even when he seems absent; and to exhort the church to faithfulness, even while in exile.

Read Text:

Esther 1:1-2:23 ESV

PRAY - PRAY - PRAY - PRAY

Setting and Context:

When was the book written? We don’t know. Probably no later than 400 BC, after the return to the land of promise.

In 586BC the Kingdom of Judah was judged by God for their sin, and they were taken captive by the Babylonians, brought into exile, and had to wait for God’s redemption in bringing them back home. The Book of Esther recounts the time of some of the Jews during their exile in Persia, while pagan King Ahasureus was reining.

Who is the author? We don’t know. Probably a prophet-scribe after the return to Jerusalem from Exile.

All we know is that the Holy Spirit inspired the text and gathered it into the OT books and canon which Jesus affirmed as the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings. The Book of Esther is in the writings portion of the OT.

Why was the book written? It seems that the Holy Spirit inspired this book to show how God had sovereignly, though secretly, saved and redeemed his people in exile.

The human author was seeking to show the origin of the feast of Purim, which was in commemoration of God’s salvation through Esther in this period of OT history.

How is the Book of Esther important in relation to the Gospel of Jesus Christ? The Book of Esther is important because it both foreshadows the Gospel in many ways, and it shows that God preserved the Jewish people from annihilation so that the coming Messiah would arrive as God had promised. One scholar says:

“Even while the people were in exile, God remained faithful to His covenant promises. God is the author and sovereign of all of history. Esther contributes to redemptive revelation by showing God’s preservation of the nation of Israel, which was crucial for the coming of the Messiah in the fullness of time. Concerning the flesh, Christ came through Israel (Rom. 9:5). In God’s redemptive plan there had to be an Israel for the Christ to come.”

What is unique about the Book of Esther? This book is unique because it does not explicitly mention the name of God.

Rather, the writer purposely leaves the mention of God out of the book, to show that God still works secretly, behind the scenes, through all of life, even in exile, as he fulfills his purposes and promises to his people.

Thus, as we study this Book, we must keep our eyes peeled for God’s Providence: his purposeful sovereignty over all things.

The Baptist Catechism says that God’s Works of Providence are: “His most holy,1 wise,2 and powerful preserving3 and governing all His creatures, and all their actions.4”

Thus, we must look for God’s impeccable timing and movement, even though He is not explicitly mentioned in the story. Understanding this, let’s dive into this Story of God’s Word:

(1) The King gives a Rich and Royal Feast for all (1:1-9)

Right away the author is teaching us that this story is history. It’s not fiction. It’s not legend. It’s “In the days of Ahasuerus, the Ahasuerus who reigned from India to Ethiopia over 127 provinces” (1:1).

This is one of the Persian Kings who ruled over the Persian Empire in the ancient world. He is also known at King Xerxes. Ahasuerus is his Hebrew name. This King was not a weak or poor king, no—he was a king of great splendour and pomp and majesty. The writer continues and says:

“He sat on his royal throne in Susa, the citadel, in the third year of his reign he gave a feast for all of his officials and servants” (1:2-3).

This King was high and mighty. He had great riches and pomp. And what did he do with all of it? He gave a great feast for all his officials … but not just for his officials, also for all people as v. 5 says: “both great and small, a feast lasting for seven days in the court of the garden of the king’s palace”.

He threw a feast for 180 days for his officials—and a feast for all the common people for a week. This King in all of his glory was a king of great bounty that he shared with his people—though his rule over them was fairly tyrannical as we shall see.

God’s exiled people seemed to have it fairly good. They were living in Persia, were under the power and rule of a great King, and maybe they were starting get comfortable. Maybe they were starting to get a little bit lax relating to God’s promises and kingdom back in the land of Israel. Maybe they were losing their sense of pain over the exile, and they’re desperate longing for God’s future blessings to be bestowed on them—after all, we have a great earthly king who gives us great feasts.

Are God’s exiled people going to assimilate into the pagan nation and become lukewarm relating to the Lord their God—or are they going to continue in their hope of God’s coming redemption? Were they going to live as faithful citizens of God’s kingdom while exiled in man’s kingdom—or would they give in to the sinful way of man’s kingdom? Let’s continue:

This feast was so extravagant, lavishing the people with innumerable material blessings. Notice the splendour of this feast, starting in verse 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” (1:6-7).

Not only was the feast long, but it was also luxurious. There were material blessings of material wealth and material glory.

As God’s exiled people saw this, it might have reminded them of the splendour of the Temple in Jerusalem, with all of its magnificence. But now, they aren’t beholding the temple in all of it’s glory—they are beholding a pagan-court-and-royal-feast, filled with luxury.

Maybe this exile stuff isn’t so bad after all? This world has some good looking things as well. The beauty of this kingdom is stunning! But there’s more:

Not only is the feast royal—but it was also unrestrained in pleasure: “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’” (1:8).

This earthly kingdom not only had outward splendour—laced with materialism—it also encouraged unrestrained pleasure—governed by hedonism (the idea that pleasure is the ultimate goal of life).

Does this earthly kingdom sound much like our day and era? Materialism and Hedonism? Living for the glory of things and pleasure—rather than for the glory of God? I’m sure that we can relate to the temptations that the God’s people would have had while in exile in the Book of Esther. How will God’s exiled people live in this earthly kingdom?

The last thing we see in this section is in v. 9 where it says: “Queen Vashti also gave a feast for the women in the palace that belonged to King Ahasuerus” (1:9).

The men had their feasts, the women had their feasts, each and every one enjoying the good life, health, wealth, and prosperity.

Now, is the splendour of this kingdom merely external? Or is it also internal—will this pagan king be laced with moral excellence or moral tyranny? Let’s see:

(2) The King summons his Beautiful Queen (1:10-12)

On the final day of the feast, the writer says that “the heart of the king was merry with wine” (1:10). And this is what he did:

The King commanded some of the eunuchs who “served in the presence of the King” to go and “bring Queen Vashti before the king with her royal crown” (1:10-11).

Filled with his pride and pomp and the splendour of his kingdom, Ahasuerus decided to boast in the physical beauty of his Queen, Queen Vashti. The King wanted all to know how glorious he is, because of his glorious wife and Queen. His Kingdom was perfection—heaven on earth.

The text says that the King summoned the Queen “in order to show the peoples and the princes her beauty, for she was lovely to look at” (1:11).

The palace was lovely, the court of lovely, the golden vessels were lovely, the materialism was lovely, the hedonism was lovely, and as the crown of the feast—the King wanted to objectify his wife and her external beauty. One scholar says:

To command his wife to appear dressed up in her royal finery for the enjoyment of a crowd of drunken men was to treat her as a doll, a mere object who existed for the king’s pleasure, and to show off his power—a “trophy wife,” in the contemporary jargon. Not for her the decree “There is no compulsion” (1:8). Here we see the dark side of placing so much power in the hands of a man whose only thought is for himself.

The King of external majesty, ironically, by trying to objectify the external beauty of his wife, showed that he had an internally poisoned heart—a corrupt heart, a sensual heart, a sinful heart. This kingdom wasn’t perfect after all—for the King of the Kingdom was a man of selfish pride and arrogance.

How often does our modern world merely look to boast in the external realities of beauty—objectifying women, sexualizing women: treating them as dolls for the purpose of satisfying the lust of sinful hearts.

You can’t exist in our modern world without seeing the sinful abuse of women in treating them as sex objects—dehumanizing them in order to satisfy the sinful cravings of the flesh. As we are in our exile—like Israel of old—we must reject this way of life. Even though there might be so much allurement behind the ways of the world—standing behind it is a demonic influence to abuse women by failing to love them as image-bearers of God. Lack of modesty is a sign that our hearts are following the ways of the kingdom of this world, rather than the ways of the kingdom of Christ. Well, let’s continue:

How did the Queen respond to this summons? “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” (1:12).

Showcasing beauty is a godly thing—but objectifying women in front of drunk men is a horrendous thing. The Queen stood upon her conscience which instructed her that such a thing was vanity, evil, and unacceptable. So what did she do? She defied the command of the most high king of the kingdom. She refused to come. And the king “became enraged” (1:12).

The King who’s absolute power and splendour allowed him to have whatever he wanted in life: materialism, and hedonism—showed the tyranny of his rule which exposed the evil within his heart. Let’s continue in the passage:

(3) The King Banishes and Divorces his Queen (1:13-22)

This King cared more about pleasing the lust of his people, than loving and caring for his wife and Queen. Thus, the King sought out the “wise men who knew the times” (1:13) and he asked:

“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?” (1:15).

This King, instead of repenting of his public sins, sought to weave his way through the laws of the land in order to punish his Queen so that his name and reputation might remain intact.

Here’s what the wise men said in response in verse 16: “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. 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’. 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. 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. 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.’ This advice pleased the king and the princes, and the king did as Memucan proposed. 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. (1:16-22).

Wow. This King, after sinning publically against his wife, decides to resort to a royal order which is irreversible, that cannot be repealed: so that Queen Vashti is banished and divorced. Why? So that women might give honor to their husbands (which is noble), but is also ironic because Vashti did honor the King by refusing to sin—but the King wanted a blind submission of his wife to his ways that treats him as the ultimate authority. This is the definition of a tyranical leader who seeks to win obedience by coercion and an abuse of authority.

True leadership, in society, in the home, and in the church—is one a servant leadership, in the meekness of wisdom, which does hold a proper authority, but does not lord it over his subjects—rather he uses it for their good and for the glory of God.

However, because of our exile in this fallen world, we will often be under such sinful and tyranical leadership; and we might be tempted to live in such a way ourselves.

This King is the opposite of the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of kings. Christ is the True and Faithful King who blesses his Bride with grace upon grace—not with banishment and divorce. Christ cherishes and loves his bride, the church, with an everlasting love—full of purity and devotion.

Therefore, trust in Him for salvation—not in the sinful and tyranical kings of the pagan world. Serve Him alone as our highest Lord—not the sinful and tyranical kings of the pagan world. And as you run to this King, you will find salvation from sin, peace with God, and a love that is better than wine.

King Ahaseurus is the opposite of what a godly King is and does.

Let’s continue:

(4) The King seeks out another Beautiful Queen (2:1-4)

After putting away his old Queen and Wife; now the King “remembers Vashti and what she had done and what had been decreed against her” (2:1), and he regrets his actions—he misses his wife, he misses his Queen—but he sinfully and rashly divorced her with an irreversible royal decree. Therefore, he desires to acquire a new queen and wife, one that will serve him and please him even more than the last. The text says:

“Then the king’s young men who attended him said, ‘let beautiful young virgins be sought out for the king. And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom to gather all the beautiful young virgins to the harem in Susa the citadel, under the custody of Hegai, the king’s eunuch, who is in charge of the women. Let their cosmetics be given them. And let the young women who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti’. This pleased the king, and he did so.” (2:2-4).

The splendour of this king keeps lowering itself as the story goes on. This empire might be glorious on the outside—but the sinful hearts of the pagans, and pagan kings, are nothing more than totally depraved and pride-seeking sponges who will do anything they can to seek their own glory and honour—come what may. The King desires to pick a new wife, so that is what happens: the tyrant gets his way once again. One writer says:

Notice that this was not a competition that someone had to apply to enter. Everyone’s hat was in the ring simply by virtue of living within the empire. Since the whole purpose for existence in Persia was to serve the empire, no permission was needed for the empire to draft a young woman into this particular branch of the civil service. The empire didn’t care whether parents had other plans for their daughter.

This plan was not a lovely-beauty-fashion-show for any who want to join; this was a you’re picked against your will to seek to please the King kind of fashion show.

I’ll remind you that this king has unlawfully divorced his wife, his Queen. This wife did not commit adultery, nor did she abandon him, and he still divorced her to please his own unrighteous anger. Thus, the following narrative, at core, is one of disobedience to the living God, His moral law, and His ordinance of marriage.

However—God is the God of Providence who has planned, and is using, this sinful scenario for his righteous purposes of redemption.

It’s time for Mordecai and Esther to appear in the story—God’s exiled people now come to the front stage in this pagan kingdom. Let’s continue:

(5) The King chooses Esther as a Candidate (2:5-11)

The writer says: “Now there was a Jew in Susa the citadel whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, son of Kish, a Benjaminite, who had been carried away from Jerusalem among the captives carried away with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away” (2:5-6).

Here we see that this Pagan King, and his Pagan Kingdom, has some citizens of heaven therein. Mordecai was a second or third generation person in exile; his entire life had been that of living outside of the promised land; under a pagan king with pagan people around him; he knew the struggle of wordly temptation—but he didn’t fully convert to paganism—he remained loyal to Yahweh the God of his fathers, the God of promise and salvation.

Funny enough, Mordecai is named after ‘a babylonian god named marduka, or, marduk.’ This might indicate that his parents had given into paganism—but even though his name was worldly, his heart was godly—unlike those around him.

Note: Nothing about your external identity needs to bar you from an internal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Maybe you’ve grown up in sin, in pagan idolatry, in secularism, in the sinful ways of our sinful world. Maybe you’re even named after something or someone who was ungodly. This does not bar you from salvation—for Jesus Christ came to seek and save the lost. And he redeems all who come to him in faith, trusting in his life, death, and resurrection for salvation—leaning their hope of eternal life upon his Person and Work, not on our worldly identity. So come, and find the waters of life in Jesus, the Fountain of Life.

Mordecai was named after a false god—but trusted in the true God and thus became a child of promise. Even despite his worldly title.

We also learn that Mordecai took Esther in as his daughter at a young age, and he cared for her because she was an orphan. The text says that “he was bringing up Hadassah, that is Esther, the daughter of his uncle, for she had neither father nor mother. The young woman had a beautiful figure and was lovely to look at, and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.” (2:7).

Mordecai—adopting Esther as his daughter—would have brought her up in the ways of the Lord, as best as he knew how—which the Lord would have used to form Esther’s godly character which will be so necessary in the rest of this story. Esther’s faith in Yahweh, and devotion to Yahweh will lead to something spectacular; yet, Esther isn’t quite the example of faith that we always make her to be (which we will see soon). But for now, in God’s providence, she gets chosen into the fashion show of the King:

“Esther also was taken into the king’s palace and put in custody of Hegai, who had charge of the women. And the young woman pleased him and won his favor. And he quickly provided her with cosmetics and her portion of food, and with seven chosen young women from the king’s palace, and advanced her and her young women to the best place in the harem” (2:8-9).

Remember that Esther did not volunteer for this—she was taken and chosen to go into the King’s palace, put under custody of Hegai, and was enrolled as a Candidate for the new Queen. She was beautiful—the King wanted a beautiful Queen—so Esther was chosen, presumably against her will. It’s interesting that she kept something revealed from the King though:

“Esther had not made known her people or kindred, for Mordecai had commanded her not to make it known. And every day Mordecai walked in front of the court of the harem to learn how Esther was and what was happening to her” (2:10-11).

Unlike Daniel, Esther was not a brave soul at this point of the story yet. Unlike Daniel, Esther did not follow Jewish dietary laws—she acted as a pagan. We don’t often remember in the story of Esther that as a Jew it was sinful for Esther to marry a non-Jew, a pagan. Esther would have known this very well. But out of a fear of man, Mordecai instructed Esther to keep her identity secret, and she followed suit. Both Mordecai and Esther here were sinning against their God, lacking boldness, and becoming like the sinful world. But God purposed even this for the good of his people.

Note: As God’s people live in these pagan kingdoms, they are tempted to follow the ways of the sinful world rather than the ways of the holy God. Thus, there is a constant need for us to be in the Word and Prayer, being transformed by the renewing of our minds, filled with the Holy Spirit, fellowshipping with the saints, so that we can help eachother to follow the ways of God in purity and reverence. He is worthy of total devotion and love—even in the midst of such trying circumstances. One writer says:

[Esther] was willing to let the empire define her reality. Resistance was not high on her program at this point; on the contrary, she seemed content, even eager, to be assimilated.

Instead of obeying God, rather than sinful men—she gave in and submitted to this pagan King. She assimilated into the worldly ways. Mordecai was no better, for he commanded Esther to do the same.

Here we see rebellion in God’s people, even in exile—however, God is going to use this to accomplish his great purposes. God is sovereign over sin—without being the author of sin. Even in our weakness, the Lord works for the greater good and salvation of his people.

Let’s continue the story:

(6) The King chooses Esther as the Queen (2:12-18)

The big day has arrived for King Ahasuerus. He gets to choose his new Queen. The candidates have been under a 12-month beautifying phase: “six months with oil of myrrh and six months with spices and ointments” (2:12). How would you like that women? A 12-month spa-vacation, coated in oil and spices? Any takers?

Here’s how it works: each candidate would be go in on their appointed time to showcase themselves before the King to try and win his approval and favour. Then, “she would not go in to the king again, unless the king delighted in her and she was summoned by name” (2:14).

She get’s one shot—and the rest is in the hands of King Ahasuerus. One by one the ladies are appearing before the King, and the women aren’t immediately winning his love. But now we come to Esther’s big chance:

“When the turn came for Esther the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her as his own daughter, to go in to the king, she asked for nothing except what Hegai the king’s eunuch, who had charge of the women, advised. Now Esther was winning favor in the eyes of all who saw her. And when Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus, into his royal palace, in the tenth month, which is the month of Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign, the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins, so that he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti” (2:15-17).

A young Jewish girl, hiding her identity, while in exile from the promised land, finds herself being chosen by the pagan King himself to become the new wife and Queen of the Persian kingdom. Esther won the favor of the King immediately and she was graced with the royal crown. Her failure to obey God fully brought her into a situation where she had incredible position and honour and dignity in the pagan world. Though getting there was not justified—the Lord would use this position to reverse the plans of God’s enemies. One scholar adds:

At this point in the story, Esther is certainly no Daniel. She is both in the world and of the world, fully complying with the empire’s outrageous demands with the goal of winning the “love” of an unworthy royal husband. She would perhaps have objected that she had little choice, but if someone is willing to suffer the consequences, full obedience to God’s law is always an option. Vashti, the pagan, had already shown in the previous chapter that the empire cannot ultimately compel our obedience. Esther is certainly not a model for us in her compromise—yet we should not miss the fact that her history of compromise and sin will not disqualify her from the opportunity for later obedience, an obedience that will bring blessing for her people. Gaining generous tax-relief from the government of Ahasuerus (Esth. 2:18) will not go down in history as Esther’s crowning achievement!

This story of Esther shows that there is hope for those who have compromised; that there is forgiveness and redemption for those who have done what they knew was wrong in God’s sight.

Maybe you’ve stolen though you knew it was wrong.

Maybe you’ve sexually sinned though you knew it was wrong.

Maybe you married a non believer, though you knew it was wrong.

Maybe you chose a career with all of the wrong motivations, though you knew it was wrong.

Maybe you’ve compromised by not speaking up for the truth, though you knew it was wrong.

Maybe you’ve abused substances though you knew it was wrong.

Whatever your past sins are, Jesus Christ can forgive you if you trust in Him. For the Lord Jesus went to the cross, bearing all of our sin, guilt, and shame, so that we could be forgiven, reconciled to God, clothed in the perfection of Jesus, adopted into God’s family, filled with the Holy Spirit to walk in newness of life. Whatever you’ve failed to do; wherever you’ve compromised in the past—if you run to Jesus Christ the Saviour, the Son of God who became a man in order to save sinful men and women—if you run to Him and cast your soul upon his Perfect Life, Substitutionary Death, and Victorious Resurrection, if you lean upon Him for redemption—your sins are washed white as snow, you become a child of God and a citizen of heaven—safe in the everlasting arms of God your Father.

As God’s children, and citizens of heaven, we too are now in the exile of this sinful world, as we are waiting for the new heavens and new earth, the new world, the City of God—and though you’ve failed many times, God will use you for His glory and His purposes—despite our weakness.

He delights to use sinful men and woman to bring about his glorious purposes in the earth, and in so doing, his grace is magnified, his wisdom is shown-forth, and his power is exalted. Glory to God.

Though Esther compromised, she was trusting in Yahweh for salvation by faith, and the Lord mercifully used her for the Kingdom of God, though she was an exile in this pagan kingdom. One writer says:

God is able to form beautiful pictures out of our smudged and stained efforts. Past failures do not write us out of a significant part in God’s script for the future.

What a comfort it is that God is in the business of using his weak children to accomplish his glorious purposes. May the Lord use us for the mission of the church and the good of his heavenly kingdom.

Let’s finish off with the last section of chapter 2:

(7) The King is saved by Mordecai the Jew (2:19-23)

Here is what the text says: “19 Now when the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate. 20 Esther had not made known her kindred or her people, as Mordecai had commanded her, for Esther obeyed Mordecai just as when she was brought up by him. 21 In those days, as Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthan and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, became angry and sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. 22 And this came to the knowledge of Mordecai, and he told it to Queen Esther, and Esther told the king in the name of Mordecai. 23 When the affair was investigated and found to be so, the men were both hanged on the gallows. And it was recorded in the book of the chronicles in the presence of the king.” (2:19-23).

Here we see that Mordecai was also placed in a position of dignity. Sitting at the king’s gate was not something an ordinary civilian could do. He must have been promoted to some important role in some royal service.

One scholar says that “sitting there does not depict the attitude of a bystander of a supplicant but of a court official”.

Thus, Mordecai too was placed in this position by God’s providence and power, to later be used for mighty purposes of redemption. God works in mysterious ways, beloved—His purposes always work together for the “good of those who love Him” (Rom. 8:28), and for the glory of His name (Rom. 11:36).

And Mordecai, as a court official, heard a conspiracy that was planned against the King, to try and assassinate him. But Mordecai reported this to Queen Esther, who then informed the King. The King then took action, “investigated” the situation, and the two men “Bigthan and Teresh” were “both hanged on the gallows” (2:21-22). What an incredible reversal!

The Lord raised up Mordecai to a position of court official, so that he could overhear of a conspiracy, and tell Esther, whom the Lord also raised up to be the Queen, and the conspiracy of these two men were overturned, reversed upon themselves, which led to their judgement and death. The enemies of the King and their schemes against the King led to their own death and judgement.

Note: All those who oppose the providence and ways of God, the ultimate King, will also find themselves under judgement and death. No one can thwart the plans of God—no one can keep Him from fulfilling His promises. And no one can overturn his justice and wrath.

Ultimately, God’s people are secure under God’s everlasting arms, his total sovereignty, and his precious promises. The Lord will bring us all the way home, for the sake of Christ, in whom we have redemption. Whatever happens in life—we can know that nothing will throw God off of his mighty plans.

The last thing I want to focus in on in this chapter is that Mordecai was recognized as the one who saved the King—but that he was not repaid at this time (though he deserved it). This too is God’s purposeful plan for something later on in the story. Remember that for next week. Mordecai still needs to be rewarded—and his heroic act “was recorded in the book of the chronicles in the presence of the king” (2:23). This would come to prove crucial to the salvation of God’s people in the future. All things are under God’s control, for the good God’s people, even when we find it hard to understand.

(C) Pagan Rulers and Weak Believers are both used in God’s Providence to fulfill God’s Promises.

Both King Ahasuerus, Esther, and Mordecai—were all used, despite their sin and weakness—to bring about God’s purposes, which we will zoom in on more in the following weeks.

Another theme in these two chapters is that of feasts—we saw a feast in chapter 1 with Queen Vashti—but we saw another feast in chapter 2 with Queen Esther—both of these foreshadow the greatest feast of all: the marriage supper of the Lamb, when the true and faithful King of kings brings his Bride, the Church, to eternal blessings, of eternal life, and eternal delight as she gazes upon Jesus Christ her Lord and Saviour, her Bridegroom, forever and ever.

When our eyes are set on our heavenly bridegroom, we will see through the empty charade of the [sinful] empires [of this world]. When our hearts are comforted by the certain knowledge of God’s love for us in the gospel, we will be insulated from the temptation to despair. If this God has loved us enough to send his Son to the cross for us, what in all creation can separate us from that love? The answer must be “Nothing and no one.” When our eyes are fixed on Christ, we can laugh at the best and not fear the worst that the [sinful] empires have to offer. We will be strengthened to stand firm by faith, waiting for our sure salvation.

And in the meantime we know that the Sovereign Lord is working in us and through us as we are exiles in this world—even though He might seem absent, He’s not, and He’s always working and building his church—so let’s give Him the glory, and live for His name—as we journey home toward the City of God.

(C) Pagan Rulers and Weak Believers are both used in God’s Providence to fulfill God’s Promises.

Amen, let’s pray.