Finishing Touches- Esther 8-10

January 26, 2025 by Rev. Bruce Goettsche

Our intention is to approach this Sunday like we have approached every Sunday: we will preach the Word of God because we are here to worship and celebrate the Lord rather than men. I think choosing a title of “Finishing Touches” perhaps has a dual meaning.

The book of Esther is quite an account. Xerxes, the emperor had a party and invited his wife, the Queen to come and show all the drunken party-goers how beautiful she was. She declined the invitation and was subsequently removed as Queen. After a search throughout the empire, Esther is made the Queen. Her cousin and surrogate parent, Mordecai discovered a plot to assassinate the King, reports it to Esther, who reports it to the Emperor. Mordecai’s act of loyalty is written into the official record. A guy by the name of Haman (who had a genealogy as a long-time enemy of the Jews) was promoted and expected people to bow before him, but Mordecai won’t do it!  Haman, finding out Mordecai was a Jew came up with a plan to wipe out all the Jews in the Empire. Haman didn’t count on the Lord working behind the scenes.

Esther prayerfully came before the King to intercede for her people. The first day she invited the King and Haman to lunch and then requested they come back a second time. In between these two lunches, the King couldn’t sleep. He gots out the record of the Kingdom (which he hopes will make him sleepy) and “just so happens” to read about the foiled assassination attempt and realizes nothing was done to honor the man (Mordecai) who saved his life. Meanwhile Haman talked to his family about how much he hated Mordecai and had a pole built to skewer Mordecai on. He went in to see the King early in the morning to request Mordecai to be executed. When he got to the palace he was summoned by the King and asked what would be the best way to honor someone. Haman (thinking it was him) said he should ride one of the Kings’ horses attired in one of the King’s royal robes and be led through the town with someone shouting, “This is what the King does for someone he wishes to honor.” And then the King says he would like Haman to lead this person around . . . his name is Mordecai. Then I imagine the King saying, “By the way, Haman you are here early, you have something on your mind?” GULP!

So after Haman’s humiliation (which just made him hate the Jews even more) he headed to his lunch with the Queen. This time the King asked Esther what she wanted from him. She told him about the plot to kill her people. When he asked who would do such a thing she pointed the finger at Haman. The King was furious for a lot of reasons. He left the room and when he did, Haman begged Esther to be gracious. Xerxes came back into the room with Haman lunging toward the couch where Esther was. That was it! His attendants covered Haman’s face (you don’t appear to flirt with the Queen) and then one of his servants told the King (just giving all the facts…no one like a braggard) about the pole that Haman was going to suspend Mordecai upon. The King sentenced him to die on that very pole.  

So now you know the story. . . but this morning you will (finally) learn the rest of the story.

Saving the Jews

Evil Haman was out of the way, but the entire empire still had a command to kill all the Jews. It is believed that the Law of the Medes and the Persians stated that a decree that was made could not be revoked! And it wasn’t like Xerxes could call a press conference and say “Hey, regarding that order about the Jews . . . nevermind.”  The order was with the king’s signet ring, so he was responsible whether he intended to be or not.

Esther came to the King (again given the golden scepter). She is deferential to the King again and asked him to help save Israel. Notice how she approached the King, “If it please the King, and if I have found favor with him, and if he thinks it is right, and if I am pleasing to him . . . “ Translated, “You certainly can do what  you want . . . but IF YOU LOVE ME . . . “

Esther showed great wisdom, it is always better to approach a superior with humility rather than with force. Aggressiveness only makes the person put their guard up and be resistant. It is an invitation for someone to prove how powerful they are. In Esther 8 we read,

7 Then King Xerxes said to Queen Esther and Mordecai the Jew, “I have given Esther the property of Haman, and he has been impaled on a pole because he tried to destroy the Jews. 8 Now go ahead and send a message to the Jews in the king’s name, telling them whatever you want, and seal it with the king’s signet ring. But remember that whatever has already been written in the king’s name and sealed with his signet ring can never be revoked.”

9 So on June 25 the king’s secretaries were summoned, and a decree was written exactly as Mordecai dictated. It was sent to the Jews and to the highest officers, the governors, and the nobles of all the 127 provinces stretching from India to Ethiopia. The decree was written in the scripts and languages of all the peoples of the empire, including that of the Jews. 10 The decree was written in the name of King Xerxes and sealed with the king’s signet ring. Mordecai sent the dispatches by swift messengers, who rode fast horses especially bred for the king’s service.

Xerxes put the ball in Mordecai’s lap. Perhaps he knew Mordecai had thought about it for much longer than he had. He now had Haman’s job and the signet ring that Haman used to plan his genocide. Since they cannot get rid of the previous edict, it was up to Mordecai to come up with a way to protect his fellow Jews. What he wrote is found in chapter 8:11-12

11 The king’s decree gave the Jews in every city authority to unite to defend their lives. They were allowed to kill, slaughter, and annihilate anyone of any nationality or province who might attack them or their children and wives, and to take the property of their enemies. 12 The day chosen for this event throughout all the provinces of King Xerxes was March 7 of the next year.

So, on the same day that Haman had set for people to kill the Jews, Mordecai wrote an edict that the Jews could unite and defend themselves if anyone tried to attack them. The Jews were given permission to annihilate anyone who attacked them or any members of their family. This is not an invitation to mob action (Like Haman’s edict). It is not a command that the Jews were to slaughter anyone who they didn’t like. This is all defensive.

On March 7 there must have been great tension. Most people knew if they attacked the Jews they could face the wrath of the King, His wife, and the now powerful Mordecai. However, the Jews still had some enemies and people who liked the idea of eliminating them (isn’t that true today, as well?)

We are staggered by some by the numbers of the people killed by the Jews. (We are not told how many Jews died in the conflicts). On March 7 they killed 500 in the fortress of Susa alone! We also read that they killed the ten sons of Haman and those sons are listed (probably to show that Haman’s whole household was destroyed).

You would have thought that this number in just Susa alone would have alarmed the King. It did not. He extended permission for the Jews to defend themselves one more day in Susa and killed another 300 people. They killed 75,000 in all! Does that seem like a lot of people to you? It does to me.

There is some discussion that the Hebrew might mean something different, but every respected translation says the same thing. In Susa, that number was high, likely because of the friends and relatives of Haman. Since he had 10 sons, that means he had a sizeable family. And one of the things we know about hate, is that you can pass it down to your kids and grandkids. If younger children were to be asked who they were going to vote for in the last election, they would parrot whatever they have heard around the house. They might also give the reasons for such a vote not because they thought through the issue, but because it is what was heard at home.

We are teaching children whether we believe it or not. We are also influencing the lives of those around us as well. Sometimes this is not a good thing.

As for the sons of Haman. These men likely felt honor bound to avenge the death of their father. However, they did not understand that God was working, and they stood no chance against Him.

The 75, 000 people were throughout the Empire. This sadly shows us the depth of anti-semitism even at this time in history. Perhaps it is because the Jews talked about being God’s Chosen people. Maybe it was the moral values they embraced. People don’t like those who, by their living, expose everyone else’s depravity.

Think about it, if there was a law passed in our own country that stated on a particular day you could kill all the Christians you wanted without any repercussions, we would be startled and perhaps a little terrified by how many people would embrace this invitation and try to eliminate those who stand with Christ. And don’t forget that just because it is not happening to us in our country, doesn’t mean it is not happening around the world.

The point is, the Jews were only defending themselves. They took no plunder (though by decree they could have.) They were not looking for a fight they were just defending themselves. They were not trying to prosper . . . just to live.

It is true that the impaling of the sons of Haman seems to us like overkill but this was a public renouncing of hatred from the seething family of Haman. Is it still disgusting? Yes. But times were different.

A Reason to Celebrate

The people in the country celebrated the fact that after the day set by Haman they could rest, the crisis had passed, and they had survived. God had rescued His people once again. The people of Susa had an extra day to fight so they rested and celebrated two days after the day set by Haman to kill the Jews.  Mordecai thought a yearly celebration would be a great idea. Since the people in the country and the people in the city celebrated on two different days, Mordecai designated the feast of Purim (the name of the “dice” consulted by Haman to find the best day to execute the Jews) as a two-day celebration. And of course, Mordecai sent this out via the swift messengers (who may have been getting tired).

As we get to the end of chapter 9, we are told there appears to have been a follow up mailing from Queen Esther, 

29 So Queen Esther, daughter of Abihail, along with Mordecai the Jew, wrote with full authority to confirm this second letter concerning Purim. 30 And Mordecai sent letters to all the Jews in the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Xerxes—words of goodwill and assurance— 31 to establish these days of Purim at their designated times, as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had decreed for them, and as they had established for themselves and their descendants in regard to their times of fasting and lamentation. 32 Esther’s decree confirmed these regulations about Purim, and it was written down in the records.

I firmly believe that we should celebrate the work of God whenever we get the chance. There is nothing mentioned about God in setting up the feast of Purim but the feast is ALL about God. The edict sent did not spotlight Mordecai and Esther, instead it celebrated the way the King was moved to come to their defense. This was a celebration of what we would call the sovereignty or the providence of God. It is a celebration of how God uses ordinary things and people to increase faith and bring honor to Himself.

The reason we celebrate Christmas, Easter, the Lord’s Supper, Thanksgiving and for some, Pentecost Sunday, is because we need regular reminders that God is faithful. As He has been faithful in the past, so He will be faithful in the future.

The book ends with a postscript about Mordecai. He became the second most powerful man in the Persian Empire and the Bible tells us it was because of Mordecai’s actions to save the Jews. It has a very similar parallel to the story of Joseph back in Genesis.

It has been a fun four weeks in a book that maybe, before this time, you never read or perhaps understood before. We have drawn lots of applications and I want to draw a few more today.

Conclusions

First, we should learn from these extraordinary examples, what faithfulness involves. Things certainly looked bad for the Jews. But in the end they were vindicated and stood in a place of victory and security. Early in the book we didn’t know why Esther had to go through the humiliation of the beauty pageant. But in the end, the picture becomes more clear. We know God doesn’t always give happy endings in this life (though for every believer it is eventually a happy ending.) The doctrine of God’s Sovereignty says the Lord oversees every event and will weave these events together for His good purpose. His purpose is often different from ours, but if you have lived long enough and walked with the Lord, you have learned that even though we wanted something different, God really has been leading us in the right direction this entire time.

Let me take this one step further. I don’t believe it is an accident that you are here today. There is something God wants you to know, or to learn. There may be someone He wants you to touch or wants you to be encouraged or instructed by someone. God is always reaching out. For some, the Lord is using circumstances to help you understand that there is more to life than simply religion. He wants you to have a relationship with Him. He doesn’t want you to simply know about Him . . . He wants you to know Him!

The greatest privilege I have in life is being able to tell people that God’s arms are open to you. He asks you to see that you are broken and you need someone to save you. And then He asks that you believe this is why Jesus came to earth. He asks that you put your trust in Him Trust Him for forgiveness, guidance, strength, and ultimately eternal life.

Second, we see a warning about the festering hatred the world has for God’s People. In this case those people were the Jews. People hid their prejudice when they felt there was nothing they could do. But when the barriers were taken away and it was OK to hurt others, the people lined up for the opportunity.

And today, it is not just the Jews, it is also “Christians (often preceded by the word ‘fundamentalist’) who believe in the Bible. You might say, “Don’t all Christians believe in the Bible?” Most “Christians” would say they believe, however, when you listen to them they are always telling you that God doesn’t really mean what the Bible actually says. In other words, their lives are lived far from the principles they profess with their mouths.

There is a growing cynicism today toward people of faith. They are seen as “empty-headed” “foolish” and “believe in fairy tales.” We should expect this, and we must PREPARE for it. How do we do that, In 1 Peter 2 we read,

So get rid of allevil behavior. Be done with all deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech. 2 Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment, 3 now that you have had a taste of the Lord’s kindness.

1 Timothy 4 says,

 Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas and old wives’ tales. Instead, train yourself to be godly. 8 “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” 9 This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it.

2 Timothy 2 says,

15 Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.

Once again, the Bible tells us the importance of living out our faith. If we simply sit and gather information we won’t see much happen. If learn and then apply those lessons to our lives and live them out, that is a different story. Then, we will be used by God in ways that stagger us. We will follow in the footsteps of Esther and her cousin Mordecai.

One more application: We should look for every opportunity to celebrate the grace and goodness of God. My wife will tell you that I believe we should celebrate people and anniversaries every chance we have. It reminds us that these things are blessings that we should never take for granted.

And any chance we have to celebrate God’s faithfulness will spur us on to be even more faithful in the future. We need to celebrate the anniversary of the day we gave our life to Christ. And even if you aren’t sure of when that day was, pick a day and recall how God brought you to faith. Celebrate His faithfulness at every opportunity.

And as our special journey comes to an end, we should celebrate the incredible things God has done in and through a our small town church in West Central Illinois. I look back and I am staggered at what God has done in me, in this church, and through us, in the surrounding area . . . even throughout the world. It is not time to celebrate me . . .we should celebrate Him. We should give thanks for the friendships that will be celebrated for the rest of our lives. And as I have said to so many people over the years, we grieve because we have been blessed to love. I hope you know how much I love you. But, God loves you so much more. I will celebrate you before others and before the Lord throughout my life and on into eternity. Serving you has been the honor of my life. Thanks be to God.