Esther: When God Seems Absent (4)
Notes
Transcript
Handout
An Evil Plot Esther 3:1-15
An Evil Plot Esther 3:1-15
Bears vs. Packers, Celtics vs. Lakers, Yankees vs. Red Sox, — Ohio State/Michigan, Duke/North Caroline, Arnold Palmer/Jack Nicholas, Hiland/Sugarcreek?
All rivals—
On June 28th, 1997, a boxing match occured between two of the most decorated and feared boxing rivals in the world at that time. When Mike Tyson was asked by a reporter whether he was worried about opponent Evander Holyfield and his strategy to take on this challenger--- he answered; “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”
Holyfield went on to win the match. Despite the massive 15/2 odds against him. He won. Some of you may remember the details of this boxing match, and it did not go the way either boxer had planned— it ended in a Technical victory for Holifield in the 11th round.
Evander Holifield reported later that he did have a game plan to win, however if had he blindly followed his original plan when things had changed, he may not have.
I’ve been in a lot of situations where the ball didn’t bounce my way— I often was tempted to ask God that little three letter word--- WHY? But I’ve learned that when that feeling comes— my best question to ask God is “WHAT”— what do you want me to learn from this? What do you want me to do next? What is the wisdom and lesson that I need to learn and apply for next time.
That’s why in sports especially— I used to simply say— you either Win, or you Learn.
The story of Esther will take a dark and nasty turn in chapter 3 this week. The faith and trust of the entire Jewish nation is put to the test— they figuratively are dealt a punch to the mouth, and our main characters, Mordecai and Esther are put into a terrible position— and feel the pressure to act. To do something to stand against an evil plot from a man with an evil heritage.
King Xerxes honors an enemy
King Xerxes honors an enemy
1 After these events, King Xerxes honored Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, elevating him and giving him a seat of honor higher than that of all the other nobles. 2 All the royal officials at the king’s gate knelt down and paid honor to Haman, for the king had commanded this concerning him. But Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor. 3 Then the royal officials at the king’s gate asked Mordecai, “Why do you disobey the king’s command?”
Mordecai we know— he is of the tribe of Benjamin, a descendant of Kish— (That’s the same family line as King SAUL!) but who is Haman? He's suddenly introduced into the record here. What is behind the immediate antagonism that we find between Mordecai and Haman in the story? We get a clue in the heritage that's given for this man. He was Haman, the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite. What is an Agagite? Here we will need to do a little detective work.
Haman is an Agagite. That means he is a descendant of a man named Agag. Where do you find Agag in the Scriptures? In the fifteenth chapter of First Samuel, we have the account of how King Saul, the first king of Israel, was ordered by Samuel, the prophet of God, to mount an expedition against the Amalekites.
Mordecai refuses to honor Haman (v.2)
4 Day after day they spoke to him but he refused to comply. Therefore they told Haman about it to see whether Mordecai’s behavior would be tolerated, for he had told them he was a Jew. 5 When Haman saw that Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor, he was enraged.
A legacy of bad blood. Exodus 17, I Samuel 15
Going back even farther you will discover that Amalek was the grandson of Esau, that Esau of whom God said, "Jacob have I loved but Esau have I hated," (Malachi 1:2b-3a). All through the Bible, Amalek, Agag, and the descendants of Esau are an example to us of an enemy that opposes all that God would do.
14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.” 15 Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. 16 He said, “Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.”
2 This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. 3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.’ ”
Haman is an Agagite— and Mordecai is a Jew.
These men knew of this long and bitter history. They were rivals, but if we investigate this— they were actually related as well— descendant of Jacob (Saul and Mordecai), and descendant of Esau (Agag and Haman). It reminded me this week that we observe this kind of hatred and rivalry in the Middle Eastern countries- All descendants of Abraham, Isaac (the Jewish people) and Ishmael, (the Arabic people)
Now pause a moment- What is the application of all this to our lives today? Do you see the two kingdoms here clearly? The Kingdom of Xerxes, a kingdom of the world, or darkness— versus The Kingdom of God, a kingdom of light.
Throughout the Bible, the story of the Jews is the story of God at work among men. The whole purpose of this strange nation is that, in their history, we might see unquestioned evidences of God at work. Now, today we too represent that evidence--what in your life gives evidence to the world that God is at work?
13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,
There is an enemy. The devil is seeking who he can devour and who will partner with him and the kingdom of darkness. God rescued us from evil. Why would you go back and partner up with the evil forces? Haman is the representation in the story of the enemy of God— Satan. This theme will be very clearly reinforced over the next several weeks—
The devil approached Jesus: remember the temptations?
7 If you worship me, it will all be yours.”
Jesus didn’t bow— nor will we. So what does the enemy of God intend to do? That Jesus resisted him, that probably makes him pretty angry, right? Destroy not only Jesus, but all of his followers (his people) also. The same thing Haman intends to do here:
Haman hatches a horrible plan
Haman hatches a horrible plan
6 Yet having learned who Mordecai’s people were, he scorned the idea of killing only Mordecai. Instead Haman looked for a way to destroy all Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout the whole kingdom of Xerxes.
A fateful date is set. (v.7)
The day is selected, by casting lots with the pur.
God behind the Scenes: The Book of Esther The Date with Fate Set (Esther 3:7)
The storyteller provides both the chronological year—the 12th of the king’s reign—and the time frame for the Jewish genocide. The setting of the date is significant, as this appears to be a settled matter even prior to Haman’s seeking the king’s approval. Does this reflect a real power shift, indicating that Haman is calling the shots now? If so, this is detrimental to Mordecai and his fellow Jews.
Even more interesting, the date is not set by Haman personally but by lot—the pur (clay cubes like dice used for divination). This is how, later on in the story, the Jewish feast Purim will get its name. In other words, the date is set by the Persian gods.
7 In the twelfth year of King Xerxes, in the first month, the month of Nisan, the pur (that is, the lot) was cast in the presence of Haman to select a day and month. And the lot fell on the twelfth month, the month of Adar.
Haman convinces the King with cunning logic. (v.8-9)
8 Then Haman said to King Xerxes, “There is a certain people dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom who keep themselves separate. Their customs are different from those of all other people, and they do not obey the king’s laws; it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them.
-He didn’t even tell the king who the people were.
-He infers that they are dangerous because they might revolt.
-They are different from all other people— why is that a bad thing?
-He lays the trap, and then moves in for the final blow:
9 If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will give ten thousand talents of silver to the king’s administrators for the royal treasury.”
Note that none of what Haman proposes about the Jews is evident at all. Like if we were to test what Haman is saying in a court of law— there is no evidence. Have the Jews revolted so far? Are the Jews threatening the King in any way? Mordecai acted just a few verses ago— in loyalty to protect the King! He doesn’t even seem to know that. Haman is accusing the Jews— and he’s lying. And it is somewhat surprising that the king doesn’t even seem to try to identify them either. And to just make sure he seals the deal— he offers the King the equivalent to 375 tons of silver— or in today's dollars: 150 million! At a time when the kingdom could use the extra cash— (which we believe Haman would have taken from the Jews as they were eliminated)—
Our enemy the devil accuses us. The devil is called the “accuser of the brethren” in Revelation 12:10. Jesus speaks of the devil in John 8:44
44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
And then he throws the money on top— It just reeks of the story of Judas— remember his temptation to betray Jesus— for just 30 silver pieces...
Xerxes just gives in, and basically gives Haman the key to the kingdom:
10 So the king took his signet ring from his finger and gave it to Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. 11 “Keep the money,” the king said to Haman, “and do with the people as you please.”
Xerxes decrees the death sentence
Xerxes decrees the death sentence
Yikes- He just gave him the permission to not only do away with all the Jews— but also to keep all the possessions and “money” in the process.
Remember this moment— the King gave Haman the permission and authority to act. Haman simply purposes the logic, and a hefty reward, and he’s off to the races on his evil, murderous plan.
The date is published far and wide.
Esther 3:12 (NIV)
12 Then on the thirteenth day of the first month the royal secretaries were summoned. They wrote out in the script of each province and in the language of each people all Haman’s orders to the king’s satraps, the governors of the various provinces and the nobles of the various peoples. These were written in the name of King Xerxes himself and sealed with his own ring.
Echos of the past are reflected in verse 13:
13 Dispatches were sent by couriers to all the king’s provinces with the order to destroy, kill and annihilate all the Jews—young and old, women and children—on a single day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar, and to plunder their goods.
Sounds exactly like the command that God gave Saul — back in 1 Samuel 15!
14 A copy of the text of the edict was to be issued as law in every province and made known to the people of every nationality so they would be ready for that day.
15 The couriers went out hurriedly by order of the king, and the decree was issued in Susa the citadel. And the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Susa was thrown into confusion.
The whole kingdom is thrown into turmoil.
To process this today, I want to remind you why we dive into these OT stories so carefully. We see ourselves in the stories— we often ponder what we would do if we were in the story. I want us to process some of the characters here, I believe we can learn something by placing ourselves into the positions of everyone in the story:
Is there a little Haman in you today?
-Haman was selfish.
-He sought his own glory.
-He harbored bitter hatred in his heart.
-He schemed and deceived to promote his own will.
Ask for forgiveness, as you forgive others.
Is there a bit of Xerxes in you today?
-He was repeatedly fooled by untrustworthy people.
-He mistakenly gave Haman authority without understanding
-He was greedy and impulsive, an easy target for the devil.
Ask for wisdom and maturity to withstand temptation like Jesus did.
I hope you can stand firm like Mordecai today:
-He was principled, compassionate, and faithful.
-He was wise, observant, and truthful.
-He has courage to stand firm for what is right.
-He has hope in God.
Love and trust God’s providence everyday!
Martin Luther wrote these wonderful words in 1529. A powerful part of the great and historic hymn: A Mighty Fortress is Our God:
The Prince of Darkness grim,—
We tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure,
For lo! His doom is sure,—
One little word shall fell him.
That word? It’s Jesus. Let’s pray.
