Devotions

At the Gate of the King

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As we move forward past the time of the exile and after the rebuilding and dedication of the temple, we find those that stayed behind in Babylon, now the Persian empire. Cyrus had offered for all to return in Ezra 1:2 “to build a house for him in Jerusalem, which is in Judah” and in Ezra 1:5 “all whose spirit God had stirred” did go but some remained behind. Nehemiah and building the wall around Jerusalem is still ahead. But now, there is danger for the exiles that stayed behind. These first chapters of Esther simply introduce the greatness of the empire and the internal threats of losing face through Queen Vashti’s refusal and the plot to kill the king. But God has raised Esther to be Queen and Mordecai an official at the city gate.

He Gave A Banquet

Esther 1:1–9
The Persian Empire in Esther 1:1 near its height “over one hundred and twenty provinces”. The King, “Ahasuerus was Xerxes, the son of Darius I … Apart from Esther, this Ahasuerus is mentioned only in Ezra 4:6 in relation to an accusation which was lodged against the Jews in his reign”.1

Banquet is hardly the word, as described in Esther 1:3-9 it lasted one hundred and eighty days, included all of the leaders and concluded with a seven day banquet “in the courtyard of the kings palace garden”.

Bring Queen Vashti

Esther 1:10–17
On the last day in Esther 1:10 “the heart of the king was merry with wine” the king sent the eunuchs to bring the queen before all of the people. But in Esther 1:12 “Queen Vashti refused to come”. The king was angry. This whole show was to demonstrate the kings wealth and power, his dominion over the empire, yet his wife refused him publicly. So, the king in Esther 1:13-17 asked the wise men, “according to the law, what is to be done with Queen Vashti” because she refused the king. These “persons named in Es 1:14 were the “seven counsellors” (compare Ezr 7:14) who formed the state ministry. The combined wisdom of all, it seems, was enlisted to consult with the king what course should be taken after so unprecedented an occurrence as Vashti’s disobedience of the royal summons. It is scarcely possible for us to imagine the astonishment produced by such a refusal in a country and a court where the will of the sovereign was absolute”.2 

Every Man Should be the Master of His House

Esther 1:18–22
The kings advisor said in Esther 1:19-20 “let a royal edict go out from him, … that Vashti cannot come before King Ahasuerus; and let the king give her royal position to her neighbor who is better than she”.

Esther 1:22 (LEB) And he sent letters to all the provinces of the king, to each province according to its own script, and to every people in their own language, that every man should be the master of his house and who speaks in the language of his people.

We can’t agree with the action of setting aside his wife, but we can see one of the most powerful men in that time struggling to cover his vulnerability as a leader “King Ahasuerus at the beginning … is the world’s greatest monarch, rich and powerful, aloof yet generous, and that same king by the end of the chapter, (is) attempting to maintain his dignity despite the defiance of his wife”.3

Pleasing in the King’s Eyes

Esther 2:1–9
The king may have regretted his action in Esther 2:1 but it was done and there was no changing the decree of the king. so, in Esther 2:3-4 they began to gather the young women and prepare them for presentation to the king. Mordecai, in Esther 2:5-7 an exile as Daniel and others were, was raising his uncles daughter whose parents had died. And in Esther 2:8-9 Esther was taken into the harem and “she won favor”. 

Favor in the Eyes of Everyone

Esther 2:10–18
In Esther 2:10 “Esther did not disclose her people” and for one year she was in preparation as it says in Esther 2:12-15. Then her time came in Esther 2:16-18 “and the king loved Esther more than all the women … so he put a royal crown on her head and made her queen”. 

At the Gate of the King

Esther 2:19–23
In Esther 2:21 “Mordecai was sitting at the gate of the king”. It isn’t clear if Mordecai previously had a position or came to this position because of his relationship with Esther, but it is likely he was an appointed official. This would have been common “throughout the ancient Near East, ‘the gate’ was the area where justice was dispensed, and that, while the litigant stood, the king or his appointed official ‘sat’ (cf. Pr. 31:23, RSV)”.4

Mordecai hears a plot against the king in Esther 2:21 and tells Esther in vs. 22. The two conspirators are hanged and the incident is recorded in “the scroll of the events of the days” in Esther 2:23.

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • Esther 1:1-22
  • Esther 2:1-23

Operation Exodus

is helping Jewish people return to their homeland. You might fund one that desires to go home. http://operationexodususa.org/Overview

Return to Israel – Ezra

We often read one book of the Bible at a time and that is easier for everyone to follow. The order of our readings, beginning with Ezra, are from the Tyndale One Year Chronological Bible because the return from Babylonian exile includes Haggai, Zechariah, Nehemiah, Esther, a few Psalms, and other connections. Covering these events chronologically as they happened, gives a much better context and helps us understand the move of God as He is reestablishing His people. Review the whole series beginning with Go Up To Jerusalem.

References

  • 1. Yamauchi, E. M. (1992). Ahasuerus (Person). In D. N. Freedman (Ed.), The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (Vol. 1, p. 105). New York: Doubleday.
  • 2. Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
  • 3. Baldwin, J. G. (1984). Esther: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 12, p. 63). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
  • 4. Baldwin, J. G. (1984). Esther: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 12, p. 70). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.