Episode Transcript
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If you turn with me to the
book of Esther Ester Chapter One, a
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very interesting chapter of God's word.
Ester chapter one, listen, for this
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is the word of the Lord.
Now in the days of a Hassaweris,
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the Hassawers who reigned from India to
Ethiopia, over a hundred and twenty seven
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provinces. In those days, when
King Assawara sat on his royal throne in
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Susa, the citadel, in the
third year of his reign, he gave
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a feast for all his officials and
servants. The army of Persia and media,
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and the Nobles and governors of the
provinces were before him, while he
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showed the riches of his royal glory
and the splendor and pomp of his greatness
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for many days, a hundred and
eighty days. And when these days were
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completed, the king gave for all
the people present in Sousa, the citadel,
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both great and small, a feast
lasting for seven days. In the
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court of the garden of the King's
palace, there were white cotton curtains and
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violet hangings fastened with cords of fine
linen and purple and silver to silver rods
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and marble pillars and also couches of
gold and silver, on a mosaic pavement
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of poor fear marble, mother of
Pearl and precious stones. Drinks were served
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in golden vessels, vessels of different
kinds, and the royal wine was lavished
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a cord into the bounty of the
king, and drinking was according to this
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edict, there is no compulsion,
for the king had given orders to all
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the staff of his palace to do
is each man desired. Queen Vashti also
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gave a feast for the women in
the palace that belonged to king a Hassaweris.
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On the seventh day when the heart
of the king was married with one
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Zethar Carcass, the seven Eunuchs who
served in the presence of King a Hassaweres
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to bring Queen Vashti before the king
with her royal crown in order to show
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the peoples and the princes her beauty, for she was lovely to look at.
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But Queen Vashti refused to come at
the king's command delivered by the EUNUCHS.
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At this the king became enraged and
his anger burned within him. Then
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the king said to the Wise Men
who knew the times, for this was
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the king's procedure toward all who were
versed in Law and judgment, the men
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next to him being Carshena, Shethar, Add Matha, tarshish, Mary's Marsenna
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and MEMICON, the seven princes of
Persia and media, who saw the king's
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face and sat first in the kingdom. According to the law, what is
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to be done to Queen Vashti because
she has not performed the command of King
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Ahassaweres delivered by the Eunuchs? Then, memicon said, in the presence of
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the king and the officials, not
only against the King Has Queen Vashti done
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wrong, but also against all the
officials and all the people who are in
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all the provinces of King a Hassaweres, for the queen's behavior will be made
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known to all women, causing them
to look at their husband's with contempt,
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since they will say king a Hassaweres
commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him
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and she did not come. This
very day, the noble women of Persia
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and media, who have heard of
the Queen's behavior will say the same to
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all the king's officials, and they
will be contempt and wrath in plenty.
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If it please the king, let
a royal order go out from him,
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and let it be written among the
laws of the Persians and the means,
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so that it may not be repealed, that Queen Vashti is never again to
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come before king a Hassaweris, and
let the king give her royal position to
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another who is better than she.
So when the decree made by the king
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is proclaimed throughout all his kingdom,
for it is vast, all women will
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give honor to their husband's high and
low alike. This advice please the king
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and the princess. And the king
did as memican proposed. He sent letters
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to all royal provinces, to every
province in his own script, to every
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people in his own language, that
every man may be master in his own
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household and speak according to the language
of his people. That's for the reading
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of God's word. May he bless
it to us. He may be seated.
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I got a very easy question for
you this morning. What is the
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Bible about? As easy right?
Well, on one hand this answer could
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fill libraries, but in another sense
we we teach that the answer to this
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question. We teach it to our
children as soon as they can learn.
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The Bible is a revelation of WHO. It's God's revelation. And what does
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the Bible reveal? It's God's revelation
of himself. The Bible tells us about
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who God is. The Bible tells
us about what God has done. It
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begins at the beginning of creation and
ends in eternity, and at the center
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of Scripture, at the heart of
the Bible, is the person and work
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of Jesus Christ, that in Christ, God himself became man, not only
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to deliver his word but to deliver
himself. And so the Bible's about this
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grand story of God's involvement in his
creation spanning thousands of years. The events
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in these pages describe the God who
is our creator, our sustainer, our
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redeemer. And therefore we return to
the book of Ester. Perhaps it's a
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little bit surprising that there's a book
in our Bible which never even mentions the
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name of God, that never mentions
the word God. Throughout the book of
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Esther God is not mentioned, nor
is there mention of any worship, nor
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is there mention of any prayers or
sacrifices to God. On its surface,
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this book appears to be a thoroughly
secular story about Jews living in Persia.
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And yet, on closer inspection,
this book is thoroughly covenantal. That God
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is not mentioned does not mean that
God is not active, that God has
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not seen, does not mean that
God is not present in the events of
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this book. Now, for some, that that God is seems absent from
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the narrative is is not that big
of a deal, for they would say,
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the stories ultimately about esther, about
her cousin Mordecai, about their courage,
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about their faithfulness, about their overcoming
obstacles. Because God's activity is less
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obvious in this book, it becomes
that more tempting for us to turn this
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book into something of a morality play, well, asking the question do you
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have do you have the courage of
Esther? Do you have the character of
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Mordecai? But God is not absent
from these pages. Rather, we see
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God's handiwork on every page, though
we do not see any grand miracles,
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we see God working behind the scenes, directing and orchestrating the salvation of his
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people. For in these pages the
Israelites face great danger. The Israelites living
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in Persia faiths danger to their lives, and yet this book demonstrates that God
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uses ordinary means to protect and to
preserve his people. This book starts off
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by telling us when these events take
place. And let's ask the question why
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are the Israelites even in Persia to
begin with? Because Chapter One, Verse
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One, tells us where the events
here begin, in the days of a
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Hassawaris, the a Hassawaris, who
reigned from India to Ethiopia over a hundred
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and twenty seven provinces. This story
takes place when they Persian empire is at
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its heights, from India to Africa, king a Hassawaris rules over it all.
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The Persian kingdom was was vast,
the Persian kingdom was powerful, and
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this first chapter describes much of the
wealth and the splendor of Persia. But
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what about the nation of Israel?
Well, is about a hundred years before
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the events of this book, that
the Southern Kingdom of Judah and Jerusalem had
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been exiled from the land. In
this great exile of Judah, God allowed
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the Babylonians to to enter the land
and defeat his people. He allowed the
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Babylonians to destroy Jerusalem, to destroy
the temple and to take the southern kingdom
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captive, carting the Israelites back to
Babylon in slavery. And yet the Israelites
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were not utterly destroyed. They were
removed from the land as a as a
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penalty for their continual sin. But
the people were not demolished, they were
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exiled. And yet, in light
of this great judgment, that the Prophets
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of Israel also promised that they would
return after seventy years of exile, the
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decree went out by the King of
Persia that any Israelite was given free passage
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to return to their land. This
previous king also sent the Israelites back with
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all the gold for rebuilding the temple. So the book of Ester takes place
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many years after both the exile and
the return from exile. But if these
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events take place after the return,
why are there still Israelites living in Persia?
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It's because these are Israelites who decided
to stay behind rather than return to
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the promised land. They'd become comfortable, comfortable in Persia. As much courage
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and and insight as some of the
Israelites may display in this story, we
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need to keep in mind that they
are also ignoring God's call to return to
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the promised land. So much for
looking to esther and Mordecai for their exemplary
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lives. And though God is not
mentioned, this book reveals that there will
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be a plot to destroy the Jews. And though God seems hidden, he
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is still active, preserving his people
and preserving his promise. Now, the
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life of Israelites living in a foreign
land, living in Babylon, living in
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Persia, the life of an Israelite
in exile is a tricky existence, and
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the scriptures describe it almost as a
as a paradoxical existence, for Jeremiah instructs
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those who go off into exile with
this instruction. He tells them. Thus,
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says the Lord of hosts, the
God of Israel, to all the
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exiles whom I have sent into exile
from Jerusalem to Babylon. Build houses,
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he says, live in them,
plant gardens, eat their produce, take
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wives and have sons and daughters.
Take wives for your sons and give your
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daughters in marriage that they may bear
sons and daughters. Multiply there and do
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not decrease, but seek the wealth
fare of the city where I have sent
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you into exile. Pray to the
Lord on its behalf, for in its
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welfare you will find your welfare.
De Find that as odd behavior for prisoners
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of war. Serve your captors,
seek their welfare, seek the peace of
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the city, serve these pagan kings, seek the prosperity of these unbelievers.
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And yet God says that in its
welfare you will find your welfare. These
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Israelites that are called to be good
and fruitful citizens of the nations that have
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taken them captive. And yet the
other side of the coin says they're not
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to lose their identity, they're not
to become Babylonians or become Persians. The
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Israelites are still called to remain distinct. They were never allowed to worship according
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to the nations. They were still
under God's law, and it's their citizenship
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in God's land which which colors their
hope, which colors their identity. So
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they were called to be these dual
citizens, serving faithfully their labors for the
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kingdom, all while longing for their
true home. The Israelites, and Ester's
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time, are staying in Persia after
the exile is over, and so you
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kind of have to ask the question. Well, why? It seems as
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though they favor service to this Kingdom
of Persia above above their true calling,
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above their true citizenship. They're preferring
the comforts of Persia to the to the
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blessings of the promised land, and
this choice will endanger their lives. But
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God is faithful even when his people
are not. And yet what we just
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read from chapter one of this incredible
book doesn't mention any Israelite, does it?
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Rather than beginning this book by telling
us about these Israelites in Persia,
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the the Holy Spirit begins this story
by telling us about the king. There
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are no Israelites mentioned in this entire
chapter. It seems as if we're given
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a page out of a out of
a pagan book. There's no mention of
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God, there's no mention of God's
people. The events here take place in
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a in a Pagan Palace. We're
simply told of a party. And yet
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that word party doesn't seem to fit, does it? It doesn't give weight
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to what is occurring here in these
pages. This is a truly decadent sort
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of banquet. A hundred and eighty
days, a hundred eighty days of feasting
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for his chief officers from throughout the
land. Think for a minute of how
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much food that is. Think of
the wealth it would take to to throw
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such a massive Shindig. Right.
This wealth is the reason for this party
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because in verse Wor it says he
showed his riches, of his royal glory
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and splendor and pomp, of his
greatness for many days. And so do
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you see how fitting it is that, in contrast to the pomp and to
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the splendor of this king, the
book of Ester is ultimately about the work
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of the true King of all creation. But our true king is hidden,
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he's ordering what will happen without direct
involvement. And so when light of a
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Hassu Aires is visible pomp and the
light of his visible glory, the one
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who is most glorious remains in the
shadows. For our God does not need
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to make an appearance to show the
foolishness of this king. From the one
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hand, where you kind of have
to marvel at the wealth this person has
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to throw such a banquet, we're
to marvel at his ECADENCE, but on
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the other hand we're also to kind
of disdain it. Doesn't that seem excessive?
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Doesn't that just seem wasteful and useless? where the king is flaunting his
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power and might, with with marvelous
items, golden couches. Really, he
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actually isn't producing astonishment in US and
and wonder. Rather, we hear this
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display and we left shaking our heads, saying who does this guy think he
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is? Just look at the excessiveness
of this party. A hundred and eighty
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days of feasting for his chiefs,
for his princes, all throughout the territory.
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Six months. That's six months of
celebrations. That's ridiculous, even if
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it sounds impressive, because where's the
wisdom behind such a meal? WHO's left
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running this enormous and powerful kingdom if
for six months everyone is here feasting and
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just partying? I mean, the
wastefulness is is mindboggling. Such a celebration
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seems completely unnecessary. And speaking of
unnecessary, look at the way the drinking
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is described in this palace and how
it's to take place at this party.
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In Verse Eight. Drinking was according
to this edict, there is no compulsion,
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for the king had given orders to
all the staff of his palace to
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do as each man desired. Does
that sound bizarre? Think about how ridiculous
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this sounds. The king made an
edict, he made a law. The
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king made a law. That sounds
contradictory. The official edict, the official
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law from the king. The official
rule is there are no rules. The
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only rule is there are no rules. So is that a rule or is
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that not a rule? And then
look at where this story ends. The
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king wants to show off one final
time. On the last day of his
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banquet. He calls his wife,
Queen Vashti, to make an appearance to
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show off her beauty, to who, to a room full of drunken partiers,
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like a golden couch, like a
like a marble pillar. Her beauty
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is just supposed to make him look
good. He wants the glory, so
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he tries to parade his wife before
this drunken mess and this party, which
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was intended to show the king's splendor, to show his wealth and his glory,
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instead reveals the King's utter foolishness.
And this foolishness is so wonderfully displayed
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when his wife simply says No.
With this simple refusal, the whole parties
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comes crashing to a halt. What
was to be the king's crowning achievement has
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become his most embarrassing moment. All
his authority all his wealth, all his
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splendor, comes crashing to a standstill
by the simple refusal, the simple refusal
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to follow the king's command. All
the sights and smells of wealth and power,
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and yet his commands could still be
refused. And I find it humorous.
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How how baffling this is to the
king. He doesn't know what to
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do, does he? He calls
in his legal advisors for how to handle
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this family dispute. What do you
call this? He calls a bunch of
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lawyers because his wife doesn't want to
degrade herself. And what did these wise
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counselors decide? Did they say,
apologize to her immediately, you drunken befoot?
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No, they decide to make a
law right, because she refused to
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appear before him, he banishes her
from ever appearing before him. I think
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schools still kind of do something similar. Right, if you're, say,
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a student, ditches so many days
in a row, the consequences youll you're
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suspended, you have to stay home
now. So is that really effective?
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But we can tell what the king
and his advisers were really worried about.
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That word of this refusal would get
out, that word of this refusal would
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spread throughout the kingdom and that women
would no longer listen to their husbands at
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all. And so the king makes
a law, another law. He sends
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it to all the provinces. Women
are commanded to give honor to their husbands
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and men are to be masters in
their household. But you see how awesome
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this is that, rather than covering
up Vashti's refusal, rather than hide this
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embarrassment and letting gossip sort of spread
through the kingdom about what whispers of what
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Vashti had done, now who is
bringing this message to all the provinces?
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Royal Messengers our being dispatched to all
the king's provinces, carrying the news of
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this law. Surely they all know
why this law was being written. It
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was meant to inspire respect for a
Hasweris, and yet it's actually having the
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opposite effect. If he was afraid
that the story would spread, now it's
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his own edict which has done the
best to ensure that everyone would hear this
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story. He's making foolish decision after
foolish decision here, and with these foolishness,
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with this foolishness, we can see
the work of the true king behind
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the scenes in this act. God
is already at work to put a deliverer
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in place before even the threat of
an attack comes. God's plan is already
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an action in the courts of this
pagan ruler, where no Israelite is to
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be found. God is bringing about
his means of deliverance, because the foolishness
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of the counselor sets up the means
of Israel deliverance in Verse Nineteen. Let
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the king give her royal position to
another who is better than she. In
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their rejection of Queen Vashti, they
are opening the door for a queen,
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one better than Vashti. How true
that is, because if Vashti could resist
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the law of the king, you
feel the anticipation and what a better queen
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will be able to do. Later
on, the book introduces you to Esther,
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who will sway the edicts of this
foolish king for the salvation of Israel.
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And so already in this chapter we're
being called to look, to look
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at the power of this world,
look at the power and riches and splendor
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that this world has to offer,
look at the authority that this world can
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marshal at its command. And while
it looks royal, while it looks glamorous,
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while rulers can create laws, both
good and bad. While rulers can
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create laws and enforce them strictly or
loosely, at the end of the day,
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all the heights, all the splendor
that this world has to offer can
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still be shaken. The king over
the most powerful nation in the world is
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thwarted in this chapter, not by
enemies, not by outsiders, but by
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a simple refusal from within his own
house. He's confounded by something as simple
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as disobedience, and we're shown how
the world responds to this kind of disappointment.
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What is this king's response to not
getting what he wants? More laws,
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and the king issues these laws,
which are self seeking, laws which
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try to save face, and I
hope we can take comfort from this that
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that is the extent of this world's
power. The Kingdoms of this world can
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exercise justice in need. God established
as these kingdoms for this purpose. But
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even when ruled by tyrants, even
when ruled by unjust men who can be
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capable of horrible things, their power
is inherently limited. They can create laws,
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but that's what they cannot create obedience. They can punish law breakers,
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but they cannot create law keepers.
Their ultimate and final power is the power
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of the sword. For they can
kill the body, but that's all,
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and as terrifying as that is,
that's all they can do. As Christ
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himself says, do not fear those
who kill the body but cannot kill the
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soul. For our lives as piligrims
can be frightening, whether we're ruled by
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tyrants or by bureaucracies. Our temptation
is to think of these power hours as
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being ultimate. Our temptation is to
place our hope and to place all significance
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in what the kings of this world
are doing. But the Apostle Peter calls
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the church elect exiles, and our
life as exiles is to be lived in
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great expectation, not for an earthly
kingdom which will bring Earth to heaven,
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but to await the rival, of
the arrival of the new heavens and the
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new earth, for this is where
our citizenship may be found, and we
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can know for certain that this is
our true citizenship because of what Christ,
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our true king, has already accomplished
for us. The King of all the
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world came not to show off his
royal power or to show off his splendor,
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but to humble himself to become a
servant? And for what purpose?
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To bring a new law? Would
more laws stop our rebellious hearts? As
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Paul says in Sent Corinthians, verse
Chapter Five. For our sake, he
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made him to be sin, who
knew no sin, so that in Him
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we might become the righteousness of God. For you see, Christ as on
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what all the kingdoms of this world
could never do. He created law keepers,
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not by bringing a new law,
but by obeying the law himself and
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gifting us with his own righteousness.
He kept the law perfectly on your behalf,
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to forgive your sins, to declare
you righteous, and in accomplishing this
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great work for you, he has
made you as citizen not only of this
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world but of the world that is
to come. His life, his death,
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his resurrection has secured a true citizenship
in a kingdom where he is king
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and he is the king who serves
his people, who blesses us with all
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spiritual blessings in the heavenly places.
Therefore, if you read through the book
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of Esther, I hope you're encouraged. I hope and I trust that you
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see here and in your own lives, the invisible work of your almighty God.
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Know that he will not be thwarted
by the foolishness of a king like
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a Hassoires, he will not be
assaulted by the hatred of a scheming enemy
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and he will not be stopped by
any of the foolish and vile kingdoms still
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ruling this world. Therefore, when
this world threatens, when this world shakes,
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take comfort that you are receiving a
kingdom that cannot be shaken and that
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God will use a mundane, the
ordinary, the regular provinces of this life
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to do an amazing work in you
and through you. Look what God has
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already done for you through ordinary people. He has an amazing Gospel to proclaim
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to you. He's given you an
amazing body that looks ordinary, that looks
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regular, and yet God is at
work using even simple things like water,
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bread, Cup to declare true life, to declare his kingdom and to bring
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it about here and now, because
your life does not belong to this kingdom.
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Your Life is hidden with Christ,
in God. Amen, let's pray
