Sermon: Esther
Text: Esther 4:12-17
Date: February 22, 2009
Matilda Chamberlain, Eagle Harbor Congregational Church
Let me tell you about Esther, a notable woman of the Old Testament. Around 460 b.c. Esther and Mordecai, her uncle, lived in Susa, Persia. Mordecai adopted her. They were part of a group of un-repatriated Jews.
Xerxes was king of Persia at the time. Vashti was his beautiful queen. Xerxes was fond of entertaining. One day when he was thus occupied, he summoned Vashti to display her to his friends. She refused the summons. This was unheard of and the court nobles were very upset. What if the word got around as to what Vashti had done and their wives refused to be summoned also!? Vashti lost her job.
Xerxes needed a new queen... as was the custom; eunuchs were sent out through the kingdom. A new batch of beautiful virgins were lined up to be trained in the harem... among these girls was Esther. I point out that the girls had no choice in this matter.
Well, Esther, was not only gorgeous, she had class and was also very clever as you will learn.
Xerxes chose her to be the new queen (she had been warned by Mordecai not to reveal her nationality.)
Now Mordecai was a careful man! He also had some standing in the community... a civil servant. When all this happened, he was of course concerned about Esther. What did he do? He followed the custom of gate sitting, that is, he sat by the King's Gate... Main gate of the city where there were markets, the council conducted business... it was a main commercial and legal center... Mordecai could hear all the gossip and be aware of activity.
One day while keeping his vigil, Mordecai heard two disgruntled officers plotting to kill Xerxes. He promptly let Esther know and she told the king, giving Mordecai credit! The soldiers may have been pals of Vashti the deposed queen Vashti... who knows? Of course they were eliminated.
Next we learn that a certain social climber named Haman had worked his way into Xerxes' graces and had been honored. Problems started when Mordecai, down by the gate, refused to bow down to Haman when he passed through... Haman was looking to show off his power. Plus, as he pointed out... this was the king's order!
The enraged Haman learned who Mordecai's people were and set out to destroy not only Mordecai but all of the Jews remaining in Persia! Haman persuaded Xerxes to issue an edict that on a certain day, all of these people who were so different... observed different customs... would be killed. He also offered to put money in Xerxes' treasury to pay for the men necessary to do this! Then Haman and his pals cast lots (called purs in Persia) as to the day this slaughter would occur.
When Mordecai heard of this plot, he went into deep mourning... he showed up at the gate dressed in sackcloth and ashes. On hearing of this, Esther sent a maid to learn Mordecai's problem. He not only told the story he sent her a copy of the edict. He pled with Esther to go before Xerxes and plead for her peoples' lives, but Esther reminded Mordecai of a law Xerxes had that no one could ever appear before him without first being summoned... and she had not been summoned in thirty days! She would be killed! The only exception was if the King extended his golden scepter and saved the life. Mordecai replied that Esther should not think herself safe just because she is in the palace! Even if she remains silent, relief and deliverance will come from some other place (this is as close as the book of Esther comes to an explicit reference to God.)
Obviously, Mordecai has great faith... he goes on to say to Esther that she could have come to her royal position for just this exact purpose! Esther makes her decision. She asks Mordecai to gather all the Jews in Susa together to pray and fast for her for three days. She and her maids will do the same. After three days she will go before Xerxes, come what may! So on the fourth day she bravely enters the court. Xerxes sees her and extends his scepter and asks what she requests. Now here is the subtle part... remember, I said she was clever! Instead of pleading there... she asks Xerxes and Haman to come to a banquet she will prepare.
At the banquet, Xerxes again asks what she would like. She sweetly replies by asking them to come to yet another dinner the very next day... at that time she promises to reveal her request.
Well, as you can imagine, Haman is pretty well inflated by all this. He boasts to his family and friends about his wealth and Esther's invitations... BUT he cannot enjoy all this because of Mordecai still sitting at the King's Gate! On the advice of family and friends he has a gallows built to hang Mordecai. Meanwhile, that night, Xerxes cannot sleep. He has the record of his reign brought to him. He reads about Mordecai exposing the two officers who plotted to kill him.
What has been done to honor this man? Nothing?!!
Who is in the court now? Guess who? Haman had just arrived to speak to Xerxes about using his gallows to hang Mordecai!
Xerxes has Haman come before him to tell him he has someone he wishes to honor... what ideas does Haman have about how this should be done? Haman thinks... who else but me? "Bring the royal robe Xerxes has worn, the horse Xerxes has ridden and lead this person throughout the city so all can see who the king delights to honor." "Those are great ideas" Xerxes tells Haman. "Would you get all that ready here and then go down to the gat and bring Mordecai who sits there."
Haman does all this for Mordecai then rushes home in mortification. While his family is telling him he cannot stand against Mordecai... a servant comes to escort Haman to Esther's banquet!
There Xerxes asks again what he can do for her. "If you please, oh great king, I ask you to spare my people and save my life. All of us have been sold for destruction... slaughter." Xerxes, "Who says so? Who does such a thing?!" Esther, "This vile Haman!" Xerxes strides off into the garden while Haman pleads with Esther for his life. He falls on her couch... oops! Enraged, Xerxes returns and thinks he is molesting Esther. One of the servants tells Xerxes about the gallows Haman has built for Mordecai, so the king has Haman hung on his own gallows!!
He gives Esther Haman's estate. She tells him her relationship with Mordecai and he becomes manager of Haman's estate. Again Esther pleads for her people because of the edict Haman had Xerxes sign. Xerxes extends the scepter... the edict is overruled.
This is pretty secular stuff! But it appears that the unknown author has deliberately written the story without mention of God to heighten the fact that it is God who is in control! Consider the turning point of the story when we hear that Xerxes could not sleep, had the record brought and read what Mordecai had done. This and all the seemingly insignificant happenings show the hero, Mordecai's fortunes are reversed. All are events testifying to God's sovereignty over the events. We are aware of Mordecai's and Esther's great faith and braver.
Also, do you remember when Haman and his friends cast lots to set the terrible day? The word for "lot" in Persia has "pur". So this event was the foundation of the Jewish Festival of Purim... celebrating God's rescuing his people one more time. You can find Esther right between Nehemiah and Job.
Thank you,
Matilda Chamberlain