On that day King Ahasuerus gave to Queen Esther the house of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came before the king, for Esther had told what he was to her. ² And the king took off his signet ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it to Mordecai. And Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman. 

³ Then Esther spoke again to the king. She fell at his feet and wept and pleaded with him to avert the evil plan of Haman the Agagite and the plot that he had devised against the Jews. ⁴ When the king held out the golden scepter to Esther, Esther rose and stood before the king. ⁵ And she said, “If it please the king, and if I have found favor in his sight, and if the thing seems right before the king, and I am pleasing in his eyes, let an order be written to revoke the letters devised by Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the provinces of the king. ⁶ For how can I bear to see the calamity that is coming to my people? Or how can I bear to see the destruction of my kindred?” ⁷ Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, “Behold, I have given Esther the house of Haman, and they have hanged him on the gallows, because he intended to lay hands on the Jews. ⁸ But you may write as you please with regard to the Jews, in the name of the king, and seal it with the king’s ring, for an edict written in the name of the king and sealed with the king’s ring cannot be revoked.” 

⁹ The king’s scribes were summoned at that time, in the third month, which is the month of Sivan, on the twenty-third day. And an edict was written, according to all that Mordecai commanded concerning the Jews, to the satraps and the governors and the officials of the provinces from India to Ethiopia, 127 provinces, to each province in its own script and to each people in its own language, and also to the Jews in their script and their language. ¹⁰ And he wrote in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed it with the king’s signet ring. Then he sent the letters by mounted couriers riding on swift horses that were used in the king’s service, bred from the royal stud, ¹¹ saying that the king allowed the Jews who were in every city to gather and defend their lives, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate any armed force of any people or province that might attack them, children and women included, and to plunder their goods, ¹² on one day throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar. ¹³ A copy of what was written was to be issued as a decree in every province, being publicly displayed to all peoples, and the Jews were to be ready on that day to take vengeance on their enemies. ¹⁴ So the couriers, mounted on their swift horses that were used in the king’s service, rode out hurriedly, urged by the king’s command. And the decree was issued in Susa the citadel. 

¹⁵ Then Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal robes of blue and white, with a great golden crown and a robe of fine linen and purple, and the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced. ¹⁶ The Jews had light and gladness and joy and honor. ¹⁷ And in every province and in every city, wherever the king’s command and his edict reached, there was gladness and joy among the Jews, a feast and a holiday. And many from the peoples of the country declared themselves Jews, for fear of the Jews had fallen on them. 

9 Now in the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, on the thirteenth day of the same, when the king’s command and edict were about to be carried out, on the very day when the enemies of the Jews hoped to gain the mastery over them, the reverse occurred: the Jews gained mastery over those who hated them. ² The Jews gathered in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus to lay hands on those who sought their harm. And no one could stand against them, for the fear of them had fallen on all peoples. ³ All the officials of the provinces and the satraps and the governors and the royal agents also helped the Jews, for the fear of Mordecai had fallen on them. ⁴ For Mordecai was great in the king’s house, and his fame spread throughout all the provinces, for the man Mordecai grew more and more powerful. ⁵ The Jews struck all their enemies with the sword, killing and destroying them, and did as they pleased to those who hated them. ⁶ In Susa the citadel itself the Jews killed and destroyed 500 men, ⁷ and also killed Parshandatha and Dalphon and Aspatha ⁸ and Poratha and Adalia and Aridatha ⁹ and Parmashta and Arisai and Aridai and Vaizatha, ¹⁰ the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews, but they laid no hand on the plunder. 

¹¹ That very day the number of those killed in Susa the citadel was reported to the king. ¹² And the king said to Queen Esther, “In Susa the citadel the Jews have killed and destroyed 500 men and also the ten sons of Haman. What then have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces! Now what is your wish? It shall be granted you. And what further is your request? It shall be fulfilled.” ¹³ And Esther said, “If it please the king, let the Jews who are in Susa be allowed tomorrow also to do according to this day’s edict. And let the ten sons of Haman be hanged on the gallows.” ¹⁴ So the king commanded this to be done. A decree was issued in Susa, and the ten sons of Haman were hanged. ¹⁵ The Jews who were in Susa gathered also on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar and they killed 300 men in Susa, but they laid no hands on the plunder. 

¹⁶ Now the rest of the Jews who were in the king’s provinces also gathered to defend their lives, and got relief from their enemies and killed 75,000 of those who hated them, but they laid no hands on the plunder. ¹⁷ This was on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, and on the fourteenth day they rested and made that a day of feasting and gladness. ¹⁸ But the Jews who were in Susa gathered on the thirteenth day and on the fourteenth, and rested on the fifteenth day, making that a day of feasting and gladness. ¹⁹ Therefore the Jews of the villages, who live in the rural towns, hold the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a day for gladness and feasting, as a holiday, and as a day on which they send gifts of food to one another. 

²⁰ And Mordecai recorded these things and sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, ²¹ obliging them to keep the fourteenth day of the month Adar and also the fifteenth day of the same, year by year, ²² as the days on which the Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month that had been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, days for sending gifts of food to one another and gifts to the poor. 

²³ So the Jews accepted what they had started to do, and what Mordecai had written to them. ²⁴ For Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur (that is, cast lots), to crush and to destroy them. ²⁵ But when it came before the king, he gave orders in writing that his evil plan that he had devised against the Jews should return on his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows. ²⁶ Therefore they called these days Purim, after the term Pur. Therefore, because of all that was written in this letter, and of what they had faced in this matter, and of what had happened to them, ²⁷ the Jews firmly obligated themselves and their offspring and all who joined them, that without fail they would keep these two days according to what was written and at the time appointed every year, ²⁸ that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation, in every clan, province, and city, and that these days of Purim should never fall into disuse among the Jews, nor should the commemoration of these days cease among their descendants. 

²⁹ Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew gave full written authority, confirming this second letter about Purim. ³⁰ Letters were sent to all the Jews, to the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, in words of peace and truth, ³¹ that these days of Purim should be observed at their appointed seasons, as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther obligated them, and as they had obligated themselves and their offspring, with regard to their fasts and their lamenting. ³² The command of Esther confirmed these practices of Purim, and it was recorded in writing. 

10 King Ahasuerus imposed tax on the land and on the coastlands of the sea. ² And all the acts of his power and might, and the full account of the high honor of Mordecai, to which the king advanced him, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia? ³ For Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Ahasuerus, and he was great among the Jews and popular with the multitude of his brothers, for he sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace to all his people. 

Prayer 

Our heavenly Father, 

⁶ For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. ⁷ Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. 

Lord, we continue to praise you in this Christmas season that it’s a time when we remember that the Prince of Peace came into the world.

He came into a dark world to bring life, a dead world to bring life, a fallen world to bring the kingdom of heaven. 

Father, in spite of the struggles we’ve all faced this year, in spite of the personal and family struggles we might be going through right now, may we not be weighed down by the stresses of life and circumstances, but let us rejoice in Christ our Lord. 

May we continue to praise you for your deliverance of as a church family through this year and this virus. We continue to pray for your hand of protection. 

Prayers of supplication: Trey, Barb, Charlie.

Lord, we pray that you would bless our time in your word. May we be pointed to you and to your gospel. 

Introduction 

We’re concluding the Book of Esther this morning. And the plan for today is to look at the story and then close with a few comments on the passage and the Book of Esther. 

I keep talking about the major events in Esther like those in a play. Two weeks ago was act 3. We reached the climax of the story. 

This week, we actually cover acts 4 and 5. The falling action and the resolution of the story. 

As I said, last week was the climax of the story. Haman who had risen in the empire and plotted against the Jews falls victim to his pride and schemes and he is executed. 

But that’s not the end of all conflict in the story. 

Because there’s actually a very significant matter that’s still on the table. 

Even though Haman is dead, the decree which had been issued to kill off the Jewish people in the Perisan Empire is still in effect. 

In chapter 8, Esther and Mordecai seek to have that decision reversed. 

Chapter 8 begins, and we see the spoils going to Esther and Mordecai. At the beginning of the chapter, Esther is given Haman’s house. Mordecai is given Haman’s signet ring, which could be used to issue royal decrees. So a very significant thing to have. 

Beginning in chapter 8, verse 5: 

 “If it please the king, and if I have found favor in his sight, and if the thing seems right before the king, and I am pleasing in his eyes, let an order be written to revoke the letters devised by Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, which he wrote to destroy the Jews who are in all the provinces of the king. ⁶ For how can I bear to see the calamity that is coming to my people? Or how can I bear to see the destruction of my kindred?” 

Again, there was never really any indication in the story that the king himself had any animus against the Jewish people. The king was impressionable and easily swayed and he was willing to go along with Haman. 

Esther reminds the king that the Jews are her people and that she can’t bear to see this destruction carried out. 

The king tells Esther in verse 8:

you may write as you please with regard to the Jews, in the name of the king, and seal it with the king’s ring, for an edict written in the name of the king and sealed with the king’s ring cannot be revoked.”

The rest of chapter 8 revolves around the process of the new order being written and going out throughout the Persian Empire. 

Just to highlight part of that passage: 

the king allowed the Jews who were in every city to gather and defend their lives, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate any armed force of any people or province that might attack them, children and women included, and to plunder their goods, ¹² on one day throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar. ¹³ A copy of what was written was to be issued as a decree in every province, being publicly displayed to all peoples, and the Jews were to be ready on that day to take vengeance on their enemies. 

When they change the order, they don’t so much revoke the previous order because the order of extermination has already gone out under the authority of the king. His word is law and is binding. 

So instead they issue orders that the Jewish people have the right to defend themselves. 

This does not give the Jewish people carte blanche to be violent and destructive. It doesn’t give them permission to go on the offensive or be the aggressor. But they do have the right to defend themselves. 

With that, we come to chapter 9. 

And we see the fruit of this new decree. 

There would be some bloodshed in the empire, because there were still people set on carrying out Haman’s plans. But the Israelites also had help from government officials in defending themselves. 

Verse 10 mentions that the Jews did not plunder their aggressors. They were not out for personal gain. 

Vengeance would also be extended to the Sons of Haman, in order to quell further plots and the chapter records that they were executed.

The world is fallen. Were the deaths of Haman’s sons morally justified? I’d say no. But it was part of the cultural practices of the time. Again, not everything ever mentioned in the Bible is an endorsement. 

But the major takeaway from this scene is that the Jews are saved. 

And Esther makes a request for celebrating this salvation. 

And that’s how chapter 9 ends. The creation of the feast of purim. 

²⁰ And Mordecai recorded these things and sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, ²¹ obliging them to keep the fourteenth day of the month Adar and also the fifteenth day of the same, year by year, ²² as the days on which the Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month that had been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, days for sending gifts of food to one another and gifts to the poor. 

Purim is a celebratory holiday of remembrance. 

Now in Leviticus, the holy days are outlined…

Purim is not one of the high holy days in Judaism, and in some ways, it’s more significantly nationally than religiously. 

Because it’s less sacred, it is a pretty big celebration. It’s kind of like taking some of our favorite elements of all of the other holidays and rolling them into one holiday. People eat, some dress in costumes and get candy. 

As chapter 9 winds down, it gives the reason for the naming of the holiday. 

For Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur (that is, cast lots), to crush and to destroy them. ²⁵ But when it came before the king, he gave orders in writing that his evil plan that he had devised against the Jews should return on his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows. ²⁶ Therefore they called these days Purim, after the term Pur. 

“Pur” is the word for “lots” which Haman had cast in determining the time of destruction for the Jews. 

And in an ironic twist, to remember that day, they named the holiday of celebration after the lots that were cast for their genoicde. 

Chapter 10 has an interesting, seemingly unrelated conclusion to the book. 

It’s just three verses. 

 King Ahasuerus imposed tax on the land and on the coastlands of the sea. ² And all the acts of his power and might, and the full account of the high honor of Mordecai, to which the king advanced him, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia? ³ For Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Ahasuerus, and he was great among the Jews and popular with the multitude of his brothers, for he sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace to all his people.

There are a couple of things to take away from these closing verses to the book. 

One, in a story where so much of the action is a genocidal plot against the Jews, we see it ending with a relatively peaceful, almost mundane note. 

It mentions the king and taxes. It’s a reminder that this earthly king still does have power and influence over the lives of the Jews and that they go on living in a fallen world where they are influenced by their society. 

And then the book simply ends by talking of Mordecai being a high ranking official, advocating for his people. 

Interestingly, the next Book in the Bible is another book that deals with suffering and trusting in God: the Book of Job. 

But that concludes the Book of Esther.  

Conclusion 

One of the things we’ve done each week in this book is tried to talk about themes in the Book of Esther that we also see in the Christmas story. 

And part of why we can do that is because everything in the Bible is about Jesus. 

So as we conclude our study, I want to focus on two things in this week’s passage as we celebrate this final Sunday before Christmas. 

First, the ultimate result of the Book of Esther is the salvation of the Jewish people. 

Haman had used his authority to order genocide of the Jewish people throughout the Persian Empire. 

In God’s divine providence, this plan could not ultimately succeed. The salvation of Israel in the Book of Esther does point to the gospel and the salvation that Jesus brought into the world. 

In Esther, the Jews faced destruction because of hatred. 

Jesus came into a world that was dead because of sin. 

In the Book of Esther, we see lives saved. Through the gospel, we see eternal life given. 

Because the Jews were saved in the Book of Esther, that also meant that the family line which led to Christ was preserved. 

The second point of focus from these closing chapters of Esther is the Feats of Purim. 

With many of the holy days in the Jewish calendar, a significant theme is remembrance. 

The Feast of Booths, something we talked a lot about in our study in John. Part of the purpose of that holiday is remembering God’s provision for the Israelites during their desert wanderings. 

Passover calls for remembering God freeing the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. 

Hanukkah remembers the Maccabees victory over the Syrians in the intertestimental period and a miracle where oil used for lighting the lamp at the temple dedication lasted eight days when it should have lasted one. 

And Purim remembers God’s deliverance of the Israelites against the Persian genocide. 

Remembering is such an important command in the Bible. It’s such an important activity in our Spiritual lives. Remembering God’s goodness. Remembering his gospel. Remembering that Jesus is the light who came into a dark world. Remembering the love that God has for us. Remembering God’s provision for us, that he has a plan for us and for our world, that he is in control, that he has blessed us with every Spiritual blessing. 

Remembering who God is, what he has done, and what he has promised. 

We’re called to continually remember because we so often forget. 

It’s been a year where there have been lots of times where we could either forget God or remember that God is all we need. 

And I don’t meant to be flippant. 2020 has been a rough year. 

We’ve all had rough years in our lives. 

But we don’t have a lot of years that are rough years for everyone. Some of us have had it tougher than others. Some of us have lost people very dear to us this year. I know there are some of us who have gone through personal struggles, or injuries, or physical struggles this year. 

It’s been a rough year. 

And in that, if you’re not actively remembering God and who he is and how good he is, it can be easy to forget all of that. 

And remembering is important at Christmas time. 

Because Christmas calls us to remember specific events in human history. Namely, the Christ coming into our world. God with us. The word who became flesh and dwelled among us. 

But it’s not just that. Because in that, we are to also remember the gospel itself. To remember why he came, what he did, the life he lived, and the death he would die. 

It’s easy to forget, but Christmas is a time of year where we can remember the truth that God does love us, he loves the world, and that he is good.  

So that is my hope for all of us this Christmas. That we remember. That we remember that in a dark world, in a world where there was oppressive rule, where God could have seemed very distant, that Jesus came. 

May remember his incarnation, but may we also remember his crucifixion. That the reason why our fallen world does have hope is because that baby was born, that he lived a sinless life, that he went to the cross, and that he died for all who believe in him. 

On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king’s palace, in front of the king’s quarters, while the king was sitting on his royal throne inside the throne room opposite the entrance to the palace. ² And when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she won favor in his sight, and he held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter. ³ And the king said to her, “What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given you, even to the half of my kingdom.” 

⁴ And Esther said, “If it please the king, let the king and Haman come today to a feast that I have prepared for the king.” ⁵ Then the king said, “Bring Haman quickly, so that we may do as Esther has asked.” So the king and Haman came to the feast that Esther had prepared. ⁶ And as they were drinking wine after the feast, the king said to Esther, “What is your wish? It shall be granted you. And what is your request? Even to the half of my kingdom, it shall be fulfilled.” ⁷ Then Esther answered, “My wish and my request is: ⁸ If I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it please the king to grant my wish and fulfill my request, let the king and Haman come to the feast that I will prepare for them, and tomorrow I will do as the king has said.” 

⁹ And Haman went out that day joyful and glad of heart. But when Haman saw Mordecai in the king’s gate, that he neither rose nor trembled before him, he was filled with wrath against Mordecai. ¹⁰ Nevertheless, Haman restrained himself and went home, and he sent and brought his friends and his wife Zeresh. ¹¹ And Haman recounted to them the splendor of his riches, the number of his sons, all the promotions with which the king had honored him, and how he had advanced him above the officials and the servants of the king. ¹² Then Haman said, “Even Queen Esther let no one but me come with the king to the feast she prepared. And tomorrow also I am invited by her together with the king. 

¹³ Yet all this is worth nothing to me, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king’s gate.” ¹⁴ Then his wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Let a gallows fifty cubits high be made, and in the morning tell the king to have Mordecai hanged upon it. Then go joyfully with the king to the feast.” This idea pleased Haman, and he had the gallows made. 

6 On that night the king could not sleep. And he gave orders to bring the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, and they were read before the king. ² And it was found written how Mordecai had told about Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, and who had sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. ³ And the king said, “What honor or distinction has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?” The king’s young men who attended him said, “Nothing has been done for him.” ⁴ And the king said, “Who is in the court?” Now Haman had just entered the outer court of the king’s palace to speak to the king about having Mordecai hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for him. 

⁵ And the king’s young men told him, “Haman is there, standing in the court.” And the king said, “Let him come in.” ⁶ So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?” And Haman said to himself, “Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?” ⁷ And Haman said to the king, “For the man whom the king delights to honor, ⁸ let royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, and the horse that the king has ridden, and on whose head a royal crown is set.

 ⁹ And let the robes and the horse be handed over to one of the king’s most noble officials. Let them dress the man whom the king delights to honor, and let them lead him on the horse through the square of the city, proclaiming before him: ‘Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.’ ” ¹⁰ Then the king said to Haman, “Hurry; take the robes and the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king’s gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.” ¹¹ So Haman took the robes and the horse, and he dressed Mordecai and led him through the square of the city, proclaiming before him, “Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.” 

¹² Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate. But Haman hurried to his house, mourning and with his head covered. ¹³ And Haman told his wife Zeresh and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then his wise men and his wife Zeresh said to him, “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of the Jewish people, you will not overcome him but will surely fall before him.” 

¹⁴ While they were yet talking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived and hurried to bring Haman to the feast that Esther had prepared. 

7 So the king and Haman went in to feast with Queen Esther. ² And on the second day, as they were drinking wine after the feast, the king again said to Esther, “What is your wish, Queen Esther? It shall be granted you. And what is your request? Even to the half of my kingdom, it shall be fulfilled.” ³ Then Queen Esther answered, “If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be granted me for my wish, and my people for my request. ⁴ For we have been sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be killed, and to be annihilated. If we had been sold merely as slaves, men and women, I would have been silent, for our affliction is not to be compared with the loss to the king.”

 ⁵ Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther, “Who is he, and where is he, who has dared to do this?” ⁶ And Esther said, “A foe and enemy! This wicked Haman!” Then Haman was terrified before the king and the queen. 

⁷ And the king arose in his wrath from the wine-drinking and went into the palace garden, but Haman stayed to beg for his life from Queen Esther, for he saw that harm was determined against him by the king. ⁸ And the king returned from the palace garden to the place where they were drinking wine, as Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was. And the king said, “Will he even assault the queen in my presence, in my own house?” As the word left the mouth of the king, they covered Haman’s face. 

⁹ Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs in attendance on the king, said, “Moreover, the gallows that Haman has prepared for Mordecai, whose word saved the king, is standing at Haman’s house, fifty cubits high.” And the king said, “Hang him on that.” ¹⁰  So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the wrath of the king abated. 

Prayer 

Our Heavenly Father,

“As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?”

Lord, may the praise of your goodness, glory, and majesty never be out of our hearts.

Lord, today, may we remember and pray for the persecuted church and for Christians in other parts of the world who suffer greatly for the cause of Christ, who are forced to worship in secret for fear of retribution. We pray for these Christians and churches. Lord, we pray for your nearness to them. Lord, we pray for their faith and reliance on you.

And we pray for this church as well, that we would love you above all else, hope in you, and worship you alone. May we not take for granted the rights and privileges we have. May we not be complacent about faith, but may we grow in faith.

Lord, may we continue to pray for our community, in spite of the challenges that we are facing. You are the God in the sunshine and in the rain. You are our God in the stillness and in the bleakness.

Lord, we continue to pray for this advent season. Lord, may we remember great Biblical themes of hope, joy, peace, and love during advent. May those be present in our hearts and in our actions.

May we remember that our only hope as people and a world is in your Son, our Lord Jesus.

May we rejoice that the light has come into a dark world.

May we be peacemakers. May we be uniters, not dividers in a fallen and divisive world. 

And may we be pointed to greater love for you, for our neighbor, for our community. 

Lord, we ask that you bless our time in your Word. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

Introduction 

We’re continuing our advent series in the Book of Esther this morning. 

Last week, when we left off, the major conflict of the story was developing. Haman had put forward plans of extermination against the Jewish people throughout the Persian Empire. Which would have effectively wiped out the Jewish race. 

Esther is the Queen of Persia. Her cousin Mordecai has explained these plans to her. At first, she wants to pass the buck. Yes, she’s the queen but she has no real authority.  Approaching the king unrequested could put her at risk of a capita punishment. 

Nevertheless, Mordecai persuades Esther. He argues that she is in this place of royalty in that time for this purpose when he says: And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?

At the end of our scene, Esther instructs Mordecai to have all of the Jews in Susa fast for three days. 

One thing I’ve said over the last couple of weeks is that I look at the scenes in Esther like a play. This week, we see the climax of the story as the plot is thwarted. 

I mentioned a moment ago, that there was to be a three day fast. 

And that’s where chapter 5 begins. 

 On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king’s palace, in front of the king’s quarters, while the king was sitting on his royal throne inside the throne room opposite the entrance to the palace. 

She goes before the king. 

Now, we’ve seen in this story that the king is somewhat volatile. Unpredictable. 

And Esther is taking a risk by going to him. 

And also keep in mind that Haman has a plot against the Jews. The king doesn’t know that Esther herself is Jewish. 

So there really are risks that she’s taking. 

In verse 2, we see that the king responds favorably to Esther.

And he makes a grand offer to her. 

5:3: the king said to her, “What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given you, even to the half of my kingdom.”

We see a similar scene to this in the Gospel of Matthew. 

 Half of the kingdom. 

It’s a figure of speech. The point isn’t that the king is going to literally portion off half of the kingdom. The point is that the king wants to be generous to someone in whom he has found favor. 

And that’s the offer the king makes to Esther. 

Instead of explaining the situation, or advocating for the Jews, or talking about the wickedness of Haman, Esther does something most unexpected. 

Verse 4: Esther said, “If it please the king, let the king and Haman come today to a feast that I have prepared for the king.” 

She wants to have Haman over for dinner. 

The man who’s seeking to kill the Jews. 

The king responds by summoning Haman. Haman comes and they have a feast. 

As a brief aside. It’s worth noting that there’s a lot of eating in the Book of Esther. 

The book opens with a feast, and then the king throws another feast for various dignitaries. Vashti has a feast. When Esther is selected as queen in chapter 2, there’s a feast. 

And here we have another feast. 

At this feast, the king offers again to give Esther whatever she wants, up to half his kingdom. Second time he’s made this offer to her. 

So is that the time when Esther will explain the situation? 

No. 

She asks for…

Wait for it.

Another feast. 

The next day and for Haman to be invited to that one as well. 

Haman is elated. He’s feeling pretty good about things. 

The queen is showing him favor. He’s already one of the most powerful people in the kingdom. And Haman went out that day joyful and glad of heart. But when Haman saw Mordecai in the king’s gate, that he neither rose nor trembled before him, he was filled with wrath against Mordecai.

Haman is on top of the world, but he lets his anger towards Mordecai continue to gnaw away. 

Haman goes home, and he stews about this to his wife, Zeresh. ¹⁴ Then his wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Let a gallows fifty cubits high be made, and in the morning tell the king to have Mordecai hanged upon it. Then go joyfully with the king to the feast.” This idea pleased Haman, and he had the gallows made. 

Zeresh tells her husband to have Mordecai killed.

She suggests he have a gallows built 50 cubits, 75 feet, hight. 

That’s what we call overkill. Massively high. 

It’s an ironic scene. Haman is seeking to have Mordecai killed and then go to a feast. There’s no indication that Esther knows about the plot to have Mordecai executed. 

Haman is plotting against Mordecai. Esther is plotting against Haman. 

With that, we come to the end of chapter 5. 

Chapter 6 begins. This timeline really matters to the story. It’s later that evening. 

And the story takes a most unexpected turn. 

6:1: On that night the king could not sleep. And he gave orders to bring the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, and they were read before the king. 

What’s happening? 

The king can’t sleep. 

And he’s like “read me a story.” 

And so the chronicles of the events of his reign are read to him. 

Brief pause. 

It’s worth remembering where we’ve been in the Book of Esther. 

At the end of chapter 2, Mordecai discovers a plot to kill the king. He reveals this plot and the perpetrators are executed. 

I had mentioned at the time that it was customary in the ancient world to reward such an act. The reason for that was you wanted to incentivize people in the kingdom to look out for the wellbeing and safety of the king. 

But Mordecai was never rewarded.

Ok, now back in chapter 6. 

Verse 2-3: ² And it was found written how Mordecai had told about Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, and who had sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. ³ And the king said, “What honor or distinction has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?” The king’s young men who attended him said, “Nothing has been done for him.”

So you have Mordecai, whom Haman is plotting to have killed off. 

Also, if you read Esther and pay attention to the dates that it’s giving, Mordeai had saved the king’s life five YEARS before. 

But on the eve of the night when Haman plans to have Mordecai killed, the king learns of Mordecai’s effort to save him. 

Why? 

Why does he remember? 

Because they’re reading him his chronicles because he can’t sleep. 

As I keep saying, God isn’t mentioned in Esther, but he’s present. And he works in mysterious ways. 

Some of the most important events are the moments where their importance is not realized at the time.  

Back in our story. 

⁴ And the king said, “Who is in the court?” Now Haman had just entered the outer court of the king’s palace to speak to the king about having Mordecai hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for him.

Lots of situational irony in the story. 

Had Haman asked a few hours earlier, this request might have been granted. 

But the king has just been reminded that Mordecai is his savior. 

The king and Haman are both thinking about Mordecai, but for different reasons, and neither knows what the other is thinking. 

Verse 6: So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?” And Haman said to himself, “Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?” 

Do you see what’s happening? 

The king is almost thinking out loud. What should I do for someone I want to honor? 

And Haman thinks “whom would the king delight to honor more than me?”

He thinks the king is talking about him! 

Because Haman is a bit of an ecomaniac if you’ve been paying attention to the story. 

Verse 8, Hama responds:  let royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, and the horse that the king has ridden, and on whose head a royal crown is set.

Mordecai tells the king the things that he would want. 

He wants to be paraded around like a king and celebrated. 

But the irony is that he’s actually suggesting the treatment for his hated nemesis. 

Haman continues going on and on and on about the great procession that should be given. We won’t read the whole section. 

But he wants all the trappings of royalty, not realizing that the king is asking for ideas for Mordecai and not for himself. 

¹⁰ Then the king said to Haman, “Hurry; take the robes and the horse, as you have said, 

I’m pausing in the middle of this verse. 

Haman is like “Yes. This is what I’ve always wanted.” 

The king says: and do so to Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king’s gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.”

Haman has to be shocked. 

And everything Haman had wanted for himself is given to Mordecai. 

 So Haman took the robes and the horse, and he dressed Mordecai and led him through the square of the city, proclaiming before him, “Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.” 

What a story! 

Haman heads back home. 

He tells his wife. 

She was the one who just told him to have these massive gallows built. 

But she’s not really going to give him a shoulder to cry on. 

Verse 13: “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of the Jewish people, you will not overcome him but will surely fall before him.” 

Translation: that’s not good. 

Chapter 6 ends with the king’s servants arriving at Haman’s house. Why? 

To take him to the feast. Remember. Esther wanted to invite him to a feast. 

What a reversal of fortunes we’ve seen in this chapter. 

And it was all sparked by what?

By the king’s insomnia. 

Some of the most important events are the moments where their importance is not realized at the time. 

That can be true with the events which transpired which brought us to faith in Christ. It was a series of events. And on the road to faith, there are lots of events that can be seemingly insignificant, but are important steps in our Spiritual journey.

Maybe it was an interaction you had with someone, a sermon you happened to hear.

In the Book of Esther, the Jewish people are on the brink of a holocaust, and that is turned upside down because of a bad night of sleep. 

There are places in the Bible where we see dazzling miracles. The signs that God brings on Pharaoh before the Exodus. God parting the waters of the Red Sea.

We see miracles during the ministry of Jesus and in the early church.

But miracles are actually primarily concentrated in three different periods in the Bible. The time of the Exodus, the ministry of Jesus, and the ministry of Elijah and Elisha.

For the rest of the Bible, God is no less God. He is no less sovereign. But he often works providentially through other means.

In the Book of Esther, the main turning point, something so simple as a restless night’s sleep is something that God providentially uses on behalf of his people.

And we should keep that in mind in our own lives as well. Yes, God is God of the big things.

But he’s also God of the little things. He’s also God of the seemingly random things. He’s also God of the seemingly insignificant things.

I think of some of the events surrounding my niece’s birth a few weeks ago. My sister-in-law had switched doctors and instead of having the baby in a small, rural hospital, she had the baby in a city with more resources. I think of the 25 minutes the doctors spent reviving her. If they had stopped a minute or two earlier. She would have died. 

I think about when Kari and I met. 

Before we had met, a chain of events had already happened that made it possible. We were living on other ends of the country. She in Atlanta, I in Minnesota. She had a boyfriend and was getting ready to move closer to him, to sign a lease. But shortly before she did that, they broke up. The same week that happened, her dad accepted a job in St. Louis. They asked Kari if she wanted to go. Since she didn’t have anything keeping her in Atlanta, she said “sure.” 

We met online. Living in a rural area in Minnesota, I had expanded my search radius on eHarmony. It included St. Louis, but not Atlanta. Kari created her profile, saying she lived in St. Louis but still living in Atlanta. 

Had her relationship not ended when it ended, we might not have ever met. Had her dad not taken a job in St. Louis, we might have never met. Had she not agreed to move to St. Louis, we might never have met. 

Ironically, she ended up moving from Atlanta to Minnesota.

Had that not happened, I probably wouldn’t be standing here today. 

So many things work together as the Lord works out his sovereign plans. 

God is at work. He’s at work in our community, he’s at work in our lives, he’s at work in our world. 

And he has been at work throughout history. 

Before the birth of Christ, God used an angel to communicate with Mary and a dream to speak to Joseph. Here he used a sleepless night to work his plans through the king of Persia. 

At the birth of Christ, God used Roman laws to orchestrate Jesus being born in Bethlehem. Just like the vain and insecure Haman, when Jesus was born, you had the cruel Herrod who saw the advent of the Chrsit as a threat to himself. Just like Haman, he was a genocidal leader, but God brought Jesus and his parents to safety in the Gospel of Matthew when they went from Israel to Egypt, and coming from Egypt fulfilled an Old Testament prophecy. 

God is sovereign over his creation. 

And here, God is working on behalf of Esther and Mordecai and on behalf of his people. 

With that, we come to chapter 7. I feel like the previous two chapters took their time at building up the story. We see a fairly rapid climax to the book in chapter 7. 

They’re at the feast that Esther has thrown. 

The king again asks Esther what she wants, up to half his kingdom. 

³ Then Queen Esther answered, “If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be granted me for my wish, and my people for my request. ⁴ For we have been sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be killed, and to be annihilated. If we had been sold merely as slaves, men and women, I would have been silent, for our affliction is not to be compared with the loss to the king.”

This is the first time in the story where Esther is publicly revealing that she’s Jewish. 

She doesn’t say it in those terms. But it’s obvious as she talks about the plan of destruction against her people. 

Where she say they have been sold to be destroyed, killed, and annihilated, she’s referring to Haman’s bribe of the king. 

Verse 5, the king responds: Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther, “Who is he, and where is he, who has dared to do this?” 

Some commentators think that the king is trying to divest himself of any responsibility. He’s the king. He ultimately gave permission for this to happen. 

And here at the feast with Haman who thought he was being honored by Esther, who thought he was to be honored by the king is called out by name. 

⁶ And Esther said, “A foe and enemy! This wicked Haman!” Then Haman was terrified before the king and the queen. 

The king leaves the room. Full of fury. 

Haman pleads with Esther for his life. 

In the process, he falls down on a couch just as the king walks back into the room. The king thinks of that as Haman trying to assault the king, and that seals Haman’s fate. 

⁹ Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs in attendance on the king, said, “Moreover, the gallows that Haman has prepared for Mordecai, whose word saved the king, is standing at Haman’s house, fifty cubits high.” And the king said, “Hang him on that.” 

The unnecessarily high gallows that Haman had constructed for Mordecai, are the very place where Haman would be his end. 

That’s just too ironic. 

That’s like how when the French developed the guillotine, King Louis XVI suggested they make it with oblique blade instead of a crescent blade, and then Louis XVI was later executed by guillotine. 

It’s amazing to consider Haman’s life. 

He had been on top of the world. The king’s number 2 in the superpower of that day. 

And in one night, he lost it all. 

Life is fleeting. 

Blessings can come when we least expected. Life can change in an instant. 

And that can be true for better or for worse. 

Our lives are finite and fragile. We’re always one event from our lives or our families lives being turned upside down. 

Haman was powerful, and at the end of this chapter, he’s dead. Judgment does come for those who oppose the Lord and his people. 

Even when justice seems far off or like it doesn’t come, it will in this life or in the afterlife. 

And when we’re suffering or struggling, things can change. Again, maybe not always on the timeline we want, or in the way we expect.

And that too will not always happen on this side of eternity. 

Sometimes things change, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes things get better, sometimes they don’t. 

It can all seem random, and cruel, and unforgiving. 

And when things seem unfair, or cruel, or random, we must have a theology of who God is to fall back on. 

But what the Book of Esther should remind us is that it that nothing is random, nothing is meaningless in our lives. 

If God can use the unjust killing of his son for the good of the world, he can use the difficulties and injustices in our own lives for his ultimate purposes. 

Because in our lives, in the good times, the bad times, and the in between times, what we need to do is to remember our God, to live for him, serve him, and know that he is working all things to his plans, he is working all things to his glory, and he is working all things for our good.