By James Riley Strange, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of New Testament, Samford University
Stand with Conviction
Esther 2:21–3:6
The Book of Esther never mentions God or important Jewish ideas such as covenant or prayer. It was probably because of this that early Jews disputed whether it should be in their Bible. Early Christians apparently had similar issues. For example, the New Testament refers neither to it nor to the Song of Solomon. Some fourth century bishops questioned the book and Martin Luther did not care for it.
As we said last week, the book continues to pose problems. One way to view this reality is to say that God has given us the gift of Scripture that requires our best mindful and prayerful reading if we wish to understand it and live it out. That is what we intend to do.
The theme of obeying and disobeying the Persian king comes up frequently in Esther. Remember that Queen Vashti lost her title because she refused the king’s summons to be ogled by his drunken friends.
By contrast, Mordecai and Esther obeyed the order that all beautiful virgins should be brought into the king’s harem. Unlike her kinsperson Daniel, Esther made no effort to follow Jewish dietary laws in the palace. Instead she hid her Jewish identity. Take note of Esther’s character development, marked when she becomes willing to risk her life by disobeying the king and by revealing her identity. We will see this in future lessons.
Begin reading at 2:19 to get more context.
Stand against wrong. (2:21–23)
Last week our reading ended just after Esther was made queen of Persia and just before the king established a holiday in her honor. This week we learn that even though she is the Persian queen, she remains as obedient to Mordecai as when she was a child.
Mordecai continues his practice of remaining outside the palace so that he can find out how his niece and adopted daughter is doing. This is how he learns of the plot by Bigthan and Teresh to assassinate King Ahasuerus and how he gets word to Esther. Mordecai’s warning foils the plot and his good deed eventually saves his own life, for the king will read its record in the “book of records” (see Chapter 6). It is important to note that Mordecai does this not to help himself but to help the king. He does good for its own sake.
Stand for God in the face of those who oppose Him. (3:1–6)
Earlier we learned that Mordecai is a Benjaminite (2:5) which was King Saul’s tribe. Today we learn that Haman also is a foreigner, a descendant of Agag the Amalekite, Saul’s enemy. Is this why Mordecai refuses to prostrate himself to Haman? Or does Mordecai regard such prostration as an act of worship? Mordecai’s revelation of his Jewishness in verse 4 suggests that it is the second reason.
In any case, here we see the first act of disobedience of the king by either Mordecai or Esther, and now their lives are in danger. Haman joins the ranks of Pharaoh and Herod; he seeks to kill Mordecai by killing an entire people.
Our Christian brothers and sisters who live as minorities in their countries will identify with the predicament of Mordecai and Esther. We in America must identify with the Persians. It is true that we must stand for what is right even if by doing so we face danger. We also must practice justice and we must be especially mindful because we are in the majority in our country and in all branches of government.
May God grant us wisdom and conviction to do His will.
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