Last month, we studied the first two chapters of Esther. These chapters set the scene of the rest of the book, where we learned of King Xerxes and saw Esther crowned queen. This month, it's going to get more intense as there is a plot to kill all of Esther's people, the Jews. This puts Esther in a tough spot, and she must choose whether she will stand up for her people or do nothing. Have you ever been in a seemingly impossible situation? Maybe it wasn't life or death, but there are times we're challenged and have to choose if we remain faithful to God in those moments. Would you remain faithful or would you crack under the pressure? We're going to read about how Esther responds to this situation.
At the end of last month’s study, we saw Mordecai help King Xerxes by revealing an assassination plot against him, which led to the execution of the would-be assassins. Even after Mordecai helped save him, Xerxes instead promotes an Agagite named Haman to be his number 2. This is significant because the Amalekites are ancient enemies of Israel – Agag was defeated by King Saul and later killed by the prophet Samuel. Haman is a descendant of Agag; therefore, there is conflict between Haman and the Jews.
After Haman is promoted, King Xerxes commands all to bow down to Haman; however, Mordecai refuses. When Haman hears of Mordecai's insubordination, he is filled with fury. This fury escalates to genocide after Haman learns about Mordecai's lineage. Haman starts to plan how he will get all the Jews killed, going to Xerxes when he figures out how to make it happen.
Basically, Haman uses a guise of protecting the King's financial interest and requests for the murder of all the Jews. Unfortunately, Xerxes agrees to Haman's request of basically a "day of death". Through this decree, Persians are encouraged to kill all their Jewish neighbors and take whatever they desired from them. Neither Xerxes or Haman understood that this decree would also mean the death of Xerxes' queen, Esther. [It's also important to note, that during this time, whenever a decree was made, it couldn't be revoked.]
When Mordecai learns of Haman's scheme to kill the Jews, he's obviously filled with a lot of grief. He informs Esther of Haman's plot and begs her to plead for their people to the king. Esther knows that if she approaches the king without being summoned, she could be put to death. However, Mordecai urges her to go to the king anyway, as her death is likely either way.
Despite Esther's initial hesitation, Mordecai believes that the Jews will still be saved by someone, even if Esther does nothing. He has faith that God will protect His people (even though God isn't directly mentioned). After some consideration, Esther decides to go to the king and plead for her people, even though it means risking her life.
Mordecai told Esther, "And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this." (4:14b) We can ask ourselves the same question when we're put in challenging situations: has God placed you there for a specific purpose? We must remain faithful, even when things get tough.
As we wrap up this month's study, I want to leave you with three big points we saw in these two chapters:
- We must treat others the way we want to be treated. In these chapters, we see two different types of character – that of Haman and that of Esther and Mordecai. While Haman focused on his own interests regardless of the harm of others, Esther and Mordecai cared about others. We can find the "golden rule" in Luke: "But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise" (6:27-31)
- The Lord protects His people. We've seen this in our study of Daniel and we're going to see it again in Esther. In these chapters, Haman, who hated the Jews, was placed in a position of power that would make it seem like there would be no hope for the Jewish people. While it might seem like Haman has all the power, we know that God is more powerful than any human or nation. We just need to trust that He will protect His people as He has done before.
- Christians should not be surprised by persecution. While God does protect His people, this doesn't mean His people won't experience persecution. We're told in the Bible that we should not be surprised when we face persecution [see John 15:18-20]. Most of us haven't faced true persecution, but other Christians have and are enduring persecution for their faith. If you were to be persecuted, would you remain faithful and trust in God's sovereignty?
We're ending this month without knowing what's going to happen to Esther, Mordecai, and the rest of the Jews. Regardless of what happens, Esther and Mordecai are standing firm in their faith and are taking risks because they trust in God's sovereignty. Do you fully trust in God's protection over your life? If not, what are some things you can work on this month to start to trust in God more completely?
Cornerstone Impact Update
Since June, we've been going through a new series to finish out 2024 – Invested with Purpose. This is a series through a book by Arthur (Art) Ally on the birth of Biblically Responsible Investing. Through the series, we will find that it wasn't (and still isn't smooth sailing for BRI; however, it is so important to have investing options for Christians. Part 3 of this series discussed the preparation and passion behind BRI.
Courtney Dent
Eventide
Are you looking for the "alpha" in your investment portfolio?
Eventide's Dr. Finny Kuruvilla was on a recent episode of FaithFi where he discussed how loving our neighbors through faithful investing has the potential to outperform over the long-term.
Listen to the episode to learn more on how you can invest in ways that honors God:
