Esther 1 - A Queen Is Deposed

Esther 1 - A Queen Is Deposed

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A. King Ahasuerus (Xerxes) holds a big feast

1. (1-2) King Ahasuerus and his domain

a. This king Ahasuerus is well known to history, though more commonly under the name Xerxes. He inherited the vast Persian Empire from his father, Darius I (mentioned in passages such as Ezra 4:24; 5:5-7; 6:1-15, and in Daniel 6:1, 25, Haggai 1:15; 2:10)

i. The fact of the existence of this king and circumstance is extremely well attested; archaeologists have discovered the ruins of the very palace these things took place in

b. At this time (approximately 483 B.C.), Ahasuerus is planning for a doomed invasion of Greece, which will take place several years later. Athens is in its classical glory during this period; in Greece, they were celebrating the seventy-ninth Olympics games

i. At this time, the Persian Empire was the largest the world had ever seen. It covered what we call today Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Jordan, Lebanon, and Israel; and parts of modern day Egypt, Sudan, Libya, and Arabia

c. Also at this time, Ezra had returned to Jerusalem after it had been conquered by the Babylonians. The temple had been rebuilt (although more simply, not with the glory of Solomon's temple) some thirty years before this

d. In another forty years, under the successor of Ahasuerus (Artaxerxes I), Nehemiah will return to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls of the previously conquered city

2. (3-9) Three royal feasts

a. The first feast is for all the government officials, where Ahasuerus shows off the glory and splendor of the riches of his kingdom, and this feast lasts for 180 days

b. The second feast is for the citizens of the capital city, Sushan; this feast lasted for seven days

i. The essence of these feasts, is of course, pride; the king wants to impress his own subjects with his own wealth and power and majesty and generosity. This is typical of the way that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them (Matthew 20:25). You can be assured that this was being done with tax payer's money!

ii. Literally, verse 6 describes the white material as "white stuff"; this may be evidence that Esther was written with a man's eye for decorating detail, not a woman's

c. Among some of the ancients, each guest was obliged to have a drink with the current round, or else leave the party. This second feast was different; each man could drink as he pleased

d. The third feast is for the women in the royal palace, and is conducted by the wife of king Ahasuerus, Vashti

B. Queen Vashti is deposed

1. (10-11) King Ahasuerus demands that Vashti display her beauty before the guests at the feast

a. According to Jewish tradition, this request came from an argument among the men at the feast as to which country had the most beautiful women; Ahasuerus decided to settle the issue by putting his wife on public display

b. The clear intimation is that she was expected to display herself in some immodest fashion

2. (12) Queen Vashti refuses to appear before the drunken guests of the feast

a. Though Vashti is by no means a follower of the true God, she has enough wisdom and modesty to know that this is something she should have nothing to do with

i. She is not violating a command by God that women should submit to their husbands; wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord (Ephesians 5:22) means that submission takes place as to the Lord - and does not contradict His commands and principles. Wives are not required to submit to their husband's commands to do things that are against God's commands

ii. However, it is important for a Christian woman in such a situation to maintain a submissive and respectful attitude towards her husband; one can not obey the command of another, but do so in a submissive manner - an attitude that we do not know if Queen Vashti had in this situation

b. Obviously, women who put themselves in dangerous places, especially where alcohol is involved, show a severe lack of wisdom - though it certainly gives no justification to the sin of men in such a situation

c. Jewish tradition says that her refusal had nothing to do with modesty - she was ready to appear before this crown completely unclothed, except that God smote her with leprosy just as she received the request (an obviously fanciful tradition)

3. (13-22) The banishment of Vashti

a. Of course, this is unreasonable and wrong of Ahasuerus; but history's profile of the man shows him to be an unreasonable and foolish man in many cases

i. Once, Ahasuerus executed the builders of a bridge because an ocean storm destroyed it; then he commanded that the sea be whipped and chained to punish the sea

b. The purpose for the harsh treatment of Vashti is so that she will not set a bad example for the other women of Persia - Ahasuerus doesn't want there to be any doubt about who wore the pants in his kingdom

i. They are afraid that wives will despise their husbands . . . that there will be excessive contempt and wrath; they want to insure that each man should be master in his own house

ii. The goal presented here is admirable, and speaks to the need within every man to sense respect and honor from his wife; Paul's instruction to wives is summed up like this: let the wife see that she respects her husband (Ephesians 5:33). A wife's respect is the most precious gift she can give her husband

iii. However, the means used here to gain and preserve this respect are foolish; a man cannot demand or coerce respect from his wife - if it isn't freely given, it isn't worth anything