Esther 2 - Esther Is Chosen Queen

Esther 2 - Esther Is Chosen Queen

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A. The gathering together of a harem for King Ahasuerus

1. (1-4) A search is made for a replacement for Queen Vashti

a. After these things is broader than just the events of chapter one; 2:16 indicates that there is a four-year span between chapters one and two - during this time, Ahasuerus makes his great, unsuccessful invasion of Greece, and he comes home a defeated man - wanting to cheer his heart through sensual diversions

b. The plan is to assemble a harem from the most beautiful women of the land, bring them into a harem for the king, and to choose the most favored woman to be his queen from that group - sort of a "Miss Persian Empire" contest

c. The ancient Jewish historian Josephus says the Ahasuerus had a total of 400 women selected

2. (5-7) Esther and her family

a. Mordecai, the cousin of Esther, came to Persia in one of the waves of relocation that the Babylonians imposed on Judah when it conquered that land

b. Esther (whose Jewish name Hadassah means "Myrtle"; the Persian name Esther means "star") was raised by her cousin Mordecai since the death of her father and mother

i. "In prophetic symbolism the myrtle would replace the briars and thorns of the desert, so depicting the Lord's forgiveness and acceptance of his people. (Isaiah 41:19; 55:13; cf. Zechariah 1:8)" (Baldwin)

c. They are part of the large Jewish community which was forced to relocate out of Judah, and didn't decide to return with Ezra and Nehemiah - by their time, Judah was regarded as a wild and backward land

d. The Hebrew for lovely and beautiful is literally, "beautiful in form and lovely to look at"; or as the NIV has it, lovely in form and features

i. We regard that the Bible is generally given to understatement; when it says that Esther was lovely and beautiful, we know that it isn't exaggerating

3. (8) Esther is taken into the king's harem

a. It seems that Esther didn't really have a choice about this; she was taken to the king's palace

b. Hegai was the king's eunuch (verse 3), a man entrusted with the oversight of the king's harem for obvious reasons

i. Hegai is specifically mentioned by the Greek historian Herodotus as being an officer of king Ahasuerus

B. Esther in the courts of the king

1. (9) Esther's favored treatment in the palace

a. Esther obtained favor with Hegai, the man in authority over her; her godliness ensured a fulfillment of Proverbs 3:3-4: Let not mercy and truth forsake you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart, and so find favor and high esteem In the sight of God and man.

b. Because of this favor, Hegai gave Esther special beauty preparations, beyond her allowance. He also gave her seven servants to look after her beauty needs

i. Esther was beautiful to begin with; now she looked like one of those "after" pictures from the glamour photo studios - and she looked that way all the time

ii. The Hebrew word for beauty preparations comes from the root "to scour, to polish"

2. (10-11) Esther conceals her Jewish identity

a. Normally, there is never a good reason for hiding the fact that we are Christians. Far too many Christians act as if they are "secret agents" - and they always conceal who they are in the Lord

i. We must take the warning Jesus gave in Matthew 10:32-33 seriously: Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven. We can't live a life of denial and expect God to recognize us

b. However, we do recognize that there are situations where God may have us be reticent about our Christian identity - not for the purposes of permanently concealing it, but waiting for the opportune moment to reveal it. Apparently, this is what Mordecai sensed was right to do in this circumstance, and Esther agreed

i. How many of us have played "dumb" with a Jehovah's Witness or a Mormon who was speaking to us? We do it not to deny Jesus, but to seize a strategic opportunity

c. Mordecai's great interest in Esther's state shows his love and concern for her in such a potentially dangerous place

3. (12-14) The method of preparing and presenting the women before the king is established

a. Persia was one of many countries famous for its aromatic perfumes and ancient customs for the preparations of brides, including ritualistic baths, plucking of the eyebrows, the painting of hands and feet with henna, facial make-up, and applications of a beautifying paste all over the body, meant to lighten the color of the skin and to remove spots and blemishes

b. If all this sounds like the good life for any woman for a year, to be pampered in such a way, remember what their destiny was: one evening with the king. If he chose them, among 400 others to be his queen, then she would be his companion (until she displeased him). If you were one of the 399 who lost, you would be banished to the harem where you would stay the wife or concubine of the king, but rarely if ever see him. And you could never be set free to marry another man - you lived as a perpetual widow

c. Matthew Poole says that the oils and perfumes were necessary because "The bodies of men and women in those hot countries did of themselves yield very ill scents, if not corrected and qualified by art."

d. One reason for the lengthy time of preparation was to tell if the women had been pregnant upon coming into the harem, so that the king would not be charged with fathering a child that was not his

4. (15-18) Esther is selected as queen

a. Esther's humble wisdom is shown in the way that she allows the custodian of the women to assist her preparations

b. Because of her godliness and beauty, Esther continually obtained favor in the sight of all who saw her

i. Beauty often gains people (especially women) favor with others. This is a fact that Christians must accept, wisely teaching their children what really matters, and refusing to rely too much on beauty for our judgment of people

c. Because of the great favor that she obtained with the king, Esther was selected to be the queen to king Ahasuerus

i. Esther's life so far has been remarkable; the child of Jewish exiles, who both died; raised by her cousin in a foreign and often hostile land; taken by compulsion into the king's harem; finding favor with all she meets; and finally selected to be the queen of the realm

ii. Why? It isn't haphazard; it isn't just because of luck or fortune or Esther's good looks or sparkling personality. God has a plan, and Esther is part of it. As Psalm 75:6-7 says: For exaltation comes neither from the east Nor from the west nor from the south. But God is the Judge: He puts down one, And exalts another.

iii. In exactly the same way, we have a place in God's plan. Wherever you are at right now, God has a purpose for it - maybe a short purpose, or a long one; perhaps a large purpose or a small purpose, but God has a reason

iv. And in the outworking of His plan, God can use the evil of man - God did not make Ahasuerus drunk, or make him demand that his queen present herself in an immodest way before the lords of the kingdom; yet God allowed this wicked action of man to fulfill a purpose in His over arching plan. No person can defeat God's plan for your life, no matter what they have done to you or will do to you

C. Mordecai saves the king's life

1. (19-20) Mordecai's rise in prominence and Esther continues to conceal her Jewish identity

a. The fact that Mordecai sat within the king's gate indicates that he is beginning to associate with the decision makers and men of influence in the kingdom

b. Some have thought that the book of Esther carries this idea of concealment too far; the book has been criticized because it does not mention the name of God (as neither does the Song of Solomon)

i. Some say that the name of God was left out of Esther because of its use in the festivities surrounding Purim, where people commonly became drunk. One rabbi taught: "A man is obligated to drink on Purim until he is unable to distinguish between 'Blessed be Mordecai' and 'Cursed be Haman.'" Some have wondered if, in that atmosphere, it would be too easy to profane the name of God if it were to be read at such a festival.

ii. Others see the name YHWH hidden in acrostics, based on the initial and final letters of successive words in 1:20; 5:4, 13; and 7:7. In some manuscripts, the letters in these words are written a bit larger to give them prominence.

iii. Perhaps also Esther does not contain the name of God because it was written under Persian rule, and for distribution in the Persian Empire.

iv. Most likely, Esther doesn't have the name of God because it shows how God works behind the scenes; God is always active in Esther, even though it is behind the scenes.

2. (21-23) Mordecai hears an assassination conspiracy and informs the king, saving the king's life

a. Mordecai's attitude isn't "I'm a Jewish man in exile under a pagan king, so what do I care if he is killed'; instead, he fulfills Peter's thought in 1 Peter 2:17, before the fact: Fear God. Honor the king.

b. The threat of assassination was real; Ahasuerus was eventually murdered by his prime minister, who placed Artaxerxes I on the throne

c. Gallows is literally tree; the idea that they were hanged on a tree probably refers not to a hanging with a noose around the neck, but to impalement on a stake, much like crucifixion

i. "A pointed stake is set upright in the ground, and the culprit is taken, placed on the sharp point, and then pulled down by his legs till the stake that went in at the fundament passes up through the body and comes out through the neck. A most dreadful species of punishment, in which revenge and cruelty may glut the utmost of their malice. The culprit lives a considerable time in excruciating agonies." (Clarke)