Thursday
Evening Bible Study
July
25, 2013
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it speak to the broken hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk
– Meat – Manna Preach for a decision Is the church loved?
King Ahasuerus had divorced his wife, Vashti. He
had been drinking one night with his buddies and had asked her to come in and
parade herself in front of them. When she refused, he dumped her.
It was after this that Ahasuerus (also known as Xerxes I in history) went
off to fight his grand battles with the Greeks. After having been defeated, he
returned to Persia to an “empty” palace.
His counselors advised him to hold a beauty contest, and a young Jewish
gal, Esther, won the position of Queen. Esther was an orphan, and was raised by
her cousin Mordecai.
Last week ended with Mordecai uncovering a plot to assassinate the king, having
the assassins arrested, and the record of this assistance being recorded in the
royal record.
3:1-6 Mordecai won’t bow
:1 After these things King Ahasuerus promoted
Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite,
and advanced him and set his seat above all the princes who were with
him.
:1 Haman … the Agagite
Haman –“magnificent”
When people saw him walking down the street they would cry out, “Hey
man!!!”
the Agagite
– a descendant of Agag.
Agag was an ancient king of the Amalekites.
Josephus records:
by birth an Amalekite
The Amalekites are an interesting race of people to track in the Bible. It
is felt by many that they are an excellent illustration of our “sin nature”,
or, our “flesh”.
Lesson
Battling the flesh
The history of the Amalekites goes back to the Exodus out of Egypt. The
trouble with the Amalekites came about because…
(Dt 25:18 NKJV)
…he met you on the way and attacked your rear ranks, all the
stragglers at your rear, when you were tired and weary; and he did not
fear God.
That’s what our sin nature does – it attacks us when we are weak. When
you’ve gone through a particularly rough time and are exhausted, don’t be
surprised if you find yourself susceptible to temptation.
Because of the Amalekites’ tactics, Moses sent Joshua and his troops to
fight them:
(Ex 17:8–14 NKJV) —8 Now Amalek came and
fought with Israel in Rephidim. 9 And Moses
said to Joshua, “Choose us some men and go out, fight with Amalek.
Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand.” 10 So Joshua
did as Moses said to him, and fought with Amalek. And
Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.
11 And so it
was, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down
his hand, Amalek prevailed.
Don’t think that Moses has some sort of magic hands that cause Joshua to
win battles when his hands are raised. Moses is lifting up his hands in prayer.
One of our major weapons against the flesh is prayer.
Joshua still has to swing his sword and deal with the
Amalekites, but when he is supported by prayer, he prevails.
We may need to take steps like joining an accountability
group, getting counseling, going to a doctor, taking meds – that’s like Joshua
swinging his sword.
Yet without keeping our struggles covered in prayer, we
can find ourselves fighting a losing battle.
12 But Moses’
hands became heavy; so they took a stone and put it under him, and
he sat on it. And Aaron and Hur supported his hands,
one on one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady
until the going down of the sun.
Sometimes we can’t do it alone. Moses couldn’t keep his hands up by
himself. He needed his friends to hold his hands up.
Victory over sin often requires the help of others.
13 So Joshua
defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the
sword. 14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this for
a memorial in the book and recount it in the hearing of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.” 15 And Moses built an altar and called its name, The-Lord-Is-My-Banner; 16
for he said, “Because the Lord has sworn: the Lord will have war with Amalek
from generation to generation.”
Lesson
Finish well
The battle with Amalek pops up again during the
time of King Saul. King Saul was sent on a mission by God to finish what was
decreed back in Exodus. He was told to wipe out the Amalekites. Though he had a
victory, but he only had a partial victory. God had wanted him to destroy
everything connected to the Amalekites, but he decided he’d keep some of the
spoil for a nice barbecue. He also spared one important Amalekite, a fellow
named Agag, the king.
The prophet Samuel showed up to confront Saul with his incomplete victory:
(1 Sa 15:18–23 NKJV) —18 Now the Lord sent you on a mission, and said, ‘Go, and utterly
destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are
consumed.’ 19 Why then
did you not obey the voice of the Lord?
Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do evil in the sight of the Lord?” 20 And Saul said to Samuel, “But I
have obeyed the voice of the Lord,
and gone on the mission on which the Lord
sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the
people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should
have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.” 22 So Samuel
said: “Has the Lord as great
delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in
obeying the voice of the Lord?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of
rams. 23 For
rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as
iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being
king.”
Saul felt like he had done enough. Samuel clarifies that he didn’t go far enough.
Sometimes when I’m dealing with a particular sin in my life, I might take
some good steps in the right direction, but I stop short of doing all I need to
do.
Even though Samuel himself would finish off Agag,
it appears that he had some descendants who survived. David would later battle the Amalekites
(1Sam. 30).
One day they would try to get even.
The way to handle the flesh is not to pamper it. The way
to victory is to put the flesh to death. Completely. And keep it there (it will be back).
If we leave some things undone, they will come back to
haunt us.
:1 Ahasuerus … advanced him
Ahasuerus promoted Haman to one of
the highest positions in his empire.
Big mistake
Lesson
Kings make mistakes
Looking at the choice of Haman from
a human perspective, we can see that it was a mistake to exalt a man like
Haman.
Haman is only looking out for one
person – himself.
It’s hard to choose leaders. Sometimes
you don’t see the problems right away.
(1 Ti 5:22 NKJV) —22 Do not
lay hands on anyone hastily, nor share in other people’s sins; keep yourself
pure.
To “lay hands on” someone is to put
them into a position of leadership. In context, Paul is talking to Timothy
about appointing “elders” in the church.
(1 Ti 5:24–25 NKJV) —24 Some
men’s sins are clearly evident, preceding them to judgment, but those of
some men follow later. 25 Likewise,
the good works of some are clearly evident, and those that are otherwise
cannot be hidden.
I’ve learned the hard way. As a
general rule, I don’t ask someone to be an elder until they’ve been in the
church for at least five years. Why? Because I want to see someone go through
the ups and downs of ministry with us. I want to make sure I know who this
person is. I want to have an idea of how his home life really is.
:2 And all the king’s servants who were
within the king’s gate bowed and paid homage to Haman, for so the king had
commanded concerning him. But Mordecai would not bow or pay homage.
:2 paid homage to Haman
Lesson
The exaltation test
We often call our difficult times “tests”.
They are a test of our faith, to see if our faith is able to withstand
difficult times.
Another test doesn’t have to do with difficulty, but with abundance.
How do you respond when you are “blessed”?
How would you respond if you won the lottery?
How would you respond if you were promoted at work above
your co-workers?
I’ve seen people fail at these tests.
We want our lives to be easier. We want to gain
recognition or power.
And sometimes these are the things that cause us to fall
on our face.
I’ve seen power go to a person’s head to where they feel
they need to be making everyone’s decisions for them and start ordering people
around. Not good.
:3 Then the king’s servants who were within
the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “Why do you transgress the king’s command?”
:2 Mordecai would not bow
Mordecai won’t “bow” because as a Jew, he only “bows” before God.
(Ex 20:5a NKJV) you shall
not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God…
Lesson
Respect or idolatry
This is not a matter of showing
respect. This is a matter of not bowing or yielding to the things that the
world bows to.
This is the same reason why a few
years back, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego did not bow to Nebuchadnezzar’s
statue:
(Da 3:17–18 NKJV) —17 If that is
the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning
fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. 18
But if not, let it be known to you, O
king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which
you have set up.”
This does not mean that we don’t
show respect for people in authority.
(Ro 13:7 NKJV) Render therefore to
all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs,
fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.
We ought to give
“fear” or “honor” to those in authority over us. But we will not worship them.
:4 Now it happened, when they spoke to him daily
and he would not listen to them, that they told it to Haman, to see
whether Mordecai’s words would stand; for Mordecai had told them that he
was a Jew.
:5 When Haman saw that Mordecai did not bow or pay
him homage, Haman was filled with wrath.
:5 Haman was filled with wrath
Lesson
Authority and anger
Haman is not passing his “exaltation test”.
Many of us find ourselves in a place of authority. It might be as a boss at
work, or it could be as a parent of a child.
How do you respond when you don’t get your way?
You are acting like Haman if you are “filled with wrath”.
Sometimes our anger gets us into trouble
Illustration
Don’t misunderstand me here – it is proper if you are in a place of authority
to expect and require those under you to do what you ask.
But if you are responding with anger, you have a problem.
(Eph 6:9 The Message) Masters, it’s the same with you. No abuse, please, and no threats.
You and your servants are both under the same Master in heaven. He makes no
distinction between you and them.
:6 But he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai
alone, for they had told him of the people of Mordecai. Instead, Haman sought
to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of
Ahasuerus—the people of Mordecai.
It is grating on Haman that Mordecai won’t bow to him. It’s even worse
because Mordecai is a Jew, the ancient enemy of the Amalekites.
3:7-15 Haman’s Final Solution
In WWII, Hitler devised his “Final Solution” to the “Jewish question”. His
plan was to eliminate the Jewish people. It wasn’t an original idea.
:7 In the first month, which is the month of
Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they
cast Pur (that is, the lot), before Haman to
determine the day and the month, until it fell on the twelfth month,
which is the month of Adar.
:7 in the twelfth year
Esther and Ahasuerus have been married for five years. It is not March/April of 474 BC.
:7 cast Pur
Pur is
an Assyrian word meaning “lot” or “piece” (like throwing dice). This is where
the name of the feast, “Purim”, comes from.
Lesson
God’s invisible hand
Haman seems to be a superstitious sort of person, so he is throwing the
dice to decide when the best time to kill the Jews would be.
As it ends up, the lot falls on the twelfth month, February-March, which
ends up giving the Jews 11 months to prepare for this attack.
(Pr 16:33 NKJV) The lot is
cast into the lap, But its every decision is
from the Lord.
Does this mean that we ought to throw dice every time we need to make a
decision?
No. It’s better that you use your mind and wise
counsel.
(Pr 12:15 NKJV) —15 The way of a fool is
right in his own eyes, But he who heeds counsel is
wise.
(Pr 24:6 NKJV) For by
wise counsel you will wage your own war, And in a
multitude of counselors there is safety.
:8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a
certain people scattered and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of
your kingdom; their laws are different from all other people’s,
and they do not keep the king’s laws. Therefore it is not fitting for
the king to let them remain.
I find it interesting that he doesn’t mention who these “people” are.
:9 If it pleases the king, let a decree be
written that they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver
into the hands of those who do the work, to bring it into the king’s
treasuries.”
:9 I will pay ten thousand talents
ten thousand talents of silver = 12,000,000 oz (375 tons, or 340 metric
tons).
In today’s standards, that’s about 240 million dollars. ($20/oz.)
Josephus suggests that Haman is doing this to make up for the lost tax
revenue the king will suffer when the Jews are killed.
Haman is bribing the king to sign the decree.
Haman will get the money back when he confiscates the property of the Jews
he has slain (just like Hitler).
:10 So the king took his signet ring from his hand
and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews.
:10 signet ring
This is to put his “stamp” of approval on the decree, probably making an
impression in wax on the document.
:11 And the king said to Haman, “The money and the
people are given to you, to do with them as seems good to you.”
(Es 3:11 NIV) “Keep the
money,” the king said to Haman, “and do with the people as you please.”
:12 Then the king’s scribes were called on the thirteenth day of the first
month, and a decree was written according to all that Haman commanded—to
the king’s satraps, to the governors who were over each province, to the
officials of all people, to every province according to its script, and to
every people in their language. In the name of King Ahasuerus it was written,
and sealed with the king’s signet ring.
:13 And the letters were sent by couriers into all the king’s provinces, to
destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, little
children and women, in one day, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month,
which is the month of Adar, and to plunder their possessions.
:13 the thirteenth day of the
twelfth month
The Jews are given 11 months before they are wiped out. They are supposed
to be killed on March 7, 473
B.C.
Whoever kills a Jew will get to keep his possessions for his own.
thirteenth day – I’ve heard it suggested that this is why some people
consider the number “13” to be unlucky.
:14 A copy of the document was to be issued as law
in every province, being published for all people, that they should be ready
for that day.
:15 The couriers went out, hastened by the king’s
command; and the decree was proclaimed in Shushan the
citadel. So the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Shushan was perplexed.
:15 the city of Shushan
was perplexed
perplexed – buwk
– to perplex, confuse, be confused
Lesson
It ain’t
over
Things look bad, but just wait. There are still eleven months left and God
is at work. He has His people in place.
Jeremiah wrote,
(Je 29:11 NKJV) For I know
the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future
and a hope.
Sometimes our worst fears do come about.
Sometimes that loved one we are praying for does die. Sometimes we do lose that job. Sometimes the marriage is over.
But God is not finished.
Joseph was the favorite of his father.
His brothers hated him for it.
One day Joseph was kidnapped by his brothers and sold as a slave.
A really horrible thing happened. He was carried off to Egypt, thinking his
life was over.
God was with him.
Working as a slave, Joseph is accused unjustly by his master’s wife. He ends up in prison. Can it get any worse?
He helps some important guys out, and when they get released from prison …
they forget him.
But the day finally comes when God pulls all the plans together, the plans
that God had for Joseph.
He interprets a dream for the Pharaoh and ends up becoming
the second most powerful man in the world.
And when a famine hits the world, Joseph ends up saving
his entire family from destruction.
If you are still here … it ain’t over.
4:1-4 Mordecai’s anguish
:1 When Mordecai learned all that had happened, he
tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of
the city. He cried out with a loud and bitter cry.
:1 sackcloth and ashes
Sackcloth was a coarse, loose cloth (like burlap), worn as a sign of
mourning. Sometimes the sackcloth was worn right against the skin, in place of
underwear. It was meant to be uncomfortable.
Josephus records Mordecai’s words:
“a nation
that had been injurious to no man, was to be destroyed.”[1]
:2 He went as far as the front of the king’s gate,
for no one might enter the king’s gate clothed with sackcloth.
:2 as the front of the king’s gate
Mordecai couldn’t come any farther than the “King’s Gate” because of his
sackcloth.
It seems that the Persian kings didn’t like to have depressed people around
them. Nehemiah was aware of this as well:
(Ne 2:2 NKJV) Therefore
the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not
sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart.” So I became dreadfully
afraid,
:3 And in every province where the king’s command and decree arrived, there
was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping, and wailing; and
many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
:4 So Esther’s maids and eunuchs came and told
her, and the queen was deeply distressed. Then she sent garments to clothe
Mordecai and take his sackcloth away from him, but he would not accept them.
:4 take his sackcloth away
Esther is grieved to hear that Mordecai is in sackcloth. She doesn’t know
why yet.
It seems that Esther is trying to cheer up Mordecai with a change of
clothes, but he won’t allow it.
For Mordecai, this all must be extra hard since he’s the reason why this
decree has been made to destroy the Jews.
Lesson
Sometimes you can’t smile
I think that sometimes well-meaning people try to cheer us up when we’re
going through difficult times, and though much of the time it is just fine to
do that, sometimes it is inappropriate. The Bible says,
(Ro 12:15 NKJV) Rejoice
with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.
And sometimes the best thing you can do for a person who
is mourning is to be silent and just be with them.
4:5-17 Challenge to Esther
:5 Then Esther called Hathach,
one of the king’s eunuchs whom he had appointed to attend her, and she
gave him a command concerning Mordecai, to learn what and why this was.
It seems that Esther must not be allowed to go out in public. Since
Mordecai can’t go into the palace with his sackcloth on, Esther sends Hatach to find out what is going on.
:6 So Hathach went out
to Mordecai in the city square that was in front of the king’s gate.
:7 And Mordecai told him all that had happened to
him, and the sum of money that Haman had promised to pay into the king’s
treasuries to destroy the Jews.
:8 He also gave him a copy of the written decree for their destruction,
which was given at Shushan, that he might show it to
Esther and explain it to her, and that he might command her to go in to the king
to make supplication to him and plead before him for her people.
Mordecai asks Esther to help her people out.
Hatach now becomes aware that Esther is a Jew.
:9 So Hathach returned
and told Esther the words of Mordecai.
:10 Then Esther spoke to Hathach,
and gave him a command for Mordecai:
:11 “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know
that any man or woman who goes into the inner court to the king, who has not
been called, he has but one law: put all to death, except the one
to whom the king holds out the golden scepter, that he may live. Yet I myself
have not been called to go in to the king these thirty days.”
:11 holds out the golden scepter
It seems that the king didn’t like to be bothered too much.
Herodotus says that this law [against anyone’s coming uncalled to the kings
of Persia when they were sitting on their thrones] was first enacted by Deioces [i.e., by him who first withdrew the Medes from the
domination of the Assyrians, and himself first reigned over them]. Thus also,
says Spanheim, stood guards, with their axes, about
the throne of Tenus, or Tenudus,
that the offender might by them be punished immediately.[2]
I can imagine why they came up with concept. Some people are extremely rude
and think that the whole world revolves around them. Sometimes after church
I’ll have a couple people standing around wanting to talk to me, and somebody
comes barging up, interrupting the person I’m talking to, and expect me to talk
to them. Maybe I should get one of those golden scepters…
Esther would be risking her own life if she dared to approach the king
without first being summoned.
:11 not been called …these thirty days
Lesson
Inappropriate for marriage
Some things (like not seeing each other for thirty days at a time) are just
not appropriate for marriage… like these songs…
Just in case you are wondering, Ahasuerus and Esther are
not the best role model for your marriage.
It’s not good if one spouse is “afraid” to approach the other spouse for
fear that they might not hold out the “golden scepter”.
It’s probably not good if you haven’t seen each other for thirty days.
:12 So they told Mordecai Esther’s words.
:13 And Mordecai told them to answer
Esther: “Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace
any more than all the other Jews.
Mordecai reminds her that if she doesn’t do anything, she will be dead
anyway.
:14 For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and
deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your
father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom
for such a time as this?”
:14 deliverance will arise …from another
place
Lesson
God doesn’t need you
We can fall into the trap of thinking that we are God’s only solution to
the problem of mankind.
We can think that we must do everything or else nothing will get done.
The truth is that God may have others that He can use.
I did say “may”. It may be that you are the only one.
The fact that He’s laid an opportunity before you is the chance for you to
serve Him and find the blessing of obeying God.
:14 for such a time as this
Lesson
God’s plans
God has things that He would like for us to do.
(Eph 2:10 NKJV) For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
Being God’s “workmanship” means that God
has been at work in our lives.
He has things for us to do, things that are just for such
a time as this.
God uses the details of our lives.
It is no mistake that Esther’s parents both died and she was raised by her
cousin Mordecai.
It is no mistake that Esther won the beauty pageant.
It is no mistake that Mordecai was considered a leader (sitting in the
gate).
It will be no mistake that Mordecai saved the king’s life by uncovering the
assassination plot.
It is no mistake that Esther is Queen of the empire at the moment when her
people face annihilation.
All these things are going to be a part of what God will
use rescue the Jews.
Sometimes we fall into the trap of thinking that God can never use us. We
wish we could be like others so God could use us.
God has made you to be unique.
All of your strengths, all of your weaknesses, all of your experiences, all
of your abilities make you who you are.
You have a purpose. There is a reason you are alive on this planet today.
You may tend to think that there are a few things in your life that are
terrible mistakes, tragedies, or accidents.
Yet maybe these could be the very things that God will be using to fulfill
the “good works” that He has planned for you.
:15 Then Esther told them to reply to
Mordecai:
:16 “Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three
days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the
king, which is against the law; and if I
perish, I perish!”
:17 So Mordecai went his way and did according to
all that Esther commanded him.
:16 fast for me
Lesson
Ask for prayer
She isn’t asking them to fast because she thinks they need to lose weight.
She’s asking for prayer.
Josephus records Esther’s prayer (we have to be a little careful about
Josephus’ accuracy because he gets some of the details wrong) – an interesting
prayer:
…she entreated God to have mercy upon her, and make her words appear
persuasive to the king, and render her countenance more beautiful than it was
before, that both by her words and beauty she might succeed, for the averting
of the king’s anger, in case he were at all irritated against her, and for the
consolation of those of her own country, now they were in the utmost danger of
perishing: as also that he would excite a hatred in the king against the
enemies of the Jews, and those that had contrived their future destruction, if
they proved to be condemned by him. [3]
Wondering what to do? Start with
prayer.
:16 I perish, I perish
Lesson
Ready to die
She’s a brave gal.
When a person is willing to
actually lay down their life for God, they are unstoppable.
[1]Josephus, F., & Whiston, W. (1996,
c1987). The works of Josephus : Complete and
unabridged. Includes index. (Ant XI, vi 7). Peabody:
Hendrickson.
[2]Josephus, F., & Whiston, W. (1996,
c1987). The works of Josephus : Complete and
unabridged. Includes index. Peabody: Hendrickson.
[3]Josephus, F., & Whiston, W. (1996,
c1987). The works of Josephus : Complete and
unabridged. Includes index. (Ant XI, vi 8). Peabody:
Hendrickson.