For Such A Time As This – The Story of Esther & Mordecai

Part V – A Tale of Two Edicts

As we wrap up our study of the Book of Esther – let’s review what we have learned so far:

1. Esther and Mordecai lived somewhere in the heart of the Persian Empire – in close proximity to Shushan (Susa) which was the winter palace of King Xerxes.
2. Esther and Mordecai’s grandparents were part of the Jewish nobility that were originally taken into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon.
3. Once the Babylonian captivity ended (70 years) the Jews had been instructed (by Jeremiah the prophet – see Jeremiah 25 & 29) to return to Jerusalem. Many of them did when Cyrus the Great issued the decree for the Jews to return to Jerusalem to re-build their Temple. (Ezra 1:1-4)
4. The families of Esther and Mordecai chose not to return to Jerusalem as instructed and found themselves in a foreign land outside of the blessings God had planned for them in Jerusalem. (Jeremiah 29:10-14)
5. Through a series of events (Esther 1-2), Esther will find herself in the position of the Queen of Persia. Mordecai, initially having access to the Kings court because of Esther will overhear an assassination plot to kill King Xerxes. Although this helps the King and spares his life, Mordecai “initially” receives no credit for helping the King.
6. At some point during the reign of Xerxes, a person by the name of Haman will rise to a significant rank within the Persian Empire and become an advisor to the King – much like a Prime Minister.
7. Haman (because of his position) will require submission by all within the Empire but Mordecai refuses to bow down to him. Haman will discover that Mordecai is a Jew and as a result, Haman will hatch a diabolical plan to kill not just Mordecai, but all Jews within the Persian Empire.
8. Mordecai will appeal to Esther to use her influence with the King to put a stop to this evil plan and will instruct her that she may well have been placed in the position of Queen “for such a time as this”!
9. Esther will prepare a banquet and invites Haman and the King where she intends to let the King know she would be included in this destruction of her people as she too was a Jew.
10. The King will have a restless night and the Lord will stir his heart to remember the assassination attempt on his life which took place some five years earlier. This will cause the King to recognize Mordecai for what he did and honor him with high honors and asks Haman to bestow those honors on Mordecai.
11. While that is all going on, Esther will reveal to the King that Haman’s plan to kill the Jews also involved her as they were her people given, she was also a Jew.
12. This infuriates the King and results in the King declaring Haman an “enemy of the Jews”. Haman will subsequently be impaled on the very gallows (pole) that he intended to place Mordecai on. This will result in Mordecai receiving special honor and an opportunity to save the Jews from annihilation and our final lesson explains how that takes place.

The King was bound by the original edict (Esther 3:13) to destroy, kill, and annihilate all Jews in the Persian Empire even though his Queen and New Prime Minister were Jews. That original law/edict could not be altered or revoked (because of Medo-Persian Law) or the King risked possible removal or even death.

The King will instead empower Mordecai and Esther to draft their own law and put it on the books. No doubt this was all a part of God’s plan to save the Jews from extinction. The plan that Mordecai and Esther drew up was a just law and much different from the murderous plan that Haman had put together. The new law will allow the Jews to formally defend themselves on the day that was originally planned to have all the Jews in the Empire killed. This will turn tragedy into triumph for the Jews and allow them to continue as God had planned for he was not finished with them yet.

At the conclusion of the Book of Esther we are introduced to a new feast that the Jews were to celebrate, and the name given was the Feast of Purim. Although it is not one of the required feasts of the Mosaic Law, it remains a celebrated feast within the Jewish culture even to this very day. This feast (a two-day celebration) serves as a reminder to the Jews that they were saved from annihilation (though not directly mentioned in the Book of Esther) because God protected them. This book is not just about the Lord’s protection for His people (The Jews), but it also makes it possible for the Lord to provide full redemption through the promised Messiah, Jesus a descendant of King David. “But when the fullness of time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law so that He might redeem those who are under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5)