Author Archives: Mikesouthwick

For Such A Time As This – The Story of Esther and Mordecai, Part V

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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)

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For Such A Time As This – The Story of Esther and Mordecai, Part IV

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

Part IV – A Tale of Two Choices

Everything we read about Haman reveals a wicked and diabolical man who has taken the path of evil which (as we will see) will further result in a life of pride and arrogance leading to his eventual demise. This is precisely what taking the path of evil looks like and pride is what led to the downfall of Satan and the very path (“the wide road that leads to destruction” – Matthew 7:13-14) he is attempting to cause the whole of mankind to also follow.

Mordecai and Esther have taken the path of good which (as we will see) will further result in a life of humility which will lead to their success in saving their people from extinction. Despite the evil intentions of Haman, Esther will take a bold step (being led by God) by reaching out to the King which will create an opportunity for her to plead to the king for not just her life but the lives of her people the Jews. God will use the good intentions of Esther to successfully circumvent the evil intentions of Haman.

Before this meeting with the King takes place, Haman’s pride gets the best of him, and he will have the gallows built intending to use them to put Mordecai (in full display) to death. Hatred and bitterness (a product of pride) seemed to control Haman so much that it worked against him and the gallows that he built to have Mordecai killed would be used on himself.

C.S. Lewis wrote, “The essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride. Unchastely anger, greed, drunkenness and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison; it was through pride that the devil became the devil; Pride leads to every other vice; it is the complete anti-God state of mind…..as long as you are proud you cannot know God at all. A proud man is always looking down on things and people: and of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.”

It is only by the grace of God and his providential leading that King Xerxes has a restless night and will be stirred to examine the Persian records regarding the incident in which Mordecai previously uncovered a plot to have the King assassinated. It was Mordecai’s humility that allowed him to forgo any previous recognition but will now change not just his circumstances but also that of Haman’s. This, along with some additional findings by the King will bring judgment on Haman and blessings on Mordecai and Esther. They (Mordecai, Esther and all Jews in the Persian Kingdom) still have to face the previous edict/law requiring they be put to death – but that outcome will be found in our final lesson for next week.

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For Such A Time As This – The Story of Esther and Mordecai, Part III

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

Part III – A Tale of Two Paths

We pick up our story with Esther now serving as the Queen of the Persian Empire! We learned from last weeks lesson that this was no accident, but it was the providential hand of the Lord God. This was no mere set of coincidental circumstances that a young Jewish woman would now serve in the roll of the Queen of the mighty Persian Empire but that will show itself in the chapters that follow in the Book of Esther.

Now that Esther is Queen, her status will allow Mordecai (her cousin who probably adopted her and raised her as his own daughter) to have a watchful eye over her. This  position will allow Mordecai to overhear a plot to kill/assassinate King Xerxes and he will report that to Queen Esther who then reports that to King Xerxes and those conspirators are put to death. Unfortunately, Mordecai doesn’t receive immediate credit (he will later but that is for another lesson) and another up and comer by the name of Haman will rise to power as a key leader in the Persian government and he will have the ear of King Xerxes.

Haman (as we will discover) is an evil man and through a set of events will develop a hatred for Mordecai because he refuses to bow down to him. Haman will also find out that Mordecai is a Jew and will hatch an evil plan to kill Mordecai and all Jews throughout the empire. The Jewish heritage of Esther is yet to be revealed but in due time she will reveal her heritage to the King and both her will and her faith will be tested once the evil plot of Haman to kill and annihilate all Jews in the Persian Empire is put into place.

This lesson, titled A Tale of Two Paths, is about good and evil. Haman represents evil and all that goes along with the choice of that path. Mordecai and Esther represent good and all that goes along with choosing that path. It’s much like the lesson that Jesus taught his disciples when he said, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only few find it.”

Haman will choose the path of evil and will suffer the results of that decision while Esther and Mordecai will choose the path of good resulting in life for both them and their people. The lessons learned here is this study is that good will always triumph over evil and God’s providence will always prevail!

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For Such A Time As This – The Story of Esther and Mordecai, Part II

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

Part II – A Tale of Two Queens

In this lesson we find the King of the Persian Empire who is called by Ahasuerus (a transliteration of his Persian name Khshayarsha) or by his Greek name Xerxes and he is reigning over the 127 provinces of Persia which includes the land of Judah/Palestine. Xerxes was a very powerful King and the empire that he ruled over was equally powerful, so much so, it rivalled that of the Greek Empire of his time.

The first chapter of the Book of Esther introduces us to a lavish party that Xerxes put together for his military leaders and nobility to celebrate their accomplishments as an empire. The timing of this party fits into the historical record in which Xerxes was “poking the bear” and preparing to take on the Greek Empire in battle. It was common for Kings to throw lavish parties both to celebrate past victories and to prepare the military leaders for upcoming battles. Although we are not specifically told this was the purpose of the party mentioned in Esther 1 – it is certainly a strong possibility.

At this banquet we are introduced to Queen Vashti who was the reigning Queen over the Persian Empire along with Xerxes. Unfortunately for her she refuses to comply with the Kings request, and this results in her being deposed/removed as queen. This creates an interesting opportunity for the other women of the Persian Empire and as the chapter unfolds, we will see this opens the door for Esther (a young Jewish woman) to become Queen and thus replaces Vashti.

 This was no coincidence and clearly is the providential hand of The Lord God who places Esther in the right place at the right time or better defined as “Such a Time as This”. Esther will win the favor of King Xerxes and her beauty (both inside and outside) captivated Xerxes so much she was given “most favored status” even though she was a Jew. Esther’s heritage will play a roll in the events that unfold through the Book of Esther but for this moment she was the talk of the town.

In each of these opportunities we can see the providence of God at work. The way in which He orchestrates His will to be accomplished despite what may seem (to some) as unimportant at the time or a mere coincidence but, is divine intervention for His purposes and our good. The Apostle Paul writes it this way; “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28)

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For Such A Time As This – The Story of Esther and Mordecai, Part I

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

Part I – Introduction/Overview

By way of introduction, there are a few interesting items to consider about the Old Testament Book of Esther. First and foremost, the book appears in the Old Testament as the 17th book of the Bible, but the historic/chronological context would place the events of Esther as one of the last 4 Books of the Old Testament.

The events of the Book of Esther take place over a period of 10 years (483 – 473 BC) during the reign of the Persian King Ahasuerus (aka Xerxes) who ruled over the 127 provinces of the Persian Empire from 485-465 BC. Prior to this time, the Jews (of the Southern Kingdom of Judah) were taken from their lands of Judah and relocated to the land of Babylon. This was known as the “Exile” and something that was prophesied to happen by Jeremiah the prophet. Eventually the Babylonian Empire was conquered by the Persians in 539 BC, and they ruled over the people of Judah until a later date when the Greeks conquer the Persian Empire.  It was Cyrus the Great (great grandfather to King Ahasuerus) who will decree that the Jews would be permitted to return to their homeland and rebuild their temple. Many Jews will return to Jerusalem as they were instructed to do, and you can read about that in the books of Ezra, Haggai, and Zechariah.

The story of Esther is about those Jews who remained behind in Persia and did not return to Jerusalem as thy were commanded to do. Esther and Mordecai’s grandparents were part of the group that remained behind in Persia and set the stage for the events recorded in the book of Esther. The story that unfolds in the Book of Esther is a powerful testimony to the sovereign protection of God as He purposes to fulfill the promises made to Abraham and his descendants. We will be introduced to two wonderful people, Esther, and Mordecai, who God will use to spare the people of promise (the Jews) from complete annihilation by an evil man named Haman. It will be Esther and Mordecai, who stand in the gap and assists their people in protecting themselves and ultimately securing the lineage of King David that would one day bring about the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

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The First Family of Faith – The Story of Abraham and Sarah Part 2

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Our story picks up with Abraham, Sarah and Lot facing some growing pains. Both Lot and Abrahams herds have grown and so had their possessions which created a need for them to go their separate ways. Lot had a passion toward wickedness which was evident by his choice to go in the direction of Sodom. Abraham and Sarah’s passion was to worship God and follow Him which was evident in the choices they made.

This decision by Abraham and Sarah will bring about a covenant (a promise) that God makes with Abraham in which he not only promises him a male heir who will receive the same covenant promise that God makes to Abraham but also future offspring too numerous to count. In addition, he would be blessed with a land that was so vast and large it too could not be fully grasped as to its size.

There will be a several important developments involving Lot, Abraham, and Sarah along with the consequences of a bad decision. In the end God’s promise of a son that would be the offspring of Abraham and Sarah will come true. From that child (Isaac) will come future generations of descendants (too numerous to count) that will call out to God and worship Him. Abraham and Sarah’s faith will be tested, and God will honor their faith with a legacy that spans the entire Bible and continues even to our modern day. “Consider Abraham: He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness. Understand then, that those who believe are children of Abraham. The scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and announce the gospel in advance to Abraham: All nations will be blessed through you. So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith” (Galatians 3:6-9)

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Current Events in Israel – What might happen next

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Given the current events of Israel and the Middle East and the polarizing effects of the struggle between good and evil, it is good to remind ourselves that the true enemy is Satan (a real being and not a people group) whose one goal is to destroy all that is good in our world. We must remember that sin exists, evil is real and what we are currently witnessing before our very eyes are the result of mankind’s rebellion against a Holy God. This rebellion against God will have an end because Jesus Christ provided a way of escape (by His death on the cross and His resurrection from death) for those who believe and trust in Him by faith. When He returns (as He promised He would) all things will be brought under submission to Him and He will destroy all that is evil. While we await the return of Jesus Christ our Messiah mankind will at times suffer the worst of atrocities because evil is real, and it can blind even the best intended people. We must understand that evil is the enemy of good and that God is good, and Satan is evil.

The current war that Israel is facing are the result of this evil and those who are bent on their destruction. It is possible that this war will expand beyond the borders of modern-day Israel and may well lead to a far more serious set of worldwide events that will lead to what the Bible refers to as Armageddon! That is a lesson for another day.

This study is designed to help us understand the history of Israel both from a Biblical perspective but also a historical perspective. Many (if not all) of these current conflicts can be traced back as far as Abraham and his offspring, the period of the Kings of Israel, and the times of occupation by the empires of Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. Then came the Crusades, the dominance of the Ottoman Empire and the mismanagement of the Middle East ever since WWI and beyond. It is a wonder that mankind has not destroyed itself fighting these senseless battles when the answer is submission to God by simple faith in Jesus Christ. One day mankind will submit as Paul tells us in his writings to the Philippians; “For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11)

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First Family of Faith – The Story of Abraham and Sarah Part 1

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Long before there was an Abram and Sarai a catastrophic worldwide flood occurred. For the sake of argument, I am going to embrace the date of the flood as approximately 2350 B.C. and accept the biblical narrative of Genesis spelling out the details of both the flood and the repopulation of the earth.

It all began with Noah’s 3 sons (Shem, Ham, and Japheth) and their wives. Sometime after the waters receded and the Ark rested on the mountains of Ararat (Genesis 8:4) Noah and his sons, along with their wives, came out of the ark and began to settle in the lands later known as the Fertile Crescent. (Genesis 8-10). The heaviest concentration of their descendants settled in the plains of Shinar which is commonly known as Babylon and where the Tower of Babel was constructed, approx. 2250 B.C. (Genesis 11:2). The Lord decided to scatter the “people” over the face of the earth and the reasons for that are described in Genesis 11:9.

Over time the various people groups (all descendants of either Shem, Ham or Japheth) settled in the regions of what we now call Syria, Egypt, Palestine and or the Middle East. Several key locations then were known as Memphis, Beersheba, Hazor, Haran, Akkad, Babylonia, and Ur. People settled in these locations because the land was fertile due to its accessibility to water as opposed to the vast desert areas that surrounded the fertile crescent. At this time and in the centuries to follow this area was called the Cradle of Civilization because it was where civilization began, and it was all the existed to known world at that time. Eventually Abram (a descendant from the line of Shem) will be born and his lineage can be traced by reading Genesis 11:10-26. But let me make that a little easier on you:

The traditional date for the birth of Abram is 2160 B.C. and from there our story begins as we learn about the call that God places on Abram (Genesis 12). It is an amazing lesson of faith and trust which is retold in the New Testament Book called Hebrews. Abram was instructed by God to leave his home which was originally located in Ur of the Chaldeans, then Harran and then told to leave there and settle in the land of Canaan. This was no easy task and not for the faint of heart as the Canaanites, Amorites and other “ites” were not going to be the best of neighbors for this new family. It was God’s plan to give this land to Abraham and his many descendants (keeping in mind that at this point Abram and Sarai had no children) which makes this faith story so powerful! (Hebrews 11:8-12) This story begins with God’s call to Abram in which he was to leave his home and settle in the Land of Promise on the belief that God would honor his promise. This act of faith which was counted as “righteousness” for Abram will generate a lasting covenant between God and Abraham in which he and his descendants will be blessed by God and given a land to settle in and worship their creator. There will be challenges and hurdles for Abram and Sarai but none of those circumstances will negate the Covenant between God and His people which we will see next week!

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Great Grand Parents to a King Part 4 – A Testimony of God’s Provision and Providence

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This is the fourth and final installment of our series entitled; Great Grandparents to a King – The Story of Ruth and Boaz. By way of review of the first 3 chapters of Ruth we learned:

  1. Ruth was a testimony of God’s grace (she received something she didn’t deserve) and God’s mercy (she didn’t receive something she did deserve – eternal separation from God). That same grace and mercy is extended to not just Ruth but to all of us through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
  2. Ruth was a testimony of hope and we learn from this story that God provides hope for the hurting and this was evidenced in how God restores Naomi (Ruth’s mother in law) by bringing healing and blessing through the life of Ruth and Boaz.
  3. Ruth was a testimony of God’s protection which is evidenced through His plan (The birth of Jesus the Messiah), purpose (to restore and reconcile us to God through the death and resurrection of Jesus the Messiah) and pledge of redemption (the indwelling of the Holy Spirit while we wait for the return of Jesus).

There are two things we will see as we conclude this series:

  1.  The Evidence of God’s Provision which is seen through the satisfaction of the law and an act of love (Ruth 4). Both of these are never clearer when we compare the story of Ruth and Boaz to what Christ accomplished on the cross for all. Jesus Christ satisfied the righteous requirements of the law through his act of love by willingly dying on the cross to redeem us from a life of separation from God. The result is witnessed through a New Life! For Ruth the evidence of a new life is seen through her great grandson (King David) through whose linage would come the birth of the Messiah and Savior, Jesus Christ! For us the evidence of a new life happens when we accept/embrace that truth by accepting Jesus Christ (by faith) as our Lord and Savior.
  2. The Evidence of God’s Providence witnessed through the life of Naomi (sometimes bad things can happen to good people), Ruth (someone without hope) and Boaz (someone who knew what was right and did it). All 3 of these people were counted worthy to not only have their story told but to be counted in the human lineage of Jesus Christ the Messiah.

I hope you have enjoyed this series as much as I have!

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Great Grandparents to a King Part 3 – A Testimony of God’s Protection

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The story of Ruth and Boaz continues, and it becomes very clear that Boaz is not only attracted to Ruth, but he has every intent on “redeeming” her through the bonds of marriage. Perhaps some people (in today’s world) might struggle with this whole idea of a man (in this case Boaz who was an influential, wealthy leader of his community) needing to “redeem” Ruth as if she was some sort of property to purchase. If you draw those conclusions, then you are going to miss the whole point of the story and the whole reason this Book of the Bible is included in the Old Testament cannon of Scripture.

In the whole economy of God’s plan was for His people to care for others as He cares for us. Remember, this story of Ruth and Boaz come after the established Law that God gave to the Israelites through Moses. It is in that Law (more than just the ten commandments) that taught God’s people (the Israelites) how they were to engage with and worship their God (Jehovah), as well as how they were to treat one another and those outside of the “commonwealth” of Israel. There were rules and strict rules at that requiring the Israelites to provide for and protect those who couldn’t provide for and protect themselves. As such the fatherless, widows and orphans needed to be cared for by those who had the ability to provide that provision and protection.

“You shall not pervert the justice due to the sojourner or to the fatherless, or take a widow’s garment in pledge, but you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you from there; therefore, I command you to do this. “When you reap your harvest in your field and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over them again. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow. When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not strip it afterward. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow.” Deuteronomy 24:17-21

Ruth, by virtue of her marriage to Mahlon (son of Elimelech) was now a widow and the responsibility to care for her fell on the family of Elimelech to provide. Naomi understood this and so did Boaz. God will orchestrate a series of situations that will bring about the union of these two love birds – Ruth and Boaz.

Caring of others, especially the less fortunate is a principal found throughout the Scripture and an attribute that God has displayed throughout the Old and New Testament. This story of redemption is not a story about purchasing property or “lording over another human being by virtue of status”, but a story of Protection evidenced by the Plan of Redemption, the Purpose of Redemption, and the Pledge of Redemption. The decision by Boaz to step up and provide that “Protection” to Ruth is where we find ourselves in this third installment of our series, “Great Grandparents to a King – The Story of Ruth and Boaz”.

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