Esther 2 "IN HIS TIME" Four years had past since Vashti had been banished and Ahasuerus was again defeated by the Greeks and was likely unhappy and feeling sorry for himself. He "remembered Vashti" likely with a longing for the comfort of intimacy he was missing. He would have remembered the person of graceful beauty and enough character to refuse his demand when he was drunk. The event of the great feast must have made him ashamed of himself as he looked back at the choice he had made and the unchangeable edict he had put into effect. It is not uncommon for a man to be trapped by his own words when he acts foolishly on a spur-of- the-moment.
Advisors still manipulate leaders today. Some advice is good and some is bad. In that day women in the harem had very few rights. They were brought there through no will of their own. They had little or no say in their own lives as to what they wanted. The king's demands were law. Even though the queen had a bit more say in things because of her position, her freedom and authority were limited, and when one became assertive, she was at the mercy of the king. By the time four years were past Ahasuerus was needing more than mere physical satisfaction or the company of men, so when his advisors suggested a way to get a new queen to be with him, he was ready and willing for that to happen. Our sovereign God knows what is needed and how to attain that by using men to do His will even when they think the decision is theirs.
The young women who came to the house of women at Sushan, were from all parts of the country to prepare themselves for an audience with the king. The twelve months of preparation would have been a training time, a testing time and a trying time. Waiting can be a benefit if it makes us more conscious of what we need to learn and prepare for. To waste the waiting times of life doing nothing is useful time lost that will never be recovered. Filling waiting times with thoughtful consideration of that which is ahead of us can be the key to usefulness for God. Esther was one of those who was called there to prepare herself for the unseen future.
There is no divine sanction for the practices of the heathen nations and the ungodly things they do. Idolatry leads to absurdity in lifestyle and practices that are acceptable by unbelievers. When believers today try to copy the ways of the world, they become like the world in thought as well as deed. For His own sovereign reasons, the Lord allowed Esther to be there at that time, under the guidance of Mordecai. The Jewish population after one hundred years in Babylon would have been an accepted part of the community. Some would have been in business and some like Mordecai who would have been born in Babylon, were able to hold responsible positions in the government. He would have been used to the city, government protocol and the lifestyle of the royalty.
For us as believers, we need a strategy for living in order to reach acceptable goals. We will need to prioritize all that is before us and be able to identify meaningful, measureable and manageable objectives. To reach them we need to plan a course of action as to how to begin, and then the order in which each action should be taken. Then we need to act on what we know is right in the sight of God and go forward with confidence. In the practice of living there are times to be quiet and times to speak out. Silence can be an excuse and on the other hand, to be outspoken can be unnecessarily offensive. A testimony of faith may be as effective when one knows it is time to be quiet. Then to speak when spoken to, especially by those in authority, can be suitable because the subject has been carefully thought over in one's mind.
God, in a sovereign act of His divine will, arranged that an orphaned, Jewish exile would be raised up "for this time" to become queen of a heathen nation. He arranged events by placing Esther on the throne as queen before the planned annihilation of the Jews by the powers of darkness could happen. Neither Haman nor anyone else could stop God's plan for Christ, the Messiah, to come to the world in the future. We may have to make changes in our lives at times and we don't know the reasons until later. Some are even out of our own control so we need to remember our sovereign God is in control.
From the lineage of Mordecai, we learn that Esther was from the line of Saul who led God's people away from trusting the sovereign God. Now Mordecai and Esther were used by the sovereign God to preserve His people. One's background doesn't need to hinder our usefulness in the present. God uses who He chooses to fulfill His work. He knows every person and determines who is the one to do His will in any particular case. It was Esther He used and she "obtained favor in the sight of all who looked upon her."
Looks are one thing. Character is another. Attitude and personality often go together in making a public person appreciated. It was not wrong for Esther to accept the kindness, pity and favor of Hegai. She must have been an unassuming person who did not use her beauty as leverage to get what she wanted. A winsome personality removes many obstacles in life. Even as a young woman she listened to the advice of Mordecai and acted on what he said, even to the hiding of her nationality. Her Jewish practices were not obvious like Daniel's who was in Babylon before her, but she maintained her own personal consciousness of God being with her.
Mordecai held a position that enabled him to keep contact with Esther even when she was the queen of Persia. Practices of ungodly people around us are not consistent with the life, conduct and testimony of a believer. Because others do certain things, they think is okay, does not give God's people the right to do what is forbidden by God. The promiscuous life of an ungodly king did not mean that God could not use her as the deliverer of His people. When Ahasuerus saw Esther, he loved her and the selection process stopped right there. She did not have to wait for a comparison verdict. God in His sovereignty made the king to love Esther above all others and he set the crown upon her under divine guidance even though he wasn't aware of it.
It is of interest that the feast at that time was called "Esther's feast." It was attended by the king's men who were there, but her ascendency to the throne was felt by everyone in the provinces because there was a
"release." Likely it was a lowering of taxes or something similar that gave some relief to the rank and file of the population. In God's sovereign way He put Esther right where He wanted her.
The "king's gate" was probably a place where a lower court dealt with the day to day affairs of government. People with minor issues could come there and have a hearing. God again in His sovereign will had Mordecai there in the right place at the right time to hear the plot against the king. God knows people and has purposes for them that override all the best laid plans people have. Mordecai was a known Jew and that may have been why his advice for Esther was to not make her nationality known too quickly until she was well established in her new role. The fact that Mordecai told Esther of the plot of two of the king's security guard to kill the king, and of her giving the information to the king in Mordecai's name, would have given her a great deal of credibility as a person to be trusted.
It is important that we start early in our Christian life to build a good solid reputation as a person to be trusted. Not everyone who says they are a Christian really will speak up when someone who we may not like is in a situation that may be perilous to them physically or spiritually. Some will say, "Well, they deserve what's coming to them. It is none of my business what happens to them." One or two times like that and a person's trustworthiness is gone pretty much forever.
The investigation into the matter proved Mordecai's warning was a real threat, and steps were taken to remove the threat permanently. Again, God in a sovereign act arranged that the event was recorded for His divine purpose at a later time. As each day comes and goes in the life of a believer, we can be thankful that an omniscient God has everything under His control. Even when it comes to pain and suffering, often in a far greater measure than we expect, we need to remember that not all God's dealings with us are pleasant and comfortable because in His sovereign will He is preparing us for some future service.
The words of our Lord Jesus Christ to Peter and His other disciples when He washed their feet can be applied in this instance. "What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter." Many of the situations in life we will find ourselves in may be beyond our understanding, but we can rest assured, God does have a reason behind what He allows, and if He thinks we need to know that reason, He can make it known to us. If we never learn the reason, we will still trust Him because we know Him.