Hope you’re ready to attend a parade today! It’s a rollercoaster ride dear friends, and here’s something important I have to say. Never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. Whoever you are angry at, whoever has hurt you, whatever has been done to you, may I encourage you right now to place that thing in the hands of the Lord. The Lord is a God of justice. We so often talk about his love and he is love, but he is a God of justice too, and you can trust him with that ugly thing that happened to you. He will take care of it.
Today is evidence of just that as we see Esther prayerfully consider her next move in Haman’s attempt to destroy the Jewish people, which includes Esther and Mordecai! Hang on for today’s wild ride!
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Transcription:
Hope you’re ready to attend a parade today, but before you and I hop back on the rollercoaster of Queen Esther’s story in the Bible, I would love to kick off our time today by reading a few verses from Paul’s letter to the Romans chapter 12, beginning in verse 17.
Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the scriptures say, I will take revenge. I will pay them back, says the Lord.
We’ll talk a little more about that at the end of today’s episode, but for right now, welcome to the Bible for Busy People. I’m Erica and I just got the good chills because I am so excited to continue this story with you.
Mordecai had every right to wish revenge on Haman; the right hand man of the king who not only wanted to kill him, kill Mordecai, but all of his people, the Jews, simply because Mordecai would not bow down to Haman. Haman sets up this big, huge plot is about to go ask the king if he can execute Mordecai, and when he goes to the palace to make this request, he finds the king awake, suffering from insomnia. His attendant had just read to him from the palace records, and he found out that a man named Mordecai once saved his life by foiling a plan that his own palace guards had hatched. So, the king has a heart full of gratitude, and when he sees Haman, he gives him orders to honor Mordecai. Haman was about to ask the king if he could execute Mordecai, and here is where we pick up the story in Esther chapter six. We’re going to a parade and we’re going to watch as Haman follows the instructions of the king beginning in verse 11.
So Haman took the robes and put them on. Mordecai. Placed him on the king’s own horse and led him through the city square shouting, this is what the king does for someone he wishes to honor. Afterward, Mordecai returned to the palace gate, but Haman hurried home dejected and completely humiliated. When Haman told his wife, Zeresh, and all his friends what had happened, his wise advisors and his wife said, since Mordecai, this man who has humiliated you is of Jewish birth, you’ll never succeed in your plans against him. It will be fatal to continue opposing him. While they were still talking, the king’s eunuchs arrived and quickly took Haman to the banquet Esther had prepared.
Okay, before we move from the parade grounds to the banquet room, please allow me to share a theory I read recently. This absolutely fascinated me because I’ve always wondered why did Esther call for the second banquet? The king was clearly showing her favor. He offered her up to half the kingdom. She could have asked for anything. She could have begged for mercy for her people, the Jews and the king would’ve granted her request. But the theory I read that is so cool is this… Remember Esther and her maids were praying and fasting before the banquet. Mordecai, her cousin and all of his friends, the Jews, were praying and fasting, and maybe Esther just didn’t have peace in her heart that it was the right time to ask. She was waiting for something. So, the night between banquets was the night when Mordecai was honored with that parade from the king, and perhaps that’s when the peace just saturated her heart and she was like, okay, God is in this. I am going to find the courage to ask. Isn’t that interesting? I had never linked those two before; the parade and Esther’s courage. But I believe it was God almost winking at Esther and saying, I know. I know you need a little confidence, and I am in this. I am here. I will never leave you. Isn’t that beautiful? Okay, let’s pick up the story now in Esther chapter seven, you can almost hear the glasses clinking and the silverware tinkling in the banquet room. Here we go.
So the king and Haman went to Queen Esther’s banquet. On this second occasion while they were drinking wine, the king again said to Esther, tell me what you want, Queen Esther, what is your request? I will give it to you even if it is half the kingdom. Queen Esther replied,
Now, the Bible does not say this, but I’m thinking she took a nice deep breath before she said,
…if I have found favor with the king and if it pleases the king to grant my request, I ask that my life, and the lives of my people, will be spared. For my people, and I have been sold to those who would kill, slaughter and annihilate us. If we had merely been sold as slaves, I could remain quiet for that would be too trivial a matter to warrant disturbing the king. Who would do such a thing. King Xerxes demanded. Who would be so presumptuous as to touch you?
Remember, the king did not know that Esther was a Jew.
Esther replied, this wicked Haman is our adversary and our enemy. Haman grew pale with fright before the king and queen. Then the king jumped to his feet in a rage and went out into the palace garden. Haman, however, stayed behind to plead for his life with Queen Esther, for he knew that the king intended to kill him. In despair, he fell on the couch where Queen Esther was reclining, just as the king was returning from the palace garden, the king exclaimed. Will he even assault the queen right here in the palace before my very eyes? And as soon as the king spoke, his attendance covered Haman’s face signaling his doom. Then Harbona, one of the king’s eunuchs said, Haman has set up a sharpened pole that stands 75 feet tall in his own courtyard. He intended to use it to impale Mordecai, the man who saved the king from assassination. Then impaled Haman on it, The king ordered. So they impaled Haman on the poll he had set up for Mordecai and the king’s anger subsided.
Wow. Let’s end today where we began with the words of the Apostle Paul. Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. Whoever you are angry at, whoever has hurt you, whatever has been done to you, may I encourage you right now to place that thing in the hands of the Lord. The Lord is a God of justice. We so often talk about his love and he is love, but he is a God of justice too, and you can trust him with that ugly thing that happened to you. He will take care of it. Until next time, you are loved.
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