My original intention was to blog about Esther as we went through Beth Moore’s study Esther: It’s Tough Being a Woman. I did some extra research on my own in addition to the study material and found some of it so interesting that I wanted to share it. After my Daniel study I realized that I knew a lot about the Babylonians, Greeks and Romans, but not much about the Persians. This extra study has filled in the gap for me and made the story of the Old Testament more meaningful knowing the wonders and miracles God performed during this time period, and how that fits into the larger picture of God’s eternal plan of salvation.
However, since writing isn’t my really my thing it takes me a little longer than normal people to write, and coupled with my talent for procrastination, here we are wrapping up 3 years after I started my Esther journey. A little longer than I had hoped, but the timing of this wrap up is fantastic as today is the feast of Purim! To close, I thought I would share some final links about Esther.
Eat cookies! Hamantaschen are the traditional cookies made at Purim. Also called “Haman’s Ears,” they are said to resemble Haman’s ears as they drooped when he had to confess his plot. There are lots of different fillings, so try Smitten Kitchen’s Tiny Poppy Seed ‘Taschen or The Cupcake Project Hamantashen.
Go visit the possible site of the tomb of Esther and Mordecai in Hamadan, Iran. This is one of the oldest cities in the world and is full of culture and history. You should probably hurry, though, as there are rumors of terrorists wanting to destroy the shrine. Since most of us have never ventured to this part of the world I would highly recommend Rick Steves’ guide to Iran (I plan to use it someday!).
Watch an Esther movie! Here are some of my favorite Esther movies and an opera:
One Night with the King (2006) I can’t believe I didn’t see this movie when it first came out! There are so many great actors in this film, including Peter O’Toole, Omar Sharif, John Rhys-Davies and John Noble. Unlike some other Biblical-based films, this one stays fairly true to the original story and does a good job bringing the ancient story to life.
VeggieTales: Esther, the Girl Who Became Queen (2000)
For Your Consideration (2006) While this isn’t exactly about Esther, it is about Purim. This film is a Christopher Guest “mockumentary” in the style of Waiting for Guffman or Best in Show.
Esther and the King (1960), featuring Joan Collins
Esther, an opera in three acts composed by Hugo Weisgall in 1993
Esther Megillah from Library of Congress
The Jews’ success was so great that Mordecai instructed that everyone make this a yearly celebration to praise God for his deliverance. This feast, called Purim, was added to the other seven Levitical feasts. It is still celebrated today; it starts with a pre-Purim fast to remember Esther’s fast before approaching Xerxes, then a feast with a reading of the Esther Megillah (scroll), giving gifts to the poor, giving food to friends and eating hamantaschen cookies (Haman’s ears).
A Crash Course on Purim
Lego Purim for Kids
The Purim Song by the Maccabeats
“When Mordecai left the king’s presence, he was wearing royal garments of blue and white, a large crown of gold and a purple robe of fine linen. And the city of Susa held a joyous celebration. For the Jews it was a time of happiness and joy, gladness and honor.”
Oh, how the tables have turned! Haman’s estate is given to Esther, who then appoints it to Mordecai. Mordecai is then introduced to the king in person and is given the same signet ring that Haman once wore, as well as royal robes and a crown (sound like Joseph?). While this is exciting and cause for celebration, there’s no time to celebrate yet. The original edict to annihilate the Jews is still set to happen; they are still facing genocide.
Royal Road from Livius.org
Xerxes gave Mordecai and Esther permission to write a new decree that allowed the Jews to defend themselves on the day of the edict. This new decree was then quickly written in every language and sent out to the 127 provinces. I found it amusing that the text specifically says the couriers used the “fast horses,” unlike when the original edict went out on regular horses. This was indeed news worth getting out quickly! It also helped that the Persians already had an excellent road system established that covered the empire.
Seed Thought: Even when a situation seems completely hopeless and all doors are shut, God provides a way of escape. In this case, while Esther couldn’t stop people from killing Jews on the day of the edict, she was at least able to allow the Jews the ability to fight back and protect their families. If it were me, I would have a hard time seeing this as an “escape,” but then again I often jump to conclusions prematurely. We’ve also got to wait on God for his timing on the escape; He often waits until the last second to act, but as Beth Moore says, “He’s never late.”
“Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs attending the king, said, “A pole reaching to a height of fifty cubits stands by Haman’s house. He had it set up for Mordecai, who spoke up to help the king.” The king said, “Impale him on it!”
Haman Begging the Mercy of Esther (Rembrandt)
Not long after Haman finished his humiliating task of parading Mordecai around town on the king’s horse was it time to attend Esther’s second banquet. After small talk waned the king again asked Esther about her request. This time, she didn’t stall; she came right out and told the king about the plot to kill her and her people and that Haman was behind it.
Up to this point it seems as if Xerxes had no idea of what Haman was up to, or how much Haman hated Mordecai and the Jews. Xerxes grows furious as it all falls together in his mind; how he now sees Haman’s attempts at the throne and the threat against his beloved Queen. He leaves the room and goes out to the garden to fume and plan his next step.
“That night the king could not sleep; so he ordered the book of the chronicles, the record of his reign, to be brought in and read to him.”
Nabonidus Chronicle
Normally I sleep very well, so on the rare occasion that I do have trouble sleeping it really gets me frustrated. There was one night where I tried everything to get back to sleep: I watched two nature shows on TV, read, tried yoga, even ran two miles to tire myself out, but nothing worked. After reading Esther 6, I now have a new strategy: read legal documents!
It seems divine Providence is in order here, because as the chronicles are read to Xerxes he realizes that Mordecai had not yet been rewarded for saving the King’s life, five years after the fact. In perfect timing, Haman arrives to ask the King about killing Mordecai and instead ends up just in time to help plan the reward for who he thinks is himself. Haman’s true feelings are revealed in his request: royal robes (thought to have magical powers), riding the king’s horse through town while a herald shouts his praise – coupled with the signet ring he already had, these items would make Haman just like the King.
When Xerxes agrees to the request I can picture the excitement and glee on Haman’s prideful face. But then as Xerxes continues with “do this for Mordecai the Jew,” you can feel his spirit being crushed to smithereens as his face goes pale with disbelief. Oh, the poetic justice that Haman had to parade Mordecai around town dressed in the King’s robes!
Seed Thought: One translation of Esther 6:1 says that “the Lord took sleep from the king.” This certainly gives a different perspective to having a sleepless night! Psalm 127:2 says that God grants sleep to those he loves, but in her Esther study, Beth Moore points out that, like Xerxes, maybe there is unfinished business that we need to address first (p. 132). The next time I experience a sleepless night I will listen for God to speak to me like he did to Samuel in 1 Samuel 3!
Advice and rebuke; Value of advisors; Discipline; Lawkeeping; Repentance; Righteousness and wickedness; Integrity and perversion; Appropriate consequences
Ryan: There are simply too many good thoughts in these Proverbs to pick out just one to talk about (kinda like Lays Potato Chips), so I thought I’d talk about the Proverbs from a global perspective. As you read through the Proverbs, you are constantly reminded of exceptions–”When a man’s ways are pleasing to the Lord, he makes even his enemies live at peace with him” (Prov. 16:7). Obviously, this isn’t a hard and fast guarantee or else Jesus would not have had any enemies. The Proverbs are not true 100% of the time–they are not “promises” of God. They are general rules, life principles to live by. It’s important to remember that while we have free will to make good and bad decisions, God’s Will (the “big picture” type of will) takes precedence over even our own choices. For example, Jesus had to die for our sins, so having him live his life with zero enemies or conflict and dying at a nice old age around 100 would not have allowed him to be our atoning sacrifice. There are times when even righteous men have to endure suffering or fools win out over wise men simply so that God’s Will continues on unbroken. You just have to have faith whenever one of these proverbs does not seem to be true that God has a really good reason for it.
Samantha: I was the only one In my kindergarten class who could read, which brought many rewards like one-on-one time with the teacher and being the narrator in the school production of The Little Red Hen. On one fall day I was sitting at the “special table” by the teacher’s desk coloring away on an activity sheet when I realized that I hadn’t yet read the instructions on the page. I was supposed to do something with consonants, but it was too late–I had already colored over the instructions. Rats! I knew I was going to be in trouble, but I hoped that teacher would show me mercy and give me a new page. I took the paper to the teacher, who took one look at it and told me that because I had not followed directions I had to go sit back with the other kids, no more special activities for me. I was absolutely devastated and sobbed the rest of the morning. I will always remember that day, and the resentment and heartbreak I felt because I knew what I should have done and didn’t do it. Losing those privileges hurt me enough to make me understand the value of following instructions. “Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise” (Proverbs 19:20).
Tags: Faith, Witnessing
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