The Jews had light and gladness, joy and honor. Esther 8:16
RECOMMENDED READING: ESTHER 8:1-17 “ That same day King Xerxes gave Queen Esther the estate of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came into the presence of the king, for Esther had told how he was related to her. 2 The king took off his signet ring, which he had reclaimed from Haman, and presented it to Mordecai. And Esther appointed him over Haman’s estate.3 Esther again pleaded with the king, falling at his feet and weeping. She begged him to put an end to the evil plan of Haman the Agagite, which he had devised against the Jews. 4 Then the king extended the gold scepter to Esther and she arose and stood before him.5 “If it pleases the king,” she said, “and if he regards me with favor and thinks it the right thing to do, and if he is pleased with me, let an order be written overruling the dispatches that Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, devised and wrote to destroy the Jews in all the king’s provinces. 6 For how can I bear to see disaster fall on my people? How can I bear to see the destruction of my family?”7 King Xerxes replied to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, “Because Haman attacked the Jews, I have given his estate to Esther, and they have impaled him on the pole he set up. 8 Now write another decree in the king’s name in behalf of the Jews as seems best to you, and seal it with the king’s signet ring—for no document written in the king’s name and sealed with his ring can be revoked.”9 At once the royal secretaries were summoned—on the twenty-third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. They wrote out all Mordecai’s orders to the Jews, and to the satraps, governors and nobles of the 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush.[a] These orders were written in the script of each province and the language of each people and also to the Jews in their own script and language. 10 Mordecai wrote in the name of King Xerxes, sealed the dispatches with the king’s signet ring, and sent them by mounted couriers, who rode fast horses especially bred for the king.11 The king’s edict granted the Jews in every city the right to assemble and protect themselves; to destroy, kill and annihilate the armed men of any nationality or province who might attack them and their women and children,[b] and to plunder the property of their enemies. 12 The day appointed for the Jews to do this in all the provinces of King Xerxes was the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar. 13 A copy of the text of the edict was to be issued as law in every province and made known to the people of every nationality so that the Jews would be ready on that day to avenge themselves on their enemies.14 The couriers, riding the royal horses, went out, spurred on by the king’s command, and the edict was issued in the citadel of Susa.
The Triumph of the Jews
15 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. 16 For the Jews it was a time of happiness and joy, gladness and honor. 17 In every province and in every city to which the edict of the king came, there was joy and gladness among the Jews, with feasting and celebrating. And many people of other nationalities became Jews because fear of the Jews had seized them.
COMMENTS: The story of Esther is a story of great faith in the midst of powerful sinister forces. Esther was a Jewish slave girl due to enslavement the Babylonians forced on her people many years before, the Mede-Persian empire inherited when they conquered Babylon and Xerxes inherited when he became the empire’s new King. When his queen displeased him, he looked for a new queen and chose Esther because of her beauty. His culture was pagan, so he did not know or follow God’s commands or moral standards, but that did not limit or hinder God’s ability or desire to render influence and impact on his people or even their pagan enslavers.
Haman was a man of great power and wealth and despised Esther’s uncle Mordecai and the Jewish people. He became so obsessed with destroying them, that he tricked the king to pass a law to destroy all Jews in the kingdom. Daniel’s enemies had tried to do so years earlier but God had other plans. It was time now for Esther to exercise her faith, as Daniel had done. Risk to he was for king to become angry and kill her when she confronts him about his new law.
Esther prayed and asked her uncle and people to pray as she prepared to approach the king. God prepared her and showed her the best approach to take. She obeyed and result was Haman’s evil scheme was exposed and he was hung on the gallows he built to kill Mordecai and Mordecai was given all of Haman’s wealth and power.
God made Esther an example of trust and faith teaching her people and all the people. She became an example to Jews and Christians of every generation since. The impact of her obedience is a legacy far beyond what she could imagine or had hope for, but God’s love and Grace toward her opened His floodgates of blessing. God has so much He desires to do for us and so much good He wants to do through us if we simply trust and obey His instruction. When we refuse, He is forced to discipline. He loves to bless and dreads to punish, which is why He delays discipline and not blessing. Yet hardship and suffering continue in this fallen and broken world, but not without God’s influence bringing good from evil influences and giving opportunity to repent as long as He can without permitting evil to fulfill its destructive goals.
Such was experienced by Esther and her people and demonstrated to their pagan owners. Xerxes and his empire could not claim ignorance of God or of His power or of His ways. Esther was key in showing them God’s love and Grace but also God’s justice too. No more excuses, but why should we want them? What does evil satan spreads have to offer that is better than good God provides? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! All they have are false promises without ability to fulfill them. Promises they have never fulfilled as far back as we have recorded history. Conversely, God always keeps His promises and has proven He does go back to beginning of recorded history.
Esther 8 describes the joy that flooded the Jews across the empire as they heard the news of their redemption from certain death. They learned of Esther’s courageous deeds and results. They could defend themselves, and Mordecai, their leader, was appointed prime minister of the land. The Bible says, “And in every province and city, wherever the king’s command and decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a holiday” (Esther 8:17).
None of us want to endure seasons of anxious stress or tense uncertainty. But after we’ve passed through the test, our sense of release and relief is like opening the windows to fresh air. We can breathe again. By God’s providence, every trial somehow returns a blessing in His time and way. Think of some of the deliverances God has given you, and let your heart be full of light and gladness, joy and honor.
When you have been through the fight, there is the wondrous joy and triumph of the feast.
Oswald Chambers
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