Power in the Persian Court

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1 Fellowship Bible Church ~~Women in the Word~~ ESTHER: God Fulfills a Promise February 11, 2014 Power in the Persian Court INTRO: A closer look at...king XERXES (AHASUERUS) 1 These events happened in the days of King Xerxes, who reigned over 127 provinces stretching from India to Ethiopia. 2 At that time Xerxes ruled his empire from his royal throne at the fortress of Susa. 3 In the third year of his reign, he gave a banquet for all his nobles and officials. He invited all the military officers of Persia and Media as well as the princes and nobles of the provinces. 4 The celebration lasted 180 days a tremendous display of the opulent wealth of his empire and the pomp and splendor of his majesty. 1

2 XERXES- Hebrew: AHASUERUS- Daniel 11:2 (NLT) Now then, I will reveal the truth to you. Three more Persian kings will reign, to be succeeded by a fourth, far richer than the others. He will use his wealth to stir up everyone to fight against the kingdom of Greece. "The three kings and their reigns that succeeded Cyrus (Daniel was writing in the first year of Cyrus and his deputy king Darius Daniel 11:1), were: Cambyses ( B.C.), Smerdis ( B.C.), and Darius Hystapses ( B.C.). The fourth king was Xerxes ( B.C.), notorious for his great army and navy campaigns against Greece, only to suffer bitter defeat". ~Henry Morris Some facts about Xerxes' temperament from the Greek Historian Herodotus: The Bridge Pythias the Lydian... PARTY (part two) 5 When it (180 day feast) was all over, the king gave a banquet for all the people, from the greatest to the least, who were in the fortress of Susa. It lasted for seven days and was held in the courtyard of the palace garden. 6 The courtyard was beautifully decorated with white cotton curtains and blue hangings, which were fastened with white linen cords and purple ribbons to silver rings embedded in marble pillars. Gold and silver couches stood on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and other costly stones. 7 Drinks were served in gold goblets of many designs, and there was an abundance of royal wine, reflecting the king s generosity. 8 By edict of the king, no limits were placed on the drinking, for the king had instructed all his palace officials to serve each man as much as he wanted. INTRODUCING QUEEN VASHTI 9 At the same time, Queen Vashti gave a banquet for the women in the royal palace of King Xerxes. Vashti is also called Amestris in Greek writings. 10 On the seventh day of the feast, when King Xerxes was in high spirits because of the wine, he told the seven eunuchs who attended him Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas 11 to bring Queen Vashti to him with the royal crown on her head. He wanted the nobles and all the other men to gaze on her beauty, for she was a very beautiful woman. "High spirits" 1 Sam 25:36 (NLT) When Abigail arrived home, she found that Nabal was throwing a big party and was celebrating like a king. He was very drunk, so she didn t tell him anything about her meeting with David until dawn the next day. Eccl 10:17 (NLT) 17 Happy is the land whose king is a noble leader and whose leaders feast at the proper time to gain strength for their work, not to get drunk. 2

3 Prov 31:4-5(NLT) 4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, to guzzle wine. Rulers should not crave alcohol. 5 For if they drink, they may forget the law and not give justice to the oppressed. Eph 5:18 (NLT) 18 Don t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit. What's a eunuch? "with the royal crown on her head", 12 But when they conveyed the king s order to Queen Vashti, she refused to come. This made the king furious, and he burned with anger. 1 Peter 2:13-21 (NLT) 13 For the Lord s sake, respect all human authority whether the king as head of state, 14 or the officials he has appointed It is God s will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you. 16 For you are free, yet you are God s slaves, so don t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil. 17 Respect everyone, and love your Christian brothers and sisters. Fear God, and respect the king. Eph 5:21-25 (NLT) 21 And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. 22 For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23 For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of his body, the church. 24 As the church submits to Christ, so you wives should submit to your husbands in everything. 25 For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her. Eph 6:1 (NKJV) Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Heb 13:17 (NLT) 17 Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit. Acts 4:1-20 (NLT) While Peter and John were speaking to the people, they were confronted by the priests, the captain of the Temple guard, and some of the Sadducees. 2 These leaders were very disturbed that Peter and John were teaching the people that through Jesus there is a resurrection of the dead. 3 They arrested them and, since it was already evening, put them in jail until morning... 7 They brought in the two disciples and demanded, By what power, or in whose name, have you done this? 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, Rulers and elders of our people, 9 are we being questioned today because we ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed? 10 Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved." So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John replied, Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him? 20 We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard. 3

4 "This made the king furious, and he burned with anger" James 1:20 (NLT) Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires. Eph 4:26-27 (NLT) And don t sin by letting anger control you. Don t let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil. Eccl 7:9 (NLT) 9 Control your temper, for anger labels you a fool. THE KING'S RESPONSE: 13 He immediately consulted with his wise advisers, who knew all the Persian laws and customs, for he always asked their advice. 14 The names of these men were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan seven nobles of Persia and Media. They met with the king regularly and held the highest positions in the empire. 15 What must be done to Queen Vashti? the king demanded. What penalty does the law provide for a queen who refuses to obey the king s orders, properly sent through his eunuchs? "He immediately consulted with his wise advisers" Prov 11:14 (NLT) Without wise leadership, a nation falls; there is safety in having many advisers. Prov 15:22 (NLT) 22 Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success. Psalms 1:1 (NLT) Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. "who knew all the Persian laws and customs"- "nobles" THE "WISE" MEN RESPOND with ULTERIOR MOTIVES Esth 1:16-? (NLT) 16 Memucan answered the king and his nobles, Queen Vashti has wronged not only the king but also every noble and citizen throughout your empire. 17 Women everywhere will begin to despise their husbands when they learn that Queen Vashti has refused to appear before the king. 18 Before this day is out, the wives of all the king s nobles throughout Persia and Media will hear what the queen did and will start treating their husbands the same way. There will be no end to their contempt and anger. 19 So if it please the king, we suggest that you issue a written decree, a law of the Persians and Medes that cannot be revoked. It should order that Queen Vashti be forever banished from the presence of King Xerxes, and that the king should choose another queen more worthy than she. 20 When this decree is published throughout the king s vast empire, husbands everywhere, whatever their rank, will receive proper respect from their wives! 21 The king and his nobles thought this made good sense, so he followed Memucan s counsel. 22 He sent letters to all parts of the empire, to each province in its own script and language, proclaiming that every man should be the ruler of his own home and should say whatever he pleases. 4

5 NLT: "every man should be the ruler of his own home and should say whatever he pleases." Esth 1:22 (NKJV) 22 Then he sent letters to all the king's provinces, to each province in its own script, and to every people in their own language, that each man should be master in his own house, and speak in the language of his own people. Prov 31:4 (NLT) 4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, to guzzle wine. Rulers should not crave alcohol. 5 For if they drink, they may forget the law and not give justice to the oppressed. IN CONCLUSION Connections... APPLICATION QUESTIONS: Whenever we become inebriated by alcohol, or powerful emotions like anger or pride and we have power over others, we may be incited by unpleasant circumstance to blur the line of right and wrong and do things that oppress those in our care. In what ways have I done this or am tempted to do this when angry or my pride has been offended? What could happen if I act upon my pride or anger and tyrannize those who are under my care? Who we heed does matter. Ask yourself, whose opinions matter the most to me? Whose approval do I seek to win? Is he or she a godly person? Is their goal to advance the kingdom of God in my life or are they appealing to my old selfish nature in an effort to control or manipulate me to do their will? Am I a "people controller" or the victim of one? Am I a person who is easily controlled and manipulated or am I person who finds it impossible to let others make their own decisions without trying to guide them to the decision I think they ought to make? Both are signs of moral weakness before God. Both are the result of not trusting God. Some people control others without appearing to do so, while others are less subtle and use the threat of brute force. Both are sinful actions. If you are in a relationship with a person that uses either method to control you seek godly counsel and safety if appropriate. If you are the controller you need to repent and seek godly counsel as well. A good resource for controllers is The Control Trap by Barbara Sullivan. Next week: Session 2, WHAT'S a NICE GIRL LIKE YOU DOING in a PLACE LIKE THIS? (Esther 2) 5

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