King Ahasuerus and Haman
were invited to a banquet hosted by Queen Esther. Although there was
an edict given by the king that all the Jews throughout the kingdom
were to be killed upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the
well kept secret by Queen Esther that she was a Jew was unknown to
both King Ahasuerus and Haman at the time. The undergirding and
wisdom of Almighty God is with Esther even though He is not mentioned
by name, and in chapter five and verse six we see more of how the
king's question to Esther plays into His eternal plan. We read:
And
the king said unto Esther at the banquet of wine, What is
your petition? and it shall be granted you: and what is your
request? even to the half of the kingdom it shall be performed.
Our verse begins, “And the king said unto Esther at the banquet
of wine, What is your petition? and it shall be
granted:” Once again we see King Ahasuerus ask Esther for her
petition, and we learn this banquet was a “banquet of wine.”
We might imagine King Ahasuerus, Haman and Esther sitting together
perhaps with a few servants as they dined and had beverages together,
and while the festivities were in full swing the king asked Esther
what she desired once again. He also confirms his wish to fulfill her
desire by assuring her that it would be granted. It is almost as
though he knew there was more to her request than that he and Haman
attend this banquet, so he once again asked her what she really
wanted. We can almost envision the king's countenance as he pleaded
with Esther to make her request known.
The verse goes on to say, “and what is your
request? even to the half of the kingdom it shall be performed.” As
a reassurance that he was serious about making Esther's request come
to pass, the king adds that he is willing to give her anything she
desired up to half the kingdom. This is the second time he has
offered such a gracious gift, and we might wonder what he was
thinking that she could want. His vow to fulfill her request was a
telling sign of how much he cared for Esther and what she desired.
Sometimes it is good for us to hear questions and vows more than
once. As it was in the case of Esther, when the king asked her once
again for her desire it was reassurance to her that she could get
what she truly wanted which was to save her people. We must keep in
mind that Almighty God is behind the scenes of this story and as
Esther desires to save her people, so does He. The messiah was to
come through the Jews, and these small factors within the story only
enhance the plan of God to save His people. As we get closer and
closer in the story when Esther asked for what she really wanted, let
it be reassurance to us that we too are under the mighty hand of God,
and even the repeated things are working for His purpose, plan and
will in our lives.
Next
time Esther will begin her answer to the king's question, so read
ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation” and the new marriage book “So, You Want
to Be Married” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ;
www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
how quickly I forget that God is working behind the scenes.
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