Earlier in our story of
Esther we met seven chamberlains who served King Ahasuerus of Persia.
We found the king's request through them refused by Vashti his queen
who was beckoned to come to Ahasuerus' party with the royal crown
upon her head. Because her rejection infuriated the king, in chapter
one and verse fourteen we meet seven princes who were advisors to
King Ahasuerus and were well informed of the Persian law. We read:
And the next unto him
[was] Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, [and]
Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media, which saw the king's
face, [and] which sat the first in the kingdom;)
This
verse continues the portion of scripture that was parenthetical as
Ahasuerus seeks the advice of his wise men. We read in verse
thirteen,
Then the king said to
the wise men, which knew the times, (for so [was] the king's manner
toward all that knew law and judgment:
So the
continuance within verse fourteen is to share who these men were who
“knew law and judgment”. Their meaning of their names are
interesting: Carshena means “illustrious”; Shethar means “a
star”; Admatha means “a testimony to them”; Tarshish means
“yellow jasper”; Meres means “lofty”; Marsena means “worthy”;
and Memucan means “dignified”. So let us picture this scene: The
king is angry beyond measure and knows he must do something about
Queen Vashti's refusal to follow his request, so he called together
“Illustrious, a star, a testimony to them, yellow jasper, lofty,
worthy, and dignified.” If we desire a laugh we might think of them
as the seven dwarfs, however these were the men that King Ahasuerus
knows as princes who were wise in the law.
The
verse continues, “the seven princes of Persia and Media, which
saw the king's face, and which sat the first in the kingdom;)”
These were the special ones, the select ones, and the ones who were
advisors to the King himself, but where did they come from? What were
their lives like before they became princes before the king? How were
they educated, and who taught them the law to the degree that they
could advise a king? Obviously he respected their counsel as he
allowed them “before his face” on a regular basis, and we have
read that there is wisdom in a multitude of counselors, but why were
these the ones who were chosen for that counsel? We may never know,
but nonetheless they were.
Who, we
might ask, are the counselors in our lives? Whom do we consider to
have good direction, wisdom and knowledge about certain thoughts,
ideas and reactions to outward stimulations and situations for us?
How did they get to that position? As we consider these questions in
both our lives and the life of Ahasuerus, we may recall that Divine
Providence is a theme within this book, and those who surround us
today may have been placed by the Almighty to direct our path toward
His. We must remember that God works in the natural flow of life, and
that which seems ordinary and plain may just be what He is using as
our seven counselors to make our path His as well.
Next time we see what Ahasuerus asks the seven wise men, so read
ahead, and let us 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
No comments:
Post a Comment