As we picture the scene at
this point in our story, we see an angry Ahasuerus as he called
together his seven princes who knew the Persian and Median law.
Vashti the queen has not only disobeyed Ahasuerus request to make an
appearance before his party, but she has embarrassed the king in
front of his guests. In chapter one and verse fifteen Ahasuerus asks
his seven princes what to do about this. We read:
What shall we do unto
the queen Vashti according to law, because she has not performed the
commandment of the king Ahasuerus by the chamberlains?
It is
interesting to note that Ahasuerus had to asks these men “What
shall we do unto the queen Vashti according to the law,...” in
the first place. He was king, wasn't he? Didn't he have the power to
deal with this in any manner he desired? Not really, and this shows
us some of the limitations that the king had upon him. Unlike
Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon who had absolute power, Persian kings were
subject to the law. Although they had power of sorts, their power was
limited by the Persian law which took precedence over any ruler.
Persian kings could make new laws, but then they had to abide by them
as well. This is the reason he asked his seven counselors for advice.
The
verse goes on to say, “because she has not performed the
commandment of the king Ahasuerus by the chamberlains?” There
was an obvious and blatant disregard for the king by queen Vashti.
Ahasuerus may have thought his intentions were correct as he invited
his queen to the feast, but Vashti thought otherwise and refused.
Although the chamberlains' request was quite clear, it made no
difference to queen Vashti, and regardless of what the king thought,
she was not obeying.
We learn
from this that it is good to ask the advice of others especially when
we are in situations that make us angry. Too often people will lop
the heads off others so to speak as they react to stimulation that is
adverse to their desires. Once again let us remember that Almighty
God is in attendance behind the scenes of these events even though we
do not see Him mentioned. It is marvelous to note that even when
things do not seem to be going our way, we can be moved in the
direction of His will. Ahasuerus did not know it at this point, but
he is aligning perfectly with the will of God. We shall see more of
how this is true in the coming verses.
Next time we see how widespread Vashti's refusal was deemed, 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