The counsel of the court
known as the seven princes of Media have been gathered together to
advise King Ahasuerus concerning his reaction to the rejection of
Vashti the queen's refusal to obey him. The king desired that she
appear before his guest with the royal crown upon her head, but she
refused him and would not be exploited in such a manner. One of the
princes, Memucan, has begun his response to the king by explaining
that all of the women in the kingdom will be affected by Vashti's
decision. In chapter one and verse eighteen we see more of Memucan's
summation. We read:
[Likewise] shall the
ladies of Persia and Media say this day unto all the king's princes,
which have heard of the deed of the queen. Thus [shall there arise]
too much contempt and wrath.
Memucan
knew that word of Vashti's rejection would spread like wildfire all
throughout the kingdom of the Persians and Medes. He also believed
that women would despise their husbands and would feel justified in
doing so because of Vashti's deed. He begins this verse with,
“[Likewise] shall the ladies of Persia and Media say this day
unto all the king's princes, which have heard of the deed of the
queen.” In other words, not only the married women would
despise their husbands, but all the women would be affected by this
refusal. Memucan believed that the impact of this one act of
rejection of Vashti would have a domino affect upon every woman in
the kingdom of Persia, and the difficulties and troubles it would
cause would be tremendous.
The
verse goes on to show what would happen to the women, “Thus
shall there arise too much contempt and wrath.”
Not only would this affect the women in the kingdom, but the result
would be “too much”
(as though there was always going to be some)“contempt”
which means antipathy, condescension, defiance, derision, distaste,
hatred, malice and ridicule. There would also be “too
much” “wrath” which
conveys the idea of anger carried out, dubious, indignation, sore,
and in it's root meaning is “a splinter or broken twig”. In other
words, this single defiant act of Vashti would have such a huge
impact upon people all over the kingdom that there will be ciaos and
broken homes everywhere. Memucan certainly knew how to project fear
within the king's mind, and perhaps just the thought of this
happening within his kingdom would make Ahasuerus listen carefully to
the answer to this dilemma.
Once
again we see the potential impact that one decision makes in people's
lives. Memucan has given a description of the fallout from Vashti's
refusal that would make any king tremble, but how often do we take
the time to really think through the results of our choices made
every day? Perhaps our decisions will not affect an entire kingdom,
but they may affect the small kingdom within which we live. Would
others be affected in “contempt” and “wrath” if they were
aware of the selections we have made or make? The marvel of it all is
that God Almighty was watching the events unfold, and He had a plan
to use every decision, every projection and every move that these
people made. With that knowledge, we too may begin to understand that
God has a plan for our lives as well, and though we make choices
constantly that affect others, when we filter all our choices through
the hands of Almighty God we will limit the damage done to the
kingdoms in which we live.
Next time we shall see the suggestion that Memucan made to Ahasuerus,
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
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