The fasting of food and
drink had begun by the Jewish people throughout the Persian empire.
All who participated were denying themselves on behalf of Queen
Esther who was to make an uninvited appearance before King Ahasuerus,
and her life might be in jeopardy because of it. In chapter five and
verse one we begin to see what happened when Esther finally appeared.
We read:
Now
it came to pass on the third day, that Esther put on her
royal apparel, and stood in the inner court of the king's
house, over against the king's house: and the king sat upon his royal
throne in the royal house, over against the gate of the house.
The verse begins, “Now it came to pass on the third day, that
Esther put on her royal apparel,...”
As we use our imaginations to place ourselves within Esther's
shoes, we might think about this moment. For three days she and her
people have been fasting, and now the time for her to make her move
had finally come. We imagine as she woke up that day or perhaps she
didn't sleep the night before, and now she must lay aside her fasting
clothes and put on her royal apparel. We can think about her mood,
her thoughts, and her anxiousness as she may be dressing for her
final breath. This must have been a daunting and yet purposed resolve
to ready herself for her fate.
The
verse continues, “and stood in the inner court of the king's
house, over against the king's house:” After dressing in a
manner that would likely please her husband, Esther entered the inner
court of the king's house which was located in front of the king's
throne. Notice that she “stood” there. She entered the
court, stood in her place, and waited to see what the king would do.
She was in full vision of the king, and her anxiousness was probably
at its peak at this point.
Finally
the verse concludes, “and the king sat upon his royal throne in
the royal house, over against the gate of the house.” We can
imagine the king was sitting upon his royal throne in the royal house
which was in front of the gate where more than likely Mordecai was
outside. Perhaps the Jews were still fasting, and now the moment had
arrived for which Esther had great concern. What would the king do?
Would he lift his royal scepter and save her life, or would she be
killed for this uninvited appearance? We shall have to wait until
tomorrow's verse to discover what happened to the queen.
Next
time we will see King Ahasuerus' reaction to Esther's appearance, 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.
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