I forgot to mention yesterday, that the end of Nehemiah is basically the end of the Old Testament. Some people think that Malachi wrote while Nehemiah was trying to clean things up in Jerusalem. That could be, although there is no mention of Malachi in Nehemiah; and Nehemiah was good about referring to other leaders. My opinion is that Malachi wrote after this final reform of Nehemiah, but not long afterward. This makes Nehemiah the final historical book of the OT, and Malachi is the final prophetic book in the Old Testament. At the end of Malachi the coming of the Messiah is foretold; the people themselves make a covenant with God. God promises of the forerunner of the Messiah and then comes the 400 years of silence.
Esther 1-3
Chronologically, the events of Esther happen between chapters six and seven of Ezra. There is a 57-year gap between the finishing of the temple and the coming of Ezra. In the world, a Persian king named Darius I (not the Darius of Daniel) allowed the Jews to finish the temple and then went off to try to become a part of the European Union by conquering Greece. The Greeks killed Darius I at Marathon near Athens, and Persia made his son Xerxes (Ahasuerus) king. Xerxes wanted revenge, so he wined and dined all of Persia to sign up to fight against those "handkerchief dancers." That is where we begin Esther. Tradition says Xerxes went to Greece with 2 million men and returned with about 5,000. Apparently the Greeks were in a generous mood. The famous battle with the 300 Spartans is part of that history. This war takes place between chapter 1 and chapter 2 of Esther.
Regarding the book of Esther: I recommend taking it at face value. Some people read in disobedience on the part of the Jews, not having returned to Jerusalem, but it should be noted that Ezra hadn't returned yet and I don't want to call him disobedient. Also, some people see grave immorality in Xerxes' request to have Vashti show her beauty. I don't see that. Actually her behavior might have had more to do with her repulsion of Xerxes' lack of character. Just read the book for yourself and get your own opinions.
Esther is very unusual in that it is the only book of the Bible where God is not mentioned. In that sense, it is a test of the faith of the people to understand the unseen hand of God working on their behalf. In education there is a thing called a "close test" to test the reading comprehension of students. A page of text is given and certain ____ are left out. A student should be ____ to figure out what those _____ are from the context. The same is true in Esther. Since Esther is in the Bible, the people apparently saw God in the events.
One more thing: the events of Esther and the hatred toward the Jews is easier to understand if you know the first six chapters of Daniel. The Jews had favored people status in the Babylonian kingdom. This protected them racially and religiously. That made a lot of people jealous of the Jews. When Persia inherited the Jews when they conquered Babylon, it happened again and, boom, the Jews were suddenly a favored people with rights that no other peoples in Persia had. Now in Esther, it happens again. Particularly now, it was crucial that God did at this time, what He had done over the last hundred years to protect His people. The decrees at the end of Esther enabled the Jews to survive and continue that very special status, worshiping their God only. It is because of these events that Nehemiah is able to come to Israel and rebuild Jerusalem.
Esther 1
V. 12 Since Esther is not about world history, it doesn't say what the party was for. The point isn't even to tell us why Vashti refused, but now we know why the king was mad. Given the event, it is Xerxes' pride that was hurt. He lost face before all of his leaders and kingdom and now this would be news. Xerxes already had plenty of wives, with more to follow. Vashti was national "bling" for the king.
Vs. 19-20 Notice that Vashti remained a wife, but was never to see the king again.
V. 22 The respect of Persian men was saved!
Esther 2
Vs. 1-4 Xerxes came back a defeated man. He had wives, but no queen. There was no special relationship between him and his queen, as we'll see later, but for ceremony and national appearance Persia needed one.
This is more than a contest to be queen. Each of the girls selected would become his wife. I don't know if there was anything official before the wedding night, but the wedding night sealed the deal. In this sense, all of the girls "won." They became a wife of Xerxes, king of Persia and whatever privileges and benefits that entailed for them and their families. It wasn't "losing" to not be queen. And since this was marriage, becoming a part of the king's harem, it wasn't "immorality" as we understand it, except maybe in its sheer magnitude and excess.
Vs. 5-11 This is where the plot thickens and you begin seeing (or not seeing) the working of the Lord. Again, some of this looks familiar if you know Daniel (which happened in captivity about 100 years earlier).
V. 5 Mordecai has a Babylonian name suggesting, in spite of his brief genealogy, he was born in Babylon.
V. 8 Esther was "gathered" up with the other young women, meaning it was not Mordecai's doing.
V. 9 Hmmm. Sounds like Daniel chapter one (or the story of Joseph, if you can remember back that far).
V. 10 I think this was because of the animosity toward the Jews.
Vs. 12-18 I'm sure you're seeing God's hand in all of this.
Vs. 19-23 What a coincidence.
Esther 3
Vs. 1-6 Notice that Mordecai was at the King's gate. Some suggest that this means Mordecai had some minor post in government.
So, why didn't Mordecai bow? You get the idea that he was just a grumpy, nasty, hook-nosed little guy. Part of the clue here is that when asked why he didn't bow, he said he was a Jew. So? I'm part Greek and part German? What does that have to do with anything? Now I'm going to crawl out on a limb here and suggest what might have been happening.
God's work in Daniel gave the Jews the right to worship only their God. All other peoples in Babylon had to worship all the gods, including Nebuchadnezzar himself. But not the Jews. In fact, Nebuchadnezzar made it law that if anyone forced them to worship any God but their own, that person would be killed. Boy, did that save the Jews, but that was Babylon. This was Persia. So then, read Daniel chapter 6. Now, that same law became a law of the Medes and the Persians "which cannot be revoked. " This became binding for the entire Persian empire, protecting Jews from having to worship / pay homage to any god (or representative thereof) other than their own, under penalty of death to anyone who forced them.
So, what if, as was true in some cultures, paying homage to a person, king or otherwise, was actually thought of as paying homage to a god, that person being a representative of that god? If this was the case, Mordecai's response totally answered their question. He was a Jew and therefore, he was exempt. This would also explain why Haman couldn't just get off his horse and make Mordecai bow to him. According to Persian law, if my theory is right, it would have made Haman's act punishable by death.
Vs. 7-15 Notice how lucky it was that the lot was cast and gave the Jews a year to get ready.
So what do you gather about the character of this king?
We have seen before, and it will be true of the first six chapters of Daniel, that disaster often precedes blessing. By now we should understand that this is also true of us in the harvest? The Father prunes vines that bear fruit. God often uses problems to bring us to our knees and do things that we never would have imagined possible.
1 Corinthians 11:17-34
Vs. 17-19 These are the divisions Paul mentioned in chapter one. Basically chapters 11-14 have something to do with their public meetings.
Vs. 20-34 Apparently, this church celebrated communion as a part of a larger meal, sort of like what took place at the Passover where Jesus introduced communion. "Jesus took the cup after supper." So, they apparently had supper first, and then celebrated communion. But what a mess.
V. 23 Paul received these instructions personally from Jesus Himself. Communion must be an important remembrance if Jesus made sure He passed it on to Paul personally.
Vs. 27-32 Notice that this warning is aimed at believers, not unbelievers. The sin is a serious sin for someone who knows better, but desecrates the body and blood of the Lord anyway. Many, if not most, of the people in the world who take communion on any given Sunday are probably unbelievers, doing it out of sheer ignorance. I think the prohibition and the penalty is for those who know better and are partaking in sin.
Vs. 30 I'm glad God doesn't do this today, or does He?
Vs. 32 This is God chastening His children. According to Romans 8, we cannot be condemned. God keeps His children from imitating the world in their utter distain for Him by keeping us humble in affliction if necessary.
Psalm 35:17-28
In one sense, when you read all of what David asks for, he is only asking God to be true to His character and to do what He has spoken in the Word. In a video/song I found for Psalm 25, there is a line that has stuck with me: "It is your reputation that makes me outrageously brave." I think this is what David means here. David knows that God will show justice and save him, and I guess he's asking God to do it sooner than later.
V. 28 I don't think this is an "if-then" proposition. David knew, in faith, that God would come through. David knew he would be telling of God's righteousness and praising His name.
We need that same kind of faith and assurance as we wait on the Lord, following Him in the harvest.
Proverbs 21:19-20
It seems like both of these verses have to do with "control" issues. Or really, maybe both of them have to do with fully appreciating the blessing and love of God.
If you’re reading along and don’t have a One Year Bible, click on this link Every Day in the Word. If that doesn't work, go to http://www.gnpcb.org/esv/devotions/ and click on “Every Day in the Word.”
I'm writing these comments to and for those who are following a One Year Bible and interested in growing deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the growth of a discipleship culture in the church. Groups of 3-4 disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to reach out and make disciples who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal manual we have and key to our growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here or what we are to be doing. My comments are only meant to provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of God's plan of redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are designed to keep us focused on Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their growth as disciples, disciples making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a more descriptive commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary. It's keyed to the NIV, so the result is, the commentators are constantly telling you what the Greek or Hebrew is. That never hurts.
I am not endorsing any particular One Year Bible; in fact, I read something you don't, die revidierte Lutherbibel 1984.
Anyone reading along with us is welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their own observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular tradition or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as I understand it.
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