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Speaker 1: I'm John Stangi, and today we're in Esther chapter two
Speaker 1: and we'll be reading from the New Living Translation. But
Speaker 1: after Xerxes's anger had subsided, he began thinking about Vashti
Speaker 1: and what she had done and the decree he had made.
Speaker 1: So his personal attendant suggested, let us search the empire
Speaker 1: to find beautiful young virgins for the king. Let the
Speaker 1: King appoint agents in each province to bring these beautiful
Speaker 1: young women into the royal harem at the fortress of Susa. Hey, guy,
Speaker 1: the King's eunuch in charge of the harem will see
Speaker 1: that they are all given beauty treatments. After that, the
Speaker 1: young woman who most pleases the king will be made
Speaker 1: queen instead of Vashti. This advice was very appealing to
Speaker 1: the king, so he put the plan into effect. At
Speaker 1: that time, there was a Jewish man in the fortress
Speaker 1: of Susa whose name was Mordechai, son of Jair. He
Speaker 1: was from the tribe of Benjamin and was a descendant
Speaker 1: of Kish and Shimai. His family had been among those who,
Speaker 1: with King Jehoiachin of Judah, had been exiled from Jerusalem
Speaker 1: to Babylon by King Nebekinzer. This man had a very
Speaker 1: beautiful and lovely young cousin, Hadasa, who was also called Esther.
Speaker 1: When her father and mother died, Mordechai adopted her into
Speaker 1: his family and raised her as his own daughter. As
Speaker 1: a result of the King's decree, Esther, along with many
Speaker 1: other young women, was brought to the king's harem at
Speaker 1: the fortress of Susa and placed in Hegai care Hagui
Speaker 1: was very impressed with Esther and treated her kindly. He
Speaker 1: quickly ordered a special menu for her and provided her
Speaker 1: with beauty treatments. He also assigned her seven maids, specially
Speaker 1: chosen from the king's palace, and he moved her and
Speaker 1: her maids into the best place in the harem. Esther
Speaker 1: had not told anyone of her nationality and family background
Speaker 1: because Mordecai had directed her not to do so. Every day,
Speaker 1: Mordecai would take a walk near the courtyard of the
Speaker 1: harem to find out about Esther and what was happening
Speaker 1: to her. Before each young woman was taken to the
Speaker 1: king's bed. She was given the prescribed twelve months of
Speaker 1: beauty treatments, six months with oil of merr, followed by
Speaker 1: six months with special perfumes and ointments. When it was
Speaker 1: time for her to go to the king's palace, she
Speaker 1: was given her choice of whatever clothing or jewelry she
Speaker 1: wanted to take from the harem. That evening, she was
Speaker 1: taken to the king's private rooms, and the next morning
Speaker 1: she was brought to the second harem, where the king's
Speaker 1: wives lived. There she would be under the care of Shashgaz,
Speaker 1: the king's eunuch in charge of the concubines. She would
Speaker 1: never go to the king again unless he had especially
Speaker 1: enjoyed her and requested her by name. Esther was the
Speaker 1: daughter of Abihail, who was Mordecai's uncle. Mordechai had adopted
Speaker 1: his younger cousin Esther. When it was Ester's turn to
Speaker 1: go to the king, she accepted the advice of Hegei,
Speaker 1: the eunuch in charge of the harem. She asked for
Speaker 1: nothing except what he suggested, and she was admired by
Speaker 1: everyone who saw her. Esther was taken to King Xerxes
Speaker 1: at the royal palace in early winter of the seventh
Speaker 1: year of his reign, and the king loved Esther more
Speaker 1: than any of the other young women. He was so
Speaker 1: delighted with her that he set the royal crown on
Speaker 1: her head and declared her queen instead of Vashti. To
Speaker 1: celebrate the occasion, he gave a great banquet in Esther's
Speaker 1: honor for all his nobles and officials, declaring a public
Speaker 1: holiday for the provinces, and giving generous gifts to everyone.
Speaker 1: Even after all the young women had been transferred to
Speaker 1: the second Harem and Mordecai had become a palace official,
Speaker 1: Esther continued to keep her family background in nationality a secret.
Speaker 1: She was still following Mordecai's directions, just as she did
Speaker 1: when she lived in his home. One day, as Mordecai
Speaker 1: was on duty at the king's gate, two of the
Speaker 1: king's eunuchs, big Thana and Terrish, who were guards at
Speaker 1: the door of the king's private quarters, became angry at
Speaker 1: King Xerxes and plotted to assassinate him, But Mordecai heard
Speaker 1: about the plot and gave the information to Queen Esther.
Speaker 1: She then told the king about it and gave Mordecai
Speaker 1: credit for the report. When an investigation was made and
Speaker 1: Mordecai's story was found to be true, the two men
Speaker 1: were impaled on a sharpened pull. This was all recorded
Speaker 1: in the book of the History of King Xerxes reign.
Speaker 1: Let's pray, Lord, we thank you for your word, and
Speaker 1: we thank you for the privilege of being able to
Speaker 1: look at it together today. And Lord, as we look
Speaker 1: at what's been taking place in the life of Esther
Speaker 1: and how your hand of favor has clearly been upon her,
Speaker 1: we can see your hand at work in her life.
Speaker 1: We can see that in this context you were orchestrating something.
Speaker 1: And again, as we look at this book, this book
Speaker 1: displays your provisions and your protections on your people, but
Speaker 1: it also displays your sovereign hand at work to rescue
Speaker 1: and redeem. And as this story continues, we'll see that
Speaker 1: process continue to develop. But Lord, we know and your
Speaker 1: word testifies to the fact that you are the God
Speaker 1: who redeems, and your redemption has been provided through your
Speaker 1: son Jesus Christ, who has rescued us from certain death
Speaker 1: and has granted us life and a part in His
Speaker 1: kingdom forever. Through faith in him. We're grateful for this reality, Lord,
Speaker 1: and we're grateful for this portion of scripture that leads
Speaker 1: us to reminders of that very fact. Thank you, Lord
Speaker 1: for giving us the privilege to look at your word,
Speaker 1: and we thank you for your presence with us today.
Speaker 1: We commit this day to your care and pray this
Speaker 1: all in Jesus' name. Amen,