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Speaker 1: Let us pray, and the king Assurius laid a tribute

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Speaker 1: upon the land and upon the isles of the sea.

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Speaker 1: Ester ten one give me this day, Lord, the wisdom

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Speaker 1: of Esther and Mordecai. Allow me to gain strategic and

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Speaker 1: insightful strategies to protect your children against the plot of

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Speaker 1: the enemy. Like the story in Esther, equip me and

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Speaker 1: those in my circle with the right solutions needed to

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Speaker 1: solve the problems of your children and business, education, finance, technology,

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Speaker 1: and every other industry you've led us to inherit. Thus

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Speaker 1: I declare myself as a problem solver. I am a

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Speaker 1: master when it comes to solutions, because the wisdom of

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Speaker 1: your Holy Spirit rests on my mind and heart. The

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Speaker 1: day of salvation and breakthrough us come. The hand of

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Speaker 1: the oppressor has been lifted, and we are free to

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Speaker 1: defend our lands and our destinies through the decree of

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Speaker 1: your Holy Word. Thank you, my God, that we are free. Indeed,

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Speaker 1: in Jesus' name, Amen, thank you for making prayer a

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Speaker 1: priority in your day. To learn more about the Bible,

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Speaker 1: stay tuned for today's story, brought to you by Bible

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Speaker 3: Esther saves her people.

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Speaker 4: In our last story, Esther was taken to be groomed

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Speaker 4: as the next queen of Persia. She gained favor with

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Speaker 4: the king, as did her uncle Mordecai. However, a wicked

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Speaker 4: noble had the king's power, Haman. Haman sent out a

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Speaker 4: decree for every Jew in the nation to be killed.

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Speaker 4: The time was drawing near and the Jews were in

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Speaker 4: great danger. Esther learned of Haman's plot and now had

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Speaker 4: to risk her life by approaching the king. Now we

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Speaker 4: learn of Esther's plan to expose Haman and save her people.

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Speaker 4: Inspired by the Book of Esther, Hello.

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Speaker 5: This is Pastor Jack Graham with another episode of the

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Speaker 5: Bible in a year podcast. In our last episode, we

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Speaker 5: learned how Esther was made queen, one of the wives

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Speaker 5: of the unpredictable and cruel King Xerxes. God was working

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Speaker 5: through her, however, and her uncle Mordecai, to pave the

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Speaker 5: way for a rescue of the Jews from the hand

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Speaker 5: of Hayman, a hateful man one of Xerxes' evil counselors.

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Speaker 5: And so, when Hayman convinced Xerxes to issue a decree

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Speaker 5: to kill all the Jews in the capitol, Esther is

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Speaker 5: faced with a decision to remain silent and watch as

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Speaker 5: her Jewish kin or slaughtered, or speak up and risk

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Speaker 5: angering Xerxes and endangering even ending her own life. For Esther,

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Speaker 5: the choice was clear. She had to act, and in

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Speaker 5: today's reading, we'll see how God works through the wisdom

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Speaker 5: of Mordecai and the courage of Esther to save his

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Speaker 5: people from certain annihilation. Here is the word of God

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Speaker 5: for to day.

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Speaker 4: Esther dressed herself quietly in her room. She draped herself

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Speaker 4: with royal robes and held her head up high. This

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Speaker 4: was no time for groveling or flirting. She had to

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Speaker 4: walk into the presence of King Xerxes as a strong leader.

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Speaker 4: To enter into the King's courts uninvited meant certain death,

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Speaker 4: but she was prepared to die if it meant protecting

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Speaker 4: her people. She walked the halls, the sound of her

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Speaker 4: footsteps echoed as she walked with purpose. She stopped outside

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Speaker 4: the doors of the royal throne Room, took a deep breath,

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Speaker 4: and stepped inside. The halls were laced in gold and

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Speaker 4: ivory pillars held up the high ceiling. In the middle

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Speaker 4: of the throne room, the king sat with his commanders

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Speaker 4: facing him. The King looked surprised to see Esther, but

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Speaker 4: not angry. He raised his golden scepter towards her and smiled,

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Speaker 4: my queen, He said, please come in. What can I

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Speaker 4: do for you? Esther was surprised at the favor the

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Speaker 4: king was displaying. He was joyful and sober. It was

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Speaker 4: almost as if his heart and mind had been softened

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Speaker 4: before she came in. Esther bowed and said, if it

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Speaker 4: pleases you, my King, I would love for you and

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Speaker 4: Haman to come tonight for a banquet. I have prepared

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Speaker 4: a fine array of food for you. The King was

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Speaker 4: elated at her request and immediately sent for Haman. Later

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Speaker 4: that night, Esther was dining among Xerxes and the wicked

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Speaker 4: man Hamman. While they were drinking and enjoying their meal,

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Speaker 4: the king asked.

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Speaker 3: Is there anything you need of me? My queen? I

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Speaker 3: will give you anything up to half my kingdom.

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Speaker 4: Esther smiled at the gesture and simply asked that he

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Speaker 4: and Haman returned the next day for another banquet. Esther

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Speaker 4: was careful to gain more favor from the king before

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Speaker 4: requesting something so large, plus, she wanted Haman.

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Speaker 3: To feel safe with her.

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Speaker 4: Later that night, Hamman was walking back from the banquet.

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Speaker 4: He saw Mordecai in the streets and scoffed at him.

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Speaker 4: Have you no respect? He spat, Still, you don't bow

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Speaker 4: to me, Hamman yelled. So Hamman gathered his servants to

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Speaker 4: prepare a large wooden pike. Tomorrow he would find Mordechai

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Speaker 4: and impale him on the end. That same night, the

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Speaker 4: king tossed and turned in his bed. He was uneasy

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Speaker 4: and his heart felt heavy. He called for one of

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Speaker 4: his servants to tell different stories and recount good events.

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Speaker 4: The servant read out loud tales of military exploits, successful

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Speaker 4: building projects, and good works. The king was a part

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Speaker 4: of Xerxes began to drift as the servants sang his praises.

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Speaker 4: Then the servant recounted noble acts done for the king

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Speaker 4: by others. He spoke of Mordechai saving him from assassination.

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Speaker 4: At these words, the king leapt out of his bed.

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Speaker 4: He had forgotten to reward Mordecai for his loyalty. The

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Speaker 4: next morning, Xerxes ordered Haman to parade Mordechai around in

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Speaker 4: the city streets and sing his praises. Haman held the

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Speaker 4: reins of the horse Mordechai sat on. Haman, to his shame,

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Speaker 4: was forced to praise the man he planned to kill.

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Speaker 4: He was forced to celebrate his sworn enemy. Mordechai was

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Speaker 4: the reason Haman wanted the Jews executed. He would dance

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Speaker 4: on Mordechai's corpse once the Jews were exterminated for good.

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Speaker 4: Later that night, Haman and Xerxes joined Esther for another banquet.

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Speaker 4: Hamman stowed in bitterness as he sipped his wine. He

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Speaker 4: had hated the events leading up to the banquet. The

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Speaker 4: king laughed with his queen and asked, once again, how

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Speaker 4: can I bless you, my love? What is it that

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Speaker 4: you would ask of me. Esther looked deeply into the

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Speaker 4: King's eyes. Her seriousness caught him off guard. She sighed

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Speaker 4: and held his hand. Have I found favor in your sight?

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Speaker 3: She asked? Of course? What is it?

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Speaker 4: The King responded, I have been told that one of

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Speaker 4: your men has sent a decree for the Jews in

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Speaker 4: the land to be slaughtered. But they are my people.

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Speaker 4: I am a Jew. Her comment surprised the king, not

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Speaker 4: because Esther was a Jew, but because such a hideous

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Speaker 4: decree was made in his name. Who would do such

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Speaker 4: a thing, he demanded, Who would dare lay a hand

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Speaker 4: on my queen's people without my permission? The King's rage boiled,

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Speaker 4: and Haman shrunk where he sat, and then attempted to

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Speaker 4: slip out of the room.

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Speaker 3: Silently.

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Speaker 4: Esther saw Haman making an escape and said, this man

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Speaker 4: before you was the one. He is a wicked man

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Speaker 4: and your adversary. The King turned to Haman, his eyes

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Speaker 4: were red with rage. The king stepped outside for a

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Speaker 4: moment to yell at the stars. While the king was outside,

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Speaker 4: Hamman fell on to Esther's lap and.

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Speaker 3: Begged for mercy.

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Speaker 4: The King stepped back inside and found Haman on.

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Speaker 3: Top of Esther.

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Speaker 4: You dare touch my wife, he yelled. Haman's eyes widened.

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Speaker 3: He could not speak.

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Speaker 4: The king gestured for his guards to take Kaiman. Without

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Speaker 4: a word, he was taken and thrown on to the

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Speaker 4: wooden pike he set up for Mordecai. Yet the decree

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Speaker 4: to kill the Jews could not be reversed. The decree

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Speaker 4: was final. The day was fast approaching, and Serxes had

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Speaker 4: no idea how to save the people from certain death. However,

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Speaker 4: Mordecai and Esther had a plan. If Xerxes would allow

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Speaker 4: for the Jews to defend themselves, then they could battle

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Speaker 4: against Haman's nobles. This would protect the Jews and get

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Speaker 4: rid of.

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Speaker 3: The men loyal to Haman.

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Speaker 4: So the decree was sent out and the Jews were

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Speaker 4: armed with swords and sheelds. The day came when the

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Speaker 4: nobles sent their men to slaughter the Jews, for they

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Speaker 4: were met with strong defenses. Together, the Jews were able

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Speaker 4: to defend themselves from the onslaught. Victory was shouted in

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Speaker 4: the streets of Susa. Families shouted for joy. Not only

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Speaker 4: were they spared, but they were able to play a

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Speaker 4: role in their own liberation. They were afforded the opportunity

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Speaker 4: to defend themselves. They felt empowered for the first time

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Speaker 4: since captivity. This was all thanks to the noble character

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Speaker 4: of Esther. She would remain in the palace and watch

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Speaker 4: over her people. She would create a legacy of kindness

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Speaker 4: and establish a kingdom that looked towards Jerusalem with favor.

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Speaker 5: In today's scripture, Esther is preparing for the most important

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Speaker 5: meeting of her life. On her shoulders rests the fate

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Speaker 5: of the Jews in the capital region of Susa. At

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Speaker 5: least that's what it surely must have felt like to

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Speaker 5: this young woman. But I imagine that Esther also understood

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Speaker 5: that this was much bigger than her, much bigger. Her

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Speaker 5: fate and that of her people rested not on her

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Speaker 5: shoulders or in the hands of Xerxes or even hateful Hayman,

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Speaker 5: but the most High God, who placed her there by

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Speaker 5: his providences and in his plan. Esther made herself beautiful,

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Speaker 5: appealing to the desires of Xerxes. She was young, but

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Speaker 5: not foolish. She was never to approach the king without

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Speaker 5: being summoned, but she dared, for the sake of her

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Speaker 5: people to approach him. She boldly approaches the throne room

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Speaker 5: to his great surprise. It bears mentioning what a sharp

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Speaker 5: contrast this scene draws to our situation. Esther was the

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Speaker 5: wife of Xerxes, a human ruler in a kingdom that,

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Speaker 5: in the timeline of humanity was just a blip on

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Speaker 5: the radar, and she had to approach him, yet with

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Speaker 5: caution and fear. Any request could not only be denied,

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Speaker 5: but met with harsh punishment, even capital punishment. When you

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Speaker 5: think about this, we have an even greater promise when

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Speaker 5: we approach our King Jesus, through our savior, the Lord

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Speaker 5: Jesus Christ, we come to the throne room of God

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Speaker 5: made it available to us. We come to his throne

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Speaker 5: with boldness, as the scripture says, and we have access

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Speaker 5: to him because of what Christ has done for us.

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Speaker 5: We can go at any time and pray and ask

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Speaker 5: God for what we need. What a wonderful promise. So

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Speaker 5: Esther enters erks the throne room and he expects her

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Speaker 5: to make a request. Rather than ask for something, She

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Speaker 5: tells the king she wants to throw a banquet for

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Speaker 5: him and Hamon no doubt this would appeal to both

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Speaker 5: men's pride and sense of superiority. They both gladly attended

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Speaker 5: the banquet, eating and drinking their fill. A pleasured king

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Speaker 5: then asked Esther what she wanted. No request would be

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Speaker 5: denied her, he promised, but she knew this trap needed

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Speaker 5: to be set with care. She proposed a second feast,

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Speaker 5: another night of honoring these men. Later that same night,

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Speaker 5: Haman saw Mordecai, who refused still to bow down before him.

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Speaker 5: So Haymon ordered a gallows bill to and when she

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Speaker 5: would hang Mordecai. He had had enough he thought of

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Speaker 5: this Jew's disrespect, and as Xerxes slept that night, he

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Speaker 5: was troubled, so he called a servant in to tell

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Speaker 5: him stories and soothe him. One of the stories that

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Speaker 5: was read to him recounted how Mordechai saved him from assassination.

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Speaker 5: At that moment, the king remembered he had never rewarded Mordecai,

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Speaker 5: so he called Hayman and asked what should be done

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Speaker 5: to honor someone the king wished to honor. Hamon, of course,

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Speaker 5: thought it was him the king wanted to honor, so

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Speaker 5: he proposed a lavish display, then watched as all he

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Speaker 5: had proposed was given to Mordecai. That next night, Esther

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Speaker 5: held another feast, and this time, when she was asked

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Speaker 5: what she wanted, she spoke clearly and forthrightly. She told

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Speaker 5: the king that she had heard of the decree to

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Speaker 5: exterminate the Jews, then revealed that she was Jewish herself.

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Speaker 5: Xerxes was livid and wanted to know who wished harm

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Speaker 5: upon his wife. Esther pointed to Hayman and told the

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Speaker 5: king it was all his idea. So we read in

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Speaker 5: Ester seven and verse ten a bit of biblical poetic justice,

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Speaker 5: powerful poetic justice. So they Hayman on the gallows that

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Speaker 5: he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the wrath of the

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Speaker 5: king abated. Here you have the story of the horrible

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Speaker 5: hanging of hateful Hayman. Hayman was dealt with, but the

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Speaker 5: decree still stood and couldn't be retracted. But Xerxes allowed

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Speaker 5: the Jews to defend themselves and fight. To commemorate their

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Speaker 5: rescue from annihilation, Mordecai and all the Jews inaugurated the

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Speaker 5: festival known as Purim, still observed to this day. Though

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Speaker 5: it may seem at times that evil has its way,

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Speaker 5: God's justice will always be satisfied. He had worked through

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Speaker 5: Esther and Mordecai to bring rescue to his people, but

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Speaker 5: there was an even greater rescue coming, not just for

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Speaker 5: the Jews, but for all the world. Dear God, we

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Speaker 5: thank you for the faith and the witness of Esther

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Speaker 5: and Mordecai. What a tremendous story. Thank you for including

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Speaker 5: it in God's word. We see your providence. And even

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Speaker 5: though your name is never mentioned in the book of Esther,

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Speaker 5: your hand is at work, Your providence is sure, and

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Speaker 5: your judgments are given. Lord, you are always present. Your

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Speaker 5: invisible hand is always working. Your invisible hand of providence

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Speaker 5: is always working. And for this we praise you in Jesus' name. Amen.

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Speaker 5: Once again, thank you for listening to today's Bible in

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Speaker 5: a Year podcast. I'm pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas.

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Speaker 5: Let me encourage you to download the Prey dot com

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Speaker 5: app and make Bible study and prayer a real priority

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Speaker 5: in your life. And if you are enjoying this podcast,

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Speaker 5: share it with someone you know, someone you care about,

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Speaker 5: because sharing God's Word has a powerful impact upon people's lives.

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Speaker 5: And if you want more resources as to how you

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Speaker 5: can find faith, grow in your faith, develop as a

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Speaker 5: disciple and follower of Jesus, be sure to visit me

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Speaker 5: at Jack Graham dot org. We have plenty of resources

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Speaker 5: that will encourage you and equip you for life. God

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Speaker 5: bless you.