Esther 2:1,”Later when the anger of King Xerxes had subsided, he remembered Vashti and what she had done and what he had decreed about her.”
Time had passed, his anger waned. Scholars say a war had taken place in between chapter 1 and chapter 2 of the Book, and the Persians didn’t fare well. So Xerxes came home in defeat and disgrace. Still King, still ruling, but a bit weaker, he needed someone to come home to and the palace was empty. Oh there were women, he had a harem full of women, but what he needed was a wife, a helpmate, a companion to share his life with. The Word of God spoken about Adam was still true of Xerxes, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” What I find interesting is that even with all the women at Xerxes disposal, and that is probably how he looked at these women in his harem, the truth was known to him. Xerxes was a pagan King, but he knew it, his attendants knew it. The Word of God is always true. It wasn’t good for the man to be alone. Xerxes needed a wife, a woman who would share the kingdom with him. And so a plan.
In the book of Esther, chapter 2, King Xerxes was lonely, he needed a queen by his side to rule his kingdom. Vashti was gone; his anger subsided. So his wise men suggested a beauty pageant of sorts. Let a search be made for the beautiful young women throughout the realm. Let them be brought into the kingdom and placed under the care of Hegai. Then the one who pleases the king can become the queen. Simple enough, easy, straight forward. It made sense to Xerxes, and it pleased him greatly. The order was given, the edict went out. The Scripture says many girls were brought. For some this was the opportunity of a lifetime. Some were probably lining up on the streets to be chosen for this. A chance at the top female position in the realm, the privilege of being the queen, who wouldn’t say yes? Who wouldn’t indeed.
A man named Mordecai, a Jew from the tribe of Benjamin, had adopted his cousin, Hadassah, also called Esther. He brought her up as his own dear child. She was lovely in form and features. Many girls were brought, but the Bible says about Esther, “and Esther also was taken”. She was taken. I seriously doubt that this was the life Hadassah would have chosen for herself, a young Jewish girl in the Harem of a Gentile King. Taken… taken. Life as she knew it, with all the Jewish laws about purity in her food, her drink, her life, was now over. In a moment her dreams, her plans for her future evaporated. She was not her own, she belonged to the King. Esther now lived in a harem.
What can we do when our world turns upside down, when suddenly unreality is the reality we live with? How do we cope when what hasn’t been is now what we must embrace, a sickness that the doctors say is terminal, an accident that changes life as we know it, the death of a loved one, circumstances that rock our world. This was now Esther’s life. We read about it in a few moments; she lived it. The stark reality of all this had to come crashing in on her as she awakened that first morning in these unfamiliar surroundings, her pillow wet from tears shed the night before. This pagan, gentile, foreign place was now her home. All that she knew in the past was gone, her cousin Mordecai’s laughter, his embrace when he came in at the end of the day, a simple supper shared in their humble, but sweet home. How many nights did she cry herself to sleep longing for her old life? How many days did she live with her eyes stinging from the tears she refused to shed in front of others? She lived in the palace, yes a beautiful enough place, but her freedom to come and go as she pleased was gone. Her ability to choose a suitor, or a beloved husband was out of her hands. Her fairy tale dreams of love and romance were left outside the palace gates. All those choices had just been made for her.
What can we do when the life that we now have is not the life that we’ve always known, and most certainly not the life we wish to know? We pray! We run, not walk to Him and find refuge in our Lord’s embrace. He was not left outside the palace gates like Mordecai. He walked into the place with Esther. And while the book of Esther doesn’t specifically mention prayer, Esther’s life spoke of it. What is said of her is that she lifted up grace to those around her, a grace that belied her circumstances, a grace that was greater than her own hurts and pain, the grace that comes from dwelling in the Presence of the True King. Esther 2.
101 Days to a Revolution 