 Without saying anything else. I'll begin here in the book of Esther in chapter 1 at verse 1 we'll read to verse 8 And I'll give you some introductory comments some things to help you To contextualize what's taking place here. They're going to be some historic things historic references This is in no way going to be a thorough Introduction in the way that if you were to read a commentary you would get but this will give you enough information To have an idea of what is taking place here at this time In the life of a young woman by the name of Esther, so let's begin reading at verse 1 I'll read verses 1 through 8 in Esther and and we'll get into our study Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus. This was Ahasuerus who reigned over 127 provinces from India to Ethiopia In those days when King Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom, which was in Shushan Shushan the citadel that in the third year of his reign He made a feast for all his officials in servants the powers of Persia and media the nobles and the princes of the provinces being before him When he showed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the splendor of his excellent majesty for many days 180 days in all and When these days were completed the king made a feast lasting seven days For all the people who are present in Shushan the citadel from great to small in the cord of the garden of the king's palace There were white and blue linen curtains fastened with cords of fine linen and purple on silver rods and marble pillars and the couches were of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of alabaster turquoise and white and black marble and They served drinks in golden vessels each vessel being different from the other With royal wine in abundance according to the generosity of the king in accordance with the law the drinking was not compulsory For so the king had ordered all the officers of his household that they should do according to each man's pleasure Let me give you the background information The writer of the book of Esther is unidentified Some believe that it was written though by Esther and Mordecai in Esther chapter 9 verse 20 It says Mordecai wrote these things and sent letters to all the Jews near and far who are in the provinces of King Ahasuerus in verse 29 of Esther chapter 9 It says Queen Esther daughter of Abahal along with Mordecai the Jew wrote with full authority to confirm this second letter concerning Purim and so Many believe that it is possible that that Esther and Mordecai were the ones who had written there this but there are various Others who have been brought into play But this is the only book in the Bible which in which the name of God is never mentioned The New Testament never quotes from Esther Nor have copies of it been found among the Dead Sea Scrolls The law of Moses is never mentioned nor are sacrifices or offerings Prayer is not specifically mentioned though fasting is So there's a question concerning that and the answer has been that this may be because the Jews in Persia were becoming Persians and we're slowly losing their identity And in this book God is going to give them a reason to return to him So at first Esther was not recognized as mentioned is inspired. It was regarded originally as a historical record Now according to some this is the reason the book Vesser doesn't contain any reference to God Mordecai and Esther knew that the Persians would take this account and include it in their history books But would substitute the name of God with the names of their own deities So they therefore decided that it was more respectful to God to just leave his name out The book Vesser records events during the time that Persia dominated Israel Persia dominated Israel from 539 to 331 BC So the events that take place are taking place during the reign of the Persian king Ahasuerus, he's also known and better known I think too many as Xerxes Now Xerxes reigned from 486 to 464 BC. So the events of this book take place during those years Now during this period many Jews who were exiled from Israel to Babylon had returned to Israel to rebuild the temple and Reestablish temple worship, but most Jews did not return and Within that number who had not returned to Israel were a man by the name of Mordecai and his cousin a young woman named Hadassah Hadassah means myrtle. I'll show you something about that in just a moment also known as Esther Esther is a Persian Word for star and some commentators would say that Esther is Persian for the planet Venus Now Esther reveals how God provides protection for his people We find these kinds of insights in this kind of promise of protection in the Psalms Psalm 62 verse 6 He he only is my rock and my salvation. He is my defense. I shall not be moved Psalm 89 18 the Lord is our defense and the Holy One of Israel is our king Psalm 94 verse 22 the Lord is my defense my God is a rock of my refuge and So God provides protection for his people and that is demonstrated as we go through the book of Esther In Esther There's an evil man by the name of Haman He plots the destruction of the Jews yet God is using a courageous young woman and the wise counsel of her cousin to thwart his plan The result will be the deliverance of the Jews and the establishment of the Jewish Feast of Purim the celebration of deliverance that God gave to the Jews over their enemies in The book of Esther God's sovereignty his supreme power is displayed Psalm 103 19 says the Lord has prepared his throne in the heavens and his kingdom Rules over all and that is made abundantly clear in this book We'll see how God raises an unknown Jewish girl to become the Queen of Persia Protects her when she without permission approaches the king and Then counters the king's command to annihilate all the Jews in Persia and So here in the first eight verses were introduced to this king king ahasuerus He is a powerful king. He rules from India to Ethiopia and now I'm going to give you some basic things verses one and two The points out that This is taking place in the days of ahasuerus and he's in a place called Shushan Which is the citadel the capital city of that day the capital city of Iran And it says in verses three and four in the third year of his reign He made a feast for all his officials and servants the powers of Persia and media the nobles the princes of the provinces being before him He showed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the splendor of his excellent majesty for many days 180 days in all so he has this this party that he has that includes all the powers of Persia and media he invites all the nobles including the military officials and he's showing them verse four the riches of his glorious kingdom and It's splendor. So what does that give us a picture of it gives us a picture of an extravagant feast? He's showing these people how powerful he is There are those commentators who believe that this may have been a planning session because he was about to invade Greece Which he did in 481 but notice how long this banquet lasted. This is one long party Six months Yeah So in verse five it says when When these days were completed the king made a feast lasting seven days For all the people who were present in Shushan the citadel the palace From great to small in the court of the garden of the king's palace There were white and blue linen etc. It already is described to us how beautiful it was And so this is taking place in the garden notice in verse five They were in the court of the garden of the king's palace Historians will say that this court when you go outside and you look at the courtyard here in this fellowship And and we've got a few a few acres that we occupy and all that's a fairly large court The court of the Persian king was 60,000 square feet 44,000 plus a few feet are one acre. So this is 60,000 square feet. It's a huge courtyard And what we're getting here is a picture of breathtaking opulence It was beautiful and it's described that way They took the time to tell us about the white and blue linen curtains the Fastened with cords of fine linen purple on silver rods marble pillars couches of gold and silver It's an amazing picture. It's kind of like like my house. It's just an amazing It's just breathtaking and and not only that but it says in verse seven They serve drinks in golden vessels each vessel being different from the other with royal wine in abundance According to the generosity of the king in accordance with the law the drinking was in compulsory For so the king had ordered all the officers of his household that they should do according to each man's pleasure and so He's revealing the immense wealth That he has the treasures that he has control of when it speaks of royal wine It's speaking of the best wine that could be could be had You know, it's not we used to call it red mo red mountain. It's not Bipple that was beer and ripple It wasn't some of you're too young to even know what those are. I Could give you a lot of those cheap wines. I won't it will just put it this way It wasn't cheap. It was the best that they could get and it's showing us again the quality of This of this party now each was able to enjoy themselves in Drinking if they wanted to or or not drinking you see normally each would have been forced to drink but not this time Nobody was forced to drink each one was given opportunity to decide for themselves So here's your picture of what is taking place Well, verse 9 Queen Vashti Also made a feast for the women in the royal palace which belonged to King Ahasuerus Now the word Vashti for those who take notes the word Vashti means beautiful It's a word that describes her So Queen Vashti this beautiful Queen makes a feast The King had a number of wives. You're gonna see this in a moment But she is what would be referred to as the preeminent Queen Now men and women did not feast together the men were in the open courtyard But the women are in the palace and so she's taking care of all of these others Well on the seventh day verse 10 When the heart of the King was married with wine He commanded me human Vista Harbana big toe Abhagdha Zathar carcass Some dead guy Seven eunuchs Who served in the presence of King Ahasuerus to bring Queen Vashti Before the King wearing her royal crown in order to show her beauty to the people and the officials for she Was beautiful to behold but Queen Vashti refused to come at the King's command brought by his eunuchs Therefore the King was furious and his anger burned within him Yeah King's been drinking And as he's drinking he's beginning to be out of the kind of control where he to have remained sober and it seems that alcohol Had allowed him to act in pride He's already shown off his wealth and now he wants to show off his wife The wealth wasn't enough. He wanted to show off this beautiful woman that he was married to and he's doing so out of his pride and So he gives this order for her to come but she refuses his order When she was called now here is something interesting In going over this a second time one of my commentators that I use pointed out that she had the right to refuse It wasn't something that she had to come to but she had she had made a decision that she wasn't about to be looked at by the King's men and all in the fashion that he desired and So she decided not to come It wasn't proper for her to be be seen especially by by drunken men One commentator said it may have been because she was pregnant with the son by the name of Arduxerxes, but what happens verse 12 is the King wasn't putting up with this the King was furious his pride was provoked is his inebriation encouraged an angry response and so He's his anger verse 12 is burning within him because he has been humiliated in front of all of these men that he was showing off in Front of it's a good thing that men don't show off in front of people anymore I heard all those women's voices Verse 13 then the King said to the wise men who understood the times for this was the King's manner toward all who knew law and justice Those closest to him being here we go again Karshina Shethaar Admata Tarshish Maris Marcena and Memucan and Bill George and Ringo and the seven princes of Persia and Media who had access to the King's presence and who ranked highest in the kingdom What shall we do to King Vashti according to law? She didn't obey the the command of King Ahasuerus brought to her by the Unix and Memucan answered Before the King and the princes Queen Vashti has not only wronged the King But also all the princes and all the people who are in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus for the Queen's behavior Will become known to all women so that they will despise their husbands in their eyes when they report King Ahasuerus commanded Queen Vashti to be brought in before him, but she didn't come This very day the noble ladies of Persia and Media will say to all the King's officials That they've they've heard of the behavior of the Queen thus there will be excessive contempt in rats She's been a bad example, and it's going to affect all the others and that's the point that they're making And so as he's speaking to these counselors, he's doing so because they know the history of the Empire He wanted really to know what has been done in the past by other Kings who were in this situation Is there any law that has been broken that I can now enforce and Their comment was quick Queen Vashti wronged the King the princess and all the people in other words Her example is going to cause chaos in the kingdom, and if the King's orders can be refused how much more so with ordinary people And so that's their advice and so in 19 if it pleases the King Let a royal decree go out from him and and let it be recorded in the laws of the Persians and the Medes So that it will not be altered that Vashti shall come no more before King Ahasuerus and Let the King give her royal position to another who is better than she When the King's decree which he will make is proclaimed throughout all his empire for it's great All wives will honor their husbands both great and small And the reply please the King and the princess and the King did according to the word of Memekan He sent letters to all the King's provinces to each province in its own script and to every people in their own language That each man should be master in his own house. I Heard an amen And I heard the wife say I'll talk to you later Master his own house and speak in the language of his own people Let a royal decree go forth You see according to the law of the Medes and Persians You're going to see this later on even more clearly According to the law of the Medes and Persians when a law is enacted. It cannot be overturned and So you need to make a law that is binding and their advice have already posed Because that will cause all women to fear their husbands Now I want to say something for a moment about that that kind of pagan advice was pleasing to a pagan man if you want to be King if you want to act royally if you want to be the The leader then you have to be cruel That's basically what they're saying and that's pagan advice The Bible speaks differently to husbands. Let me give you one instance of this first Peter 3 verse 7 What's it say it says husbands likewise? Dwell with your wives with understanding Giving honor to the wife as to the weaker vessel and as being heirs together of the grace of life that your prayers may not be Kindred to all with your wives with understanding Treat them gently Paul in Ephesians 5 speaks about cherishing and nourishing the wife You don't bully your wife You don't control her like she's a one of the pets in the house You love her you treat her tenderly you care for her you comfort her You sacrifice for her you don't bully her You don't treat her improperly a pagan in the pagan mind that sounded like a good idea Yeah, I'll show show everybody who's the boss and that's pagan advice and unfortunately that kind of advice is still taken We have seen we have seen I've seen young men who think that leading a home means to bully the wife And I've never seen that to be effective I've said this before I'm not gonna go too long on this. I'll just say a couple things I've said this before when I've taught on on marriage and family when I've taught Christian marriage and the role of a husband. I've said this and and I don't mean it to sound It may be a An illustration that that may be misunderstood. I hope it comes out clearly but I have seen Even somebody's dog even a pet You can go someplace and you can even tell when when the pet is not treated kindly You can do that. You can see that, you know, you put your hand down to pet a dog and it moves and maybe gets and And you can tell someone's not treating this this animal, right? If you can see that with a dog You can see that with children. You can see that with a wife You can see that this person is not being treated well The Bible teaches husbands to dwell with our wives according to knowledge when he says dwell that means make the house into a home It's not your motel. It's not the place where you hang your hat and then go into the garage to spend the rest of the night with your hobby You make the home into a home dwell with your wife's dwell live with them Make it a home not a not a motel to all of your wives according to knowledge Use your opportunities to study her to understand her so that you may really know her a lot of men don't really know their wives Because they don't study They can tell me the batting average of their favorite ball player or how many touchdowns this quarterback through But they can't tell me what her favorite color is They can't tell me things about the wife. Why because they're not studying their wives. They're studying other things So you dwell with your wife according to knowledge You treat her with kindness why because she's weaker normally physically the woman normally will be weaker than the husband It's not because you're stronger and batter. It's because there's a tenderness involved in caring for someone who is weaker than you So you actually love them you spend time getting to know them And why is that because you are heirs together in the kingdom of God? Because loving one another is a benefit not just to each other But to any children and it can be a model to others with King Ahasuerus. He received orders to just bully her depose her Show everybody who's boss you've been humiliated. So get rid of her and that was their advice well verse 1 of chapter 2 After these things when the wrath of King Ahasuerus subsided he remembered Vashti What she had done and what had been decreed against her the king's servants who attended him said Well, that beautiful young virgins be sought for the king Let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom that they may gather all the beautiful young virgins to Shoshan the citadel into the women's quarters under the custody of Hegai The king's eunuch custodian of the women and and let beauty preparations be given them Then let the young woman who pleases the king Bequeen instead of Vashti and this thing pleased the king and he did so Now this according to commentators may have taken place somewhere around two years. It wasn't just the next week It wasn't the next day when he came out of his inebriation. It took him some time It may have taken place about two years later It is estimated that this feast that we spoke of here took place around 483 And he went off to fight Greece in 481 so it was right around that time So he's cooled down and he realized that he's been foolish So what's he do it once again? He seeks counsel and here's what his advisor say replace Vashti with a newer model since marriage is not guarded They counseled him just to replace her Well, they obviously wouldn't want her back. Why is that because she might seek vengeance on them So let's replace her with somebody who doesn't know what has happened Well as this is taking place the king is pleased with this first five in Shoshan the citadel There was a certain Jew whose name was Mordecai the son of Jair the son of Shimei The son of Kish a benjamite Kish had been carried away from Jerusalem with the captives who had been captured with Jack and I a king of Judah Whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away Mordecai had brought up Hadassah that is Esther his uncle's daughter for she had neither father nor mother The young woman was lovely and beautiful when her father and mother died Mordecai took her as his own daughter So it was when the king's command and decree were heard and when many young women were gathered at Shoshan the citadel under the custody of Hegye That Esther also was taken to the king's palace into the care of Hegye the custodian of the women now the young woman pleased him and she obtained his favor So he readily gave beauty preparations to her besides her allowance Then seven choice maid servants were provided for her from the king's palace And he moved her and her maid servants to the best place in the house of the women Esther had not revealed her people or family for Mordecai had charged her not to reveal it and Every day Mordecai paced in front of the court of the women's quarters to learn of Esther's welfare And what was happening to her so at this point were introduced to Mordecai as well as Esther Now Notice it says in verse 5. There was a certain Jew. I'm just going to touch on this for a moment normally the word Jew is Used to speak of those of the tribe of Judah when you go to Israel to this day They'll tell you that the word Jew is usually referring to those from Judah the tribe of Judah but not in this case one commentator pointed out that all who were captive were called Jews and So he's just spoken of as one who is a captive now Mordecai is from a tribe a prestigious tribe tribe of Benjamin Verse 5 gives us the names of his father grandfather and great fun a great grandfather And so Mordecai according to verse 6 is the great grandson of a man by the name of kish Now kish was exiled to Babylon in 597 in Nebuchadnezzar's second campaign against Israel Verse 7 tells us Mordecai had brought up Hadassah as his own daughter now. I mentioned that Hadassah means myrtle But that has significance. I opened up a Jewish commentary on this I wanted to hear what the significance would be of this name and according to this particular Jewish commentary She was called Hadassah Because as the myrtle spreads fragrance in the world So did she spread good works and as the myrtle does not dry up either in summer or winter So the righteous have a share in this world and in the world to come So her name was myrtle and it was very significant notice verse 7 how it describes her not only was she lovely But she was beautiful Lovely she was lovely in outer appearance And she had in the word speaks of this She had a shapely figure She was built like a brick house. No, she was It's a blast from the past. It just Came in this year and just floated out. I'm sorry So she was lovely she was built beautifully and Just to look at her it was pleasing. She was beautiful to behold Mordecai had adopted her and treated her as if he she was his own Daughter now I want to point something out in verse 8 It says it so it was when the king's command and decree were heard When many young women were gathered at Shushan the Citadel under the custody of Hegye Now look at this. I'm going to share something with you real quickly here That Esther also was taken to the king's palace into the care of Hegye the custodian of the women now when you're reading your Bible and you read that Esther was taken. Well, what's that word mean? It simply means that she was transported, right? She was taken there. I I was looking at a commentary and then I looked it up in in various helps that I have to understand this and this I found Very interesting when it says that she was taken again Esther was also was taken the word taken means removed by force That says a lot. Let me develop that for a moment. She was taken by force That was the power of the king. They took people for their own pleasure This was not her choice as I was thinking of that Sometimes circumstances arise in our lives. Here's your application That we wouldn't choose for ourselves Sometimes things occur That we didn't volunteer for Sometimes things may happen That were we to have been able to make a decision concerning what was happening and the outcome of that We would have said no, I don't want to have any part of that. I Don't want any part of that Esther was not by choice willingly moving into this direction and As I was reading that and preparing the study I began to think of there's so many But I began to think of other other people in Scripture. I think of Joseph in the Old Testament Now that Joseph who is of he is one of the the tribes of Israel became one of the leaders of the tribes of Israel is Joseph Joseph had been basically sold into slavery by his own brothers He was taken off into Egypt. He became a slave. He was there for many years He would not have chosen that for himself if you just said Joseph Would you like to be sold into slavery taken and sold and then used as somebody's house servant? Would you like to do that? He would have said no and yet when it comes out later on when he's been there for many years when later on it comes out and his brothers come There to Egypt to try and buy grain and and and Joseph looks at every bit Egyptian He's dressed like Egyptian. He's walks like an Egyptian. He these old things keep coming back. I'm sorry Even speaks to a translator Brothers don't even know who he is they think he's just the One of the most powerful men in Egypt and they're afraid of him it turns out he finally has to disclose to them I'm your brother and They were afraid that he was going to show take take his vengeance on them and he said no What you intended for evil? What does it say? God intended for good Did he did he choose? No, that was not his choice But he was taken and was used later in a great way We've been looking at the book of Acts and book of Acts in chapter 8 It speaks of how under persecution the church dispersed remember that and it says that the church dispersed throughout Judea and Samaria It says in Acts 8 verse 4 those who were scattered when it went everywhere preaching the word So even under the pressure they didn't choose on their own. Let's get up and go out and preach They were supposed to they hadn't but under force under persecution They went out and what happened? Multitudes of people came to faith in Christ sometimes the things we don't choose for ourselves are used by God to accomplish his will It's interesting. I was thinking of Paul and in the book of Galatians how in chapter 4 verse 13 Paul said as you know It was because of an illness that I first preached the gospel to you. I Was on a ministry trip. I got sick that gave me an opportunity To preach the gospel to you. Do you think that Paul said I would love to get sick about right now? No Who likes to do that? But did he choose the illness for himself? No Was the illness used for God's glory? Absolutely. He was able to preach the gospel to the Galatians Someone once said if you want to make God laugh Tell him your plans in Romans 8 28 We know that all things work together for good to those who love God to those who are called according to his purpose Esther Now becomes part of Ahasuerus's harem Now verse 9 tells us that This young woman Esther pleased him and obtained his favor She was beautiful. She was likable. She was attractive and she was charming and she had She had obtained the favor of Hagia. This isn't speaking yet of Ahasuerus And so Hagia I liked her and he gave her special treatment as well as what would have been her allowance In other words, she had the best beauty care the best diet And the best women who could attend to her needs Now he knew that the king had preferences. He made sure that she was properly prepared when she met him Now Esther was unlike Daniel. Daniel didn't defile himself with the king's food But she did She ate the food and she was even willing to marry a pagan Now in verse 10 it says to us That Esther had not revealed her people or family. She had been told not to by her uncle Mordecai said you need to keep your Jewishness concealed Remember her Jewish name had been changed to a Persian name And the persians didn't regard conquered people with respect And so perhaps she'd be mistreated or perhaps those in her nation would be mistreated But God was moving behind the scenes. He was about to accomplish his will Jeremiah 29 11 says it like this I know the thoughts. I know the plans I have for you declares the lord plans of peace and not of evil To give you a future and a hope I have plans and these plans are going to be worked down Well, how did Mordecai feel well verse 11 every day Mordecai paced in front of the court of the women's quarters To learn of Esther's welfare and what was happening to her He was known to the king and he had freedom to do that As in the time of daniel he was respected because of his character and thus he was allowed to do that Well in verse 12 each young woman's turn came to go into king ahasuerus after she had completed 12 months According to the regulations for the women for thus were the days of their preparation apportioned six months With oil of myrrh six months with perfumes and preparations for beautifying women six months in a In a spa You ladies would probably like like that, huh? marion occasion has liked massages and things like that She could never get me in there I don't have some man wrestling around with my Do that Keep your hands off me Well, they had a year of preparation There was oil to smooth the skin perfumes remember in in a hot climate the skin dried out And bathing was infrequent It's a nice polite way to say She could have had bile well Verse 13 thus prepared each young woman went to the king So she was prepared that means she had the finest of clothing and jewelry As well as the best attendance I was reading how she could even bring musicians to sing and play songs in order to make her entrance better And the time with the king better. She was in other words doing everything she could to become the favorite That's what the other women were doing Well, it says in verse 14 in the evening she went And in the morning She returned to the second house of the women to the custody of shagas The king's eunuch who kept the concubines She would not go into the king again unless the king delighted in her and called for her by name So each one would have a night with the king and then come out if he wanted her back that was showing favor now Verse 15 when the turn came for ester the daughter of abahel the uncle of mordecai who had had taken her as his daughter to go into the king Listen to this she requested nothing But what hagiah the king's eunuch the custodian of the women advised and ester obtained favor in the sight of all who saw her She did nothing. This is really an important point that I could really Share a lot about I'll try to be careful. I do want to go through this chapter She did nothing to make herself desirable She went in just as she is She took the counsel of of the individual that that she respected and who liked her But she didn't do anything To beautify herself. She didn't put extra makeup. She didn't do a single thing She just basically didn't have She didn't have that longing desire She just went in as she was That shows her modest nature that shows her humility, but it especially shows the lack of selfish ambition You see all who saw her admired her beauty She had no need of anything To enhance it She didn't rely on her outer beauty She was beautiful in every way I think that's a great lesson for not just women but for men and women It's the heart that matters She had the beautiful. I mean she had a beautiful appearance, of course But her heart was beautiful too and everybody who knew her loved her well verse 16 Esther was taken to king ahasuerus and into his royal palace in the 10th month, which is the month of tibet In the seventh year of his reign And the king loved ester that word loved means was very attracted to her The king loved ester more than all the other women She obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins So he set the royal crown upon her head and made her queen instead of ashti He was more attracted to her There was something about her that connected with him and what he did is he made her his chief wife the queen And he relegated the others to his harem When he made that decision verse 18 the king made a great feast this guy likes to eat The feast of ester For all his officials and servants and he proclaimed a holiday in the provinces gave gifts according to the generosity of a king and so This marriage was magnificent And ester is made his queen He releases the provinces from financial tribute for a short period. So that shows his generosity Well in verse 19 when virgins were gathered together a second time Mordecai sat within the king's gate now ester had not revealed her family and her people just as mordecai had charged her For ester obeyed the command of mordecai as when she was brought up by him And so the king is still adding concubines to his harem And at this time verse 20 tells us that ester has not yet revealed that she is jewish While as this is taking place verse 21 in those days When mordecai sat within the king's gate two of the king's eunuchs big tharn and teresh doorkeepers became furious And sought to lay hands on king ahasuerus The matter became known to mordecai who told queen ester ester informed the king in mordecai's name And when an inquiry was made into the matter it was confirmed Both were hanged on on a gallows and it was written in the book of the chronicles in the presence of the king So few last comments in this Mordecai, I want you to notice this verse 21 is Sitting within the king's gate That is a phrase that that way americans probably Wouldn't relate well to don't understand it Why because this isn't something in our own culture when you go to israel though you learn this When you go to israel you'll enter into a walled area If you able to go sometime you're with us for example in cesarea You go in excuse me, and there is a wall that you a wall and you enter in it It's actually a wall around an amphitheater, but Within it is an alcove And so you've got the uh an open space and an alcove Then you go on in down into the amphitheater That's where the judges of the city would be seated The judges would sit In these alcoves and the people who had any cases would come to the judges And they would have their cases decided in that way This gives us insight into mordecai. He is an official of some sort there a lesser official But he's an official And that's a place of prominence and it gives us insight into what he's doing. So he's there Sitting as a judge Well There are two that were very upset It speaks of these two the king's eunuchs Big than and teresh. They were doorkeepers. So they were upset They were furious with him now. Why would they be furious with king hasweras? They may have been loyal to vashti And when vashti was deposed and ester replaced her It may have made them so angry They wanted to take out the king for doing that the disrespect Well, what happens is mordecai It's made known to him and what's he do he speaks to ester and I want you to see this i'm going to close with this It says when verse 23 when an inquiry was made into the matter It was confirmed and both were hanged on a gallows I wanted to see what that hanged on a gallows spoke about. So I looked at I looked up persian forms of capital punishment There are so many different forms One of the things they would do is they would tie prisoners down And they would skin them alive Yeah, they would skin them alive sometimes just small pieces and sometimes just entire rows of flesh They were very very cruel It was so sickening to read this that I I I read two or three of them and I thought oh, this is this is Unbelievable, but one of the other ways when you read of the gallows And the reason I did this I wanted to see what the word gallows means because to me the gallows is where you know You're hanged. You have a rope and you're dropped through a Door a floor that opens up. That's our gallows. That's not what the word speaks of The gallows is speaking of a torture stake And what they would do and I won't go into much detail. I have to tell you this is so gruesome just read it But I'm serious. I mean, I thought oh my goodness talk about man's cruelty to human beings But they would they would take them There were two different ways. I won't go into a lot of detail one would be the place on it And another would be to put them on the ground and drive something through him And they would begin from his bottom and go all the way up And then they would hang him And they would leave him there and sometimes they could stay there for several days Not it wasn't an instant death It was a horrible death So that gives you some insight Into when the jewish people entered into pagan lands why they exterminated people that gives you some insight into that These were the things that they did to other human beings And this king Ordered these men To be put on the gallows not necessarily being hanged but being impaled It was something that they would want Everybody to see why? To see him screaming and writhing and to walk by the next day and they're still doing that It put fear in them. They were not going to disobey. They were not going to break the law They didn't want to end up like that And so what is an interesting part of this book is This is something that was noted I want you to see it it says it was written in the book of the chronicles in the presence of the king This is going to show itself later on Just just this one phrase it was written it's going to show you the value Of something like that again how what appears to be little things Actually add up to greater things You'll see that as we go through this