Esther Chapter 8
Please read: Esther 8 –
The man who had caused this whole scenario to be set in motion was no longer alive. Haman had been hanged on his own freshly built gallows that he intended for Mordecai. He was a man who had it all, but lost it all because of his pride, arrogance, and evil heart. But there was still the matter of the edict that had been sent out to the whole empire ordering the people to rise up and assassinate the Jews amongst them. The horrible thing about this matter was that a king’s edict could not be revoked. But the queen still stood in the confidence that God had given her and asked the king to do something about it anyways.
As the events unfold, we can see how God clearly orchestrated these different things to bring about His purpose. We see Mordecai, a Jew himself, clothed in royal robes working to construct a decree that would be carried to all the people of the empire. Mordecai was given the respect he needed for the scribes of the king to work with him to get the decree written and distributed to multiple people groups and written in multiple languages. And the decree was carried on horses that would have been known to be from the king’s collection. And the decree itself was sealed with the seal of the king’s ring.
The decree would allow the Jews to rise up against those who hated them and wanted to kill them. The Jews were given authority to take arms and protect their families against those that would do them harm. God was giving them purpose, giving them courage to rise up and be the people who were His. And it was God who would give them victory.
Let's Reflect
1. The king had told the queen that she could have whatever she wanted, even as much as half of his kingdom. She was ironically gifted with the house of Haman which she gifted to Mordecai. Queen Esther never asked for half the kingdom. What did she ask for?
2. The king could not go back on his original edict, but he did allow Esther and Mordecai to write a new edict of their own choosing. What did he give to Mordecai that ensured that the edict would be followed?
3. Verse 9 gives us an idea of just how vast the kingdom was. What countries are mentioned that were a part of this kingdom?
4. The evil plan of Haman was to kill the Jews in the 12th month throughout the whole Persian empire. During what month did Mordecai start sending out the second edict to make known the rights of the Jews living throughout the kingdom?
5. The Bible doesn’t specifically tell us this, but it is possible that the citizens of Suza and the other provinces, when they saw Mordecai, they might have thought he was the king. Why?
6. What did the Jews do when they learned they had been given rights to defend themselves and their families?
7. The very last phrase of the last verse is interesting. What did some people do who were not Jews, when they saw the hand of God working on behalf of the Jews?
