Esther 2:15  Now when the turn of Esther, the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her for his daughter, was come to go in unto the king, she required nothing but what Hegai the king’s chamberlain, the keeper of the women, appointed. And Esther obtained favour in the sight of all them that looked upon her.
16  So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus into his house royal in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign.
17  And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
18  Then the king made a great feast unto all his princes and his servants, even Esther’s feast; and he made a release to the provinces, and gave gifts, according to the state of the king.
19  And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai sat in the king’s gate.
20  Esther had not yet shewed her kindred nor her people; as Mordecai had charged her: for Esther did the commandment of Mordecai, like as when she was brought up with him.
21  In those days, while Mordecai sat in the king’s gate, two of the king’s chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those which kept the door, were wroth, and sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus.
22  And the thing was known to Mordecai, who told it unto Esther the queen; and Esther certified the king thereof in Mordecai’s name.
23  And when inquisition was made of the matter, it was found out; therefore they were both hanged on a tree: and it was written in the book of the chronicles before the king.

Esther had a character that the other women did not have. Mordecai likely raised her with Jewish principles. In this book we see an undercurrent of some Biblical thought from Mordecai, that reaches into Esther’s life as well. It is overt and not openly known as it should be.
Due to Esther’s general understanding of Jewish culture, she did not need outward adorning as the other women had. Hegai chose the things she would take and that was all she took. We read that the other women were not jealous of her. They accepted that she was different and they were content with that.
In verse 16 we see that Esther was taken to the king’s house in the tenth month, the month Tebeth. This was the seventh year of his reign. The drunken party and the divorce that brought this all about was in his third year. This has been a process of time in developing this scheme and working through it.
In verse 17 we read that the king loved Esther. Obviously the king did not know what true love was. He divorced his wife because she would to bow to his wicked demand. Now he was looking for another woman, but one that was still a virgin and likely younger than his wife. His love seemed to be more in line with lust than true love.
We read that the king made Esther queen instead of his wife Vashti. He was an adulterer and a polygamist. Just because human law allows for divorce and remarriage, does not mean God does. The Bible is clear that a man and his wife become one flesh and they are to remain together until death separates them. God hates divorce. We have noted in the past that marriage is designed by God to be a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ’s relationship with His body, the church. Salvation is eternal. A saved person can never lose their salvation. It is a gift of God and God does not go back on His Word. A person cannot claim salvation through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and then decide to leave Him and find another ‘saviour’. There is no other Saviour. No one that is truly born again would ever want to leave God’s gift of salvation. There are many frauds who have claimed salvation, but never were saved. They claim to have left. They claim it was not for them. Lost people will never come to Christ unless they listen to the drawing of the Holy Spirit in their heart.
In verse 18 we see again the extravagance of the king. It was not his money that was used to throw these lavish parties. It was the people’s money, but enough of the people were content to let him squander their money. He called this Esther’s feast. As part of this feast, the king made a release to the provinces. The word translated as “release” has the sense of “rest”. It seems he made this a holiday in his kingdom. He also gave gifts according to his desire. We know he was not a very wise king, but the people seemed to be content with him, at least for the most part.
In verse 19 we see that the virgins were all gathered together again, and Mordecai sat in the king’s gate. He had some official business to conduct.
In verse 20 we read again that Esther had not revealed who she really was. She just wanted to blend into the culture. She took her counsel from Mordecai. It was not wise counsel, but it was what he gave her. We read that Esther was loyal to Mordecai. She had learned the importance of obeying him as a child. However, as an adult she needed to take responsibility for her actions and think things through. Later, she would think about Mordecai’s command, but she would give in to his wishes.
In verse 21 we read that while Mordecai sat in the king’s gate, he overheard an assassination plot against the king. Two of the king’s men who kept the door, were angry with him and they wanted to do him harm.
In verse 22 we see that Mordecai has some loyalty to the king. He heard of this plot and he informed Esther of it and she went to the king with the information. Esther was also demonstrating her loyalty to the king.
In verse 23 the matter was investigated and it was found that these two men had indeed planned to do harm to the king. The result was a speedy trial and then these men were hanged. The justice was swift at that time. There was no lingering in prison as we see in our system. The discovery was made and the end result was the death of these two men. Regardless of the nature of the king, the citizens should not get away with trying to take out their vengeance against him. There needs to be a respect for the rule of law. Those in authority will answer to God for their actions. They need to be reminded of this fact, but death threats are not right.
There were a few things that the Medes and the Persians did right. They inadvertently followed God’s law. This event was recorded in the history books of the king. This matter would be further dealt with at a later date.
Thus we see in these two chapters already that pagan rulers are not known for their wisdom. They may rise to be kings, but they are no wiser than the average citizen. This king encouraged drunkenness in his empire. That can never be a good thing. We have also noted the break down of the family order. The king and the men in general lacked respect for their wives. Their wives were dispensable. A wife that did not follow her husband’s whims could be replaced. This would no doubt instil some measure of fear in the women, although it would not make for good relationships.
Mordecai should have known the importance of being a godly Jew. He seems to miss that point. He was like many of the captives. He was a Jew by birth and he kept some of the teachings of the Jews, but he was not going to let too many people know who he was. He also counselled Esther to be quiet about her kindred.
Christians need to be a light in this dark world. Christians are not a replacement for the Jews. However, we are to be witnesses unto the Lord Jesus Christ. The lost need to know what makes us different. The difference needs to be according to God’s Word. We may be hated for speaking the truth, but the truth needs to be told. If we are saved, we will have the love of God in our hearts and we will want to help others to avoid the troubles of the lost now and the eternal damnation that the lost will face.
Pastor Bartel