[Esther 1] Act 1 Scene 1: A Spot Opens Up

If you remember from my literary pyramid that I made for the prologue/introduction, I said that the base on the left is where the setting and the characters are introduced, and then I placed Esther 1 on there. Therefore, Esther 1 is all about introducing new characters to the story. In Esther 1, we’ll meet two main characters: King Xerxes and Queen Vashti.

Remember how I said Esther is a 3-act play, almost like a Jewish fairy tale? Esther 1:1 would further reinforce that. In the original Hebrew, the text begins, “And it was…” This is the typical way stories in the ancient Hebrew began. In essence, this story is opening up as “Once upon a time…” in the Hebrew fashion. Our story has begun!

Right from the bat, in Esther 1:1, the text introduces the king. Let’s start off with a question that might seem obvious: What’s the king’s name? It may seem like an obvious question, but it might change depending how your Bible translates. Depending on the translation, the king’s name might be “Xerxes” or “Ahasuers.” It’s not that big of a deal. Xerxes is the king’s Greek name, and Ahasuers is the king’s Hebrew name. The name your Bible chooses is based off if it consulted the Septuagint, which the Greek Old Testament. If it did, it calls him “Xerxes,” but if it did not, it calls him “Ahaseuers.” But the king is not Greek or Hebrew; he’s Persian. So the most “accurate” name would be his Persian name. So what is his Persian name? His Persian name is “Khshayathiya Khshayathiyanam.” Yeah, good luck trying to pronounce that. Interesting enough, the name means “king of kings and lord of lords.” I find that interesting because that’s a title God gives himself, as seen in Revelation. Maybe Xerxes saw himself as God, or maybe it’s just a title to show he’s the king of an empire, which is made of many kingdoms. I don’t want to go too theological into that. But verse 1 does back up that Xerxes is a king of an empire. Verse 1 says that Xerxes rules over 127 providences from India to Cush, which is the upper Nile region. In fact, Xerxes extended the Persian to Ethiopia and Greece as well. Xerxes’s father was Darius I, which is the one we know from the story of Daniel. Xerxes reigned from 486-465. There’s the proof that Esther does belong in the Bible because the story of Esther fits right in that time period.

Esther 1:4-6 records one of the first actions Xerxes does. The first thing we hear King Xerxes do is throw a banquet. In the Hebrew, it’s called a misteh, which more literally translated into “drinking bout,” showing the emphasis on drinking much. Nonetheless, many foods would have been vastly consumed as well. The Bible records it happens for 180 days, which is about 6 months. Naturally, some people question this. Why do some people question this? It’s not feasible to have a banquet for 180 days. It would six months, taking the princes and governors away from their jobs to party. At least, that’s what the critics say. So perhaps a better explanation would be that Xerxes threw a bunch of small banquets for one prince of governor at a time over a period of 180 days. Also, may I add this might to rally all his princes and governors to his side. Greece is threatening to take back their lost land. King Xerxes needs all his governors on his side to wage war. Well, after this 180 days of banquets, King Xerxes throws another week long banquet for just the officials in Susa, possibly to thank them. This banquet is vividly described. So what’s the point of this? What’s the point of six months and one week of banquets? Why does the Bible want to describe what the decorations look like? To show us how rich King Xerxes is and that King Xerxes spares no expense. It shows King Xerxes’s wealth, and in a way, it shows King Xerxes’s power. He can afford to do this.

Another important part of this banquet was that there was drinking aplenty. Read Esther 1:7-8. The Persians took pride in their wine. Persians had a vast amount around and a vast amount of drinking vessels. One historical writings hold Persia for the record of most unique drinking vessels. Depending on your nationality, there was different drinking customs. For example, in the Greek culture, you were required to drink, and if you did not drink, you were asked to leave. In the Roman culture, a guest of honor was chosen at random, and he decided when to drink, where to drink, and how much to drink. Usually, Persians drank nonstop, and they would force their guests to do the same. This time, however, Xerxes feels hospitable and acts against the Persian custom. According to this passage, Xerxes did not place rules on this. He let them drink when they wanted, where they wanted and as much as they wanted. There were no limits. As fun as this might sound, the danger about alcohol is distorts reality, which leads to rash judgment. This might have led to the downfall of Queen Vashti.

Now let’s meet Queen Vashti in Esther 1:9. Before we talk about the queens of Persia or the wives of Xerxes, I want to mention that this is where archaeology does not help us. There is no mention of Vashti in the Persian writings at all. In fact, there is only one mention of a queen, but the name is “Amestris.” Some have suggested this might be another name of Vashti, but we cannot be sure. Anyway, this verse tells us that Queen Vashti also threw a banquet, but for the women. This actually fits with the custom of the day. When banquets were thrown, men and women were in separate rooms. In fact, men would have women dine separately from them just in case the party got too out of hand. So that’s probably what is happening here.

Conflict can sometimes arise in the first chapter of a novel. While the big conflict does not arise in this chapter, a smaller conflict will. It happens in Esther 1:10-12. King Xerxes has had too much wine, and it will lead him to make a costly decision. We hear King Xerxes, in front of nobles, officials and servants, asks for Queen Vashti to appear. What is King Xerxes trying to do? Show off Queen Vashti. Some have suggested that when the text says, “with her royal crown,” it means “with only her royal crown.” There is no proof holding up this tradition. On the contrary, it would make more sense for the opposite to be true. Xerxes wants to show off his vast wealth and possessions. By calling Vashti forward, Xerxes has turned her into one of those possessions. He wants Vashti decorated in her fanciest and most expensive wardrobe, include the royal crown, to show off how well he can dress his wife the queen. Queen Vashti doesn’t take this as a compliment. She doesn’t want to be used as something to show off. When Queen Vashti receives the message, she refuses to come.

So as a problem arises, a solution is sought. It takes verses 13 to 22 to fully develop the solution. What’s the first thing Xerxes does? He consults his advisors. Some have suggested King Xerxes is showing weakness because he can’t make the decision on his own, but needs help to make decisions. I don’t think this is showing weakness. I actually think he’s being a good king for seeking guidance and advice. After all, we wouldn’t think the president is a bad president for seeking the cabinet for help. We wouldn’t think our president is weak for seeking the cabinet’s advice. King Xerxes is seeking his cabinet for help. The first “cabinet member” to speak up is Mermucan. Mermucan suggests that if King Xerxes allows Queen Vashti to disrespect him, women all over will disrespect their husbands. Maybe it’s true, maybe it’s false, or maybe it’s just an exaggeration. Either way, it leads Memucan to give what he thinks is a good solution. Memucan suggests Xerxes first banish Vashti from his presence, which most likely means the whole city of Susa. How ironic that the punishment for not entering the king’s presence when summoned is to never be allowed in the king’s presence ever again! Then Mermucan suggests a new queen should replace her. Memucan claims that this will set an example to women to stay in their place.

I want to spend the rest of this on focusing on a single question: “How is this small story important to the big story?” or “How does Esther 1 contribute to the book of Esther?” First, this story makes a comparable standard for when Esther becomes queen. We knew the rules set for the queen, what the appropriate response is suppose to be, and what the result will be for not following orders. Now I don’t think I’m spoiling the story because most of you are familiar with the story, but when Esther is queen in the future, she will also defy the King’s law in a somewhat similar way. The rule for the queen is that you don’t appear for the king if he does not summon you, but if he does summon you, you must appear. While Vashti refused to enter the king’s presence when summoned, Esther enters the king’s presence without being summoned. Look at how different the results are. Queen Vashti is kicked out of the capital city. But King Xerxes allows Esther to enter. Why do you think that is? It could be a difference in laws, Esther has more favor, pure grace and mercy, or a whole plethora of other options. I’m not going to go any further into that, as we’ll be able to see it more clearly by the time we reach that point. Keep that in mind as we get closer to the chapter where Esther defies the law. It will become clearer then. But for now, I want you to see that Esther does have an upper hand over Vashti.

But I want you to look at the bigger picture here, which is the second point that last group hit on. This story opens up a spot for Esther to be queen. There is no way Esther could have saved her people without being queen. To be queen, there needs to be an open spot to be made queen. I see God working here to open up that position. When God calls us to a position, he’s not going to call us to a position that is already taken. God isn’t going to always put us in a position that we can get to. God will provide a way to put us in the place, position, ministry or mission God wants us in. And sometimes to do that, he’s at work even before we get there, or even before we know it ourselves. It may even be before we were born. The best example I can think of is my own life. When my mother was pregnant with me, my father and mother thought it would be best to start going back to church to raise me to be a good, moral American citizen. And I am very sure that if my parents did not make that decision, I would not stand before you today teaching you the Bible. I had no control over what parents I would get, and whether they were godly or not. But God does have control, and he controlled it to be so.

So the lesson about God’s providence in Esther 1 is “setting the stage.” I’m going to try to put a picture for every lesson, not only to help you remember the lesson, but also to show God’s providence. In this picture, a stage crew is setting the stage for a performance. In Broadway musical and plays, the stage crew sets the stage. The cool thing about the stage crew is that they are not always seen, but you know they are there and working because everything is perfectly in place for the actors and actresses to use. If all the world’s a stage, and the people merely actors, then one of God’s roles is to be the stage crew, setting the stage for your life. Ever think hard about that? It might blow your mind. Think about it: God is already setting the stage and planning out the next stage in your life, even if you don’t know about it. Now think about where you are in left. Looking back, can you see how God set you up to be in that position? Every positive blessing that you have in your life, God set it up for you to have it. Take the time to praise him for that. If you’re doing the “assignment” I gave you, try to make your “God Sighting” of the day to be a recent way God has set the stage for you. Give God the credit due.

Don’t be too worried if you can’t see God setting the stage right now. This is just the beginning of Esther. As we go through Esther, we’ll see how God setting the stage leads to God working in other parts of the book of Esther. And then maybe you can see God working through other parts of your life, too.