The book of Esther begins in Persia and it remains in Persia throughout. It reveals the nature of the Jews who were content to remain in a foreign, pagan nation rather than move back to Israel. Israel/Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians and had laid in ruins for 70 years. Materialistically, there was nothing enticing to draw the people back to Jerusalem. Those Jews that had a memory of what Israel once was, went back. Others saw no benefit to going back home. Those who remained in Persia, had little interest in God and they just wanted to live and make money. Not a wise choice.
In chapter 10 we see that king Ahasuerus was a typical politician. They have no sense of respect for those they are to govern. They spend money and raise taxes to cover their extravagance. Jesus taught us that we need to pay our taxes. He stated that while Israel was under the rule of wicked king Herod.
Just taxation is needed. We need roads and other things. We have not benefited from socialized medicine. We also have not gained from the legalized gambling and many other wasteful ventures.
King Solomon was a great tax waster. He burdened the people with excessive taxation to support his ungodly ways. At his death the people asked Rehoboam for some relief. He chose to make things worse for them, rather than better. God used his foolishness as the tool by which He would split the kingdom.
King Ahasuerus had no sense of God. He was a secular king who had an extravagant lifestyle and instituted laws that cost money, but were unnecessary. As is usual, he taxed the people to cover for his foolishness. Governments are established by God. Ungodly nations waste a lot of resources. People living in ungodly nations are oppressed by their governments, but often do not know any better.
Israel had a short window where they were blessed by God through good government. Most of the time, they had either completely ungodly government or they had quasi-spiritual government. Persia was a godless nation and thus they did not know what it was like to have a good government.
King Ahasuerus governed over 127 provinces. He collected taxes from all that land. We are not told what the population was. We know that his acts and the promotion of Mordecai were all recorded in the books of the Medes and Persians.
As we continue to see in this book, which was written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, it is all about man. King Ahasuerus’ deeds were recorded as were those of Mordecai. Mordecai, being a Jew should have known the true God, but does not seem to know him. Unlike Haman, he was not an instigator of evil. He reacted to the evil that was planned against his people. He also instituted a new feast for the Jews to be kept every year by the Jews. Probably some of the Gentiles would join in that feast as well.
His deeds have been recorded for successive generations to read and study. We read that Mordecai was promoted to be second in command to king Ahasuerus. In the book of Daniel, Daniel was promoted to be the head of the governors under king Darius. The other governors hated him because they were jealous of him. They could see he was a good governor. He was honest and he was trustworthy. He was a wise man. They could only find “fault” with him by attacking his faith in the true God. That effort backfired on them.
Mordecai was elevated to second in command but he had no positive impact on the Persian empire. He was known as a Jew who would enact vengeance against anyone who dared to attack him and his people. He became a respected and feared man among the Jews. They knew he would not keep quiet in the midst of threats against his people. They respected that. He was well received by his brethren because he did not go against the secular wishes of his people. Had he been a God-fearing man, the situation would have been different.
We read as well that he was not a greedy man. He was not looking to get rich through crooked means. He wanted to see his people do well in a foreign country. This effort would keep many of them from returning to their homeland and helping to rebuild that land. The result of the attitude of men like Mordecai led to the slaughter of many more Jews who chose to live in foreign lands rather than go home.
The Jews were warned of the danger of remaining in Germany in the time of Hitler. Some heeded the warning and left. Most remained there and many of those were arrested and they later died either in concentration camps or in gas chambers.
Men like Mordecai could speak peace, but what kind of peace? True peace comes from knowing the true God, not from compromise with the enemy. The Bible makes it clear that there is a general hatred for the Jews. They are God’s chosen people and that makes them the enemy of the devil. Whether Jews are saved or lost, they are still the enemy of the devil.
This hatred will continue until the Lord Jesus Christ comes back at the end of the Tribulation time. That generation of Jews will recognize the Lord Jesus Christ as the One whom they pierced and they will mourn that fact and they will turn to God in repentance and accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour and King. Until that time, the ungodly will continue to look for a way to destroy the Jews. That is the sad reality in which the world functions.
The Word of God is the answer to man’s needs. Whether Jew or Gentile, the need is for people to be saved and know God’s peace. Those who are saved have the privilege of pointing people to the truth. Silence is not the answer. Compromise is not the answer. Truth is the answer. Some will accept the truth, many will not. Those who are saved are commanded to speak the truth and leave the response up to the individual. Whether they will hear or not, it is our duty to tell people the truth.
Unlike the books of the Medes and the Persians, God has given us a Book, the Bible, which is His Word. He has and is still preserving His Word. As we proclaim the truth in an honest and clear manner, God will bless those who serve Him faithfully.
Pastor Bartel