HealingStrong's Around the Word

Episode 55 - The Esther Series: Courage in the Face of Annihilation (Esther 7 NIV)

• HealingStrong • Episode 55

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Queen Esther displays remarkable courage as she reveals Haman's genocidal plot against the Jews during a second banquet with King Xerxes. The king's furious reaction and Haman's desperate attempts to save his life lead to a dramatic conclusion where justice is served in the most poetic way possible.

• Esther strategically waits for the right moment to reveal her Jewish identity and Haman's evil plot
• The king is shocked that his trusted advisor has planned to destroy his queen and her people
• Esther demonstrates extraordinary courage by confronting her accuser face-to-face
• King Xerxes storms out in rage, showing his genuine care for Esther beyond just her royal position
• Haman falls on Esther's couch begging for mercy, which the king misinterprets as an assault
• A royal eunuch points out the 75-foot gallows Haman built for Mordecai
• In perfect poetic justice, Haman is executed on the very gallows he prepared for another
• The story reads like a dramatic soap opera but carries profound lessons about speaking truth to power

Suggested Resources:

BIBLE PLAN - Trusting God's Plan When You Don't See Him: Lessons From the Book of Esther

PODCAST - Genesis to Revelation Bible Reading

TOOLS - Refresh Your Spirit through God's Word


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Speaker 1:

You know how people have a problem and they'll talk to somebody else but they never go to the person that has caused the problem. You know, because it takes us a lot of courage to do that to face your accuser.

Speaker 2:

She's a woman, for heaven's sake. You know, in that culture you didn't have the same rights as a man. So here's this woman. Even though you're a queen, you're a woman.

Speaker 1:

Well, hello, my name is Cheryl and you're listening to Healing Strong's Around the Word. We're friends sitting around a table who love the Lord and we love digging deep into His Word. Each day, I'll read a Bible passage and then we'll chat about what we're learning from it. Today, we'll be reading Esther, chapter 7 from the NIV version of the Bible. So join us Around the Word Esther, chapter 7.

Speaker 1:

So the king and Haman went to Queen Esther's banquet and as they were drinking wine. On the second day, the king and Haman went to Queen Esther's banquet and as they were drinking wine on the second day, the king again asked Queen Esther, what is your petition? It will be given you. What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted. Then Queen Esther answered If I have found favor with you, your majesty, and if it pleases you, grant me my life this is my petition and spare my people. This is my request, for I and my people have been sold to be destroyed, killed and annihilated. If we had merely been sold as male and female slaves, I would have kept quiet, because no such distress would justify disturbing the king. King Xerxes asked Queen Esther who is he? Where is he? The man who has dared to do such a thing. Esther said an adversary, an enemy, this vile Haman. Then Haman was terrified before the king and queen. The king got up in a rage, left his wine and went out into the palace garden, but Haman, realizing that the king had already decided his fate, stayed behind to beg Queen Esther for his life.

Speaker 1:

Just as the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet hall, haman was falling on the couch where Esther was reclining. The king exclaimed Will he even molest the queen while she is with me in the house? As soon as the word left the king's mouth, they covered Haman's face. Then Harbana, one of the eunuchs attending the king, said A pole reaching to a height of 50 cubits stands by Haman's house. He had it set up for Mordecai who spoke up to help the king. The king said impale him on it. So they impaled Haman on the pole he had set up for Mordecai. Then the king's fury subsided. That was our Bible passage for the day. Now let's see what Jeff, susie, angie and myself were talking about around the word. It's the second banquet night. That's what we're starting out here with our reading today, and we've got the King and Haman dining with Queen Esther, and they're having lots of wine. So what's?

Speaker 2:

happening here and it says during the wine course. And I'm assuming the wine course is early on, right, I don't know, I don't know. I would think it's probably have some wine first thing. But anyway, the point was that the king, what is it you want, esther? What is it you want? It's probably been bothering him obviously for a couple of days, like Susie thought, maybe that's why he couldn't sleep the night before. So he asked her again you know, what is it that you want? I'll give you half of my kingdom. So it was prominent on his mind.

Speaker 3:

So I can't imagine what her heart was feeling like and how fast her heart must have been beating Racing, racing, yeah, sweating, and just so nervous because she was going to have to call out the king's right-hand man to the king's face and she waited for him to ask, like she could have gone and said okay, here's what's going to happen, we're going to have this wine and then I'm going to tell you she could have started in, but she patiently waited for the right opportunity.

Speaker 2:

I think that's a lesson, and she showed such humility because she reveals then the plan that she's heard of, that her people are going to be destroyed. And then she says and if we were only going to be captured and turned into slaves, I wouldn't even bother you with it. So she's saying you know, me and my people will submit to being slaves rather than bother you with this issue, but you know, set out to destroy all of my people. I've got to bring it to your attention.

Speaker 1:

See, I view that almost as flattery. I know you see it as humility and I was like is it flattering?

Speaker 3:

She very carefully chose her words, yeah.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, she really did. Did you have any thoughts on it?

Speaker 4:

Well, there is a distinction between, you know, life and death. I think the Jewish people, at this point, have been in slavery before, and so it's.

Speaker 1:

That's saying a lot right.

Speaker 4:

Absolutely, and so they're not accustomed I mean, they're not not accustomed to suffering hardship and labor and things of that nature, but it's it's really comes to a point. There has to be a definitive line of when it's not okay and when we're talking about destroying a life. That's when it becomes not okay and I think that's where she is able to reveal to the king, you know, appealing for her own life and her people, because there has been a foe, an evil plan devised to destroy all of us. There was no ambiguity of that. It was. We are going to die together and you need to know about this.

Speaker 1:

I think it also speaks to her courage in this situation. To me, this almost was the harder situation than even going before the king with the scepter, Because she's doing it in front of the accuser. She's seeing him face to face. You know how people have a problem and they'll talk to somebody else, but they never go to the person that has caused the problem. You know, because it takes us a lot of courage to do that to face your accuser.

Speaker 2:

She's a woman, for heaven's sake. You know, in that culture you didn't have the same rights as a man. So here's this woman. Even though you're queen, you're a woman. So she's really, really brave. But then I noticed the king seems shocked. So I'm glad that he's shocked. You know, he wasn't in on the plan. It seems like he's saying what? Who would dare kill you Esther? He doesn't say anything about her whole people because he doesn't know she's Jewish, but he's shocked by the plan that she's just described.

Speaker 3:

That was kind of shocking to me, because he's the one who put his signet ring on the edict and he's not making the connection between killing all of her people with what he signed.

Speaker 2:

Right, because he doesn't know she's a Jew.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, well, that's one of those like I thought I knew my wife or my spouse.

Speaker 1:

You know, and I'm like heck, I didn't even know him. Like, if this is, I'm wondering if he's kind of feeling played. And then when she points the finger, almost like in a courtroom drama, like this vile Haman, then he's like, whoa, this is kind of. This is a guy I just had carted around the whole city not long ago because he's so awesome and he's one of my advisors and one of the best nobles, and it's Haman, I mean, that's why I think he had to run out of the room, because he was so mad and confused.

Speaker 1:

And what's going on? Like I think he felt played because he had given haman his signet ring, you know. So, um, and at this point mordecai doesn't have his signet ring, haman still has the signet ring. So he basically this is his right hand man now and he's finding out that this right hand man was about to kill his, his queen. You know, I find it very interesting to see his reaction because you're right, to me this shows he does have, he does care for Esther. She's not just a position as queen. I think he really does care for her, at least in this time in his life.

Speaker 4:

And the courage of Esther, like you were saying, to be able to say this in front of the accuser. There is absolutely no question, there is no. Well, he said. She said you know, there it is. It's here's what the truth is, and no one can deny what was said. One can deny what was said. The two people that needed to be in that moment to hear the truth were right there, and so you're right the courage of Esther to be able to do that, that had to come from the Lord.

Speaker 1:

We then see Haman after the king has run off and he's angry. He's blown off steam. We see Haman basically begging for his life, to the point that when the king does walk back in, it looks like a compromising situation. Some translations think that the king thinks he's even trying to rape Esther. It's that bad, as it appeared to the king and remember, he's super angry too, so you can see things when you're angry. That may not be absolutely the accurate picture of what's going on right now, because you're just seeing through angry eyes, so don't do anything whenever you're angry, that's for sure. In this case, it worked out well because Haman was such an awful person. But yeah, the king was seeing something that wasn't.

Speaker 2:

We don't think was the case. But Well, no other man could touch a wife of the king, so that's why she had so many eunuchs that served her and kept her around her, kept her protected at all times. Nobody else could touch her. So him being on the couch and laying over on her was touching her and that was enough to be a serious crime.

Speaker 1:

I find it interesting that Harbana, one of the eunuchs attending the king, said oh yeah, a gallows 75 feet that was built you know it's right by Haman's house. So obviously word got out about these gallows quickly. If the king's eunuch even knows about these gallows, it's not like Haman's going around telling the eunuch about it. So it was obvious to everybody what was going on. And then king's like oh, hang him on it. Hang him on it, and there we go. That's the end of Haman.

Speaker 1:

This passage in the Bible, I swear it feels like a soap opera. It really does Like the big reveal. Haman's the bad guy. Oh my gosh, king has to run out. He's so mad. Pointing of fingers, everything is crazy. And this is in your Bible. I love it, I love it, I love it, I love it. Thank you so much for joining us for Healing Strong's Around the Word. I hope you were encouraged to read and explore God's word because it's awesome. Please visit us at healingstrongorg where you'll find out more about our mission and our amazing community groups. Until next time, remember, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.