17th September 2020 Daily Discovery Devotional Today Thursday
TODAY’S TOPIC: THE TABLES ARE TURNED
Opening Prayer: Thank You, Jesus, that You are my advocate.
Read Esther 8 The King’s Edict in Behalf of the Jews
8 That same day King Xerxes gave Queen Esther the estate of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came into the presence of the king, for Esther had told how he was related to her. 2 The king took off his signet ring, which he had reclaimed from Haman, and presented it to Mordecai. And Esther appointed him over Haman’s estate.
3 Esther again pleaded with the king, falling at his feet and weeping. She begged him to put an end to the evil plan of Haman the Agagite, which he had devised against the Jews. 4 Then the king extended the gold scepter to Esther and she arose and stood before him.
5 “If it pleases the king,” she said, “and if he regards me with favor and thinks it the right thing to do, and if he is pleased with me, let an order be written overruling the dispatches that Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, devised and wrote to destroy the Jews in all the king’s provinces. 6 For how can I bear to see disaster fall on my people? How can I bear to see the destruction of my family?”
17th September 2020 Daily Discovery Devotional Today Thursday
7 King Xerxes replied to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, “Because Haman attacked the Jews, I have given his estate to Esther, and they have impaled him on the pole he set up. 8 Now write another decree in the king’s name in behalf of the Jews as seems best to you, and seal it with the king’s signet ring—for no document written in the king’s name and sealed with his ring can be revoked.”
9 At once the royal secretaries were summoned—on the twenty-third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. They wrote out all Mordecai’s orders to the Jews, and to the satraps, governors and nobles of the 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush.[a] These orders were written in the script of each province and the language of each people and also to the Jews in their own script and language. 10 Mordecai wrote in the name of King Xerxes, sealed the dispatches with the king’s signet ring, and sent them by mounted couriers, who rode fast horses especially bred for the king.
11 The king’s edict granted the Jews in every city the right to assemble and protect themselves; to destroy, kill and annihilate the armed men of any nationality or province who might attack them and their women and children,[b] and to plunder the property of their enemies. 12 The day appointed for the Jews to do this in all the provinces of King Xerxes was the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar. 13 A copy of the text of the edict was to be issued as law in every province and made known to the people of every nationality so that the Jews would be ready on that day to avenge themselves on their enemies.
14 The couriers, riding the royal horses, went out, spurred on by the king’s command, and the edict was issued in the citadel of Susa.
The Triumph of the Jews
15 When Mordecai left the king’s presence, he was wearing royal garments of blue and white, a large crown of gold and a purple robe of fine linen. And the city of Susa held a joyous celebration. 16 For the Jews it was a time of happiness and joy, gladness and honor. 17 In every province and in every city to which the edict of the king came, there was joy and gladness among the Jews, with feasting and celebrating. And many people of other nationalities became Jews because fear of the Jews had seized them.
Footnotes
a Esther 8:9 That is, the upper Nile region
b Esther 8:11 Or province, together with their women and children, who might attack them;
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect: 17th September 2020 Daily Discovery
Sometimes, in order to get a desired and right outcome, we need to keep on pushing and pushing. Have you been in that situation?
Haman may have been defeated, but the edict devised by him and sent out across the Persian empire in the king’s name is still in force (8). Esther, with continuing courage, pleads before the king for her people once more (3). Her plea results in another edict, which counters the first one, giving the Jews permission to defend themselves against their enemies (11–13). Owing to Esther’s persistence, the news that they would now be able to protect themselves arrived (11); there was great celebration and thankfulness—and many conversions to Judaism! Alongside this, Mordecai is raised to a position of wealth, power and honor, and he is treated royally (15–17).
This brings the situation to (apparently) something of a stalemate. The Jews were to have been destroyed; now that they can defend themselves, their enemies become afraid of them. It’s not unreasonable to think that now the two edicts effectively cancel each other out, and there is no need for any fighting at all!
Apply: In his parables, Jesus encourages us to be persistent in prayer (Luke 11:5–13; 18:1–8)—even when things appear unanswered. Commit to pray this week for any unresolved situations on your heart.
Closing Prayer: Thank You, God, for delighting in hearing my prayers. Hear me now, I pray.
Through the Bible in One Year
Isaiah 33,34 / Hebrews 1
Thanks for reading 17th September 2020 Daily Discovery Devotional – The Tables Are Turned
16th September 2020 Daily Discovery Devotional
