Encounter With God 7th September 2020 Devotional – A Decadent Society

Encounter With God 7th September 2020 Devotional

6 The garden had hangings of white and blue linen, fastened with cords of white linen and purple material to silver rings on marble pillars. There were couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl and other costly stones. 7 Wine was served in goblets of gold, each one different from the other, and the royal wine was abundant, in keeping with the king’s liberality. 8 By the king’s command each guest was allowed to drink with no restrictions, for the king instructed all the wine stewards to serve each man what he wished.

9 Queen Vashti also gave a banquet for the women in the royal palace of King Xerxes.

10 On the seventh day, when King Xerxes was in high spirits from wine, he commanded the seven eunuchs who served him—Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar and Karkas— 11 to bring before him Queen Vashti, wearing her royal crown, in order to display her beauty to the people and nobles, for she was lovely to look at. 12 But when the attendants delivered the king’s command, Queen Vashti refused to come. Then the king became furious and burned with anger.

13 Since it was customary for the king to consult experts in matters of law and justice, he spoke with the wise men who understood the times 14 and were closest to the king—Karshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena and Memukan, the seven nobles of Persia and Media who had special access to the king and were highest in the kingdom.

15 “According to law, what must be done to Queen Vashti?” he asked. “She has not obeyed the command of King Xerxes that the eunuchs have taken to her.”

16 Then Memukan replied in the presence of the king and the nobles, “Queen Vashti has done wrong, not only against the king but also against all the nobles and the peoples of all the provinces of King Xerxes. 17 For the queen’s conduct will become known to all the women, and so they will despise their husbands and say, ‘King Xerxes commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him, but she would not come.’ 18 This very day the Persian and Median women of the nobility who have heard about the queen’s conduct will respond to all the king’s nobles in the same way. There will be no end of disrespect and discord.

19 “Therefore, if it pleases the king, let him issue a royal decree and let it be written in the laws of Persia and Media, which cannot be repealed, that Vashti is never again to enter the presence of King Xerxes. Also let the king give her royal position to someone else who is better than she. 20 Then when the king’s edict is proclaimed throughout all his vast realm, all the women will respect their husbands, from the least to the greatest.”

21 The king and his nobles were pleased with this advice, so the king did as Memukan proposed. 22 He sent dispatches to all parts of the kingdom, to each province in its own script and to each people in their own language, proclaiming that every man should be ruler over his own household, using his native tongue.

Footnotes
a Esther 1:1 Hebrew Ahasuerus; here and throughout Esther
b Esther 1:1 That is, the upper Nile region

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.

Meditate: Encounter With God 7th September 2020 Devotional
“Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced” (Psa. 105:4,5).

Think Further: If you are looking for spiritual refreshment, teaching about God, or even joy or encouragement in reading about human communities, then the book of Esther, particularly this chapter, is not the place to start! Elsewhere in Scripture (e.g., in Ezra, Isaiah and Daniel) we learn that Persian rulers like Cyrus and later Darius can at times show obvious skill in diplomacy and strategy, but there is no indication of any such wisdom here.

There are things to learn of course, but they are mostly related to the way societies decay and how leadership which is based on self-interest, self-indulgence, pride, accumulation of wealth and excessive consumption of alcohol in no way reflects the pattern set out for either Israel or the other nations!

Ahasuerus (Xerxes in Greek) spends six months showing everyone in the nation how rich and glorious he is—and then throws a huge banquet lasting seven days with luxurious food and unlimited alcohol consumption. Apparently, he seeks national and even worldwide respect. In fact, most readers, ancient and modern, see only economic wastefulness and diplomatic stupidity!

The only positive element is the fact that Vashti, the queen, stands up to Ahasuerus and refuses to be presented to his drunken guests as a trophy wife. His agreement with the advice of his counselors to issue a decree that all women must respect their husbands—as if respect could be demanded rather than earned—only enhances the negative picture of this king and his dissolute associates. It soon becomes difficult to understand why a fairly sizable group of Jews who have been given the opportunity to return to Israel have decided to stay and function as part of the shallow society pictured here.

Apply: Think about all the mistakes wealthy people are prone to make. Thank God for your deliverance from that mindset.

Closing Prayer: Lord, help us never to make the mistake of thinking that excessive displays of wealth or beautiful things should be seen as evidence of real greatness.

ONE YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN
Isaiah 10–12 / 2 Timothy 2

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