Esther 2:22–23: “So the matter became known to Mordecai, who told Queen Esther, and Esther informed the king in Mordecai’s name. And when an inquiry was made into the matter, it was confirmed, and both were hanged on a gallows; and it was written in the book of the chronicles in the presence of the king.”

November 17th, 2023 by Pastor Ed in devotional

King Ahasuerus of Persia removed his queen for disobeying him, and sought a new queen to replace her. He chose Esther, a Jewess, who was the cousin and adopted daughter of Mordecai. Mordecai overheard a plot 2 of the king’s eunuchs were making to kill the king. He told Esther, who in turn told the king. The 2 eunuchs were caught and given the death penalty. Although it simply says that they were “hanged on a gallows,” secular history tells us that Persian executions were brutal, with the victims usually being impaled on a stake. The Persians were also the inventors of crucifixion, but, like the Romans, used it only on their enemies and not their own citizens.

We see through these events, and the entire book of Esther, God’s providential control in the life of the king and the future of the Jews. The plot to kill the king, along with Mordecai’s role in stopping it, were “written in the book of the chronicles,” which was the government’s record of events. Five years later the king would read these records, and it would bring about a turning point in the fate of the Jews as a whole.

When we are learning to read as children, we quickly discover that the opening chapters of a novel are often a little confusing. New characters are being introduced and facts added that don’t seem to make any sense at first. But we learn to read on because a good author will weave it all together by the end of the book. At times the life of faith is much the same. We are introduced to new people and events that don’t make any sense at the moment. Things happen that seem to be counterproductive to our faith and the faith of others. But if we will simply keep walking in faith, we know that our Author will make sense of it all by the end, bringing everything into proper focus.

“LORD, help us to keep walking in faith this day, even if the road seems to go through deep and dreary places.”