May the mumbling commence!
It is now time for our quantum leap. We leap from the world of Job to the world of Hadassah – more commonly known as Esther. Because of the disobedience of Queen Vashti (Esther 1:10-22), Esther eventually gained the royal position as queen. Hadassah was on orphan, who was raised by her uncle Mordecai. And, even as a queen, Hadassah continued to follow the advice of her uncle.
All was fine until the meteoric rise of Haman. King Xerxes commanded that all bow to Haman, but Mordecai refused to bow to Haman. Mordecai refused to bow because of religious reasons. This refusal incensed Haman. When Haman found out Moredicai’s reasons for refusing to bow, Haman was no longer content to see Haman die. Mordecai wanted to eradicate all of Moredicai’s people. King Xerxes gave Haman the royal signet ring so that Haman could write a decree to eliminate the Jews in the king’s name.
Mordecai went into mourning, as did many Jews. The news reached Hadassah, and she tried to cheer her uncle up with new clothes. When he refused her gifts, Hadassah wished to find out why her uncle was in mourning. Read their exchange recorded in Esther chapter four:
So Hathach went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king's gate. Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him, including the exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay into the royal treasury for the destruction of the Jews. He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation, which had been published in Susa, to show to Esther and explain it to her, and he told him to urge her to go into the king's presence to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people.
Hathach went back and reported to Esther what Mordecai had said. Then she instructed him to say to Mordecai, "All the king's officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that he be put to death. The only exception to this is for the king to extend the gold scepter to him and spare his life. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king."
When Esther's words were reported to Mordecai, he sent back this answer: "Do not think that because you are in the king's house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"
Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: "Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish."
So Mordecai went away and carried out all of Esther's instructions. (Verses 6-17)
Mordecai asked Esther to disobey the king’s wishes and enter his presence to plead for her people. Esther must have heard about the fate of Vashti. She, too, may face such a fate – or worse death – if she were to approach the throne without a summons. Would Hadassah risk her life for her people? Would she be willing to relinquish her life for those of Mordecai and her people? What if her approach to the king cost her life before she had a chance to plead with King Xerxes for the life of her people? Hadassah explained her position to her uncle.
Mordecai read between the lines. He recognized the hesitation and urged her to action. She would not escape the fate of her people. Death was near whether or not she approached the king, but Hadassah’s position gave hope to Mordecai that the fate could be averted. Perhaps God had given her this royal position for such a time as this…
Hadassah got the message loud and clear. She was ready to consider her life forfeit for her people. So she called on her uncle and all the Jewish people to fast and pray with her and her maids. Prayer and fasting are powerful tools in the hands of the righteous, and that power is multiplied exponentially when it is done as a community. And Hadassah called her maids to fast and pray with her. The life of faith that Hadassah lived was apparent to her servants, so they joined her – whether or not they were of Jewish descent.
Hadassah trusted in her God and the community that God provided her with. She was preparing to take the leap of faith and approach the royal throne unbidden.
How can we combine our position in life with our faith and trust in the Lord? How can we call the rest of the body of Christ to encourage us in our faith walk? Perhaps we were given such a position of power for such a time as this. And we do not walk alone. God is at our side, and so are our faith communities.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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