By David ReayFriday 24 Jul 2015LifeWords DevotionalsFaithReading Time: 0 minutes
Transcript:
Read Esther 2:5-9
5-7 Now there was a Jew who lived in the palace complex in Susa. His name was Mordecai the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish—a Benjaminite. His ancestors had been taken from Jerusalem with the exiles and carried off with King Jehoiachin of Judah by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon into exile. Mordecai had reared his cousin Hadassah, otherwise known as Esther, since she had no father or mother. The girl had a good figure and a beautiful face. After her parents died, Mordecai had adopted her.
8 When the king’s order had been publicly posted, many young girls were brought to the palace complex of Susa and given over to Hegai who was overseer of the women. Esther was among them.
9-10 Hegai liked Esther and took a special interest in her. Right off he started her beauty treatments, ordered special food, assigned her seven personal maids from the palace, and put her and her maids in the best rooms in the harem. Esther didn’t say anything about her family and racial background because Mordecai had told her not to. (THE MESSAGE)
For those who know Bible trivia, the book of Esther is famous for there being no mention of God in the entire book. The story of Esther features planned genocide, revenge, sexual innuendos, political intrigue, and all it seems without God being involved.
But of course he is very much involved. Just because his name is not mentioned does not mean he is not present. His name may not be up in lights as the star attraction of this story, but he is certainly hovering in the wings. The assumption is that he oversees the placing of Esther as the ruler’s favourite and thus enables her to be instrumental in the Jews avoiding a planned massacre.
This is so much like real life today. We may wonder what God is up to. We may wonder if he has lost interest. We may query why certain things happen or do not happen. We may not get clear answers to such questions. However, our Scriptures remind us that God is ever present, working things out so his purposes are fulfilled.
It doesn’t mean all that happens is good or is pleasing to him or to us. But it does mean he hasn’t just thrown up his hands and given up his world as a bad joke. We may not always see him on the stage, but we can be sure he is in the wings.
Blessings
David Reay