YouTube video sermon
Esther 5:1-14
Let me invite you to take your copy of God’s Word and turn with me to Esther 5. When I was in junior high school, I had the opportunity to travel with my parents to Europe for the first time. It was my first time traveling internationally, and we vacationed in Spain and Portugal for about a week, maybe ten days (I can’t remember). In any case, it was also the first time that I discovered how big bullfighting was, particularly in that part of the world.
Now, I’m not here to debate the ethics of such a sport or whether or not I’m “for” or “against” it, but man, oh man. Matadors – and even some of the bulls – are treated like American sports icons and rock stars. I mean, their lifestyles and their romances are the things of tabloids. And although I didn’t get to attend an actual bullfight while in Spain, we did visit one of the oldest bullrings: The Plaza de Toros de Ronda, and the museum there in Ronda, Spain.
Now, in Spanish-style bullfighting, which, by the way, is legal and protected in most parts of Spain, there are three (3) stages. Stage 1 is called tercio de varas, which is roughly translated as “third of rods” or “third of lances.” It’s the part where the matador sizes up the bull. It’s the “get to know ya” stage. The matador uses his cape to get the bull to make some passes, and it’s during these passes that he observes the bull’s mannerisms and movements and just what he’s dealing with.
Stage 2 is called the tercio de banderillas. That roughly translates to “third of darts” or “part of small flags.” It’s the stage where the matador tries to stab two dart-like sticks known as banderillas into the bull’s shoulders. Now, he may do this several times. That’s why you might see a bull with 4, 5, or 6 banderillas stuck in him. This is meant to weaken the bull and also serve to make him more aggressive.
Stage 3 is called the tercio de muerte, which is roughly translated as “third of death.” That’s fairly obvious, right. It’s this final stage that gives us the English idiom “the moment of truth.” After getting the bull to make a few more artistic and theatrical passes, the matador spurs the bull into a charge where he thrusts the sword into the bull’s back severing his spinal cord – hopefully leading to a quick death. This last act is where we get the phrase “the moment of truth.” Does the matador have the nerve? Does he have the grit? Does he have what it takes to go toe-to-toe with his adversary?
That’s where we find Esther this morning. It’s the “moment of truth.” We just ended chapter 4, and as the curtain was closing, we heard Esther call for a fast, as she determined to go before King Xerxes (a.k.a. Ahasuerus) even though she hadn’t been called. We’re told in that same chapter – from last week – that to do so would be certain death, unless the king extended his golden scepter. And we know from our study thus far that King Xerxes tends to respond like a raging bull, especially when his queen doesn’t come when she’s called, and in this case, she hasn’t been called at all. So, this morning, if you haven’t already read ahead, you’re going to find out what happens in this “moment of truth.”
By the way, I know that some of you just can’t help yourself and you’re wondering then, “Where do we get the phrase ‘take the bull by the horns.’” Well, that comes from Portuguese-style bull fighting and I’ll let you read up on that yourself.
Follow along with me, as we read Esther 5:1-14:
1 On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king’s palace, in front of the king’s quarters, while the king was sitting on his royal throne inside the throne room opposite the entrance to the palace. 2 And when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she won favor in his sight, and he held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter. 3 And the king said to her, “What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given you, even to the half of my kingdom.” 4 And Esther said, “If it please the king, let the king and Haman come today to a feast that I have prepared for the king.” 5 Then the king said, “Bring Haman quickly, so that we may do as Esther has asked.” So, the king and Haman came to the feast that Esther had prepared. 6 And as they were drinking wine after the feast, the king said to Esther, “What is your wish? It shall be granted you. And what is your request? Even to the half of my kingdom, it shall be fulfilled.” 7 Then Esther answered, “My wish and my request is: 8 If I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it please the king to grant my wish and fulfill my request, let the king and Haman come to the feast that I will prepare for them, and tomorrow I will do as the king has said.”
9 And Haman went out that day joyful and glad of heart. But when Haman saw Mordecai in the king’s gate, that he neither rose nor trembled before him, he was filled with wrath against Mordecai. 10 Nevertheless, Haman restrained himself and went home, and he sent and brought his friends and his wife Zeresh. 11 And Haman recounted to them the splendor of his riches, the number of his sons, all the promotions with which the king had honored him, and how he had advanced him above the officials and the servants of the king. 12 Then Haman said, “Even Queen Esther let no one but me come with the king to the feast she prepared. And tomorrow also I am invited by her together with the king. 13 Yet all this is worth nothing to me, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king’s gate.” 14 Then his wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Let a gallows fifty cubits high be made, and in the morning tell the king to have Mordecai hanged upon it. Then go joyfully with the king to the feast.” This idea pleased Haman, and he had the gallows made.
“Our great God, we bow down before You, believing that when Your Word is faithfully opened up, that Your voice is truly heard. We listen, then, for Your voice. Illumine to us the printed page. Conduct that divine dialogue by the Holy Spirit whereby we are taken in our thinking beyond the voice of a mere man and encountering You, the living God. To this end we seek You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
Now, as we think about this chapter, we have to remember that for Esther, what she’s doing is almost certain death. That’s why I painted the picture for you. Look back at Esther 4:11; Esther says, “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that if any man or woman goes to the king inside the inner court without being called, there is but one law – to be put to death…” We tend to read this and miss the degree of suspense involved. In fact, the Jewish historian, Josephus, tells us in his Antiquities of the Jews that the king surrounded himself with henchmen who bore axes, so as to make sure that the head of someone was immediately removed. That’s what she’s walking into. And there are only two things I want us to see today, and the first is what we’ll call…
Esther’s Faith
I’m calling it Esther’s faith, but the truth of the matter is that the text doesn’t explicitly tell us what ultimately motivates Esther to take her life into her hands and go (unsummoned) to see her husband. I just want to be honest with you. We’re not told that it was her faith. It could’ve simply been peer pressure. It could’ve been guilt. It could’ve been her knowledge of what would come to pass if she didn’t. It could’ve been fear. It could’ve been desperation. It could’ve been any number of things, but I think it’s faith.
Most of us have discovered that God sometimes calls us to act in faith in spite of our fears. Esther was fearful. She was convinced: “I’m going to be put to death.” That was the law of the Medes and the Persians. We saw that in Esther 4:11. But there’s another reason I know she was afraid, and it’s kind of hidden in the text of verse 1. Look back at verse 1 and listen as I re-read it. See if you don’t notice a theme. “On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king’s palace, in front of the king’s quarters, while the king was sitting on his royal throne inside the throne room opposite the entrance to the [royal] palace.” Did you see it that time? There are 6 words in verse 1 that have the Hebrew root melek – “king.” Why is the author saying this over and over and over again? Why all this king-talk and royal language? It’s not here to impress us. I think it’s here to intimidate us.
We’re coming into the king’s palace. We’re coming into the throne room. We’re coming into the presence of royalty. We’re coming into the presence of awesome power. That’s the whole reason that verse 1 is written this way – to intimidate us. And we get a small sense of what Esther might have been feeling. She, most likely, hadn’t been in this part of the palace many times before, if ever. And yet, here, in this moment, she actively engages her faith in God (I think), which helps her to overcome her fear. Some of us are discovering that this morning. Some of you may be here this morning and you’re living in fear, and yet, your contemplating faith. Others of you may be stepping out in faith and discovering that your fears are being overcome by your faith in God.
Let me show you what faith will do, because we see it right here in Esther’s life. And listen to me, Esther didn’t have a lot of faith. It wasn’t perfect faith. It wasn’t even great faith. It’s more like the faith that we hear Jesus talk about in Matthew 17 and Luke 17 when He likens faith to the mustard seed. It was just a simple faith that God had put her in this place for this moment, and out of that moment comes a quiet courage to slip into the throne room of a king – a king who could take her life, just like he deposed his original queen.
And when I read these words that, “the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court . . . and he held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter.” She approached and touched the tip of the scepter. All I can think about, here, is that there was a King who saw me one day in my sin, and what He extended to me was not a golden scepter but His magnificent grace and mercy, and all I had to do was receive it by faith. In that moment of truth, He saved my soul for all eternity. In that moment of truth, the place where I was standing wasn’t a room of death but a place of life.
There are some of you here today, and that’s exactly what Christ is calling you to do. Jesus is extending His grace and mercy, and all you have to do is reach out (by faith) and receive it. And in that moment, if you receive Him by faith, your heart will be changed, your soul will be transformed, your life will be redeemed.
That’s the first thing that faith will do. It will give you the ability to reach out and receive the grace and mercy of the King. But let me show you another thing that faith will do. It will help you accept God’s timing. This whole story is wrapped up in the sovereign and providential care of God. We’ve seen that again and again. And I believe that our faith in God will help us to accept His timing.
So, Esther’s life has been spared. Deep sigh of relief. Now, King Xerxes begins to ask what she wants. “Why are you here? What’s up, babe? What can I do for my honey lamb?” And she invites him and his best friend, Haman, to a party that she’s prepared. And when they get there and they’re eating and drinking, once again, King Xerxes begins to ask what she wants. And I want you to notice verse 7, because there’s something in verse 7 that you almost never find in the original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts of the Bible, but you find it here. Verse 7 says, “Then Esther answered, ‘My wish and my request is:’” Do you see what’s after the word “is?” In most of our translations we have a colon. That colon is really rare.
See, in the original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts, punctuation was never used. All of the commas, and quotation marks, and periods, and question marks – all of that stuff was added when the original texts were translated. In fact, in the original Hebrew language there weren’t even any vowels. Those had to be supplied by the reader. Okay, so what does this have to do with verse 7? That colon in verse 7 was actually in the original Hebrew. Yeah, so.
Well, imagine that you’re holding an original copy of the Hebrew scriptures. You’d be reading sentence after sentence, paragraph after paragraph, chapter after chapter, book after book with no punctuation. And when you get to Esther 5:7, all of a sudden you see a colon and it’s not part of a word. That’s rare. It makes me wonder if Esther wasn’t about to tell Xerxes what she wanted, but she hesitated. She waited. I think it had to do with God’s timing. Lord knows, I don’t understand all of God’s timing. But in that moment, I think the Holy Spirit was telling her to wait on this. “Now’s not the right time. I better wait.” So, she says let’s have another party tomorrow and I’ll tell you.
Now, knowing what we know about Xerxes, I would’ve expected him to lose his cool. I would’ve expected him to respond like this: “Woman! You better tell me, right now, what’s going on!” But listen, she’s got him wrapped right here (around her little finger). Guys, if we’re honest, isn’t that where our wives have us most of the time, especially when they invite us to dinners. And because of her hesitation, in the next 24-hours, God is going to do two things: He’s going to let Haman plan his own death (as we’re getting ready to see), and He’s going to keep Xerxes awake all night (that’s next week). Both of those things transpire as a result of Esther’s sensing – I believe, by a movement of the Holy Spirit – that now’s not the right time.
And we finally come to Haman in verse 9, moving from Esther’s Faith, now to Haman’s Folly.
Haman’s Folly
He’s the archetypal egomaniac. He’s the embodiment of a fool. Solomon writes, “Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him” (Proverbs 26:12). And here, his foolishness stands out. His arrogance stands out against the backdrop of Esther’s faith. Esther is bold, and yet she’s winsome: “If I have found favor in your sight…” She has actually already found favor in his sight. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have ever gotten in there in the first place. But she’s clever. She’s subtle. “If I have found favor in your sight…” Her humility is pervasive. But you turn to Haman, and his pride is unmistakable.
“And [Haman] went out” from the banquet “that day joyful and glad of heart. But when Haman saw Mordecai in the king’s gate…” Here we go again. Here’s the fly in the ointment, as it were. All of the enjoyment, all of the prestige, all of the significance, all of the accolades were insufficient to keep Haman from coming unglued by the fact that this little guy Mordecai never stood up when he came by and certainly never trembled in his presence. Verse 9, “[He] was filled with wrath against Mordecai.”
It wasn’t that he was just a little offended, just a little ticked off. No, he was actually consumed with wrath. Pride does that to a man. Because, you see, when I’m a proud person, nothing can ever satisfy me. When I’m a proud person, no one can ever meet my standards. When I’m a proud person, there’s always another thing. There’s always another floor up. There’s always another office to sit in. There’s always another dollar. There’s always something else beyond my reach which, although I have reached this, although I’ve got that, succeeded here and there and everywhere, I cannot enjoy all of this because of the absence of something else. You understand why Paul says, “Godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Timothy 6:6). Pride and discontentedness sleep in the same bed.
What he should’ve been able to say was, “What’s one little Jew that won’t bow? After all, look at me. I’m in the society pages. I’m photographed all the time now with the king. There aren’t many people that have as much access to the king as me. I’m going to all the big feasts, to all the fancy banquets. Who cares about Mordecai?” But he can’t do it. And so, he goes home. He “restrained himself” from actually, presumably, reaching out and killing Mordecai right there, and he “went home, and he sent and brought his friends and his wife Zeresh.” It’s not that he went home and everybody said, “Hey, Haman, great to see you! How you doing?” No, he actually sent for his friends. He brought them in. He surrounded himself with those who would be prepared to listen to him talk about himself. That’s what pride does to us.
And verse 11: when he had put this little assembly together, he “recounted to them the splendor of his riches.” “Have you seen my latest painting? I bought this at such and such a Persian gallery. Why don’t you come down in the basement, and let me show you my wine cellar? Would you like to see the porcelain that I have just picked up recently?” What is all of this? He’s boasting. “Look, do you realize how great I am? Do you realize how significant I am?”
That’s what Haman is doing. And he recounts his family. Now folks, there’s a right way to be thankful for your family and there’s a wrong way. This is the wrong way – just brag about your family and it’s obnoxious. Do you think Zeresh, Haman’s wife, didn’t know how many babies she’d had? He “recounted to them the splendor of his riches, [and] the number of his sons.” Poor Zeresh is sitting there going, “Yeah, yeah, I know how many kids we have. Hey, buster, I’m the one that did most of the work.” This is like a Facebook page gone crazy. This is the worst. He actually lives with the mistaken notion that he’s the center of the universe. He’s not even the center of his own universe. His impending death is before him, and yet he doesn’t have a clue what’s going on. He’s stupidity on two legs. He is the fool. He fits perfectly into contemporary 21st century culture.
Who are in the publicity magazines? Who are on the front pages? Who are the heroes of our day? Many of them haven’t done anything. Nothing! When’s the last time you saw the best schoolteacher in America on the front of Vogue magazine? Or when was the last time you saw the brightest cardiothoracic surgeon elevated to a position of significance and heralded in town? Or when was the last time you saw a single mother that had dealt with children in their infancy and in their adolescence and had sustained it all, and there she was? No, we want the Hamans on the front page. We want ourselves on the front page. You see, the problem is, it’s not enough for me to say, “Oh, look at the pride of Haman,” because I look into the Word of God, and I see my own sinful heart.
Let me conclude; when George Whitefield was a young man, he made the statement in his journal: “O that I could always see myself in my proper colors! I believe I should have little reason to fall down and worship myself. God be merciful to me, a sinner!” Solomon says, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18). James, quoting from Proverbs 3:34, says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (4:6). Jesus “made himself of no reputation . . . being found in fashion as a man,” (Philippians 2:7) He became a servant, giving Himself up, ultimately, to death.
Where are you this morning? Are you struggling to live by faith? Are you afraid of what’s coming next? Have you received His free gift of grace and mercy? Would you reach out and take it (by faith) today. If you’ve already received God’s gift of salvation, perhaps you just need to see Esther’s determined resolution and faith to go before the king. “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).
Or maybe your pride is still standing in the way. Like Haman, you’re still waiting on your pound of flesh. There’s somebody or something that’s gotten under your skin, and it’s controlling you this morning. Or maybe you just can’t stomach the thought of lowering your defenses, lowering your guard, becoming vulnerable in front of your friends and family and neighbors. You know that the salvation you need is here this morning, but your pride in yourself, in your accomplishments, in you standing in the community is keeping you from being reconciled to God.
However, God is moving today, would you respond (by faith).
“Our Father and our God, we ask that the Holy Spirit help us to confidently approach Your throne of grace and mercy, that we would ask, seek and knock, and find that You’re there to answer. Help us, Lord, to reach out, by faith, and receive the gift of Your kindness and mercy. Father, all of us can identify with Haman. We’ve all been prideful. Even now, there’s a part of us that struggles to humble ourselves before You. May we, by the power of the Spirit, repent of that attitude and posture in Your presence. And may we find rest for our souls. For we ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.”