A Drunk King, a Defiant Queen, and a Divine Providence

With regard to standing up for causes, it should be noted that Vashti’s decision was about herself and resulted in her being banned from further influence, while Esther’s advocacy was about more than herself and she maintained a position of influence. More could be said here, but neither time nor space permits. Just remember, the modern feminist movement was not the original author’s concern, nor should it be the main focus of a sermon.

The psalmist declares, “The Lord is a great God, a great King above all gods” (Ps 95:3). In Psalms we are also told to “say among the nations: ‘The Lord reigns’” (Ps 96:10). Why would we be instructed to say this in every nation? Have all voted for God to reign? Have their legislative bodies passed bills affirming God’s leadership? Of course not, but God is sovereign regardless and does not rule over just a small group of earnest believers.

One of the great mysteries is how someone can do evil toward another, and yet God can simultaneously work whatever it is for the good of his providential plan. One of the clearest examples of this is found in the actions of Joseph’s brothers (Gen 37). When Joseph considered what his brothers did and God’s use of their betrayal, he said, “You planned evil against me; God planned it for good to bring about the present result—the survival of many people” (Gen 50:20). God did not put an evil plan into the hearts of Joseph’s brothers, but he used their choices to accomplish his purposes.

In Esther 1:10-22 God uses a series of decisions made by Vashti and Ahasuerus that he neither initiated nor prevented. He did not cause or stop Ahasuerus’s drunkenness, which led to the king’s desire not to honor his wife. God did not cause or stop Ahasuerus’s angry reaction, which led to his seeking bad counsel. God did not cause or stop the king’s decision based on foolish counsel or his disastrous decree. But a drunk king and a defiant queen would be used in the Lord’s definite providence. Neither the good nor the bad actions of pagans prevent God from accomplishing his plan.

What seemed insignificant for the Jews—a pagan party, a marital spat between two Persian royals, and a decision to replace the queen—actually had a lot of significance for God’s people. Before we are even aware there is a problem, then, God’s providence is already at work. If Haman had risen to power without Esther’s being in place, it could have been disastrous for God’s people. But the Lord oversaw Ahasuerus’s drunkenness and Vashti’s defiance without violating their wills or wants and used all of it to accomplish what he wanted.

God has every right to be offended by our disobedience, and he is more transgressed than we will ever be. Ahasuerus’s pride was wounded by Vashti’s refusal to come to his feast, and his anger was kindled. There is no record of him seeking to find out if something was wrong with her; there’s just a revealing of his wrath. He was embarrassed, offended, and indignant. Memucan’s declaration that Vashti’s rebellion was not just against the emperor but the entire empire did not aid the cause of reconciliation but of reckoning. It implied, This needs to be made right!

Fortunately, when people sin against us, we do not react anything like Ahasuerus or Memucan, right? We are never prone to want vengeance, are we? When someone posts something on social media about us that is false or negative, we are never inclined to respond in the same manner, are we? Interestingly, Ahasuerus got all bent out of shape, but his command for Vashti was not with holy intentions, nor was her refusal a sin.

As noted earlier, there is no documented offer of reconciliation from the king toward his queen. Forgiveness was certainly not in the proposal from the group of “wise men.” But we are nothing like Ahasuerus, right? We quickly, totally, and lavishly forgive those who do wrong against us, right? We never hold a grudge or keep a record of wrongs, do we?

With regard to sin, no one is more offended, more transgressed, and more grieved than God. Every sin is a rejection of his reign and an assertion of ours. Every sin is a choice to disbelieve and disobey the good words of our good King. He has every right to be offended and to enact swift justice. The Lord, however, is “a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and abounding in faithful love and truth” (Exod 34:6). He also forgives iniquity (Exod 34:7). When we refuse to forgive fully and freely, we are not imaging God faithfully.

For one rejection of Ahasuerus’s authority, Vashti was banished from his presence forever, but God atones for our sin and brings us into his presence. James informs us that “whoever keeps the entire law, and yet stumbles at one point, is guilty of breaking it all” (Jas 2:10). One transgression against God’s good precepts is the same as if we have rebelled against the sum of them. Paul lets us know that we are all guilty of this: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). For choosing just one sin, we deserve the full brunt of holy, eternal wrath. If you disagree and think this sounds too drastic, then you have a diminished and insufficient view both of your sin and of God’s holiness. For one refusal to obey his command, God could punish us forever. And in doing so, he would still be right and good and holy.

I, however, am not guilty of breaking just one of God’s commands one time in my life. I consider it a good start to the day if I have not chosen sin before my feet hit the floor each morning (because temptations like selfishness and slothfulness start nagging as soon as I wake). Yet, despite my sins being too numerous to count, God has chosen to enact reconciliation and not ruin (2 Cor 5:18-21). He says to his people, “Though your sins are scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are crimson red, they will be like wool” (Isa 1:18). Indeed, even when it seems certain God will reject his people because of their rebellion, he chooses to make atonement for them rather than abandon them (Ezek 16:62). The gospel truly is the best news for the worst people.

One of the ways I think we image God best is when we run toward sinners and not away from them. For those in our faith families, there is no greater balm than when we seek to offer restoration rather than condemnation. Ahasuerus wanted nothing more to do with Vashti because she transgressed his command. I am thankful God was willing to overcome all of our rebellion in order to bring us into right relationship with him. The sweetest prize of the gospel is not that we get heaven but that we get God. He wanted us even when we did not want him. He sought us even when we were not seeking him.

Throwing figurative rocks at Ahasuerus for his sin and condemning his actions can be easy, but if it were not for Christ, we too would continue in sinful and destructive actions. Without Christ’s setting us free from slavery to the flesh, the world, and the devil, we would be “slaves to impurity, and to greater and greater lawlessness” (Rom 6:19). Ahasuerus went from one bad decision to another in our text. Even in our sanctification, sin that we do not mortify does not dissipate but escalates. We cannot feed our flesh and our faith simultaneously. Every time we choose faith over flesh, it is evidence of the Lord’s grace at work in our lives.

Like Ahasuerus, we are tempted to use people for how they can benefit us without regard for their good. The king wanted to display Vashti at his feast but for his benefit rather than hers. Do we ever use people for our agendas and advancement but have no regard for their gain? Only Christ helps us see the value in others and empowers us to seek to serve them rather than just using them in our service.

When true voices of accountability are absent in our lives, rebellion tends to be more present than repentance. In the text Ahasuerus did not display any indicators of repentance or even regret for any of his selfish actions toward Vashti. Perhaps one reason for his lack of contrition is that those with whom he surrounded himself only pointed out how he had been wronged rather than how he was wrong. We need people in our lives who encourage us to obedience rather than disobedience. Of course, rules we make up are a lot easier to follow than the rules God has given to us. This is why we need those who will share with us not just what we may want to hear but what we need to hear from God’s Word.

I have an accountability partner with whom I try to meet each week. We both seek to keep our friendship a priority because we both need a brother in Christ who exhorts us to forsake sin rather than to be comfortable with it. Every time I travel to minister somewhere, he texts me and informs me of his prayers on my behalf and exhorts me to choose Christ rather than sin. In our meetings each week, we ask each other pointed questions with regard to putting on Christ and putting off sin. We strive to help each other put away anything that pulls us away from Jesus. Were it not for the Holy Spirit using his Word in my life and his using my family’s and faith family’s encouragements toward holiness, I too would be guilty of more rebellion than repentance.

How many have heard but refuse to heed this wise counsel: “Pride comes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall” (Prov 16:18)? In seeking to declare and display his power and possessions, Ahasuerus had no clue that by the end of his feasts, his power would be diminished. He is also an illustration of the fact that those who demand honor and those who deserve honor are not always the same. The king wanted to be honored, but instead he was humbled—not just in his palace but in every province.

It may not always seem to be so, but every humbling the Lord brings to our lives is ultimately a grace. His reminders that only his kingdom will not be shaken discourage us from trying to build our own. His reminder that he has seated Christ above every title given to man, “not only in this age but also in the one to come” (Eph 1:21), frees us to live for his name rather than ours. It truly is a grace to be brought to the same conviction as Paul to “never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Gal 6:14). If we are overly concerned with being honored rather than giving him honor, we may miss that God “leads the humble in what is right and teaches them his way” (Ps 25:9).

With Ahasuerus there was more pomp than true power, but Christ’s power is absolute. At the beginning of Esther 1, we are led to think Ahasuerus is all powerful, but by the end of the chapter, we are shown that he does not even have all the power in his own house. In the Gospels, however, we see the wind and waves obey Christ’s voice (Mark 4:39), we see demons and disease obey his commands (Mark 5:13, 29), and even death must yield to him (Mark 5:42). We also see that those who have “authority” over Jesus, like Pilate (John 19:10-11), only have it because he allows it. In the case of Ahasuerus, absolute power is a farce. With Jesus absolute power is a fact!

It can be scary when a leader possesses a lot of power but lacks holiness. Ahasuerus made decisions from improper motives and impaired judgment. Jobes notes, “The Persian court was not a safe place because Xerxes held great power, and he wielded it unpredictably” (Esther, 69). In addressing Esther 1:9-12, she goes on to say,

When such absolute power is combined with decadence and ruthlessness, no one is safe. This scene, which shows the dangers of living under Xerxes’ power in the Persian empire, provides a backdrop for the major conflict of the story when the power of the Persian empire will be turned against the Jewish people. (Ibid.)

Ahasuerus was fickle and untrustworthy with power; Jesus, conversely, is not. Jesus does not make decisions on a whim but according to his wisdom. All of Christ’s decisions are rooted in his faithfulness and are not just for our good but for our best. His judgment is never impaired, and his motives are never improper.

As a king Ahasuerus was selfish. As our King, Christ is sacrificial. There is no doubt Christ has all authority, yet he does not lord it over everyone like a baby having a tantrum. John records that on Jesus’s final night with his disciples before his crucifixion,

he got up from supper, laid aside his outer clothing, took a towel, and tied it around himself. Next, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel tied around him. (John 13:4-5)

The one who had all the power in the room (and in the universe) was serving.

As a husband Ahasuerus was selfish. As the church’s groom Christ is sacrificial. He does not seek to use us to our detriment and his benefit. In fact, our good actually required his detriment or, more specifically, his death. But Paul proclaims, “Christ loved the church and gave himself for her” (Eph 5:25). Likewise his sacrificial love is meant to be evident in and through us. And with regard to our homes, Duguid contends, “If Christian husbands were more like Christ and less like Ahasuerus, then perhaps we would find our wives more ready to submit to our leadership” (Esther & Ruth, 16).

The gospel is not that if we do enough good things then maybe we will get Christ’s attention and earn his affection. No, that is not the gospel at all, but unfortunately many believe it is. The gospel is that even when we were in our worst state, Christ set his affections on us and took action for us.

Those who are in Christ have been made beautiful, but we did not start that way. Out of concern that they would forget who they were before Christ’s work in their lives, Paul reminds the Ephesians they (like all other Christians) “were dead in [their] trespasses and sins” and “were by nature children under wrath” (Eph 2:1, 3). We who have repented and believed, though, have not just been informed by Christ’s love but transformed by it. He has made us holy, and he has cleansed us “with the washing of water by the word. He did this to present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and blameless” (Eph 5:26-27). Ahasuerus gets no credit for Vashti’s beauty, but Christ deserves all glory for ours.

Much has been shared already about Ahasuerus’s desire and demand to be honored, so I will not say anything further in this discussion about him. Christ, however, deserves all honor, and one day it will be declared in heaven and on earth. Consider now, as a close to this section, the sights and sounds John was allowed to see. He writes,

Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels around the throne, and also of the living creatures and of the elders. Their number was countless thousands, plus thousands of thousands. They said with a loud voice,

Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered

to receive power and riches

and wisdom and strength

and honor and glory and blessing!

I heard every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, on the sea, and everything in them say,

Blessing and honor and glory and power

be to the one seated on the throne,

and to the Lamb, forever and ever!

The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped. (Rev 5:11-14)

The worship in Revelation 5 is not forced but fueled by who Jesus is and what he has done. He is worthy of eternal praise.