Bible in 90 Days (Friday reading)

A group of us at church are reading the Bible in 90 days and I have agreed to blog on Friday's about our reading...So here goes! 

Nehemiah 13:15-17

Bottom line: Honor the Sabbath! 

Esther 1-2

What I take away from this chapter is there’s an intentional measure of describing the party that’s about to take place, after King Xerxes’ exhibit to show how important he was. He is described to us as a King that was in high regard (or so he thought).

The King decides to throw a weeklong party. His drunken self calls for his wife to come to him so he could show her off because of her beauty. She refuses. Let’s think about this; why would she refuse? First of all, it was against the custom of the Persians for women to appear in public. Secondly, he wanted to “show her off” like she was a trophy wife, when he should’ve been protecting her.

She was actually asked SEVERAL times to meet the King and she refused every time. Now if she had obeyed the King’s orders, would she have been looked down upon?

King Xerxes gets angry and probably embarrassed because he was trying to display the splendor of his kingdom and then he gets shut down by his own wife? So he goes and talks to his “counsel” and asks’ them what he can do legally to his wife.

The King’s anger grew inside him. He had rule over 127 provinces but he couldn’t rule over his own family or his own spirit.

The majority of his cabinet pretty much tells him that he had better do something because if he didn’t then all the women of the land would think that they too could dismiss their husbands.

So King Xerxes annnounces a royal ruling that his wife was permanently banned from his presence and he would find someone else that would know her place.

Whether it was the passion or the policy of King Xerxes by this new law, it did open a door for Esther to step into the Queen’s place.

Later the King started to have second thoughts about what he had done. So his attendant’s stepped in and urged him to press forward with what had been decided. So they tell him that they will put the word out that they are searching for beautiful young virgins for the king and that whomever he choses will replace the Queen.

I think it’s interesting that each woman that was brought to the palace had to go through a 12 month prescribed beauty treatment, AND THEN she went to the King. SO this was a long process.

The King visits with each of the young virgins and then he sees a girl named Esther. Esther is an orphan and was raised by her cousin, Mordecai. He immediately falls in love with her. He places a crown on her head and made her Queen. At this time he doesnt know she's Jew. He throws her party and appropriately calls it “Esther’s Banquet”. He even makes it a holiday!

One of the most important parts of this selection is that Esther was a Jew. She was also an orphan. Her cousin, Mordecai raised her and told her to never tell anyone of her racial background and she didn’t.

Later in the Chapter, Mordecai is sitting at the King’s gates; he overhears two of the king’s eunuchs planning to kill him. So Mordecai tells Esther and then Esther tells the King. Mordecai received credit for saving the King’s life. Something struck me, while reading this. Did Mordecai work for the King now? Why was he there at the gates? I know earlier in the chapter it talks about how Mordecai would be around the gates before Esther was queen, to basically check up on her and see what she was up to. I don’t know the answer, but I thought it was interesting.

Esther 3-4

King Xerxes appoints Haman as the highest-ranking official in the King’s government. Everyone had to bow down to him, but Mordecai would NOT do it. This infuriates Haman. Then he learned that Mordecai was a Jew and instead of just doing something to him, Haman wanted to punish all Jews throughout the Kingdom.

So he goes to King Xerxes and tells him “the people that don’t fit in or who are different, must be destroyed.” He even says he’ll pay for it.

So the King gives him his signet ring, (what informs people that it’s approved of the King) and says, “It’s your money, do whatever you want.”

So the word is spread throughout the provinces to kill Jews, young and old on a single day. While all this news of a massacre was spreading, the King and Haman sat back and had a drink. I'm not sure that the king really knew what Haman was planning.  

So Mordecai is OBVIOUSLY upset at the King’s orders. So much so that he goes in the middle of the street and rips his clothes, puts on sackcloth and ash on his head and begins wailing in desperation for his people. He finds himself at the King’s gate where there isn’t supposed to be anyone dressed in sackcloth. 

Esther’s maids told her what was going on and she sent Mordecai some fresh clothes but he refused them. So Esther sent one of the royal eunuchs, Hathach, to go to Mordecai to find out what was happening. Mordecai explained the horror of what was to take place.

Basically, the end of this chapter ends like this; Mordecai sends a message saying that she should go to the king to plead for the Jews. Esther tells Mordecai that she must be invited to speak to the king. But she urges Mordecai to gather up the Jews in Susa and fast for her. Then she would go to the king. She says, “If I die. I die.”

Something interesting here, Esther knew she had to PREPARE to go and see the king. She knew she needed the prayers of her people to accomplish what needed to be done.

Esther 5-7

Esther dresses in her royal robes and goes to speak with the king. He welcomes her and invites her in. He asks’ her what she desires and she tells him to come to a dinner with her and Haman. He agrees and they dine. While at dinner the kings asks’ Esther again what it is that she wants. Esther says for him to come to dinner again tomorrow and THEN she will give him a straight answer.

So Haman leaves the dinner and he’s a pretty happy guy until he sees Mordecai, (the Jew)….So Haman goes home and explains what’s going on saying that the Queen invited him to another dinner tomorrow night but he can’t enjoy any of it because of Mordecai.

His family tells him to go and build a gallows (where people are hanged) and then to go and tell the king to order that Mordecai be hanged, then go enjoy dinner…..Haman liked that idea and so he had the gallows built.

So the King couldn’t sleep that night. He order that his servant come and read him his journal. In it, he had recoirded that Mordecai once stopped an assassination attempt on his life. He asked what honor had been given to Mordecai for doing this and his servant said, “Nothing.”

The King wondered if anyone was in the courtyard and the servant told him that Haman was out there. Haman was on his way to talk to the King about hanging Mordecai. The servant explains that the King wants to honor a man for his good deeds and Haman immediately thinks it’s him. Haman says what he thinks should be done and the King agrees.

He tells Haman to “bring a royal robe that the king has worn and a horse the king has ridden, one with a royal crown on its head. Then give the robe and the horse to one of the king’s most noble princes. Have him robe the man whom the king especially wants to honor; have the prince lead him on horseback through the city square, proclaiming before him, ‘This is what is done for the man whom the king especially wants to honor!’”

So Haman did it. Then he ran home and cried. While he was still talking to his family, the king’s eunuchs came to pick up Haman for the dinner that had been planned the night before.

While at dinner, Esther explains what is going on with her people. That they were to be killed. And she explains that Haman was the one that had arranged it all.

The King is outraged. Fear struck Haman and so he started pleading for his life to Queen Esther. Then to make matters worse, the king had stepped out for a moment and while he was gone, the Bible says that Haman was “groveling” at the couch where Esther was reclining. So it must’ve appeared as if Haman was trying to do something to the Queen. When King Xerxes comes back in the room, he says, “ Will he even molest the queen while I’m just around the corner?”

This infuriates the King. And Haman knows that his life is about to end. The a eunuch announces to the king to look across the courtyard and see the gallows that Haman had built for Mordecai. The eunuch explains everything and the King says, “ Hang him on it.” Pointing to Haman.

Esther 8-10

After all of the truth coming out about Esther and Mordecai, the King takes the signet ring off of Haman and gives it to Mordecai. He also appointed Modecai over Haman’s estate.

Then Esther pleds with the King to revoke the plan to kill all the Jews. The King says, ““I’ve given Haman’s estate to Esther and he’s been hanged on the gallows because he attacked the Jews. So go ahead now and write whatever you decide on behalf of the Jews; then seal it with the signet ring.”

The order read that the Jews could defind themselves if anyone tried to harm them.

Mordecai walked away from the palace with a royal robe, a gold crown and a purple cape of fine linen. Jews celebrated with Mordecai. They celebrated in the streets with cheering and eating! And many non Jews, became Jews because now it was dangerous to not be a Jew!

Then the Jews overtook the people that tried to kill them. And all the Kings government officails actually helped the Jews because of Mordecai. They also killed ALL of Haman’s sons.

Everything was reported back to the King. He asked Esther what else should be done. She said to tell everyone to stop killing and that she wanted Haman’s sons to be strung up in the gallows so that everyone could see.

All of this is still recognized today but the Jewish holiday called, Purim.

We are through ESTHER!

Job Chapters 1-8

Going to do this a little different….

Job 1 – Job loses his income and his children

Job 2 – Job's health is threatened

Job 3 -  Job finally cries out

Job 4 -  Job’s friends give their advice

Job 5 – Misery until you find God

Job 6 – Job realizes who his friends are

Job 7 – Job complains to God and then asks for forgiveness

What I find most intriguing about the whole book of Job is that he went through SO MUCH and still chose to be obedient to God.

I mean, in the first chapter he loses his way of income and his children! All 10 of them!

The other things is that Satan had to ask permission to test Job. This shows how mighty God is!

I have really enjoyed this reading! The book of Esther is a little different than all of other books of the Bible though. There’s not a lot of talk about the Lord. Mordecai, of course, demonstrated his devotion to God, but as far, seeing anything that the Lord said to anyone, is not seen in this book.

There is a lot of talk about King Xerxes, who is still talked about today in current video games and in the movie 300.

The book of Job is that book of the Bible that really demonstrates the powerfulness of simply being obedient to God. Job didn’t understand what was happening to him and he complained about it. But he still chose to honor the Lord.

Happy reading!!