God’s Protection & Being Humble
study one: CHOSEN, FAVORED, & PLANNED by GOD
| Esther 5–6|
Hello Sweet Friends!
Welcome to BEHOLD PEACE! Today we are studying Esther chapter five & six!
- In our first week, we were introduced to Esther and this book.
- In week two, we went through chapter one and watched the story being set up and talked about how God uses the broken and uses the people in our lives to set us up where we need to be.
- In week three, we went through chapter two and we found out about Esther’s family heritage and how she was set apart. We saw God’s provision and favor and how things can be *forgotten* till God’s right timing.
- In week four, we went through chapter three and met the villain in this story and found out about his family heritage and the battle that had been going on between them and God’s people for YEARS.
- In week five, we went through chapter four and found out the reactions of the Jews, Mordecai, and Esther to the decree of death of the Jews. We saw Esther be scared but go to God for strength and step into her God given role.
Today we are going to be studying Esther chapter five & six! We are going to see Esther step into her role as queen and who God set her to be. We see her act in wisdom and in God’s strength. Then we are going to see how God sets things into motion and protects us without us knowing we even need His protection.
If you have any thoughts or questions to add, please comment below! This is a community and open discussion, and I’d love to hear what YOU think!
SETTING THE SCENE
We are now studying Esther chapters five & six! Much happens in these two chapters. I thought about doing these chapters on their own but they are so interconnected that I believe the best course of action is to study them both together.
Chapter five in review: Esther finishes her fast and goes to see the king. The king sees her and finds favor in her. He asks her what she desires and she asks for him & Haman to go to a banquet. They come and the king asks her again what she wants. She asks him to come again to a banquet the next night and she will ask her true request. Once they leave, Haman spots Mordecai and anger fills him. Once home he calls his wife and friends to brag about himself before complaining about Mordecai. They tell him he should build gallows to kill Mordecai.
Chapter six in review: That same night the king couldn’t sleep so he had the records brought to him to be read. In the records, he hears of how Mordecai saved him by warning him of a plot to kill him. The king is surprised to see he did not honor that act. The king wants to honor Mordecai but wants advice on how. Just then Haman walked into the palace to ask the king’s permission to kill Mordecai. The king calls Haman to him and asks how he should honor a man who pleases the king. Haman believes this man to be himself so asks for what he wants, to be honored as a king publicly. To his surprise, he is given the task of publicity honoring Mordecai, the man he was just about to ask to kill. That night Haman is brought once again for Esther’s next banquet.
GOD’S GUIDANCE & WISDOM & BEING BRAVE
After fasting Esther goes to see the king, fully knowing that the moment she walks before him that he can have her instantly killed even if he was her husband. This took immense courage and bravery from her.
From last week’s study, we know why she was able to do this. She went to God in fasting and relayed on His strength. She did not go until she was with God. She knew she would need God at this moment. Not just so she would be able to live but also to be able to ask for her people’s deliverance and protection. She needed God’s words and wisdom and that is what she would get.
When you are in hard situations and things feel against you, where do you go? Who do you turn to? Whose strength do you rely on? Do you rely on your own strength or maybe that of a friend or family member? Though this isn’t wrong, there is only so much we can rely on human strength for. It is not long-lasting or can do great things.
Do you rely on God? Rely on Him! He will not fail you. He will not leave you alone. He will be with you in everything. He also won’t give you more than you can take. He will train you and set you up for the plan He has for you. Just a few chapters ago we saw God give Esther tasks to train her to follow Him and obey Him in the small. God was with Esther and set her up for this moment when she would need God and His strength. Instead of relying on herself, she fasted and went to God for His strength, wisdom, and favor.
Esther is given favor by God.
Once she enters the inner court the king sees her, she instantly wins his favor. The moment he saw her he did not get angry or mad but favored her. He favored her so much he said…
“What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given to you, even to half of my kingdom.”
—Esther 5:3
Reading this I even wonder if the king was impressed by Esther. He knew what she did was risky. She could have died but still, she came to him. He knew there must be a reason she was being so bold so offered her up to half of the vast kingdom he was so proud of.
God gave Esther exactly what she needed at this moment. I love her response to the king. When I was younger I would be confused by her answer. The king just showed her favor, why couldn’t she ask him then and there her request? But now studying this book and her story I understand her unusual request. It is actually genius and I feel like God gave her this answer—the perfect answer to the king.
“This is my petition and request: If I have won the king’s favor, and if it pleases the king to grant my petition and fulfill my request, let the king and Haman come tomorrow to the banquet that I will prepare for them, and then I will do as the king has said.”
—Esther 5: 7-8
Esther comes humbly to the king. Then she gives him an offer he can’t refuse. Remember who the king is? In the first chapter and the third, we see his love or party, drinking, and showing off his pride and prestige. Esther just invited him to a highly exclusive private party. More than even that, she piques his interest. For who would risk their lives to see the king invite him to a dinner party?
Another reason why I think this is wise because they will be alone. She can reveal her heritage to the king and he will not be under the sway of the advisers and nobles there. He will have to act on his own accord (remember that it was from the advisers’ and princes’ drunk advice that he sent Vashti away in the first place).
This was extremely wise for several reasons and I feel this answer is from God.
AN EVIL PLOT INCREASES
After the banquet, Haman goes away happy to get the honor of being with the king and queen at a private party and again the next day. But then he sees Mordecai. Instead of being happy, anger fills him and all he can do is whine and complain about his treatment. Once home he calls his wife and friends to brag about himself before complaining about Mordecai. They tell him he should build gallows to kill Mordecai
After building the gallows, he goes that night to ask the king to kill Mordecai. Haman had no fear of asking the king for it should be easy. The king just signed a decree to kill a whole people group. How hard could it be to kill one person?
How much worse can this story get?
And then this happens…
GOD’S PROTECTION EVEN WITHOUT US KNOWING WE NEED HIM
That night the king couldn’t sleep. The night when Haman is coming to ask for the death of Mordecai, the king cannot sleep. So he calls for the records to be read to him to help him fall asleep—like a bedtime story of sorts. It just so happens that the part being read that night is talking about what Mordecai did to save the king.
Then the king said, “What honor or distinction has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?” The king’s servants who attended him said, “Nothing has been done for him.”
—Esther 6:3
Remember how we read in chapter two about how things will be *forgotten* until God’s right timing? Well, this was the moment when the king would remember what Mordecai did for him. This is the exact perfect moment. Why? Because right after this the king goes on to ask…
“Who is in the court?” Now Haman had just entered the outer court of the king’s palace to speak to the king about having Mordecai hung on the pole that he had prepared for him.
—Esther 6: 4
At the exact moment when Haman is coming to ask the king’s permission to kill Mordecai, the king remembers all that Mordecai did for him. This is no accident. This is God’s protection and foresight. God knew that this moment would happen—that Haman would kill Mordecai—so He made the king forget about Mordecai until this moment and then what happens next is really amazing.
THE GREATEST HUMBLING & NOT FEARING
The king asks Haman what he should do to honor someone.
Haman said to himself, “Whom would the king wish to honor more than me?”
—Esther 6:8
Haman is filled with such pride and arrogance, he believes the king to be speaking of himself for who else would the king wish to honor? This became his downfall. As my brother Ulysses would say, “Pride comes before a fall.” (Whenever we are watching a game show, he always says that to the person being prideful and arrogant and guess what? Most every time they lose, and the kind and humble one wins).
Haman gets the GREATEST humbling moment.
The king said to Haman,
Then the king said to Haman, “Quickly, take the robes and the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mordecai the Jew who sits at the king’s gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.”
—Esther 6:10
Haman hurried to his house, mourning and with his head covered.
—Esther 6: 12
This moment was perfectly set up by God. God made a way so that Mordecai would be saved and in the process humbled Haman. Haman was proud and went against God. We see that…
“God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you in due time.
—1 Peter 5:5–6
The first part of this verse reminds me of what happened to Haman. The rest reminds me of Esther. We see time and time again that Esther was humble. She relayed not on her own strength but on the strength of God. She asked others for advice and positioned herself in a humbling manner (fasting) to earn God’s favor and by that people’s favor too.
Be humble. Do not fall into the trap of Haman—of being prideful and thinking of yourself as better and greater than all. Those like Haman will be humbled and it will not be easy or fun. But instead, humble yourself. Be like Jesus who was humble and good and who was a servant. God honored Jesus and brought him up higher than all.
Be like Esther who humbled herself. She knew she couldn’t do all this by herself. She needed God. So she humbled herself (through fasting).
We can take Jesus and Esther’s example in our own lives, being humble like Jesus and Esther, not expecting anything in return, by being a servant, and being FAVORED & HONORED BY GOD.
For the LORD God is a sun and shield; he bestows favor and honor. No good thing does the LORD withhold from those who walk uprightly.
—Psalm 84:11
CAST YOUR FEARS ON HIM
Cast all your fears on him, because he cares for you.
—1 Peter 5:7
At this time I imagine Esther is quite scared and anxious. I think we too can be anxious. I know I have been. There were times I had great anxiety every single day. Still, I feel anxiety when thinking of my future and what will happen, and where I’ll go. But 1 Peter says “Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you.” We don’t need to worry, be anxious, or fear because God is on our side.
The Lord is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?
—Psalm 27:1
In God whom shall I fear? There is no one and nothing to fear. God is greater than all our worries and fears. He has conquered them all. There is no reason to fear. Will you give them to Him? Will you give God your pain and your fears? Will you let them go?
THREE WOMEN & THEIR ROLE
So Haman goes home complaining and I love what his wife says next.
…his wife Zeresh said to him, “If Mordecai, before whom your downfall has begun, is of the Jewish people, you will not prevail against him, but will surely fall before him.”
—Esther 6:13
Even Haman’s wife can see that God is real and powerful. She sees this happen, that her husband is trying to kill this man and people group, but instead, the man is spared and honored by the king. Zeresh doesn’t know about Esther being a Jew. She knows nothing of this but she does see something big happening. She sees that God is real and that her husband will fall if he keeps fighting.
Something else I’d like to note is that this is the only other woman besides Esther and Vashti to be named in this book. Each woman has a role here and something of value to this story. Vashti rebelled and paved the way for God’s chosen queen to rise up. Esther is God’s chosen queen and is on a path to save her people. Zeresh gives her husband a warning, a warning that would come to life, for telling of God’s plan.
We all have a plan in God’s story. Either we can work with Him or be against him. Still He uses us.
“Satan is without doubt nothing else than a hammer in the hand of a benevolent and severe God. For all, either willing or unwilling, do the will of God: Judas and Satan as tools or instruments, John and Peter as sons.”
—C. S. Lewis (from a letter to Don Giovanni Calabria, September 20, 1947)
An Ending Note
Thank you all for coming and being a part of this Bible Study! I can’t wait to dive deeper into Esther’s story with all of you! Come back next Monday for the next installment of this study! We will be going through CHAPTER SEVEN (the great triumph of the Jews)! See you all soon!
Remember this is a community of believers coming together to study God’s Word. Please comment and add your own thoughts to this discussion. I would love to hear what you think of Esther chapter five & six! What are your views on this chapter? Do you believe that God loves you and is for you? Do you trust God? He loves you and will never give up on you! Are you excited to see God moving and at work in YOUR life?
Also, if you have a prayer request, please let us know! I would love to pray for you! If you want to keep your prayer more private, go to the Connect page and fill out the connect form with the prayer request.
Love, Moriyah
Behold Peace 
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