Today we will conclude the reading of the Rev. Louis de Boer's commentary on the Book of Esther, Chapter 19, The Righteous Exalted, and Chapter 20, The Conclusion. Chapter 19, The Righteous Exalted. And we will begin reading with Esther Chapter 10, verses 1 through 3. And the king Ahasuerus laid a tribute upon the land and upon the isles of the sea. and all the acts of his power, and of his might, and the declaration of the greatness of Mordecai, whereunto the king advanced him, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia? For Mordecai the Jew was next unto King Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted of the multitude of his brethren, seeking the wealth of his people, and seeking peace to all his seed. The first verse in this chapter deals with the taxes levied by King Ahasuerus. At first glance it does not seem to fit in with the main thrust of this chapter which is the greatness of Mordecai and his stature both in the Persian Empire and among the Jews. Why put this seemingly incongruous piece of information here? It doesn't seem to fit with the theme of the text. To what purpose did the inspired writer insert it here? Several conjectures have been put forth by commentators. One is that this great program of taxation was levied to replenish the depleted imperial treasuries after the disastrous Grecian campaign. If so, it could be regarded as another detail confirming the identification of Ahasuerus as Xerxes. Another conjecture is that this relates to a resumption of taxes after the release from taxation recorded previously at the time of Esther's coronation. Esther 2, 18. Then the king made a great feast unto all his princes and his servants, even Esther's feast, and he made a release to the provinces and gave gifts according to the state of the king." The problem with either of these explanations is that the timing does not fit. Esther became queen in the seventh year of Ahasuerus reign, Esther 218. We have already previously noted that Esther's selection and coronation took place after Ahasuerus' return from the Grecian campaign. But Haman's plot for the destruction of the Jews occurred in the twelfth year of Ahasuerus' reign, Esther 3-7. Almost a year later, on the 13th of Adar, the plot rebounded on the heads of the enemies of the Jews. And the events of this chapter are after the second letter of Purim, which was probably a year after that. So we are at least in the thirteenth year of Ahasuerus, and probably in the fourteenth year or later. This places us a minimum of six or seven years after Esther's coronation. Ahasuerus would not have waited that long to replenish his treasuries. and he certainly would not have remitted the provincial taxes for such an extensive period. There must be another reason for the insertion of this statement about Ahasuerus' taxation, and the reason should fit in with the theme of the chapter, which is Mordecai's greatness. The only logical reason is to show the great power of Ahasuerus. He had the power to tax what seemed to be the very ends of the earth and even the aisles of the sea. Since the 127 provinces that are constantly mentioned to display the size of the empire are not mentioned here, it may indicate that they are not in view here. This program may indicate a taxation of areas that are not officially part of the empire. The word for isles is e, and can mean either islands or coastlands. The sea, of course, refers to the Mediterranean Sea. What the verse may be saying is that even the islands and coastlands of the great sea, beyond the bounds of the empire, were paying tribute to the great king Ahasuerus. This certainly exalts Ahasuerus to a great degree and leads right into the exaltation of his prime minister Mordecai. For this power was wielded for him through the administration of Mordecai, and thus the writer is by reflection showing the great power and might to which Mordecai had risen. This view would also then make verse 1 logically flow right into verse 2, which speaks of all the acts of the power, authority, and might of King Ahasuerus. And this leads right into the statement of the greatness of Mordecai, who was second in the kingdom. Mordecai exercised regal power, and he is listed here almost as a co-regent. and included in the regal summation of the acts of the Hasheuris life. Are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Media and Persia? Which reminds us of a similar formula applied to the kings of Israel and of Judah. But Mordecai's greatness was not limited to the extent of his political power. For unlike Haman, he was an upright and godly man who was beloved of his people. He was a man who, although he rose to great heights, he was not lifted up with pride, seeking his own wealth, but seeking the welfare of his people. This is reaffirmed by the final phrase, and speaking peace to all his seed, because he probably was a eunuch and his seed must logically refer to his kinsman according to the flesh, the seed of Abraham. And now we come to the conclusion of the book. This is a marvelous story. It has strengthened the faith and sustained the trust in God of many a saint. It reads somewhat like a fairy tale. Fairy tales frequently have a moral. We are all familiar with the story of Cinderella. The humble are exalted, the wicked are humbled. And there is an overruling providence, exemplified by the fairy godmother, that ensures that things are so. But this is no fairy tale. This is no fanciful flight from reality. This is no retreat into the imagination from the bitter realities of life under the curse. This is history. This is the history of God's people. And most particularly, it is the history of God's deliverance of his people. And this is one of the great lessons of the book of Esther. God is in control of history. The story of Esther is also a miraculous story. The chain of events seem not just incredible, but almost miraculous. Yet there is not a single miracle that takes place in the narrative. During the time of the old covenant, the times of the prophets, there were many miracles performed. During the life of Christ and during the apostolic age, there were many miracles performed. But the age of miracles has long ceased. And God has, in His sovereign will and purpose, chosen to work mainly through means in our day. Or at the very least, He has not granted to any the power of working miracles in our age, the claims of the Charismatics notwithstanding. And this makes the book of Esther especially relevant for us. What is a miracle? This is not as easy to define as one might imagine. It is very easy to fall into error in this matter. One is tempted to think that God has set up the world to run according to certain natural laws. When God leaves matters alone, and allows things to operate in terms of these laws, that is then the normal state of affairs. When God actively interferes and overrules the operation of these laws, then that is a miracle. But that is not the scriptural position. It is the deist position. God is not an absentee landlord. The universe is not on autopilot. God does not occasionally check in and make an adjustment in the operation of His creation. God actively upholds His creation and micromanages it into the least detail. Therefore, Christ can say concerning the providential care of our Heavenly Father, in Matthew chapter 10 verses 29 and 30, are not two sparrows sold for a farthing, and one of them shall not fall on the ground without the Father, but the very hairs of your head are all numbered. And that is one of the great teachings of this book. God did not leave things to go on by themselves and then when the Jews got into difficulty interfere with a miracle to bail them out. Rather the book of Esther demonstrates that God is actively controlling all the events in the lives of his people working in them all out for His glory and for the good of His elect. God is not named, but He is ever present in the narrative of this book. We sometimes think of guardian angels who are unseen, but watch over us, as the psalmist said in Psalm 91, 9 through 12, Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most high thy habitation, There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come upon thy dwellings. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee in their minds, they shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against the stone." Psalm 91, 9-12. And as Christ said, take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones for I say unto you that in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my God which is in heaven." Matthew 18 verse 10. But God is the ultimate guardian angel and so the psalmist praises God saying, My help cometh from the Lord which made heaven and earth He will not succor thy foot to be moved. He that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep." Psalm 121 verses 2 through 4. And in the book of Esther we have a dramatic testimony to God's faithful care for and preservation of His people. He may chastise them for their sins. He may send them into a long and grievous captivity. He may so humble them that the world has long since ceased to think of them as the favored race, as the chosen people, as the select people of an Almighty God. But God never leaves or forsakes His people, even after they rejected His Son and concurred in His death. Paul can say in Romans chapter 11 verses 1 and 2, I say then, hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew. And again in Romans 11 verses 25 through 27, For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits, that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved, as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins." And it is exactly that, God's covenant faithfulness to His people, even when they are in captivity due to His just judgments that shines through so beautifully in the book of Esther. Another lesson that is preeminently displayed for us in this book is that God indeed works all things out for His own glory and for the good of His people. God was greatly glorified when Egypt and its proud Pharaoh were crushed underneath a succession of his judgments, and his people were delivered by his mighty and outstretched arm. In fact, Paul says that the very purpose of God in bringing that historic drama to pass, Romans 9, 17, for the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth." And here again, God, even though He is not specifically named, is being glorified in the events that transpire. His ancient decree that He will have war with Amalek forever is upheld. His power to deliver His people from even the most powerful of enemies is again demonstrated, and His everlasting mercy and His unfailing covenant faithfulness shine forth to His eternal glory. Similarly, God's ability to work all things out for good redounds to His glory. One would have thought that the Jews in Jerusalem might render some assistance to their brethren in captivity. One might have thought that the weak but recently resurrected state of Judah might start to deliver some of their countrymen from captivity and restore them to their land. But instead, God works the captivity of the captives. His own penal judgment for their sin and idolatry out for good. It is the Jews in captivity that deliver the Jews in Judah and provide deliverance for Jerusalem. It is Mordecai and Esther that the Lord raises up as deliverers of their people. It is Esther's terrible situation, trapped in a polygamous and heathen marriage, that God works out for the good of His people. God uses Mordecai's status as a despised Jew to place him in position to rescue the king from assassination. God uses the murderous spite of the king's eunuchs, the sleeplessness of the king himself, and Haman's inordinate pride to both raise up Mordecai and bring down Haman. Truly God uses the wrath of man to praise him. Rarely in the scriptures do we see such a marvelous display of God's providential control of history, in every minute detail, to work out His holy purposes and establish His eternal will. And God clearly uses this control to work all things out for the good of His people. Esther is made queen. She is given a great mission in life. and her life has a purpose that transcends her status in Ahasuerus' harem. God uses her not only to deliver her people, but also to be an inspiration and an encouragement to them. Mordecai is made the administrator of this great empire. Together they are used not only to redeem God's people from destruction, but also to unite them in the worship of their God. The northern kingdom had gone into captivity and disappeared to be swallowed up in the midst of history. They forgot the land of promise and the covenant of their fathers. Ultimately, they forgot the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And this was a danger that also threatened the Judean captives. But the Lord used this persecution to unite them to stand for their lives and defend themselves. And He used Mordecai as a unifying force to lead them as a people. And He caused Mordecai and Esther to give them an annual feast to remember the mercies of their God, lest they too should forget Him in a strange land. And so we can see that in many ways, more than we can either recognize or count, God worked the events of this book out for the good of His people. And finally, God caused the history of Esther and of Mordecai to be preserved in the book that bears her name. God raised up a scribe to prepare an inspired account of these events for the instruction of his people. As Paul put it in 1 Corinthians chapter 10 verse 11, Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition. upon whom the ends of the ages has come." And so today, this story is still working out to God's glory and the good of His elect, who can help but worship such a great God, who so wonderfully brings things to pass to accomplish His holy will, and who can help but be inspired, encouraged, and uplifted by this story of God's faithfulness to His people. And as we face the trials that God sends us in this life, we can take comfort that He who changes not will graciously order them for our good as well. If we learn that, we have gained an ongoing blessing from this book that will strengthen us all our days. By God's grace, may the study of this book Be the blessing to his people that God intended it should be. Amen.