The Echo of Reversals

All right, we are continuing in our summer teaching series on the book of Esther. Let me bring you up to speed on what has happened so far. And as I do so, go ahead and grab a Bible Esther 8:1 – 8:8 Page 344 The Book of Esther starts in the year 483BC in the city of Susa (which is in modern day Iran), and it takes place in the Kingdom of Persia Esther, the Jewish exile, has been surprisingly elevated to Queen, but the evil Haman tells the Persian King, Xerxes, to issue a decree to kill a certain people group (which he neglects to mention is the Jews) And King Xerxes, not knowing his wife Esther is in this people group, complies and issues the decree. Last week, Pastor John taught through how Haman had set up a pole for his enemy Mordecai to be impaled on… …but Haman himself was instead impaled on that pole once Esther revealed to the King that Haman was planning to kill her and her people. And so Esther has been saved. Her cousin Mordecai has been saved. But the decree to kill all of the rest of the Jews is still out there And we’re going to join the story there. (Esther 8:1 8) – NIV That same day King Xerxes gave Queen Esther the estate of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. And Mordecai came into the presence of the king, for Esther had told how he was related to her. 2 The king took off his signet ring, which he had reclaimed from Haman, and presented it to Mordecai. And Esther appointed him over Haman’s estate. 3 Esther again pleaded with the king, falling at his feet and weeping. She begged him to put an end to the evil plan of Haman the Agagite, which he had devised against the Jews. 4 Then the king extended the gold scepter to Esther and she arose and stood before him. 5 “If it pleases the king,” she said, “and if he regards me with favor and thinks it the right thing to do, and if he is pleased with me, let an order be written overruling the dispatches that Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, devised and wrote to destroy the Jews in all the king’s provinces. 6 For how can I bear to see disaster fall on my people? How can I bear to see the destruction of my family?” 7 King Xerxes replied to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, “Because Haman attacked the Jews, I have given his estate to Esther, and they have impaled him on the pole he set up. 8 Now write another decree in the king’s name in behalf of the Jews as seems best to you, and seal it with the king’s signet ring—for no document written in the king’s name and sealed with his ring can be revoked.” (Title Slide) Okay, so what’s happening here? Back in Chapter 3, at Haman’s request, Haman had used the king’s signet ring to issue a decree that went out to the 127 provinces saying that the Jews were to be killed on the 13th day of the month of Adar That decree is still in effect. And this is 2,500 years ago. You can’t just send an Emergency Notification to everyone’s cell phone saying that decree has been cancelled. And besides, as we just read, no decree of the Persian King can be revoked or cancelled. So, as silly as it sounds, they need to write another one on top of this one. This is the cumbersome nature of Government my friends 😊 VIOLENCE Esther 8:9 17 Page 344 (Esther 8:9 17) – NIV 9 At once the royal secretaries were summoned—on the twenty third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. They wrote out all Mordecai’s orders to the Jews, and to the satraps, governors and nobles of the 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush. These orders were written in the script of each province and the language of each people and also to the Jews in their own script and language. 10 Mordecai wrote in the name of King Xerxes, sealed the dispatches with the king’s signet ring, and sent them by mounted couriers, who rode fast horses especially bred for the king. 11 The king’s edict granted the Jews in every city the right to assemble and protect themselves; to destroy, kill and annihilate the armed men of any nationality or province who might attack them and their women and children, and to plunder the property of their enemies. 12 The day appointed for the Jews to do this in all the provinces of King Xerxes was the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar. 13 A copy of the text of the edict was to be issued as law in every province and made known to the people of every nationality so that the Jews would be ready on that day to avenge themselves on their enemies. 14 The couriers, riding the royal horses, went out, spurred on by the king’s command, and the edict was issued in the citadel of Susa. 15 When Mordecai left the king’s presence, he was wearing royal garments of blue and white, a large crown of gold and a purple robe of fine linen. And the city of Susa held a joyous celebration. 16 For the Jews it was a time of happiness and joy, gladness and honor. 17 In every province and in every city to which the edict of the king came, there was joy and gladness among the Jews, with feasting and celebrating. And many people of other nationalities became Jews because fear of the Jews had seized them. (Title Slide) Okay, so word has gone out from the Persian government that the Jews can now legally defend themselves if they are attacked on that day. And in fact, in the first half of chapter 9, they do just that. Verse 3 of chapter 9 even tells us that the Persian government even sides with the Jews and helps them defend themselves Thousands are killed. But then look at verse 13 of chapter 9 (Esther 9:13) NIV 13 “If it pleases the king,” Esther answered, “give the Jews in Susa permission to carry out this day’s edict tomorrow also, and let Haman’s ten sons be impaled on poles.” (Title Slide) Now, when it comes to chapter 9, Bible scholars are honestly a bit divided. It’s kind of a hard chapter to interpret. Some say that Esther and Mordecai got carried away with their power, and took it too far when they continued to fight their enemies. But most say that what Esther is doing here is finishing what King Saul was supposed to finish 500 some years earlier. We talked about this in chapter 3. Haman was an Amalekite (the vile enemies of the Jews whom attacked Israel unprovoked years ago). And as divine punishment, King Saul was supposed to eradicate the Amalekites. But he didn’t…and they hung around. And Haman was a result of Saul’s disobedience. And so most Bible scholars say that Esther and Mordecai are fulfilling/completing God’s holy justice here. If you want to do a deeper dive into some of these harder questions about violence in the Bible, we did an entire message on this topic when we were in Joshua a few summers ago. (Put up “Why is the Book of Joshua So Violent” title screen. If we don’t have it, do Joshua series screen) The message was called, “Why is the Book of Joshua So Violent,” but really, we answered that question for ALL of the Old Testament. And you can find that helpful message on our website or our app in our Joshua Series. REVERSALS But I want us to today to really concentrate on the main point of chapter 8. And that is God’s beautiful reversals. (Title Slide) The Book of Esther is amazing. It’s truly one of the most skillfully written books of all time. Not only by its author, but by God who orchestrated the story. If you look closely, the whole book is full of a series of reversals. Let me show you what I mean: Firstly: Mordecai forgotten (2:19 23) 🡪 Mordecai remembered (6:1 3) At the end of chapter 2, Mordecai saves King Xerxes from an assassination plot, but he is forgotten. And he goes unnoticed. Until one night King Xerxes is reminded of what Mordecai did, and then it’s REVERSED, and Mordecai is remembered Then: Mordecai wails through the city (4:1) 🡪 Mordecai honored in the city (6:11) When Mordecai first hears about Haman’s evil decree, we see him wailing loudly and bitterly throughout the city. But then, God reverses that part of his story, and in chapter 6, we see Mordecai being led on horseback and honored throughout the city. Then: Haman brags to his family (5:10 12) 🡪 Haman is humiliated in front of family (6:12 13) We see Haman boasting to his family of everything he had going for him, but then, it’s reversed, and a chapter later, he’s completely embarrassed in front of his family. Then: Haman sets up pole for Mordecai (5:14) 🡪 Haman killed on his own pole (7:10) Of course, one of the most famous reversals in the book is the fact that Haman set up a pole for Mordecai to be impaled on, but then ends up getting impaled on it himself. And then when we get into chapter 8, the reversals are quite fascinating. Much of chapter 8 reads almost verbatim as an exact copy to chapter 3, but now, everything is reversed. So, in chapter 3…. King’s ring given to Haman (3:10) 🡪 King’s ring given to Mordecai (8:2) In chapter 3…. Edict issued to kill the Jews (3:13) 🡪 Edict issued for Jews to act in self defense (8:11) In chapter 3…. Couriers ride out with bad news (3:14) 🡪 Couriers ride out with good news (8:14) In chapter 3…. Susa is bewildered (3:15) 🡪 Susa celebrates (8:15) Let me give you two more. Mordecai wears sackcloth (4:1) 🡪 Mordecai wears royal robes (8:15) And then… God’s people fast (4:16) 🡪 God’s people feast (9:17) It’s amazing! God is reversing everything! And what is EVEN MORE AMAZING about this book…is not just that there are a bunch of reversals. The reversals are literally symmetrical. In literature, this is called a Chiasmus…which is a story where the events mirror each other, but when they are reflected, they are reversed. Take a look at this: (Show Book of Esther Chiasmus) Now, I know there is a TON of info on the screen, and it’s probably hard to read. But I mostly just want you to get a visual of the structure and flow of this. So this is an outline of the book of Esther, and you’ll see that very first part of the book has a mirrored reversal with the very last part of the book…and so on. The Book of Esther starts with telling about the greatness of Xerxes… …but it ends with the Greatness of Mordecai Or another example: Towards the beginning, the book talks about this massive feast of excess, sin, and self glorification But it ends with the Feast of Purim, the great Jewish Celebration and now holiday And as you get closer to the center chapter of chapter 6 where everything turns, the mirrored reversals are closer to each other (so it’s symmetrical) I don’t know if it will work for you to take a picture of it, but if it doesn’t, we have a couple hundred printed copies of this at the Welcome Table if you want to pick one up on your way out today. GOSPEL REVERSALS And what’s even more incredible is that in many ways this same sort of chiasmus (or mirrored reversal) ECHOES throughout the entire narrative of the Bible. Let me show you what I mean. The very beginning of the Bible starts in a garden. (Sin in the Garden) But in that garden, Adam & Eve sin. And humanity is cursed with a sinful nature…and things start to break and go downhill from there. And so much of the Old Testament is really the story of God’s people rebelling against Him. They’re walking away from God. (Walking Away from God) Not all of the Old Testament. But that’s the dominant narrative. The people know about God…they want to follow Him, but in many ways, on their own, they’re powerless to do so… …and so they continue to fail and walk away from God. And then, the climax of the Bible is in the Gospels, the stories about Jesus. And the ultimate climax is when it looks like everything has fallen apart at the death of Jesus, when He is killed on the cross (Death) And in many ways, the Climax of the Bible (of Jesus’ story) is an echo of even the Esther story. See because in the Book of Esther, Haman plays the same role of another plotter and deceiver, the devil. Pastor Lee Eclov points out that, that the devil (just like Haman) is 2nd in power to only a great King. And he says that what the devil wants is (like Haman) for people to bow down to him And what the devil wants (like Haman) is the annihilation of God’s people. And one of the unique things about Haman’s story is that Haman essentially steps into his own trap. And that reversal echoes in the great climax of the Bible…because the devil has done the same thing as Haman. In the Gospels, the devil sees that many people begin to hate Jesus, and so he enters Judas Iscariot to betray Jesus, and influences the Pharisees and Romans to kill Jesus. But like Haman, he’s stepped into his own trap. See, Jesus was meant to die. Satan was not killing Him once and for all… …and so like Haman, the devil played right into God’s greater plan, and Jesus dies as a sacrifice for our sins. Only to have his death reversed, and to rise from the dead. (Resurrection) I love the scene in the Passion of the Christ, after Jesus rises from the dead, and you just see Satan in total frustration and dejection He’s been duped. God has reversed things again. It’s an echo of reversals. And therefore, the story of the New Testament isn’t predominately one of God’s people walking away, but… (Walking Toward God) God’s people aren’t perfect, but now because God is guiding them personally through the Holy Spirit, they are walking toward Him…and growing closer to Him. The story is reversing. And then, how does the Bible end?? The book of Revelation tells us that after the end times, heaven will come down to earth, and there will be a New Heaven and a New Earth And in many ways this new Jerusalem is the Garden of Eden Restored (The New Garden) Let me show you Revelation 22, the last chapter in the Bible. The subtitle for this section in our Bibles is literally “Eden Restored” (Revelation 22:1 3) – NIV Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. (Put back up New Garden Slide with all 6 parts of the Chiasmus) And so the Bible starts in the garden, and ends in the garden. But now there is no sin, and no curse, everything has been reversed. And these reversals echo through time. Because this is what our God does. He takes what is dead, and he brings it back to life. He reverses it, and makes it new. And I pray that God’s reversals are speaking to your soul right now. Whatever it is you’re going through right now, God can reverse it. He can turn it around. THIS IS WHAT HE DOES. He takes us from ashes to beauty…from pain to glory…from bondage to freedom. We worship a God that can do anything. SO pray the impossible. And don’t lose hope! For what He has promised you is that even if things are not reversed in this life…they will be in the next. In the New Heaven and the New Earth. Those who cannot walk, will once again walk. Those whose hearts have been broken, will have hearts restored. Those who have lost their Christian spouses, will see them again. I love the way the Lord of the Rings ends. When Sam the Hobbit wakes up and finds his friends alive that he thought were dead, he says to Gandalf… “Gandalf! I thought you were dead! But then, I thought I was dead myself. Is everything sad going to come untrue?” J. R. R. Tolkien That was always one of Timothy Keller’s favorite quotes. And he would often add to it by saying: “And the answer of Christianity to Sam’s question is: “Yes, everything sad is going to come untrue, and it will somehow be greater for having once been broken and lost.” – Timothy Keller See, that’s the story of Esther. Mordecai’s honor and blessings are even greater and even sweeter because they arose…out of pain. They came when all hope seemed lost. And so do not lose hope. As Galatians says, “Do not grow weary of doing good.” For your reward is coming. The Echo of God’s reversals is going to reverberate through your life. Both here, and in the eternal life to come. Let me pray