Esther III

A bit more on our incompetent king and the hope of a real king for the people of Israel in exile.

Xerxes is a king who is a buffoon. In all of his failings, however, none is more devastating than his inability to judge character. He keeps listening to Haman, a guy who wants to kill off a significant group of people in his empire, a killing that’s going to cost the empire a lot.

One last, he doesn’t get it. Remember the story in chapter 1. Queen Vashti—a minor character whose name means beautiful woman or beloved by the way—, Queen Vashti was summoned by the king, ...to bring before him Queen Vashti, wearing her royal crown, in order to display her beauty to the people and nobles, for she was lovely to look at. ...she is called in so everybody can take a look at her and go, "wow, what a beautiful woman." Her response, she says, "not coming, not going to do the runway thing". Now catch the punishment for this woman who doesn’t want to see the king and his friends, "Therefore, if it pleases the king, let him issue a royal decree and let it be written in the laws of Persia and Media, which cannot be repealed, that Vashti is never again to enter the presence of King Xerxes. Also let the king give her royal position to someone else who is better than she. Now let’s just get this straight—Vashti doesn’t want to hang out with the king, doesn’t want to be in his presence, her punishment is to get exactly what she wants. This king just doesn’t get it.

Enough about our incompetent king—as the Jewish people are hearing the story or reading the story they are getting a good laugh. The kind of laugh that tells them that this king who thinks so much of himself is more of a court jester than anything else. But beyond that they see that where there should be a king there is a vacuum, there is no one doing the royal ruling thing. But even as they laugh the thought does start to occur to them that maybe somewhere behind the scenes there is another king, not a buffoon, not a court jester, but a true king, a king who is at work as they are being threatened by the likes of Haman who gets his way because of a king who doesn’t get it. A true king who still cares and loves them and who is guaranteeing their future. In their laughter their minds turn to this true king, and they see possibilities, they taste hope.