Hidden Heroes Of Faith: Mordecai Series

Xerxes: King of kings. In all of the world, there was no man like him. History dictates that his army was so vast that their arrows could blot out the sun. That is no wonder, for they are claimed to have stood at 1,000,000 strong. Take a look at what they had accomplished. Their kingdom grew to titanic proportions. They had defeated the Babylonians. They had defeated countless others. Who could oppose their King of kings?

And yet, it was not just the size of his army nor his vast military conquests that made Xerxes such a terrifying man. That which tipped the scales was his temper. In the matter of a second, he could switch from relatively calm to hellbent on revenge. Take for instance the time that he whipped the sea 300 times while shouting down curses upon or. Or what happened to Queen Vashti. Being in good spirits, Xerxes threw a celebration which lasted For a full 180 days he displayed the vast wealth of his kingdom and the splendor and glory of his majesty. 5 When these days were over, the king gave a banquet, lasting seven days, in the enclosed garden of the king’s palace, for all the people from the least to the greatest who were in the citadel of Susa. On the seventh day of this banquet, having had his fill from wine, it was now time to show off one more jewel of his conquests, namely his wife, Vashti. Her beauty was known the world over, and he wished for the other men to gaze upon her. Yet, she refused.

This affront to his dominion could not be accepted. Thus, Xerxes called in his advisors and asked what must be done. One of the wise men answered that if nothing were done, Queen Vashti would become a heroic figure of feminine defiance, and wives all over Persia would rebel against their husbands. Thus, Xerxes removed Vashti from the palace and according to his advisor, would take someone better than her as a wife.

So, the search was on. Young, beautiful virgins from all throughout the Persian empire were brought in and prepared for the possibility of becoming the King of kings’ new queen. And who would be one of those women, but a young lady named Esther. Almost immediately, Esther stood out for her beauty and skills. Soon after, the king also recognized that for himself, and so placed the royal crown upon her head.

Shortly after getting married, a man by the name of Haman was to be honored by all the empire. All followed the king’s edict to honor him except for one man, Mordecai, a Jew. Even though he was warned, Mordecai continued to refuse the order, refusing to pay homage to Haman. With that, the royal guards notified Haman of this insult, and so he was forced to defend his honor. Haman realized that this “sin” was too great simply just to punish Mordecai. Rather, his lust for vengeance grew to such a degree that only the thought of annihilating all of Mordecai’s people, the Jews, appeased him. Having discovered his true aim, and perhaps understanding the volatile nature of his king, Xerxes, Haman presented this before him. “There is a certain people dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom who keep themselves separate. Their customs are different from those of all other people, and they do not obey the king’s laws; it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them. 9 If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will give ten thousand talents of silver to the king’s administrators for the royal treasury.” 10 So the king took his signet ring from his finger and gave it to Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. 11 “Keep the money,” the king said to Haman, “and do with the people as you please.” Understand that this edict was not just for the Jews living in the city. This was to include Jews throughout the entire kingdom, including Judah, and thus including the line of the Savior.

Little did Haman, or Xerxes for that matter, know who else this included. For, the young woman that Xerxes married, Queen Esther, was a Jew herself. And not just any Jew. For the man who had so insulted Haman, Mordecai, was Esther’s adopted father. Hearing what the plan was, Mordecai reached out to his daughter. She responded to him by saying, “All the king’s officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that they be put to death unless the king extends the gold scepter to them and spares their lives. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king.” Basically, Queen Esther let Mordecai know that she was in no position to make demands of the king. Their marriage may have been on the rocks, for it had been 30 days since she was in his presence. Who was she to even ask the king for a favor?