Sermon: After the Honeymoon (Esther 2:19-3:1)

The Local Christendom Podcast with Aaron Ventura

After the Honeymoon
Sunday, January 19th, 2025
Christ Covenant Church – Centralia, WA

Esther 2:19–3:1
And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai sat in the king’s gate. Esther had not yet shewed her kindred nor her people; as Mordecai had charged her: for Esther did the commandment of Mordecai, like as when she was brought up with him. In those days, while Mordecai sat in the king’s gate, two of the king’s chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those which kept the door, were wroth, and sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus. And the thing was known to Mordecai, who told it unto Esther the queen; and Esther certified the king thereof in Mordecai’s name. And when inquisition was made of the matter, it was found out; therefore they were both hanged on a tree: and it was written in the book of the chronicles before the king. After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that were with him.

Prayer

O Father, we thank you for the promise that for those who by patience possess their souls, not a hair of our head shall perish. Please preserve us in such faith, keep as the apple of your eye, that we might attain to such glory where all our troubles are forgotten. We ask for this hope in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Introduction

The title of my sermon this morning is After the Honeymoon. And that is because in these six verses in front of us, the first four-five years of Esther’s marriage to Ahasuerus are covered. Just to give you a sense of where we are in this story chronologically:

• The book of Esther opens around the year 519 BC, “In the third year of Ahasuerus’ reign.” And after much feasting and pomp, Vashti was removed for her rebellion, and not long after that the search for a new queen better than Vashti began.
• However, four years would go by before such a woman would be found. After twelve months of purification, we read in Esther 2:16-17, “So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus into his house royal in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign (515 BC). And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.”
• Now the next timestamp we are given comes in Esther 3:7, where Haman has lots cast to determine when the Jews should be exterminated. And we are told that that event takes place “in the 12th year of king Ahasuerus.”
• So in the 7th year Esther is married, in the 12th year the lots are cast for the Jews’ destruction, and in the five years between those events, there are just a few details that the author of the book wants to tell us. But they are details that will become pivotal to the Jews salvation. And it is to those details we shall now turn.

Division of the Text

• In verses 19-20 we learn that Mordecai Sits in The King’s Gate.
• In verses 21-23 Mordecai Foils an Assassination Attempt. And yet in spite of this good deed we see…
• In verse 1, Mordecai Is Not Promoted.
  • These are the details that set up the entrance of the great villain Haman. So let us consider these verses in some depth.

Verses 19-20

19And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai sat in the king’s gate.

20Esther had not yet shewed her kindred nor her people; as Mordecai had charged her: for Esther did the commandment of Mordecai, like as when she was brought up with him.

• There are two oddities in these two verses. The first is that virgins are gathered together a second time. But we are not told why or for what purpose, only that when they are gathered, then Mordecai sat in the king’s gate.
  • One possibility is that although the King has married Esther and loves her, his lust is so great that he desires even more women for his harem of concubines. On this interpretation, this is a new gathering of virgins distinct from and in addition to the first gathering that Esther was a part of.
  • Another possibility is that this is a continuation of the events in verse 18 (just prior), which is Esther’s wedding feast. On this interpretation, these virgins are the “losers” of the Miss Persia contest, and they are being gathered this second time so that everyone can see how Esther’s beauty surpasses them.
  • Rabanus Maurus who wrote the first Christian commentary on Esther give the spiritual/allegorical sense of this text and says it refers the ingathering of the Gentile church. Jesus is the good shepherd who calls his sheep by name (Ahasuerus calls Esther by name), but who also says, “other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”
  • So whatever we are to make of this second gathering of the virgins, Esther’s Coronation is the happy conclusion to the disruption that Vashti’s rebellion had provoked. And what the author wants us to know is that this gatherer is occasion for Mordecai sitting in the king’s gate.
    • We should also note here that the King’s gate (see photos in bulletin) was a large government building with a central hall and other side rooms in it. As best we can tell from the archaeology, it was about 131 x 92 feet. For reference, an NBA basketball court is 94 x 50 feet. So the king’s gate was larger than your average gymnasium, and it was where official government business was conducted. Mordecai sits in this court as one of the king’s servants (or lesser magistrates).
• The second oddity is that even after Esther is married to Ahasuerus, we are told that she is still concealing her identity and doing this in submission to Mordecai.
  • So what is this but a failure to obey Genesis 2:24? “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”
  • It appears that Esther has failed to leave Mordecai and cleave to Ahasuerus her husband. This transfer of headship and authority that God commands in marriage is not being observed on Esther’s part. And this is dangerously close to the kind of thing that got Vashti removed. Vashti did not submit to her husband as head. And we wonder whether Esther is endangering herself by continuing to conceal her identity.
  • Can you imagine being married to someone for five years, but they refuse to tell you who their family and relations are? Would that foster trust between Esther and Ahasuerus?
  • It is also odd that Ahasuerus would marry Esther in the first place without knowing this information. Did he really never ask her “tell me where you are from?” That is usually one of the very first questions we ask someone when we get to know them. Who are your people, tell me about your family?
  • So we can only speculate as to what their marriage looked like with Esther concealing who she is. Perhaps Ahasuerus liked the mystery. Perhaps he already knows and is just waiting for Esther to come out with it. Perhaps the human reason why he permits the decree against the Jews is to force Esther to reveal herself. The text never tells us, but the whole situation is very odd.
• So to summarize these two details: 1) Mordecai is in the king’s gate, 2) and Esther is still concealing her identity in submission to Mordecai. And no explanation is given.

Verses 21-23

21In those days, while Mordecai sat in the king’s gate, two of the king’s chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those which kept the door, were wroth, and sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus. 22And the thing was known to Mordecai, who told it unto Esther the queen; and Esther certified the king thereof in Mordecai’s name. 23And when inquisition was made of the matter, it was found out; therefore they were both hanged on a tree: and it was written in the book of the chronicles before the king

• First observe that somehow Mordecai gets information that Bigthan and Teresh are plotting to kill the king. How did he get this information we wonder? Again, we are not told.
  • One Jewish interpretation is that Mordecai was a member of the Great Sanhedrin andknew 70 languages, and so while Bigthan and Teresh are plotting in their native tongue thinking no one else can understand, Mordecai knows without them knowing.
• Second, observe what Mordecai does with this information. He gives it to Esther, and Esther tells the king on Mordecai’s behalf.
  • This action by Mordecai and Esther is a strong argument against the view that Ahasuerus is some evil wicked tyrant. If Ahasuerus had indeed forced all these virgins to come to his palace, kidnapped them from their parents, and then slept with each one, and Esther was amongst these women forcibly taken and married against her will, it is very hard to reconcile that theory with their actions here which save his life.
  • If Ahasuerus was such an evil man, why not be rid of him? Why not let Bigthan and Teresh carry out their plot?
  • A much more likely explanation is our theory that Mordecai and Esther want to be close to the king and in his favor, and this good deed is what any loyal citizen (or covert father-in-law) would do.
  • In either case, this is a good deed in the eyes of God and should increase the favor they have with Ahasuerus.
• Third, observe that when this report comes to the king, a formal inquisition is carried out, and it is only after their plot is confirmed, that these men are executed. As with Vashti’s rebellion, there is a very deliberate process that takes place before a judgment is made, and then once that judgment is made it is written down in the chronicles of the king.
  • If we were to give the spiritual sense of this event, we could say that Bigthan and Tereseh signify the Scribes and Pharisees (gatekeepers of the law) who plotted to kill Christ. Or to apply this to our own day, they signify false teachers who are found guilty of heresy and then excommunicated from the church.
    • It says in Hebrews 6:6, that when Christians abandon the faith, “they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.” Bigthan and Teresh are a cautionary tale of what happens when you try to “lay hands” on the King of Kings.
• Now returning to the historical sense, we would expect to read immediately following these events that Mordecai is rewarded, promoted, and exalted to high office. And if that had happened, what a different story this would be. But instead, we read in chapter 3 verse 1…

Verse 1

1After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that were with him.

• This is a surprising twist in the story. Again, there is a strange absence of information as to why Haman was promoted, or if he deserved such advancement. There is also no explanation as to why Mordecai did not receive any honors or rewards for saving the king’s life.
• And what all this absence of information leaves us with is questions. And I think that is the point. God intentionally inspired this book to be ambiguous, to omit many details we would have liked to know, so that would we be forced to ponder His inscrutable ways, His good providence in the lives of Esther, and Mordecai, Haman and Ahasuerus. For it is only with knowledge of how the story ends, that we can then go back and appreciate the wisdom of God.
• So let us pause and consider this moment in the story from two perspectives: Haman’s perspective and Mordecai’s perspective.
• From Haman’s perspective, this is a happy day. He can go home and tell his wife and children; he can thank whatever gods he worships for giving him favor. And although Haman will eventually become a villain, he is not yet, and for all we know, he might have really deserved this promotion for years of faithful service to the king.
  • We naturally assume Haman does not deserve this promotion, but Haman could have been full of the spirit like King Saul, humble and small in his own eyes, and only after being exalted did the power go to his head and he became evil. We are not told anything about Haman’s life prior to this promotion, and if Haman had chosen the path of virtue, his life would have gone very differently.
  • The great danger for Haman after this promotion is to let his newfound authority go to his head and think of himself more highly than he ought. As we shall see next week, this sin of pride is what ensnares him and leads to his downfall.
  • Haman failed to take to heart that “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
  • Now what about Mordecai?
• From Mordecai’s perspective, who is he? He is the loyal servant who has been overlooked. He is the hard-working employee that gets passed up for a promotion. And what is the temptation for those who do good but are not quickly rewarded?
  • The temptation is to get bitter, to feel entitled, to become jealous or envious of whoever did get promoted, and then to compare ourselves and our merits with them. Or perhaps we just feel sorry for ourselves and wonder, What is the point of doing good if there is no benefit to us?
    • Perhaps Mordecai feels as Solomon speaks in Ecclesiastes 8:14, “There is a vanity which occurs on earth, that there are just men to whom it happens according to the work of the wicked; again, there are wicked men to whom it happens according to the work of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity.”
    • Or perhaps he feels as Asaph in Psalm 73 who wonders, “Surely I have cleansed my heart in vain, And washed my hands in innocence.” And also, “For I was envious of the boastful, When I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”
  • The temptation for us when our hard work is not immediately rewarded, is to complain, to grumble, and even to despair; to wonder if there is justice in the world. Or as the memes on the internet would call it, “to take the black pill.”
  • For Mordecai this is the test. What pill will you take? Who are you going to be? Will you be like King Saul (your tribal father), or will you be like King David (the forerunner of the Messiah)?
    • Saul saw that David’s star was rising, and he became jealous and persecuted him. The women are singing “Saul has slain his thousands but David his ten-thousands” and he cannot endure to hear it.
      • This is the envy test for all of us. Can you honestly rejoice at another’s good fortune? Can you trust that God is the one who appoints our lot and station in life, who sets up rulers and removes them, who can turn the heart of anyone at His whim? Or do we try to take matters into our own hands like Saul, and rather than fulfilling our own royal duties, we persecute the Lord’s anointed?
      • An evil eye and a proud mind sets itself in the judgment seat. And in that mindset, we think we know better than our superiors how to rule, we think we know better than anyone else, including God, who should get what and when. But this is the god-complex that Haman fell into, and Mordecai must avoid.
        • As it says in Proverbs 26:12, “Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? There is more hope of a fool than of him.”
        • And again in Proverbs 3:7, “Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil.”
    • David is the great counter example to such proud thinking, for David refused to grasp for the kingdom, even when he had been anointed, and Saul’s life was in his hands. And later when David’s own son Absalom tries to steal the kingdom from David, David receives it as God’s judgment. He knew he had failed as a father. He had let injustice go unpunished in his own household, and he accepted Absalom’s coup as God’s rebuke and chastisement for his sins.
    • Recall the words of David when Shimei curses him on the way out of Jerusalem. “Let him alone, and let him curse; for so the Lord has ordered him. It may be that the Lord will look on my affliction, and that the Lord will repay me with good for his cursing this day” (2 Samuel 16:11-12).
    • This is the posture of a righteous man, a meek man, even when the wicked have the upper hand. We cast ourselves upon the mercy of God, we confess our failings, and we regard our present humiliation as the means of preparing us for future glory.
    • Christ did this perfectly, even taking our sins and making them his own, and because of his great humiliation and death on the cross, it says in Philippians 2:9-11, “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
• So from Mordecai’s perspective, and for all those we might feel overlooked, the test is, What do you do in the meantime? Do you obey Romans 2:7 and, “by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality?” Or do you complain, grumble, and get bitter?
• If we would do the former, and patiently persist in doing good, we have the example of Christ to guide us, and many words of promise to encourage us.
  • Paul says in 1 Timothy 5:24-25, “Some men’s sins are clearly evident, preceding them to judgment, but those of some men follow later. Likewise, the good works of some are clearly evident, and those that are otherwise cannot be hidden.”
  • And in Psalm 37:34 it says, “Wait on the Lord, And keep His way, And He shall exalt you to inherit the land; When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it.”
• Mordecai’s action to save the king’s life might seem forgotten. Your hard work, your hidden labors might seem in vain. But God is watching, and God remembers, and in due time, if you continue to trust Him and persist in doing good, He shall reward.
• In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.