Job: Introduction

“I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth” Job 19:25

Keil-Delitzsch say it best when they suggest the problem with the Book of Job is...if we believe Job teaches that when earthly afflictions fall upon righteous people God is faithful to doubly restore that loss in the end...the answer is entirely unsatisfying. 

This answer cannot satisfy; since the double blessings Job received were of the same  kind as the ones he lost...earthly. So, how could the loss of our beloved children be assuaged simply because God blesses us with twice as many? And, on the other hand, we observe many faithful people who suffer losses that are never restored. I think of Mr and Mrs Hulus Key, who lost their beloved son in Vietnam fifty years ago. And then...lost their second son far too young. Their surviving daughter will surely say there is nothing, here on earth, God could have given them that would have mended their broken hearts.

Furthermore, the lesson cannot simply be that God brings affliction to refine and purify the righteous. We are sufficiently refined and purified by the blood of Christ. Indeed, there is a suffering of the righteous that exists, without any causal connection with our sin, not for our own sake, but for the sake of God. To be certain, God brings affliction as a means of guiding and correcting but...even if this was the lesson of Job, what moral flaw could corrupt a righteous person to the point where only total catastrophic loss could refine? 

Finally...this is not some macho contest between God and Satan, as some suggest, where the righteous are afflicted simply allowing God to prove a point. It brings us closer, but the truth is much deeper. Job portrays, in its deepest sense, the cosmic conflict between the seed of the woman with the seed of the serpent, which ends in the head of the serpent being trampled under foot by the Holy God.

Job is a prophetic account...of the ultimate solution for sin. So...herein lies the important truth; God acknowledged Job as His servant, which He was able to do, after Job in all his afflictions remained true to God. And, those whom God calls “His servants” remain so after evil assaults them with every weapon at his disposal. 

Whatever affliction we face today, we should remind ourselves it is common to mankind since the garden. Affliction is Satan’s attempt destroy our confidence in God. Our comfort is not found in that commonality but in the truth that the battle has already been fought and won...at Calvary. The real answer to the book of Job is the mystery of the Cross.

Live boldly out there today...

Character Studies in Esther: Esther

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them”.  Ephesians 2:10

According to the Haggadah, a rabbinical text read during Passover, Esther was a descendant of King Saul. Her father died soon after her conception and her mother when she was born.  She was brought up by her cousin, Mordecai, as his daughter. Her given Hebrew name was Hadassah and like the myrtle (Hadassah) she was of ideal in stature and all who beheld her were struck by her beauty: she was more beautiful than either Median or Persian women and... everyone took her to be one of their own people. At any rate, we know, by Mordecai’s instruction, Esther declined to disclose her lineage to Ahasuerus though she claimed (according to the Haggadah) that, like him, she was of royal descent. She was called Esther by non-Jews...this being the Persian name for the goddess Ishtar, known as the “Queen of Heaven” and associated the Greek goddess Venus. So, we shouldn’t be surprised that legend says Esther was one of the four most beautiful women in the world and that the king found her irresistible. 

This brief biological sketch helps dissuade the septics who say Xerxes would never have married a foreign born woman without royal pedigree. Of course, none of this is what sets her apart for us...

On an ordinary day God chose Esther to do what He had planned before she was even born. We meet Esther...an adopted child of no repute... who becomes queen of the largest kingdom on earth as a result of Yahweh’s determination to protect his people. But God didn’t pick Esther because she was beautiful or noble. God chose her because she listened...and obeyed.

Upon the king's orders Esther was taken, from her home, to palace where she was prepared to meet the king...as a possible replacement for the deposed Queen Vashti. Even as she advanced to the highest position of the harem, perfumed and allocated servants, Mordecai managed to communicate with her and gave her strict instructions to conceal her Jewish origins. She listened...and obeyed.

The king fell in love with her and made her Queen...

Mordecai learned of an assassination plot against King Ahasuerus. He told Esther, who told the king in the name of Mordecai, and he was saved. This act of great service to the king was recorded in the Annals of the Kingdom.

Enter Haman, Ahasuerus' highest adviser. The king had ordered that everyone bow down to Haman But Mordechai refused.  Haman, in his fury, plots to kill Mordecai and all his people. When Mordecai learned of this, he told Esther to tell to the king she is Jewish and ask that he repeal the order. Esther hesitated, saying that she could be put to death if she goes to the king without being summoned; nevertheless, Mordecai urged her to try. He encouraged her with the famous challenge; “Who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” In other words, “this may all be part of God’s plan for your life”. Esther asked that the entire Jewish community fast and pray for three days before she goes to see the king.

She listened...and obeyed.

On the third day, Esther went to the royal court and the king welcomed her - stretching out his sceptre for her to touch. After offering her anything she wanted "up to half of the kingdom", Esther invited the king and Haman to a banquet told the king she would reveal her request at the banquet. During that banquet, the king repeated his offer...again. Esther demurred and told the king if he and Haman would return the following day she would surely reveal her request.  The next evening Ahasuerus repeated his offer of anything Esther wanted "up to half of the kingdom" and Esther said, while she appreciated the offer, there was a more pressing issue. Esther explained there was a person plotting to kill her and her entire people, and this person's intentions were to harm the king and the kingdom. When Ahasuerus asked who this was...Esther pointed to Haman. An enraged Ahasuerus ordered that Haman be hung on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai.

Mordecai replaced Haman as the king’s prime minister and he, along with Esther devised a plan to rescue the Jewish people from destruction.

If God is sovereign...and He is...you and I are not so different from Esther. We are God’s children, created to fulfill a dream he has for us...planned long before we were even born. We can’t imagine what amazing things God intends to accomplish through us. What might make us remarkably different from Esther is the possibility that we may be so wrapped up in our own plans that we can’t hear God and are unable to obey. The greatest tragedy in our lives...as Christians...is the absence of God’s mighty acts...simply because we have been too self-absorbed.

We can change that...it’s never too late. You might be in the autumn of life and fear the opportunities for God to use you have passed. Not true! Every new day is an opportunity to listen and obey. Harry Emerson Fosdick once said “we only need look at the glorious colors of the autumn leaves to recognize God saves the best for last”.

Today is the first day of the rest of our lives.

Live boldly out there today...

Character Studies in Esther: Mordecai

 “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6

Mordecai was an Israelite of the tribe of Benjamin, whose great-grandfather, Kish, had been exiled to Babylon, over a hundred years earlier, along with Jeconiah, king of Judah. King Cyrus the Great (of Persia) had decreed the Jews could return to Israel nearly 60 years before the events recorded in Esther. The two books preceding Esther (Ezra and Nehemiah) offer a record of those events. Obviously, there were many Jewish families who chose to remain in Persia...including Mordecai’s. He resided at Susa, the Capitol of Persia. He adopted his cousin Hadassah (Esther), an orphan child, whom he  raised as his own daughter. When she was brought into the king's harem and made queen in place of the deposed queen Vashti, he was promoted to some office in the court of Ahasuerus, and was one of those who "sat in the king's gate" 

Through the timely discovery of a plot to assassinate the king, Mordecai received favor from Xerxes, and eventually became the king’s political advisor for the Persian empire. He has been believed by many to have been the author of the Book of Esther; and the Feast of Purim is closely associated with his name...called "the day of Mordecai" (2 Maccabees 15:36). 

Mordecai was of admirable character and we may glean the following qualities from the text of Esther...

1. Mordecai was compassionate to the needs of others...

 It is evident from the outset that Mordecai had concern for others...evidenced, most of all, by his adoption of his orphaned niece Hadassah (later named Esther) after her parents’ deaths. When Esther was taken to be the next queen, Mordecai was not far away from her, even waiting outside her quarters to learn about Esther from the other women there (Esther 2:11). He also showed compassion when he learned of Haman’s plan to have all Jews killed in the kingdom and wore sackcloth and ashes...a public display of grief, remorse, or repentance. 

2. Mordecai was wise...

Mordecai’s intelligence is recognized quickly. He told Esther not to reveal her Jewish heritage at first, waiting until after she shared Haman’s evil plan with King Ahasuerus. He also informed Esther of the eunuchs’ plot to kill the king, making sure that the knowledge was brought to the king by Esther, ensuring the king’s gratitude toward her. In the same manner, he informed Esther of Haman’s plot allowing her to be the conduit for informing the king. Mordecai’s ability to read a situation to know when to act played a significant role is rescuing the entire Jewish community.

 3. Mordecai had the courage to stand up for his beliefs...

One attribute that is undeniable with Mordecai is he never was one to buckle under peer pressure. He understood his Jewish heritage and certainly knew the account of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego  refusing to bow before the image of Nebuchadnezzar. A devout Jew bowed before no one but Yahweh. Haman’s promotion meant many in the kingdom were forced to bow down to him by order of the king, but Mordecai refused...even though there was the strong possibility Haman might order his death.

4. Mordecai had hope in God’s callings and provisions...

One of the most celebrated verses in the Bible comes from the lips of Mordecai, when he was speaking with Esther about informing King Ahasuerus of Haman’s plot. He doesn’t minimize the possibility that if she approaches the king uninvited and when he discovers Esther’s Jewish heritage, she may die. Instead, Mordecai fortifies Esther with the possibility the God prepared her for this precise moment; “Who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14).

Mordecai’s faith in God is evident throughout the book of Esther. His words and actions reflect a man who’s motivation was the welfare of others according to the will of God. Because of this, God richly blessed Mordecai and he was appointed second in command to the king. This unexpected blessing from God was not meant to elevate Mordecai, but to ensure continued protection for the Jews in the kingdom. As Billy Graham once said, “All of these material blessings are gifts from God, given in order that we might humble ourselves, fall upon our knees before Him, and call upon His name.” By doing what he knew to be God’s calling on him, Mordecai was blessed by God and was placed in a position to continue God’s mission on a greater scale...to an entire community.

Will we be “Mordecai” for our neighbors? If not us, who?

Live boldly out there today...

Character Studies in Esther: Haman

“King Ahasuerus promoted Haman the Agagite, the son of Hammedatha, and advanced him and set his throne above all the officials who were with him” (Esther 3:1). 

We don’t know very much about Haman the Agagite’s background.  He may have been a descendant of Agag, the king of the Amalekites, but we know for sure he was second only to the King in power and authority. 

We also know other things...

Haman hated the Jews. He had an obsession with wiping them out.“All the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai did not bow down or pay homage” (Esther 3:2). Haman was so angry at Mordecai and by extension, all the Jews, he determined to exterminate them. I get it...we all have our feelings hurt from time to time. But...genocide?

We call this, at the very least, hubris...

Later...when the king asked Haman what he might do for a man he desired to honor...Haman was sure that he was the one the king wanted to honor. So he replied, “Your Majesty, if you wish to honor a man, have someone bring him one of your own robes and one of your own horses with a fancy headdress. Have one of your highest officials place your robe on this man and lead him through the streets on your horse, while someone shouts, ‘This is how the king honors a man!’” The king replied, “Hurry and do just what you have said for Mordecai the Jew, who is on duty at the palace gate!” Haman obeyed but was humiliated and furious. 

So, he devised a plan. He informed King Xerxes the Jews were not obeying royal laws and gained permission to force compliance. We know this was merely a ruse to attack and destroy the Jews. So, Haman was not only obscenely narcissistic...he was also a dishonest schemer. Power, pride and petulance are a combustible combination.

What he would later realize, and only then too late, was that “He who digs a pit will fall into it” (Eccl 10:8a). 

His intrigues were baffled by Queen Esther. She invited him to a banquet that included only Haman, Esther and the king. Naturally, his arrogance interpreted the invitation as indicating special favor and honor. His sense of self-assurance was so puffed up he went so far as to prepare a gallows upon which to hang Mordecai (v. 14). But later in the evening Esther exposed Haman’s intrigues to the king. The king was filled with anger and ordered his officers to hang Haman on the very gallows which he had prepared for Mordecai 

We’ve all fallen into some pit we’ve dug.  It’s a metaphor for looking at what we’ve done and taking pride in our accomplishments. When Uzziah  became king of Judah he became strong, his heart was so proud that he acted corruptly, and he was unfaithful to the Lord his God. God inflicted him with leprosy (2 Chronicles 26). To some degree we are all inclined toward Haman or Uzziah. It’s is a natural inclination since we know...as humans...we have been created above all else. We are actually created in the image of God. With this divine DNA, we understand that we are ‘fearfully and wonderfully made”. And, of course, that knowledge induces us to believe we are “somebody”.  

But...it doesn’t have to.

We are unique, but not special for the reason we might observe. Before he was converted, the Apostle Paul was a Pharisee at the zenith of his profession. He was world renowned as an intellectual and a teacher, His zeal led him to persecute any who defied his belief system. Then...Jesus confronted him. Paul learned “whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” Philippians 3:8

The lesson? When our lives become more about us and less about Christ...we are digging a pit. We are proud of the pit. We love the pit. The pit defines us. The pit eventually destroys us. So, the antidote? “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.” 1 John 2:15-17 

To paraphrase M. Scott Peck: It’s not about me...

Live boldly out there today...

Character Studies in Esther: Xerxes

“By the seventh day, King Xerxes was feeling happy because of so much wine. And he asked his seven personal servants, Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carkas, to bring Queen Vashti to him. The king wanted her to wear her crown and let his people and his officials see how beautiful she was. The king’s servants told Queen Vashti what he had said, but she refused to go to him, and this made him terribly angry”.  Esther 1:10-12

Wikipedia tells us Ahasuerus, or Xerxes the Great, was the fourth King of the Achaemenid Empire, ruling from 486 to 465 BC. He was the son of Darius the Great and Atossa, daughter of Cyrus the Great. He ruled the empire at its territorial apex. He ruled until his assassination in 465 BC at the hands of the commander of the royal bodyguard.

Wikipedia also suggests the Book of Esther is a work of historical fiction...

Keil-Delitzsch do a satisfactory job acquitting the authenticity of the Esther story. Primarily, the entire book is intended to reveal the genesis for the festival of Purim, commemorating the deliverance of the Jewish nation from destruction. It is inconceivable that this festival, celebrated for millennia around the world, would not have historical roots. Every scholar agrees. So, why not the Biblical account? The primary resistance derives from the practice of making “subjective probability” the standard of historical proof (as though world events always follow the probable path) as well as an imperfect understanding of the manners and customs of the ancient Persian court. The reasons are not compelling in themselves so I don’t need to elaborate except to say the events in the Book of Esther can be comfortably reconciled with the extra-biblical knowledge we have with respect to Xerxes.

So...on to Xerxes.

History tells us, and the Bible confirms, that Xerxes was a luxurious, hedonistic and extremely cruel tyrant. He was brooding in nature and inclined to immerse himself in sexual pleasures as a prophylactic against depression. We are told, in extra-biblical literature, that after his military defeat in Greece he “escaped to the solace of his harem”. We don’t have to speculate on the meaning.

The Bible tells us he exhibited remarkable lack of self-control  in both practice and preference. He was willing to humiliate his own wife to burnish his stature with his friends...hardly necessary for the “King of King”. But could not decide, on his own, how to respond when she defied him.

Incontinent and indecisive...not admirable qualities for a world leader. There is a lesson here.

You and I live in an age where the “powers that be” generally exhibit less than admirable qualities. I have long held the notion that the only American president, in my lifetime, worthy of my admiration was Dwight Eisenhower. I recently read an account of his acquiescence in the overthrow of the Prime Minister of Iran, during the mid 1950’s, for purely political expedience. I am so disappointed. Who do we trust?

As I read Esther I find that she and her uncle worked to achieve their preferred ends by working “with” rather Than “against” the king. This is not to suggest alliance with the king was acceptance of his character. His character was merely an extenuating circumstance they had to address. In seeking Yahweh’s protection for the Jewish people Esther and Mordecai had to work with Xerxes as he was...not as they wished he was. God, on the other hand, was unhindered by a venal king and there is no evidence Xerxes changed simply because God insisted in taking control.

God always gets His way. We often don’t recognize it...

The battle is not ours...it is the Lord’s. We are simply tools God can use to accomplish His will...not our own. When we find ourselves fighting the character rather than the circumstance we run the risk of ultimately displacing the character and disrupting an equilibrium that God has established. After all, that character is there because sovereign God placed him/her there. This is precisely why Paul reminds us “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves”. Romans13:1, 2

We shouldn’t let the character drive our actions but seek the mind of God as we negotiate our way through troubling circumstances. If the character needs to go...God doesn’t need our help.

Live boldly out there today...