SERMON: Esther 1:1-2

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The Hidden Hand of Providence in Esther

Well as pastor Kendall mentioned beginning today and and periodically over these God-willing over the next few months. We'll be Doing a study of the book of Esther which Again, the by God and his grace.

I'll be able to lead us through as I Have opportunity to deliver the word here. Oh, sorry, you guys can sit down.

I.

Realized like is Jeremy the only one standing and then I and then it was not long after that. All right. That's my normal line, but I don't say that this part usually so. Anyways, I won't start over but I will I will say That it's good to be able to have this opportunity to deliver the word this morning.

One of the best elements within what I consider to be. My favorite stories are the ones where the hero the protagonist just happens by sheer accident to be in the right place. At the right time in the Western in the Westerns move like those types of movies with the Cowboys and all that.

It's a stranger who walks into or he moseys into a dusty saloon, you know, he's minding his own business and wouldn't you know it he's the only one in town who can handle the gang of Desperados that are terrorizing the town folk and he only went in into the saloon because his horse kicked a shoe or something like that.

Right in the rom-coms. It's the meet-cute or in something like it's a wonderful life. Which is one of my favorite movies if you haven't seen it, you really you really should take the time. It's the seemingly unfortunate timing of a long series of things that derail a young man's dreams only to ultimately serve as his and his family's salvation when he needed it most and If you're a cynic, you know, you call you might call some of these things contrived these stories these movies that have that have Plots like this, but if you're a Christian if you're a believer you start to realize that this is the way the world really works.

Right. God has a way of pulling on threads that we didn't even know were part of the tapestry. Working them together for his glory in our good. Which brings us this morning to the book of Esther a book that doesn't mention God's name even once.

Right, you could read through it and think well, isn't that odd, right? Does this actually belong here in the Bible? Where's the burning bush where the parted seas and yet that's the point in Esther. God is not absent.

He's offstage. He's moving the scenery queuing the actors arranging the timing so perfectly that what looks like Coincidence turns out to be Providence with a capital P and so you have this Persian beauty pageant a Murderous plot against the Jews a sleepless king and a courageous queen and none of them really see what's happening.

Until the curtain comes up, but God knew because God always knows Esther invites us to live in that world. Not the world where God's name is constantly written in the sky. But the world where your Tuesday afternoon and your random conversation at the grocery store are all part of the great story that he's telling.

It's a book about hiddenness hidden plots hidden identities and most importantly the hidden King and his invisible hand of Providence and when that hand moves Kingdoms tremble the proud fall and the people of God are delivered.

And so as we enter into this story I want us to remember this that Esther's God is your God in the same hand that Arranged palace politics in Persia is arranging the details of your life. Quietly invisibly and perfectly we want to keep this perspective as we consider this book and not lose sight of the hand of God in its pages because ultimately I want to tell us this from the beginning.

That is the point of the book of Esther. It's not the circumstances or characters it details but the promises of God to his people coming to bear in the midst of it all and Pointing ultimately to the redemption which was to come in Jesus Christ.

And so with that I would have us to read the opening verses of this book this morning as we'll acquaint ourselves With some of the background of the story and take a high-level view of its characters its flow its themes.

Before we make our way through the book in more detail in the future when I'm periodically again able to to preach the word here Over the next few months as the Lord wills and so begin and the book of Esther chapter 1 verses 1 2.

Hear the word of the Lord this morning. Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus. This is Ahasuerus which reigned from India even unto Ethiopia over a hundred and seven and twenty provinces. That in those days when the king Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom, which was in Shushan the palace.

Let's pray Father we do. Thank you this morning for your word. We thank you for The story that is contained here in the book of Esther. We ask that this morning as we open our open up to it for the first time here in a sermon or that you would help.

Us to.

Get a good grasp or a faithful grasp of what it is that you'd have us to To learn as we study this book as we learn from this book or help us grow in our appreciation for your providence the ways in which you Dispose your will or you carry out your will Lord in the world.

We ask you to help us Lord to grow in our love for it Lord our appreciation for the ways in which you work Lord and again strengthen us to Receive your word this morning by faith. We ask in Jesus name and amen.

Esther in Biblical and Covenant History

So again this morning. I want us to accomplish one main goal and that being to gain a proper kind of 30 ,000 foot understanding of this most interesting book Allowing us God willing to be more to more effectively work through the story in the future.

And we're gonna aim to do that by paying special attention to two things mainly. So first I want us to spend a little bit of time exploring Esther's place in biblical and covenantal history. This meaning I want us to understand where in the timeline of Old Testament Old Covenant history are the people of God in this story.

How did they get there? Where are they headed? And Second, I want us to pay attention to kind of how the book is organized, right? It's it's characters its themes its plot and yet most importantly its structure the way in which the author and God the Holy Spirit meant to communicate something to us in the way that the book is Laid out so I want us to come away having an appreciation.

For this I want us to be able to use it as a tool even to to kind of keep up to do or keep up With where the the narrative is headed to keep it straight in our heads and the connections That I believe were intended to make as we read it and to better understand it.

And so with that let's get to. Let's get to it as we begin our study of the book of Esther. So again first place in biblical history in our opening verses verses that we read this morning. We're kind of brought in we're invited into the historical time in Geography of where the story of Esther is gonna take place and I won't lie to you kind of at the beginning I don't want to make this seem more important than it is.

This is important information. It's helpful. But it's not going to be mission critical to us and understanding the elements of this story as we make our way through the narrative. But again, it's understand.

It's helpful and important for us to be able to understand the bigger picture of the significance of the book of Esther in the grand Scheme of redemptive history and the broader story of the Bible as a whole.

So to say it another way there will be aspects of the story of Esther that are timeless. Right themes and applications that don't really depend on where or when the story is taking place to appreciate them and to learn from them.

But to ignore the history altogether I think would be to miss out on one of those forests of history that God planted by settling for just some of the trees. And so in our effort to enjoy both. If you would indulge me for a moment as we kind of appreciate where we are and that old covenant history.

Again, we read in chapter 1 verses 1 2 now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus. This is Ahasuerus which reigned from India even unto Ethiopia over a hundred and seven and twenty Provinces that in those days when the king Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom.

Which was in Shushan the palace and so we're set at the time of the reign of Ahasuerus and Ahasuerus though there is some debate about the timing of when exactly it was and whether this may have been used here in Esther as a title more than as the man's name.

Because it refers to a king Ahasuerus means great king. It's very commonly fairly commonly believed that this is referring to the Persian King Xerxes who reigned over the Persian Empire from 486 to 465 BC and so you may ask, you know, why do we have here in the Old Testament?

Which is in large part the history of God's people Israel. Right a story that's taking place in Shushan or Susa as it might read in your Bible in most modern translations. That's what you'd have which is in modern-day Iran or if there's any college students here Iran I hear that's that's the right way to say it.

But how did we how did we get here right in the Old Testament narrative? Well importantly we note that by this period in history again the 5th century BC the kingdom of Israel has gone through quite a bit.

They had an established and united kingdom under Saul David and Solomon and then they were divided into the northern and southern kingdoms under Rehoboam. After Jeroboam's rebellion Israel was now the ten northern tribes and Judah consisted of the remaining two tribes to the south loyal to the house of David of David the tribes of Judah and Benjamin and then after many centuries of sin against God and disobedience of his commands.

Continually breaking covenant with him the northern kingdom of Israel is conquered by the Assyrians in the 8th century BC and those ten tribes That constitute that northern kingdom. They're scattered throughout the Assyrian Empire and essentially destroyed.

From the pages of history. They're gone those ten tribes. They're scattered in the Empire intermarriage all these things, right? So they're they're no longer really existing in covenant history. And then finally less than 200 years later in the early part of the 6th century BC the Babylonians led by Nebuchadnezzar Conquered Jerusalem and Judah they destroy the temple and they bring many of the Judeans as slaves back to Babylon most popular among those slaves being Daniel who wrote obviously the book of Daniel and It's here in Babylon in exile that Daniel Wrote that book and later on as the after the Babylonians were conquered as well.

But with a number of prophecies regarding the future of God's people and one of those is found in Daniel chapter 2. That is a great aid to us and understanding the expectation of the Jews at the time of Esther.

Especially with the benefit of hindsight as we have it obviously here 2 ,600 years later. But even would have been understood in large part by Jewish leaders like Mordecai in the book of Esther. But in Daniel chapter 2 we read of Daniel's interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream.

Regarding the kingdoms of men in the kingdom of God beginning in verse 31 of chapter 2 Daniel says to Nebuchadnezzar thou O King saw us and behold a great image. This great image whose brightness was excellent Stood before thee and the form thereof was terrible.

This image's head was a fine gold his breast and his arms of silver his belly and his thighs of brass. His legs of iron his feet part of iron and part of clay. Thou saw still that a stone was cut out without hands which smote the image upon his feet.

That were of iron and clay and break them to pieces. Then was the iron the clay the brass the silver and the gold Broken to pieces together and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors and the wind carried them away That no place was found for them and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain and filled the earth.

So there Daniel's recounting to Nebuchadnezzar the dream that Nebuchadnezzar had. No one was able to recount it to him until they brought Daniel before him and he does but then he continues from verses 36 To 45 to interpret the dream for him.

This is the dream and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king. Thou O King art a king of kings for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom power and strength and glory. And Wheresoever the children of men's well the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand and hath made thee ruler over them all thou art this head of gold and After thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee and another third kingdom of brass Which shall bear rule over all the earth and the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron.

For as much as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things and as iron that breaketh all these Shall it break in pieces and bruise. And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes Part of potter's clay and part of iron the kingdom shall be divided.

But there shall be in it of the strength of the iron for as much as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron and part of clay So the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly broken.

And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay They shall mingle themselves with the seed of men. But they shall not cleave one to another Even as iron is not mixed with clay. And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom Which shall never be destroyed and the kingdom shall not be left to other people.

But it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms and it shall stand forever. For as much as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands and that it break in pieces the iron The brass the clay the silver and the gold the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter and the dream is certain and the interpretation thereof sure.

And So Daniel has made clear to the king of Babylon that though he be a great king This Golden Age will not last forever. Instead it will be replaced and not only replaced but replaced by three inferior kingdoms before ultimately it is replaced by a far greater Kingdom one that is made without hands and that though as a stone It strikes at the feet of this great image of the kingdoms of men.

It destroys the whole thing and from the stone springs forth a mountain that grows to cover the whole earth and lasts forever never to be Destroyed. Which we know now, of course to be referring to the kingdom of God as revealed in Christ Jesus who is the stone who toppled the kingdoms of men and inaugurated the kingdom of heaven on earth at his resurrection and ascension.

But at the time, of course Daniel and the Jews did not know the specifics of how or when God would do this. But only that he would and they received the promises of this prophecy by faith and hopeful expectation.

What they did know was the general timeline given by God in the prophecy. First they knew that Babylon represented the first of those four kingdoms that would lead into the ushering Ushering in excuse me of the kingdom of God on earth meaning that God had revealed to them that he would not forget his people In exile right and that he would rather establish his people forever After the passing away of these kingdoms of men.

And they also knew that despite what may come to pass in the carrying out of these world events. That they could trust their circumstances to God and not spend their days in a quiet shame Living in a kind of hidden exile with no hope for the future.

Verse 45 again says the great God hath made known to the king What shall come to pass hereafter and the dream is certain and the interpretation thereof sure by faith. They could be assured that God would bring these things to pass For his people.

Now, what does this all have to do with Esther? Right. Well what we see here at the beginning of the book of Esther is that there is a new great king again. Ahasuerus actually means great king. Reigning over a kingdom that is not Babylon, right?

Why is that? Well the the meadow Persian Empire. I don't want it's not history lesson. But I'll give you a little bit the meadow Persian Empire under Cyrus the Great they conquered the Babylonian Empire around 539 BC and the significance of this is that to the God fear to the Jew of Esther's time.

They would know that they are in a point of history. That is no longer that head of gold. Right, but this is the first of those inferior kingdoms to come after Babylon the chest and arms of silver. What an encouragement to them even to go from one exile to another.

To be encouraged and that's seeing the prophecy in Daniel chapter 2 playing out and and you could ask well. Would they even really know about Daniel's prophecy? Well Daniel again at the time of the meadow Persian Empire conquering the Babylonians Daniel was still very prevalent and was and remained very prevalent Within the meadow Persian Empire.

So it is very likely that Jewish leaders would have been very aware of his prophecy at that time. So now again, why is this significant? Why does this matter to our interpretation? Well, it gives us a far greater I think of appreciation of what will take place in the story of Esther where we have this population of Jews.

Living as exiles in a foreign land. But who are able because of God's prophetic revelations of his promises to live by faith in it again. They don't they don't need to hide their heads in the sands of Persia.

But rather they can work and they can labor towards that coming kingdom trusting that God will bring it to pass. As he had said that he would and when things get difficult. They don't see and they don't see from where deliverance may come.

They can live with the belief that perhaps God has put them where they are for such a time as this and that even if he Doesn't bring relief right away. They can know that it will be raised up from some place at the appointed time because God said that his kingdom would topple These others and last forever and we really we see evidence of this from them in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah very clearly which are right around the same time or shortly after the events of Esther where the Jews are pushing to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple and reinstate the proper worship of God for that time period and so again I think this is especially relevant information for us as we interpret the events of Esther as we interpret how these characters act in The story because we similarly similarly live in an exile of sorts.

We're sojourners in a foreign land. And yet we have even greater understanding of our God in the person of Jesus Christ even greater fellowship with him in the Holy Spirit. Even greater promises in the New Covenant even greater revelation in the full canon of Scripture than the Jews of Esther's day would have.

The everlasting kingdom that Daniel foresaw has come and yet. How do we labor right? How do we live by faith in our time with what faith do we build our fathers did it, right? We can certainly look back at our Fathers in the faith our historical forefathers who who worked strove to build Christendom.

They believed the promises of God. They believed the earth would be filled with his glory and yet We have such little faith are far too often content with so little Happy with just good enough and unwilling to put our backs into the work to move the kingdom forward.

We prefer to get by right only pushing far enough to be able to see out our days without much trouble. We don't build for the future. We don't work for the generations that are coming after us at least not like Christians used to.

We're too squeamish to posture for for influence and power in every sphere because you know. Those things aren't just aren't spiritual enough. You know, we shouldn't be focused on those things. But when we examine that thinking, you know, we we have to ask who suffers for that.

And the answer is it's our generations, right? It's our children's children who will have it even more difficult and we'll have to claw back even further in their pursuit of the kingdom Of God and of righteousness.

They'll be the ones who were sacrificing on the altars of good enough and not right now. That's why you have Christians who are too afraid to tell you that they voted for Trump or they're embarrassed to tell you that or that immigration is a problem or that sodomy should be illegal because they don't want to be seen as trying to Lord their Christianity over other people and Frankly what I say to that is please don't because I don't have any need for that kind of Christianity.

We need Esther's and Mordecai's right people who are who are very comfortable with their faith. Being prevalent in the public square or Christians who are content with their one day per week at most right?

Sacrifice vision labor, you know, I just don't think we're ready for that yet. They'll say well, I just don't believe that that really matters, right? It's a circumstances call for action then Christians should be first in line, but far too often.

We're self-seeking and self-preserving again we need Mordecai's kind of Christianity and Esther's and Ezra's and Nehemiah's and Daniel's a Christianity that believes the promises and lives like it a Christianity that looks forward with confidence and ambition for greatness because of the promises behind us just as the just as the Jews in Esther's Day did so because of the promises ahead of them.

And this is something that we're gonna see again throughout the book of Esther faith working in the places that God has them. Because of this underlying hope and future glory for God's people. So again, these promises are important to our interpretation because.

Especially with the name of God not used in the book. We want to understand that what they're doing why they're doing it is because they believe in what God has promised. And so with that little bit of historical and biblical context hopefully established I want to take for the remainder of our time kind of a high-level look at the book of Esther.

Again, really kind of just going through the entire thing understanding the story seeing the story in the way that it's organized in a really beautiful Beautiful way, so I imagine that many of you or at least some of you are familiar with the book of Esther but for those who are not Again, hopefully this will be a really helpful big-picture view of it.

Often I think that the book of Esther kind of goes underappreciated and robbed of its true beauty because the story is so interesting. Right in and of itself. We're almost satisfied with the surface level versions of it because that is it's really captivating, right?

There's feasts. There's there's you know, kind of beauty pageants, you know political maneuvering spies moles. It really is an amazing story lots of intrigue. Plenty of tension battles between good and evil but without looking deeper at it at the way that it's organized we can kind of miss some of the truly impressive things about it that I believe God would have For us to receive in it and ironically I think that by elevating certain aspects of the story to levels beyond their actual understanding that actually does make it harder for us to Appreciate the book in general, but Esther tells the story of a young woman you can imagine named Esther.

And now while she is the title character a very central part of the story She is far from the lone character of import. In fact in many respects the book is more about Esther and her uncle Mordecai. But you know the book of Esther and Mordecai it wouldn't be as it doesn't have the right ring to it.

So I whoever decided that I agree. It's the it's the book of Esther. But the book again in its purest sense really tells the story of Esther and Mordecai Jews living in the Persian exile as they are used by God within the Persian courts to deliver the Jewish people from their enemies but as mentioned before there is a great irony in this book and that is that the name of God or even any reference to Him is not to be found in all of its ten chapters.

He is conspicuously absent from the narrative and yet He's ever present in the plot other characters that will encounter Will be a hash aware. So we read about in the first few verse of the book the king of metal of the Meadow Persian Empire and Esther's husband Vashti who is the original queen of the Empire thrown out of the court in chapter 1 and Haman who's the villain of the story who we meet in chapter 3?

But in each of these we'll see there's much in terms of Kind of typology and parallels that were meant to see and even connections to earlier parts of the biblical narrative. Which will certainly take the time to do as we make our way through the book in the future.

But also found in Esther are several important themes that we'll consider. Obviously Providence is a major theme. There's really More more than a theme found at certain points. It's the underlying principle that should drive our interpretation of the narrative.

It's there the whole time. Throughout though. There are many other things that are worth considering. For example, we'll see the tensions involved with judgment and salvation. Authority and submission, you know, what does it mean to be faithful in a foreign land?

What are the proper bounds of authority and what are our responsibilities to submit to it? How should Christians view political influence for example to what extent should we desire church and state? Separation if at all all these things are really important and they're there they're present in the book of Esther.

We'll explore them God willing in the months ahead. But primarily this morning I want us to focus on the structure of the book the way the story is organized and how I believe we're meant to receive. It not only based on the intent of the human author, but also by the Holy Spirit.

The story is organized and we've heard this term before pastor Kendall has has taught us this in the past. Much like much of Jewish literature in the Old Testament period. It's organized as a chiasm a literary structure where the climactic moment is found in the middle of the narrative.

If you'd imagine it's much more like a mountain where the story kind of builds up to its peak in the middle and then kind Of comes back. That's a peak point of tension before descending back down in a very like mirror like sense.

He gets it you got it the ideas and the key moments they're repeated in a reverse order. So it's a very it's very telling when those when those structures are there. That we're meant to see that that central point as the climactic moment the main Climactic moment of the story and the fact that the book of Esther is organized in this way.

Hopefully again, I think it could be hopefully would be a great help to us and seeing the narrative play out and remembering the ways In which Providence worked salvation for the Jews here through the affairs of men.

And.

Hopefully as well God willing point us being aid and pointing us to Christ in this story. And so the structure that we have here in the book of Esther has seven moves to it seven steps To the story with the climactic moment coming right in the middle as the fourth move.

First the story begins in chapter 1 which will look more closely at in our next Esther message with a six-month feast Thrown by Ahasuerus the king of Persia. We read in verses 3 and 4 of chapter 1 in the third year of his reign.

He made a feast unto all his princes and his servants the power of Persian and Medea the nobles and princes of the provinces being before him. When he showed the riches of his glorious kingdom in the honor of his excellent majesty many days even a hundred and four scored days.

Now obviously in the course of chapters 1 and 2 there are some really important things that happen Within the story which we'll talk about in the future. It's worth noting that while those are critical to the plot and how the thing plays out They are not the actual focus of the story.

They are not the thing. They're the circumstances of the Providence, but they're not the point of the Providence. And so first again, you have Ahasuerus's feast. The second move also involves Ahasuerus it is when he is saved so Mordecai Esther's uncle learns of a secret plot to kill the king and Through Esther who by this time in chapter 2 has been chosen to be the new wife of Ahasuerus and the queen of the Empire.

She warns the king of the treachery and saves his life so again think about that what most of us remember from the story of Esther is that of her being elevated to Queen or Vashti's defiance and those things are again really important and they're important parts of the story.

But I think that the the brevity even on those matters Points to those being secondary points to the narrative into the plot that that God is intending for us to receive Right, which which again should point to God working good for his people.

But we have as Esther or Mordecai through Esther Saving King Ahasuerus warning him of this plot for his life from chapter 2 verses 21 through 23 in Those days while Mordecai sat in the king's gate two of the Kings Chamberlain's Big Ten and Toresh of Those which kept the door were wroth and sought to lay hands 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 the and when Inquisition was made of the matter it was found out.

Therefore they were both hanged on a tree and was written and it was written in the book of the Chronicles before the king. Third we have the elevation of a man named Haman to a prominent place of power in the kingdom.

Now obviously we're gonna learn a great deal more about Haman in the future. But as I mentioned, he's the villain of the story right and suffice it to say for now that his elevation above all the princes of the kingdom was a major threat to the Jewish people and Eventually, it resulted in him establishing a date through the casting of lots where on all of the Jews of the Persian Empire Could be legally killed destroyed particularly because of his hatred of Mordecai for his refusal to bow before Haman and We read of this this third move in chapter 3 verses 1 2 which is actually the verses immediately following what we just read In at the end of chapter 2 where Mordecai saves the king verses 1 2 of chapter 3 after these things did King Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hamadath of the Agagite and advanced him and set his seat above all the princes that were with him and All the king's servants that were in the king's gate bowed and reverenced Haman for the king had so commanded concerning him.

But Mordecai bowed not nor did him reference or excuse me reverence. Fourth and remember this is that central point now, right? So the fourth move of the story of this chiastic structure Lee is this central climactic moment?

Which takes place over a four chapter period chapters four through seven so you have ten chapters in this book and the four central chapters are really the that is the central moment that is the the peak of the tension the peak of the The climax of the story.

We have the tables turn right and Haman is exposed for his evil intentions his wicked plot to kill the Jews before the king. It's found out what he's done what his plans are and the genocide that he means to commit that would even include killing Esther the Queen herself who was a Jew and so what happens?

Well, it's in this climactic section that the adversary of the people of God is destroyed and he's even destroyed according to the very same Means that he meant to destroy them with as the scene again reaches its ultimate point of tension.

Chapter 7 verses 3 through 10. Esther's hosting her husband Ahasuerus and Haman for a banquet. This is where she means to expose him and does. Then Esther the Queen answered and said if I have found favor in thy sight Oh King and if it pleased the king let my life be given me at my petition and my people at my request.

For we are sold I and my people to be destroyed to be slain and to perish. But if we had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen, I had held my tongue. Although the enemy could not countervail the king's damage.

Then the king Ahasuerus answered and said unto Esther the Queen Who is he and where is he that thirst presume in his heart to do so? And Esther said the adversary and an enemy is the this wicked Haman and then Haman was afraid before the king and the queen and The king arising from the banquet of wine and his wrath went into the palace garden and Haman stood up to make requests for his life to Esther the Queen for he saw that there was evil determined against him by the king and The king returned out of the palace garden into the place of the banquet of wine and Haman was fallen upon the bed whereon Esther was then said the king will he forced the queen also before me in the house as The word went out of the king's mouth.

They covered Haman's face and Harbona one of the Chamberlain's said before the king behold. Also the gallows 50 cubits high which Haman had made for Mordecai who spoke who spoke in good for the king Standeth in the house of Haman and the king said hang him there on and so they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had Prepared for Mordecai and then was the king's wrath pacified.

And so.

Honestly pretty miraculously here. We've had to this point a feast for the kingdom of man, right? That's kind of what that represents in chapter 1 Salvation for the king and then the elevation of the enemy of God's people and yet all of these these three major moves in the story When you look at them, it almost seems impossible that this would be the case.

At least so quickly but they all lead ultimately to the destruction of The adversary the destruction of Haman in our climactic turning point moment, you know, you'd almost expect again I think our minds are conditioned this way To in the way that we understand story or think about stories that it's all gonna build up to the end this major thing at The end where the enemy will be destroyed, but God does not work in that way, right?