Now the king was attracted to Esther more than to any of the other women, and she won his favor and approval more than any of the other virgins. So he set a royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti. 18 And the king gave a great banquet, Esther's banquet, for all his nobles and officials. He proclaimed a holiday throughout the provinces and distributed gifts with royal liberality.
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Ezra and Nehemiah, the books preceding Esther, tell the inspiring story of Jews returning to Jerusalem after years of captivity. Only 50,000 Jews came back tot heir plundered land, however. Many more- among them Mordecai’s family- stayed behind, and some of these prospered quite well. The story of Esther takes place in that foreign setting, ruled by the Persian Empire.
His family had come to Persia as virtual slaves, captives of Jerusalem’s last-stand against the Babylonians. Yet even in enemy territory, Mordecai succeeded in business. His relative, Esther, found more success; she was selected from all the beautiful women in the land as King Zerxes’ queen. With his connections inside the palace, Mordecai probably had high ambitions. He would have to hide his background, though, and he strongly advised Esther to keep her Jewish heritage a secret as well.
Yet when a crisis came, Mordecai stood tall, showing extraordinary courage. The king had named the evil Haman his second-in-command, and everyone bowed before him- everyone except Mordecai, who stayed on his feet. His motive? Perhaps he knew of Haman’s character and of his hatred for Jews.
When Haman set out to annihilate all Jews in the empire, Mordecai urged Esther to “come out” completely, revealing her race even at the risk of her life. Clearly, loyalty to their people came before success or safety. Mordecai’s stand and Esther’s courage led to a dramatic turnaround for the whole community of Jewish exiles. King Xerxes rewarded Mordecai with a high position in his court. More importantly, his own community honored him “because he worked for the good of his people and spoke up for the welfare of all the Jews” (10:3)
The feast of Purim, still celebrated by Jews today, commemorates these amazing events. Against history’s dark background of anti-Semitism, Mordecai’s triumph shines.
Life Question: Whom do you speak up for?
His family had come to Persia as virtual slaves, captives of Jerusalem’s last-stand against the Babylonians. Yet even in enemy territory, Mordecai succeeded in business. His relative, Esther, found more success; she was selected from all the beautiful women in the land as King Zerxes’ queen. With his connections inside the palace, Mordecai probably had high ambitions. He would have to hide his background, though, and he strongly advised Esther to keep her Jewish heritage a secret as well.
Yet when a crisis came, Mordecai stood tall, showing extraordinary courage. The king had named the evil Haman his second-in-command, and everyone bowed before him- everyone except Mordecai, who stayed on his feet. His motive? Perhaps he knew of Haman’s character and of his hatred for Jews.
When Haman set out to annihilate all Jews in the empire, Mordecai urged Esther to “come out” completely, revealing her race even at the risk of her life. Clearly, loyalty to their people came before success or safety. Mordecai’s stand and Esther’s courage led to a dramatic turnaround for the whole community of Jewish exiles. King Xerxes rewarded Mordecai with a high position in his court. More importantly, his own community honored him “because he worked for the good of his people and spoke up for the welfare of all the Jews” (10:3)
The feast of Purim, still celebrated by Jews today, commemorates these amazing events. Against history’s dark background of anti-Semitism, Mordecai’s triumph shines.
Life Question: Whom do you speak up for?
I’ve always tried to reach out to the group of kids who enter Hoban each year who have never really participated in any kind of organized sport/ co curricular. These are the kids who can flounder through their first year, making very few friends and at times end up leaving the school because they never feel connected to the mainstream of the student body. More often than not, it just takes a friendly invitation to help build a young person’s confidence and self esteem in assimilating themselves to the other 900 kids in the building.
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My position as a Union president at my workplace continually allows/compels me to speak up and advocate for the benefit of others. It requires a certain amount of wisdom to what is right regardless of personal consequences.
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