What We Learn from Esther
God cares for His people. He answers their prayers (I John 5:14-15).
We also learn that God keeps His word, though He may wait for a suitable time to accomplish His promises. God stated that the Amalekites would be destroyed for their attack on Israel’s weak (Exodus 17:14-16; Numbers 24:20; Deuteronomy 25:17-19). Saul was supposed to have wiped them out, but he didn’t do all that God commanded (I Samuel 15:2-3). In Esther we find a survivor of Amalek, a descendent of its kings, attacking the Jews but he and his sons are all killed, along with any who supported him.
God doesn’t always act in an obvious or miraculous way, yet He still acts. We refer to God’s providence, which is His foresight, His care, and His provisions. God plans out events far in advance (Isaiah 46:9-11). The number of “just happens” in this story is too great to see any other explanation than that God planned and intervene on behalf of His people. In God’s actions, everything seems “natural,” but people knew that it was God behind it all. The lack of God being mentioned in a story that so clearly shows God’s involvement emphasizes that works are not always seen by men (Job 26:14; Romans 11:33).
God doesn’t tell us everything He does (Job 33:13). Those involved in God’s plans are not certain as to exactly how God plans for these events to take place. Mordecai is confident that the Jews would survive because of God’s unfulfilled promises, but he is not certain if Esther is a part of that plan or not (Esther 4:14). Neither Mordecai nor Esther needed to know what God’s plans were. They did the best they knew how and left the rest in God’s hands. God does the same for us (Hebrews 13:5-6).
We also see God’s humor. He has Haman plan and execute the honoring of Mordecai. He hangs Haman on the very gallows he had planned to use against Mordecai. The feast is named after Haman’s superstitious beliefs!
God often turns things around, such as with Joseph (Genesis 50:20) or Moab hiring Balaam (Nehemiah 13:2). There is so little we can control in our lives, but Esther reminds us of who is in control and that we can depend on Him to turn things into good (Romans 8:28).
