Latest / 1 Year Audio Bible Podcast / Ancient Hatred, Modern Threat | From Esau to Haman to Hamas (Aug 18)

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Ancient Hatred, Modern Threat | From Esau to Haman to Hamas (Aug 18) · 1 Year Audio Bible Podcast

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4, 3, 2,
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1. Why is there such an incredible hatred against
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the Jewish people and against Israel in the days that we are
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now living in? We even hear people say, oh, I have nothing against the
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Jews. I hate the Israeli government.
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It's the government that I have a problem with.
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So where is all this hatred coming from?
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Listen in today as we look into these questions and open up the
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Book of Esther and look at the ancient
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hatred of Haman, Amalek,
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and Esau. Welcome to the Daily
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Audio Torah. Today is August 18th. Now let's consider
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Welcome to the Daily Audio Torah. Today is August 18th.
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Now let's continue our journey reading through the entire Bible in one
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year. This week we are reading from the Israel Bible for the Old Testament
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and from the King James for the New Testament.
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Deuteronomy 9:1-15.
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Hear, O Israel! You are about to cross
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the Jordan to go in and dispossess nations greater and more populous
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than you. Great cities with walls sky-high.
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A people great and tall, the Anakites, of whom you have knowledge.
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For you have heard it said, who can stand up to the children of Anak?
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Know then this day that none other than Hashem your God is
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crossing at your head, a devouring fire.
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It is He who will wipe them out. He will subdue them before
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you, that you may quickly dispossess and destroy them. As Hashem
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promised you. And when Hashem your God has thrust them
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from your path, say not to yourselves, Hashem has enabled us to possess
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this land because of our virtues.
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It is rather because of the wickedness of those nations
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that Hashem is dispossessing them before you.
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It is not because of your virtues and your rectitude
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that you will be able to possess their country. But it is because
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of their wickedness that Hashem your God is dispossessing
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those nations before you, and in order to fulfill
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the oath that Hashem made to your fathers Abraham,
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Isaac, and Jacob. Know then that it is not for
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any virtue of yours that Hashem your God is giving you this good land
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to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people.
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Remember, never forget, how you provoked Hashem your
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God to anger in the wilderness from the day that you
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left the land of Egypt until you reached this place.
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You have continued defiant toward Hashem.
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At Horeb you so provoked Hashem that Hashem was angry
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enough with you to have destroyed you. I had
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ascended the mountain to receive the tablets of stone, the tablets of
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the covenant that Hashem had made with you, And I stayed on
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the mountain 40 days and 40 nights, eating no bread and drinking
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no water. And Hashem gave me the 2 tablets of
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stone inscribed by the finger of Hashem with the exact
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words that Hashem had addressed to you on the mountain out of the fire on
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the Day of the Assembly. At the end of those 40 days and
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40 nights, Hashem gave me the 2 tablets of stone,
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the Tablets of the Covenant. And HaShem
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said to me, Hurry, go down from here at once, for the people
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whom you brought out of Egypt have acted wickedly.
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They have been quick to stray from the path I enjoined upon them.
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They have made themselves a molten image.
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HaShem further said to me, I see that this is a stiff-necked
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people. Let Me alone and I will destroy them and blot out
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their name from under heaven, and I will make you a nation far
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more numerous than they. I started them down the
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mountain, a mountain ablaze with fire, the 2
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tablets of the covenant in my 2 hands.
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Esther 1:1-3:15.
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It happened in the days of Ahasuerus, that Ahasuerus,
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who reigned over 127 provinces from India
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to Ethiopia— in those days when King Ahasuerus occupied
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the royal throne in the fortress of Shushan, in the
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3rd year of his reign, he gave
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a banquet for all the officials and courtiers, the administration of
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Persia and Media, the nobles, and the governors
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of the provinces in his service.
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For no fewer than 180 days he
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displayed the vast riches of his kingdom and the splendid glory of his majesty.
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At the end of this period the king gave a banquet for 7 days
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in the court of the king's palace garden for all the people
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who lived in the fortress Shushan, high and low alike.
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There were hangings of white cotton and blue wool,
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caught up by cords of fine linen and purple wool,
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to silver rods and alabaster columns. And there were
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couches of gold and silver on a pavement of marble,
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alabaster, mother-of-pearl, and mosaics.
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Royal wine was served in abundance, as befits
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a king, in golden beakers, beakers of varied design.
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And the rule for the drinking was, no restrictions!
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For the king had given orders to every palace steward to comply
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with each man's wishes. In addition, Queen Vashti
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gave a banquet for women in the royal palace of King
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Ahasuerus. On the 7th day, when the king was merry with
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wine, he ordered Mehuman, Bizatha, Harbona,
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Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethir, and Carcas,
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the 7 eunuchs in attendance on King Ahasuerus,
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to bring Queen Vashti before the king wearing a royal
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diadem, to display her beauty to the people
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and the officials, for she was a beautiful woman.
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But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king's command conveyed
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by the eunuchs. The king was greatly incensed,
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and his fury burned within him. Then the king consulted
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the sages learned in procedure, for it was the royal practice
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to turn to all who were versed in law and precedent.
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His closest advisors were Carshena, Shethar,
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Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan,
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the 7 ministers of Persia and Media, who had access
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to the royal presence and occupied the first place in the kingdom. What,
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he asked, shall be done according to the law to Queen Vashti
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for failing to obey the command of King Ahasuerus conveyed
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by the eunuchs? Thereupon Memucan declared
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in the presence of the king and the ministers, Queen Vashti has committed
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an offense not only against Your Majesty, but also against
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all the officials and against all the peoples in all the provinces
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of King Ahasuerus. For the queen's behavior will make
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all wives despise their husbands, as they reflect
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that King Ahasuerus himself ordered Queen Vashti to
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be brought before him, but she would not come. To this
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very day the ladies of Persia and Media, who have heard of the queen's behavior,
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will cite it to all your majesty's officials,
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and there will be no end of scorn and provocation.
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If it please your majesty, let a royal edict be issued by
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you, and let it be written into the laws of Persia and Media,
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so that it cannot be abrogated, that Vashti shall never
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enter the presence of King Ahasuerus, and let Your Majesty
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bestow her royal state upon another who is more worthy
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than she. Then will the judgment executed by
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Your Majesty resound throughout your realm, vast though
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it is, and all wives will treat their husbands with respect,
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high and low alike. The proposal was approved
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by the king and the ministers, and the king did as Memucan
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proposed. Dispatches were sent to all the provinces of
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the king, to every province in its own script and to every nation
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in its own language, that every man would wield authority
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in his home and speak the language of his own people.
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Sometime afterward, when the anger of King Ahasuerus subsided,
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he thought of Vashti and what she had done and what had been decreed against
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her. The king's servants who attended him said, Let beautiful young
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virgins be sought out for Your Majesty. Let Your Majesty
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appoint officers in every province of Your realm to assemble
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all the beautiful young virgins at the fortress Shushan in the harem
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under the supervision of Heges, the king's eunuch,
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guardian of the women. Let them be provided with their cosmetics,
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and let the maiden who pleases Your Majesty be queen instead
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of Vashti. The proposal pleased the king and he acted upon
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it. In the fortress Shushan lived a
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Jew by the name of Mordecai, son of Ja'ir,
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son of Shimei, son of Keresh, a Benjamite.
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He had been exiled from Jerusalem in the group that
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was carried into exile along with King Jeconiah
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of Judah, who had been driven into exile by King Nebuchadnezzar.
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Of Babylon. He was
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foster father to Hadassah, that is Esther, his uncle's
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daughter, for she had neither father nor mother.
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The maiden was shapely and beautiful, and when her
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father and mother died, Mordecai adopted her as his own daughter.
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When the king's order and edict was proclaimed, and when many girls
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were assembled in the fortress, Sushan under the supervision
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of Hegai, Esther too was taken into the king's palace
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under the supervision of Hegai, guardian of the women.
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The girl pleased him and won his favor, and he hastened to furnish
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her with her cosmetics and her rations as well as with the 7
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maids who were her due from the king's palace,
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and he treated her and her maids with special kindness in
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the harem. Esther did not reveal her people or her
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kindred, for Mordecai had told her not to reveal it.
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Every single day Mordecai would walk about in front of the court
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of the harem to learn how Esther was faring and what was happening to her.
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When each girl's turn came to go to King Ahasuerus at the end of the
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12 months' treatment prescribed for women, for that was the period
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spent on beautifying them, 6 months with oil
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of myrrh, and 6 months with perfumes and women's
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cosmetics. And it was after that that the girl would
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go to the king. Whatever she asked for would be given her
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to take with her from the harem to the king's palace.
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She would go in the evening and leave in the morning for a second harem
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in charge of Shaggas, the king's eunuch, guardian of the
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concubines. She would not go again to the king unless the
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king wanted her. When she would be summoned by name.
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When the turn came for Esther, daughter of Avakil,
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the uncle of Mordecai, who had adopted her
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as his own daughter, to go to the king, she did not ask
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for anything but what Hegai, the king's eunuch, guardian of the women,
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advised to her. Yet Esther won the admiration
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of all who saw her. Esther was taken to
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King Ahasuerus, to his royal palace, In the 10th
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month, which is the month of Tevet, in the 7th year of his reign,
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the king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she won
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his grace and favor more than all the virgins. So he
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set a royal diadem on her head and made her queen instead
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of Vashti. The king gave a great banquet for all his officials
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and courtiers, the banquet of Esther. He proclaimed
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a remission of taxes for the provinces and distributed gifts
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as befits a king. When the virgins were assembled a second
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time, Mordecai sat in the palace gate.
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But Esther did not reveal her kindred or her people,
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as Mordecai had instructed her. For Esther obeyed Mordecai's
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bidding as she had done when she was under his tutelage.
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At that time, when Mordecai was sitting in the palace gate,
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Bigthan and Teresh, two of the king's eunuchs who guarded the threshold,
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became angry and plotted to do away with King Ahasuerus.
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Mordecai learned of it and told it to Queen Esther, and Esther
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reported it to the king in Mordecai's name. The matter was investigated
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and found to be so, and the 2 were impaled on stakes.
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This was recorded in the Book of Annals at the instance of
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the king. Some time afterward King
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Ahasuerus promoted Haman son of Hammedatha the
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Agagite. He advanced him and seated him higher
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than any of his fellow officials. All the king's courtiers
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in the palace gate knelt and bowed low to Haman, for such was
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the king's order concerning him. But Mordecai would not
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kneel or bow low. Then the king's courtiers who were
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in the palace gate said to Mordecai, Why do you disobey the king's
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order? When they spoke to him day after day and he would
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not listen to them, they told Haman in order to see whether Mordecai's
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resolve would prevail. For he had explained to them that
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he was a Jew.
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When Haman saw that Mordecai would not kneel and bow low to him,
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Haman was filled with rage.
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But he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone, Having been
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told who Mordecai's people were, Haman plotted
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to do away with all the Jews,
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Mordecai's people, throughout the kingdom of
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Ahasuerus. In the first month, that is the
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month of Nisan, in the 12th year of King Ahasuerus,
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Pur, which means the lot, was cast before Haman
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concerning every day and every month until it
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fell on the 12th month, that is the month of Adar.
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Haman then said to King Ahasuerus, There is a certain people scattered
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and dispersed among the other peoples in all the provinces of your
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realm, whose laws are different from
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those of any other people, and who do not obey
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the king's laws. It is not in Your Majesty's interest to
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tolerate them. If it please Your Majesty,
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let an edict be drawn for their destruction. And I will
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pay 10,000 kikarot of silver to the stewards
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for deposit in the royal treasury.
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Thereupon the king removed his signet ring from his hand
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and gave it to Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite,
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the foe of the Jews. And the king said, The money
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and the people are yours to do with as you see fit.
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On the 13th day of the first month the king's scribes were summoned,
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And a decree was issued, as Haman directed, to the king's satraps,
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the governors of every province, and to the officials
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of every people, to every province in its own script and
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to every people in its own language. The orders were issued
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in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the king's signet.
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Accordingly, written instructions were dispatched by
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couriers to all the king's provinces to destroy,
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massacre and exterminate all the Jews,
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young and old, children and women, on a single day,
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on the 13th day of the 12th month, that is,
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the month of Adar, and to plunder their possessions.
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The text of the document was to the effect that a
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law would be proclaimed in every single province. It was to be
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publicly displayed to all the people, so they might be ready
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for that day. The courtiers went out posthaste
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on the royal mission, and the decree was proclaimed in
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the fortress Shushan. The king and Haman sat
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down to feast, but the city of Shushan was
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dumbfounded.
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1 Corinthians 11. 17 to
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34.
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Now in this that I, Paul, declare to you, I praise
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you not that you come together not for the better but for the
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worse. For first of all, when you come together
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in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you. And I
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partly believe it. For there must be also heresies among you,
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that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.
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When you come together therefore into one place, this is not
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to eat the Lord's Supper. For in eating everyone takes before
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other his own supper, and one is hungry and another is
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drunken. What? Have you not houses to eat and to drink
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in? Or despise the church of God and shame them that have
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not? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you in this?
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I praise you not. For I have received of the Lord that which
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also I delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus the same night
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in which he was betrayed took bread. And when he had given thanks,
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he broke it and said, Take and eat, this is my body which is
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broken for you, this do in remembrance of me.
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And after the same manner also he took the cup,
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when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my
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blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance
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of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup,
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you do show the Lord's death until he comes.
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Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the Lord
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unworthily shall be guilty of the body and blood of
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the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let
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him eat of that bread and drink of that cup. For he that eats and
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drinks unworthily eats and drinks damnation to himself,
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not discerning the Lord's body. For this cause many
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are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
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For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
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But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not
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be condemned with the world. Therefore, my brethren, when we come together
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to eat, tarry one for another. And if any man hunger,
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let him eat at home. That you come not together to
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condemnation. And the rest will I set in order when I
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come. Psalm 35:17-28.
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Lord, how long will You look on? Rescue my soul from
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their destructions, my darling from the lions. I will
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give You thanks in the great congregation; I will praise You among
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the people. Let not them that are my enemies wrongfully
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rejoice over me, neither let them wink with the eye that hate
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me without a cause. For they speak not peace, but they devise
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deceitful matters against them that are quiet in the
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land. Yes, they opened their mouth wide against me
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and said, Aha, aha, our eye has seen it.
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This you have seen, O Lord. Keep not silent,
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O Lord. Be not far from me. Stir up yourself and awake
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to my judgment. Even unto my cause, my God
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and my Lord. Judge me,
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O Lord my God, according to your righteousness, and let
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them not rejoice over me. Let them not say in their hearts,
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Ah, so would we have it! Let them not say, We have swallowed
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him up! Let them be ashamed and brought to confusion together
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that rejoice at my hurt. Let them be clothed with
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shame and dishonor that magnify themselves against me.
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Let them shout for joy and be glad that favor my righteous cause.
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Yes, let them say continually, Let the Lord be
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magnified, which has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant.
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And my tongue shall speak of Your righteousness and
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of Your praise all the day long.
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Proverbs 21:19-20.
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It is better to dwell in the wilderness than with the contentious
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and an angry woman. There is treasure to be desired
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and oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish
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man spends it up. I want to speak to you today from our
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reading from Esther chapters 1 to 3, and I want
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to zoom in on a particular character, a central figure in this
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story as it unfolds, and that would be Haman,
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the son of Hammedatha the Agagite.
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And so Haman gets a promotion and he wants
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all of the servants to bow down to him.
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And in chapter 3, it goes on to say, verse 5,
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when Haman saw that Mordecai the Jew did not
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bow nor did him reverence, then Haman was full of wrath
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and he thought scorn to lay hands on Mordecai alone, for they
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had shown him the people of Mordecai. Therefore Haman sought to
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destroy all the Jews that were throughout the whole kingdom
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of Ahasuerus, even the people of Mordecai.
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So the notion of genocide against the
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Jews is an ancient one, and here's an example of Haman
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wanting to genocide all the Jews because he did not like
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Mordecai. Where does this ancient hatred
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come from? It is hardwired into the genes,
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and it goes back to Esau. So Jacob
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and Esau are twin brothers. Esau hates
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Jacob. Esau tries to kill Jacob while
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they're still in the womb, to step on his head and crush his— the
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tender spot on his head. And then, of course,
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later on, it's in his heart to murder him. Um,
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and so Esau despised his birthright,
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sold it for a bowl of soup. Jacob loved the Torah,
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and Esau was a man of the fields. So when
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Jacob receives the birthright from his father,
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then Esau is exceedingly full
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of bitterness, and he wants to kill his brother.
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So God himself says Jacob
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have I loved, but Esau I have hated.
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And so this ancient hatred begins with Esau,
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and then Esau has a grandson by the name of Amalek.
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And Amalek, being the grandson of Esau,
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um, want— basically goes
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to battle against Israel in Rephidim.
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And the— this very famous battle, Moses keeps
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his arms raised, and as long as his arms are raised, Israel prevails
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in the battle. But as soon as his arms droop, Israel begins to
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lose. So, uh, boots on the ground
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battle with Amalek, Moses is fighting a spiritual battle by interceding
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and praying for them. So now later
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on, Saul is given orders from the Lord to go
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and attack Amalek and utterly destroy all that
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they have and do not spare them. Kill both man and woman,
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infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey. That's from
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1 Samuel chapter 15, verses 1 to 3.
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Saul does not obey the Lord. He allows the king of Amalek,
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King Agag, to live. And because
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of this, God regrets that he has set
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up Saul as the king, for he has turned back from following me and has
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not performed my commandments. He didn't obey.
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Okay, so now we have Esau, his grandson
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is Amalek, and then we have Haman. And Haman
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is the Agagite. Haman of Hadathah
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of the Agagite. He is of the lineage of Agag.
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I believe he's the grandson to Amalek.
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So this ancient hatred against Jacob,
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against the descendants of Jacob— it's
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a Jacob and Esau conflict, and the descendants
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of Jacob and the descendants of Esau. So Haman
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now wants to wipe out all the Jews.
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And you look at it today, Hamas When you look at that word
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in the Hebrew, it means violence. In the Book
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of Genesis, when it says in Genesis chapter 6 that the earth was filled with
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violence and God was grieved that He had
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created mankind, that word violence in English,
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when you look at it in Hebrew, it is literally the word Hamas.
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So We can't really prove it genetically
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or genealogically, but spiritually,
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those people who hate Israel and who hate the
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Jews and who want to genocide the Jews and wipe Israel off the
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map, I believe that they are descendants, spiritual descendants
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of Esau, Amalek, and Haman.
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And we are certainly seeing a tremendous uprising of
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Jew hatred and anti-Semitism and
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anti-Zionism in the days that we live in.
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It is truly a spiritual battle, and it goes back all the
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way to Esau. So now, as we
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continue to read the book of Esther, we're going to watch and see how she
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handles this edict of genocide
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against her people. How do we handle hatred.
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When somebody hates you just because you are Jewish, or somebody hates you
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just because you are a female, or somebody hates you just because you are
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whatever the color of your skin is.
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How do we handle that biblically? We will learn as we
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continue on in the book of Esther. Stay with us.