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Esther Saves Her People - The Book of Esther · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And the king Assyrius laid a tribute
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  Speaker 1: upon the land and upon the isles of the sea.
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  Speaker 1: Esther 10.1 Give me this day, Lord, the wisdom of
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  Speaker 1: Esther and Mordecai. Allow me to gain strategic and insightful
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  Speaker 1: strategies to protect her children against the plot of the enemy.
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  Speaker 1: Like the story in Esther, equip me and those in
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  Speaker 1: my circle with the right solutions needed to solve the
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  Speaker 1: problems of your children in business, education, finance, technology, and
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  Speaker 1: every other industry you've led us to inherit. Thus, I
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  Speaker 1: declare myself as a problem solver. I am a master
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  Speaker 1: when it comes to solutions because the wisdom of your
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  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit rests on my mind and heart. The day
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  Speaker 1: of salvation, and breakthrough has come. The hand of the
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  Speaker 1: oppressor has been lifted, and we are free to defend
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  Speaker 1: our lands and our destinies through the decree of your
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  Speaker 1: holy word. Thank you, my God, that we are free indeed.
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  Speaker 1: In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for making prayer a
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  Speaker 1: priority in your day. To learn more about the Bible,
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  Speaker 1: Stay tuned for today's story. Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 3: Esther saves her people. In our last story, Esther was
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  Speaker 3: taken to be groomed as the next queen of Persia.
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  Speaker 3: She gained favor with the king, as did her uncle Mordecai. However,
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  Speaker 3: a wicked noble had the king's power, Haman. Haman sent
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  Speaker 3: out a decree for every Jew in the nation to
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  Speaker 3: be killed. The time was drawing near and the Jews
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  Speaker 3: were in great danger. Esther learned of Haman's plot and
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  Speaker 3: now had to risk her life by approaching the king.
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  Speaker 3: Now we learn of Esther's plan to expose Haman and
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  Speaker 3: save her people, inspired by the book of Esther.
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  Speaker 4: Hello, this is Pastor Jack Graham with another episode of
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  Speaker 4: the Bible in a Year podcast. In our last episode,
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  Speaker 4: we learned how Esther was made queen, one of the
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  Speaker 4: wives of the unpredictable and cruel King Xerxes. God was
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  Speaker 4: working through her, however, and her uncle Mordecai to pave
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  Speaker 4: the way for a rescue of the Jews from the
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  Speaker 4: hand of Haman, a hateful man, one of Xerxes' evil counselors.
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  Speaker 4: And so when Haman convinced Xerxes to issue a decree
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  Speaker 4: to kill all the Jews in the capital, Esther is
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  Speaker 4: faced with a decision to remain silent and watch as
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  Speaker 4: her Jewish kin are slaughtered or speak up and risk
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  Speaker 4: angering Xerxes and endangering even ending her own life. For Esther,
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  Speaker 4: the choice was clear. She had to act. And in
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  Speaker 4: today's reading, we'll see how God works through the wisdom
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  Speaker 4: of Mordecai and the courage of Esther to save his
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  Speaker 4: people from certain annihilation. Here is the Word of God
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  Speaker 4: for today.
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  Speaker 3: Esther dressed herself quietly in her room. She draped herself
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  Speaker 3: with royal robes and held her head up high. This
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  Speaker 3: was no time for groveling or flirting. She had to
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  Speaker 3: walk into the presence of King Xerxes as a strong leader.
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  Speaker 3: To enter into the king's courts uninvited meant certain death,
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  Speaker 3: but she was prepared to die if it meant protecting
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  Speaker 3: her people. She walked the halls. The sound of her
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  Speaker 3: footsteps echoed as she walked with purpose. She stopped outside
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  Speaker 3: the doors of the royal throne room, took a deep breath,
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  Speaker 3: and stepped inside. The halls were laced in gold, and
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  Speaker 3: ivory pillars held up the high ceiling. In the middle
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  Speaker 3: of the throne room, the king sat with his commanders
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  Speaker 3: facing him. The king looked surprised to see Esther, but
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  Speaker 3: not angry. He raised his golden scepter towards her and smiled.'
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  Speaker 3: My queen,' he said.' Please come in. What can I
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  Speaker 3: do for you?' Esther was surprised at the favor the
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  Speaker 3: king was displaying. He was joyful and sober. It was
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  Speaker 3: almost as if his heart and mind had been softened
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  Speaker 3: before she came in. Esther bowed and said, If it
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  Speaker 3: pleases you, my king, I would love for you and
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  Speaker 3: Haman to come tonight for a banquet. I have prepared
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  Speaker 3: a fine array of food for you. The king was
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  Speaker 3: elated at her request and immediately sent for Haman. Later
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  Speaker 3: that night, Esther was dining among Xerxes and the wicked
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  Speaker 3: man Haman. While they were drinking and enjoying their meal,
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  Speaker 3: the king asked, Is there anything you need of me,
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  Speaker 3: my queen? I will give you anything up to half
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  Speaker 3: my kingdom. Esther smiled at the gesture and simply asked
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  Speaker 3: that he and Haman return the next day for another banquet.
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  Speaker 3: Esther was careful to gain more favor from the king
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  Speaker 3: before requesting something so large. Plus, she wanted Haman to
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  Speaker 3: feel safe with her. Later that night, Haman was walking
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  Speaker 3: back from the banquet. He saw Mordecai in the streets
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  Speaker 3: and scoffed at him. Have you no respect, he spat.
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  Speaker 3: Still you don't bow to me, Haman yelled. So Haman
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  Speaker 3: gathered his servants to prepare a large wooden pike. Tomorrow
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  Speaker 3: he would find Mordecai and impale him on the end.
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  Speaker 3: That same night the king tossed and turned in his bed.
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  Speaker 3: He was uneasy and his heart felt heavy. He called
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  Speaker 3: for one of his servants to tell different stories and
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  Speaker 3: recount good events. The servant read out loud tales of
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  Speaker 3: military exploits, successful building projects, and good works the king
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  Speaker 3: was a part of. Xerxes began to drift as the
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  Speaker 3: servant sang his praises. Then the servant recounted noble acts
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  Speaker 3: done for the king by others. He spoke of Mordecai
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  Speaker 3: saving him from assassination. At these words, the king leapt
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  Speaker 3: out of his bed. He had forgotten to reward Mordecai
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  Speaker 3: for his loyalty. The next morning, Xerxes ordered Haman to
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  Speaker 3: parade Mordecai around in the city streets and sing his praises.
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  Speaker 3: Haman held the reins of the horse Mordecai sat on. Haman,
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  Speaker 3: to his shame, was forced to praise the man he
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  Speaker 3: planned to kill. He was forced to celebrate his sworn enemy.
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  Speaker 3: Mordecai was the reason Haman wanted the Jews executed. He
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  Speaker 3: would dance on Mordecai's corpse once the Jews were exterminated
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  Speaker 3: for good. Later that night, Haman and Xerxes joined Esther
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  Speaker 3: for another banquet. Haman stood in bitterness as he sipped
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  Speaker 3: his wine. He had hated the events leading up to
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  Speaker 3: the banquet. The king laughed with his queen and asked
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  Speaker 3: once again, How can I bless you, my love? What
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  Speaker 3: is it that you would ask of me? Esther looked
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  Speaker 3: deeply into the king's eyes. Her seriousness caught him off guard.
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  Speaker 3: She sighed and held his hand. Have I found favor
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  Speaker 3: in your sight? she asked. Of course, what is it?
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  Speaker 3: the king responded. I have been told that one of
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  Speaker 3: your men has sent a decree for the Jews in
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  Speaker 3: the land to be slaughtered, but they are my people.
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  Speaker 3: I am a Jew. Her comments surprised the king, not
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  Speaker 3: because Esther was a Jew, but because such a hideous
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  Speaker 3: decree was made in his name. Who would do such
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  Speaker 3: a thing? he demanded. Who would dare lay a hand
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  Speaker 3: on my queen's people without my permission? The king's rage boiled,
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  Speaker 3: and Haman shrunk where he sat, and then attempted to
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  Speaker 3: slip out of the room silently. Esther saw Haman making
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  Speaker 3: an escape and said, This man before you was the one.
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  Speaker 3: He is a wicked man and your adversary. The king
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  Speaker 3: turned to Haman. His eyes were red with rage. The
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  Speaker 3: king stepped outside for a moment to yell at the stars.
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  Speaker 3: While the king was outside, Haman fell onto Esther's lap
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  Speaker 3: and begged for mercy. The king stepped back inside and
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  Speaker 3: found Haman on top of Esther. You dare touch my wife,
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  Speaker 3: he yelled. Haman's eyes widened. He could not speak. The
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  Speaker 3: king gestured for his guards to take Haman. Without a word,
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  Speaker 3: he was taken and thrown onto the wooden pike he
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  Speaker 3: set up for Mordecai. Yet the decree to kill the
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  Speaker 3: Jews could not be reversed. The decree was final. The
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  Speaker 3: day was fast approaching, and Xerxes had no idea how
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  Speaker 3: to save the people from certain death. However, Mordecai and
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  Speaker 3: Esther had a plan. If Xerxes would allow for the
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  Speaker 3: Jews to defend themselves, then they could battle against Haman's nobles.
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  Speaker 3: This would protect the Jews and get rid of the
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  Speaker 3: men loyal to Haman. So the decree was sent out,
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  Speaker 3: and the Jews were armed with swords and shields. The
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  Speaker 3: day came when the nobles sent their men to slaughter
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  Speaker 3: the Jews, but they were met with strong defenses. Together,
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  Speaker 3: the Jews were able to defend themselves from the onslaught.
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  Speaker 3: Victory was shouted in the streets of Susa. Families shouted
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  Speaker 3: for joy. Not only were they spared, but they were
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  Speaker 3: able to play a role in their own liberation. They
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  Speaker 3: were afforded the opportunity to defend themselves. They felt empowered
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  Speaker 3: for the first time since captivity. This was all thanks
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  Speaker 3: to the noble character of Esther. She would remain in
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  Speaker 3: the palace and watch over her peoples She would create
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  Speaker 3: a legacy of kindness and establish a kingdom that looked
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  Speaker 3: towards Jerusalem with favor.
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  Speaker 4: In today's scripture, Esther is preparing for the most important
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  Speaker 4: meeting of her life. On her shoulders rests the fate
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  Speaker 4: of the Jews in the capital region of Susa. At least,
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  Speaker 4: that's what it surely must have felt like to this
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  Speaker 4: young woman. But I imagine that Esther also understood that
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  Speaker 4: this was much bigger than her, much bigger. Her fate
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  Speaker 4: and that of her people rested not on her shoulders
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  Speaker 4: or in the hands of Xerxes or even hateful Haman,
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  Speaker 4: but the Most High God who'd placed her there by
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  Speaker 4: his providences and in his plan. Esther made herself beautiful,
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  Speaker 4: appealing to the desires of Xerxes. She was young but
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  Speaker 4: not foolish. She was never to approach the king without
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  Speaker 4: being summoned But she dared for the sake of her
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  Speaker 4: people to approach him. She boldly approaches the throne room
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  Speaker 4: to his great surprise. It bears mentioning what a sharp
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  Speaker 4: contrast this scene draws to our situation. Esther was the
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  Speaker 4: wife of Xerxes, a human ruler in a kingdom that
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  Speaker 4: in the timeline of humanity was just a blip on
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  Speaker 4: the radar. And she had to approach him yet with
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  Speaker 4: caution and fear. Any request could not only be denied,
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  Speaker 4: but met with harsh punishment, even capital punishment. When you
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  Speaker 4: think about this, we have an even greater promise when
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  Speaker 4: we approach our King, Jesus. Through our Savior, the Lord
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  Speaker 4: Jesus Christ, we come to the throne room of God.
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  Speaker 4: He has made it available to us. We come to
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  Speaker 4: his throne with boldness, as the scripture says, and we
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  Speaker 4: have access to him because of what Christ has done
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  Speaker 4: for us. We can go at any time and pray
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  Speaker 4: and ask God for what we need. What a wonderful promise.
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  Speaker 4: So Esther... enters Xerxes' throne room, and he expects her
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  Speaker 4: to make a request. Rather than ask for something, she
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  Speaker 4: tells the king she wants to throw a banquet for
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  Speaker 4: him and Haman. No doubt this would appeal to both
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  Speaker 4: men's pride and sense of superiority. They both gladly attended
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  Speaker 4: the banquet, eating and drinking their fill. A pleasured king
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  Speaker 4: then asked Esther what she wanted. No request would be
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  Speaker 4: denied her, he promised. but she knew this trap needed
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  Speaker 4: to be set with care. She proposed a second feast,
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  Speaker 4: another night of honoring these men. Later that same night,
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  Speaker 4: Haman saw Mordecai, who refused still to bow down before him.
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  Speaker 4: So Haman ordered a gallows built on which he would
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  Speaker 4: hang Mordecai. He had had enough, he thought, of this
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  Speaker 4: Jew's disrespect. And as Xerxes slept that night, he was troubled.
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  Speaker 4: So he called a servant in to tell him stories
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  Speaker 4: and soothe him. One of the stories that was read
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  Speaker 4: to him recounted how Mordecai saved him from assassination. At
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  Speaker 4: that moment, the king remembered he had never rewarded Mordecai,
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  Speaker 4: so he called Haman and asked what should be done
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  Speaker 4: to honor someone the king wished to honor. Haman, of course,
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  Speaker 4: thought it was him the king wanted to honor. So
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  Speaker 4: he proposed a lavish display, then watched as all he
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  Speaker 4: had proposed was given to Mordecai. That next night, Esther
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  Speaker 4: held another feast, and this time when she was asked
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  Speaker 4: what she wanted, she spoke clearly and forthrightly. She told
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  Speaker 4: the king that she had heard of the decree to
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  Speaker 4: exterminate the Jews, then revealed that she was Jewish herself.
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  Speaker 4: Xerxes was livid and wanted to know who wished harm
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  Speaker 4: upon his wife. Esther pointed to Haman and told the
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  Speaker 4: king it was all his idea. So we read in
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  Speaker 4: Esther 7 and verse 10 a bit a biblical poetic justice,
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  Speaker 4: powerful poetic justice. So they hanged Haman on the gallows
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  Speaker 4: that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the wrath of
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  Speaker 4: the king abated. Here you have the story of the
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  Speaker 4: horrible hanging of hateful Haman. Haman was dealt with, but
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  Speaker 4: the decree still stood and couldn't be retracted. But Xerxes
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  Speaker 4: allowed the Jews to defend themselves and fight. To commemorate
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  Speaker 4: their rescue from annihilation, Mordecai and all the Jews inaugurated
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  Speaker 4: the festival known as Purim, still observed to this day.
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  Speaker 4: Though it may seem at times that evil has its way,
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  Speaker 4: God's justice will always be satisfied. He had worked through
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  Speaker 4: Esther and Mordecai to bring rescue to his people, but
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  Speaker 4: there was an even greater rescue coming, not just for
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  Speaker 4: the Jews, but for all the world. Dear God, we
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  Speaker 4: thank you for the faith and the witness of Esther
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  Speaker 4: and Mordecai. What a tremendous story. Thank you for including
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  Speaker 4: it in God's Word. We see your providence. And even
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  Speaker 4: though your name is never mentioned in the book of Esther,
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  Speaker 4: your hand is at work, your providence is sure, and
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  Speaker 4: your judgments are given. Lord, you are always present. Your
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  Speaker 4: invisible hand is always working. Your invisible hand of providence
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  Speaker 4: is always working. And for this, we praise you. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 4: Once again, thank you for listening to today's Bible in
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  Speaker 4: a Year podcast. I'm Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas.
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  Speaker 4: Let me encourage you to download the Pray.com app and
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  Speaker 4: make Bible study and prayer a real priority in your life.
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  Speaker 4: someone you know, someone you care about, because sharing God's
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  Speaker 4: Word has a powerful impact upon people's lives. And if
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  Speaker 4: you want more resources as to how you can Find faith,
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  Speaker 4: grow in your faith, develop as a disciple and follower
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  Speaker 4: of Jesus. Be sure to visit me at jackgram.org. We
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  Speaker 4: you for life. God bless you.