Aaron Gish
January was action-packed. It hasn’t all been great, but regardless of any hope deferred, justice is still going to prevail. No matter who is in the White House, having been sworn in before God with a hand on the Bible, God will still be the God of justice, and so you can expect justice to victoriously prevail.
In my last article, “Rise of the Eunuchs: Dawning Justice”, I explained the parallels in the historical account of Jehu and Jezebel compared to the account of Esther and Haman. Esther was, as I explained, a type of eunuch who had to muster up some faith and rise to protect God’s people from utter annihilation. And just as Jehu called forth the eunuchs saying, “Who is for me?”, before the eunuchs threw Jezebel out of a window to plummet to her death, these eunuchs too had to have faith they were doing the right thing. Without the truth exposed and hope on the horizon, the eunuchs may not have risen to the task of killing Jezebel in order that the kingdom would be restored. While Jezebel was an evil queen who hated justice and righteousness, Esther was a heroic woman of God who saved the very lives of her people.
But before Esther had been taken captive… before she was chosen to be Ahasuerus’ queen… and before she saved God’s people from the evil plot of Haman… there was Vashti, the king’s rebellious, unruly, and lawless wife.
Esther 1:10-22 “On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, seven eunuchs who served in the presence of King Ahasuerus, to bring Queen Vashti before the king, wearing her royal crown, in order to show her beauty to the people and the officials, for she was beautiful to behold. But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command brought by his eunuchs; therefore, the king was furious, and his anger burned within him.
Then the king said to the wise men who understood the times (for this was the king’s manner toward all who knew law and justice, those closest to him being Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven princes of Persia and Media, who had access to the king’s presence, and who ranked highest in the kingdom): “What shall we do to Queen Vashti, according to law, because she did not obey the command of King Ahasuerus brought to her by the eunuchs?”
And Memucan answered before the king and the princes: “Queen Vashti has not only wronged the king, but also all the princes, and all the people who are in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus. For the queen’s behavior will become known to all women, so that they will despise their husbands in their eyes, when they report, ‘King Ahasuerus commanded Queen Vashti to be brought in before him, but she did not come.’ This very day the noble ladies of Persia and Media will say to all the king’s officials that they have heard of the behavior of the queen. Thus, there will be excessive contempt and wrath. If it pleases the king, let a royal decree go out from him, and let it be recorded in the laws of the Persians and the Medes, so that it will not be altered, that Vashti shall come no more before King Ahasuerus; and let the king give her royal position to another who is better than she. When the king’s decree which he will make is proclaimed throughout all his empire (for it is great), all wives will honor their husbands, both great and small.”
And the reply pleased the king and the princes, and the king did according to the word of Memucan. Then he sent letters to all the king’s provinces, to each province in its own script, and to every people in their own language, that each man should be master in his own house and speak in the language of his own people.”
According to Jewish history, Vashti (meaning: beautiful) was a descendent of Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar. Like Jezebel, she did as she pleased, was sexually immoral, hated the Jews, and even forced the Jewish women to work naked in public on the Sabbath. It is possible that the culture of hatred for the Jews and Esther’s reason for concealing her true identity were directly caused by the agendas of Vashti and her influence with the king. One can also only assume that it was Vashti who positioned Haman the Jew-hating Agagite to be the right-hand man of Ahasuerus. Though Vashti was beautiful, she brought forth a rebellious and lawless spirit and disobeyed the law of the land. Her behavior would have incited rebellion and lawlessness throughout the provinces, and something had to be done. She had to be replaced.
God used the eunuchs to expose the wicked and vain agenda of Vashti’s heart. And because this evil was exposed, according to the Bible, the lawless woman was banished, and the entire direction of the kingdom was reversed. The Talmud implies that Vashti was thrown into the harem never to be seen again, but the midrash says that she was put to death. If not for the eunuchs, the wicked heart of Vashti partnered with Haman may have overtaken the Jews in a massive slaughter.
Esther (Hadassah) stood up for her people, counted the cost, humbled herself, partnered with Mordecai to expose corruption, and was anointed to be queen. Hadassah means Myrtle. The myrtle tree is a fitting biblical symbol of the recovery and establishment of God’s promises.
Vashti, instead of the Jews she hated, was either banished or killed. Haman was hanged (on Adar 13/Feb.25th-26th) on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai the Jew. The tables were turned, and the joke was on them. Perhaps this was the first ever April Fool’s Day. Nevertheless, justice came. The fall of Vashti and the hanging of Haman all started with the exposure of wickedness which all began to take place during… the rise of the eunuchs.
The eunuchs are still rising. God’s justice is coming. The feast of Esther is Feb. 26th.
