Well, let us turn to the chapter
that we were reading here in Holy Scripture, Esther chapter
3. And I want to direct you to the
last verse of the chapter, Esther 3 verse 15. We're told, the post
went out being hastened by the king's commandment and the decree
was given in Shushan the palace And the king and Haman sat down
to drink, but the city Shushan was perplexed. The city Shushan was perplexed. And I want to say something with
regards to that perplexity, the perplexity of God's providence. You're aware, I'm sure, that
Esther is quite a remarkable book here in Holy Scripture because
there is no mention of the name of God anywhere in these chapters
and yet here we have a wonderful display of God's providence. It's been said that it is a book
of wonders without a miracle and it is a display of an overruling
providence. And we see it certainly in the
chapter that we've read, this third chapter. And these words
that we find right at the end, concerning the state of affairs
in that city, the city Shushan, was perplexed. To say something then with regards
to that perplexity, or the mystery of God's providence. And I want just to do with three
headings for a while as we look at these words tonight to say
something with regards to the perfect timing of God and then
the absolute sovereignty of God and then finally the gracious
performances of God. Those three headings as we consider
this portion of Holy Scripture. First of all, God's perfect timing. The chapter begins with those
words, after these things. After these things did King Ahasuerus
promote Haman the son of Amadetha the Agagite and advanced him
and set his seat above all the princes that were with him. and
of course the expression after these things refers to what's recorded there
in the first two chapters of the book and all it would seem
is now ready for the revealing of this man Haman who he was
and he was in fact a great enemy of God's covenant people, the
children of Israel. Remember what we read there in
the chapter verse 5 and verse 6, Haman saw that Mordecai, of
course we're told in the previous verse, was a Jew. When Haman
saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was
Haman full of wrath. And he thought scorned to lay
hands on Mordecai alone, for they had showed him the people
of Mordecai. Wherefore Haman sought to destroy
all the Jews that were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus,
even the people of Mordecai. He was full of such hatred towards
them. He's spoken of again at verse
10, as the Jews' enemy, or as it
says in the margin, he was the oppressor of the Jews at this
time. But now the scene is set for
what God is going to do. This man is intent on their destruction. What follows really in the rest
of the book is the way in which God works out his own remarkable
purpose but in those previous chapters we see the scene being
set in the first chapter we read of the king and we read of his
wife Vashti but he's displeased with her and he he puts her away
and then we see how Ahasuerus in the second chapter makes choice
of Esther to be his queen and Esther is the niece of this man
Mordecai in fact he is the one who is behind her going forward
and being chosen really to be the new Queen to Ahasuerus and
none know that she is a Jew. In that second chapter we see how Mordecai instructs her not
to tell Ahasuerus In verse 10 of chapter 2, Esther
had not showed her people nor her kindred for Mordecai had
charged her that she should not show it. And again at verse 20
there, Esther had not yet showed her kindred nor her people as
Mordecai had charged her. For Esther did the commandment
of Mordecai like as when she was brought up with him, he had
adopted her really. as if she were his own child. And so, that's the situation
that's laid before us there in those opening chapters. But the most significant thing
really is what we have mentioned right at the end of the second
chapter concerning Mordecai discovering those who were plotting against
the king in verse 21 there. In those days, while Mordecai
sat in the king's gate, two of the king's chamberlains, Ixan
and Teresh, of those which kept the door, were wroth and sought
to lay hand on the king Asuerus. And the thing was known to Mordecai
who told it unto Esther the queen, and Esther certified the king
thereof in Mordecai's name. And when inquisition was made
of the matter, it was found out. Therefore they were both hanged
on a tree, and it was written in the book of the Chronicles
before the king." And then later, we discover how it was that the
king on an occasion came to read that particular chronicle. He
had not really taken much note of it, but there was that night
when God in his sovereignty removed sleep from the king. In the opening
words of chapter 6, on that night could not the king sleep? And
he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles,
and they were read before the king, and it was found written
that Mordecai had told of Mithala and Teresh, two of the king's
chamberlains, the keepers of the door, who sought to lay hand
on the king Asuerus. And the king said, What honour
and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for this? Then said the king's servant
that ministered unto him, There is nothing done for him. And
that, of course, is another remarkable providence. And God is in all
of these things. God is in all of these things.
To everything there is a season. There's a time to every purpose
under heaven, we read there in the words of Ecclesiastes chapter
3. And how significant then is that
event that's recorded here, immediately before this chapter, the end
of chapter 2, Mordecai being the one who ensures that this
conspiracy by these two servants of the king is put down. So we
see that God is in these things, the timing is God's timing. And
of course we see really the absolute sovereignty of God in what's
recorded in the chapter. They cast lots there in verses
six and seven. This is Mordecai, he wants to
find a suitable, not Mordecai, this is Haman, he wants to find
a suitable time wherein he might execute his plan to destroy the
Jews and the king has favored him. and accepted what he has
said concerning these people. And we read in that 7th verse
how in the first month, the month Nisan, the 12th year of the King
Ahasuerus, that is the lot before Haman from day to day and from
month to month to the 12th month, that is the month Adar. So on
this particular day, they're casting lots. They're not casting
lots day after day. They're casting all the lots,
of course, at that time, but they're going through all the
days of the year in order that they might establish which will
be, as they thought, the most conspicuous day. And the lots
falls on the 13th day of the 12th month. So they are casting
lots at the beginning of the year, but we see that the lot
falls on that day right at the end of the year. Verse 13, this
is the day In one day, even upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth
month, which is the month Ador, they are to destroy, to kill,
and cause to perish all Jews, both young and old, and to take
the spoil of them for a price. That's what we read there in
the thirteenth verse. But it's at the beginning of
the year that the poster sent out proclaiming this. As we see
at verse 12, the king's scribes are called on the thirteenth
day of the first month, and it's written according to all that
Haman had commanded unto the king's lieutenants, the governors,
that were over every province, the rulers of every people of
every province, and it's written in the name of King Asuerus,
and it's sealed with the king's ring. It's all according to the
law of the Medes and the Persians that cannot be destroyed. There
is going to come then this terrible destruction to the Jews. This has all been determined
by the casting of the lots. And in this surely we see God's
absolute sovereignty. The casting of a lot would appear
on the surface to be a chance thing, When children did, doubtless
we would sometimes cast lots when we were playing games with
our friends. You don't know where the lot's
going to fall. But the scripture tells us, Proverbs
16, 33, the lot is cast into the lap, but the whole disposing
thereof is of the Lord. God is sovereign, the fictitious
powers of chance and fortune I defy. My life's minutie circumstance
is subject to his eye." We have those words there in the hymn
number 70. I did wonder whether we might
have sung that particular hymn, but we sang, of course, Ryland's
great hymn there, number 64, earlier. But here is the Lord's
sovereignty, and it is, it's absolute. We know that even Satan
himself is subject to God's sovereignty is no free agent in that sense
and that's made abundantly clear in those opening chapters in
the book of Job where strangely we have Satan appearing as it
were before the throne of God with the Lord's servants and
he has to obtain leave from the Lord, it's a mystery It's a mystery
to us, God's sovereign providences. That's part of the perplexity
of the ways of the Lord. But Satan is no free angel. In
Jude, verse 6, we read of the angels which kept not their first
estate, but left their own habitation, how they reserved in everlasting
chains under darkness, under the judgment of the last day.
He's not a free agent. God's sovereignty then is absolute,
and that's brought out here in this chapter, in this matter
of the casting of the lots. But then thirdly, to say something
with regards to God's gracious performance of things. It's at the beginning of the
year that the commandment is sent forth, and it is sent forth
with some haste, really. Verse 15, the pope went out being
hastened by the king's commandment, and the decree was given in Shushan
the palace. All the deed is now done, in
a sense. And the king and Haman sit down
to drink, but the city Shushan, we're told, was perplexed. Now, it's gone out in the first
month, but the actuality won't come to pass until the twelfth
month. And so, in a sense, there's almost
a whole year in which the Jews are aware of these
things, and therefore these plans of this great oppressor,
the enemy of the Jews, Haman, these can be overturned, they
would hope. And what we really have in the
rest of the book, from chapter 4 right through to chapter 9,
gives us something of the history of what follows, and how it is
that the matter In God's good, providence is eventually completely
overturned. But here, we have this particular
turning point, as it were, in the book, and the city, Shushan,
is perplexed. How are matters going to work
out? What could be done? We are not to be fatalists before
the providence of God. We don't just do nothing. We're not those who believe in
a god-like, or so-called god-like Allah. The Mohammedans, of course,
they really are fatalists with regards to their doctrine of
God and His so-called, or their God and His so-called sovereignty. There is a response here. There's
a threefold response that we can see amongst the Jews. Three things that I want to mention
with regards to the way in which God works so graciously. First of all, with regards to
providence, there must always be observation. We should study
the ways of the Lord. and of course we see it quite
remarkably in the language of the 107th psalm that psalm that
is so full of the providences of God dealing with men in all
the various circumstances and situations of life though that
psalm concludes who so is wise and will observe these things
even they shall understand the loving kindness of the Lord if
we're wise We won't let God's providences pass unnoticed. We should be those who think
of God's dealings, even in our own little lives, as it were. We may feel our lives are so
insignificant, and yet there are events that come and pass.
Are we those who are observant of the hand of God? We know there
is that that is mysterious, perplexing. In another psalm, Psalm 77, the
psalmist says, thy ways in the sea, thy path in the deep waters,
thy footsteps are not known. You don't see footsteps in the
sea at all. And yet, there's something to
be observed. There should be an observation
then of the providences of God. But also, though we are those
who would be mindful of the Lord's ways, we look to the Lord's words. And surely we are, as we look
to God's Word, to take heed of God's commandments. We should
seek to be obedient to all those holy precepts that God sets before
us. We are told, aren't we, that
the secret things belong unto the Lord our God, but those things
which are revealed belong unto us and to our children, forever
that we may do all the words of this law." That's what it
says there in Deuteronomy 29 and verse 29. The secret things, and the secrets
of course, are God's providences. That's where He is exercising
His sovereignty. and he does according to his
will among all the armies of heaven and the inhabitants of
the earth and none can stay his hand, none can challenge him,
none can say what doest thou these are what belong unto the
Lord our God forever but we're to we're to obey we're
to obey his commandments, those things which are revealed belong
unto us that we may do all the words of his law, to be obedient
then to his commandments. And this is what we see Mordecai
doing really. How does he conduct himself?
Well, he is the king and a decree has been passed that all
the king's servants are to bow and reverence Haman, for the
king had so commanded. But there at the end of verse
2 we read, Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence. We know
the powers that be are ordained of God, we are to be subject
to the powers that be, but we render to Caesar the things that
are Caesar's, and we render to God the things that are God's,
and of course we have to give priority. to those things that
are God. We have to act in accordance
with the word of God. And this is what Haman, surely,
is seeking to do here. Rather than Mordecai, I keep
getting these names mixed up, Mordecai is the Jew, Haman is
the great enemy. Now Haman was an Amalekite. Remember how we read of the Amalekites
in the reign of King Saul, and Agag was their king, and Saul
was commanded to destroy the Amalekites, and he was disobedient,
and he spared the life of Agag. There in 1 Samuel 15, and Samuel,
the Lord's prophet rebukes him, and Samuel himself actually kills
that wicked king Agag. They were enemies. arch enemies
of the Jews. Exodus 17 16 the Lord hath sworn
it says that he will have war with Amalek from generation to
generation and here is a man you see Haman who is of that
people the the Amalekites It seems in fact that he's descended
from that wicked King Agag, he's an Agagite. How clear it is that
the Jews are never to forget what it was that these people
had done against them. In Deuteronomy, chapter 25, and
there at the end of that chapter, we have these commandments. that God gives to his ancient
people. Remember what Amalek did unto thee by the way when
you were come forth out of Egypt, how he met thee by the way, and
smote the high most of thee, even all that were feeble behind
thee, when thou wast faint and weary. And he feared not God. Therefore it shall be, when the
Lord thy God hath given thee rest from all thine enemies round
about in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for an inheritance
to possess it, thou shalt blot out the remembrance of Amalek
from under heaven thou shalt not forget it so the commandment
begins remember and it finishes thou shalt not forget it and
this man Mordecai is obedient he will not bow down or do reverence
In fact, in a sense, he's refusing to act idolatry, in refusing. Look at the charge that Amon
lays against these people, the Jews. In verse 8, there is a
certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the people
in all the provinces of thy kingdom, and their laws are diverse from
all people. neither keep they the king's
laws therefore it is not for the king's prophet to suffer
them. Is there some idolatry involved in him having to bow
down and do reverence to a mere man? We know from the book of
Daniel how that Daniel and Shadrach and Meshach and Abednego they
were of the Jews, of course, and they refused to do those
things that were required when they were in captivity, and they
suffered for it. Daniel was put into the fiery
furnace, and the three young Hebrews were cast into the lion's
den. All their laws are diverse, they're
different to all people. They're those who would first
and foremost obey the commandments of God and so though we take
account of God's providence and we watch God's hand and we see
something of God's ways and we want to understand and try to
interpret God's ways yet all the time we must be obedient
to what the Lord has said the commandments that he has given
to us here in his word so this is the way God performs his purpose,
isn't it? His people are observant, his
people are obedient, and his people actually take action,
and they act in the fear of God. Esther is the Queen, but no one
knows she's a Jew. But what does Mordecai instruct
her to do? There in chapter 4 verse 13. Think not with thyself
that thou shalt escape in the king's house more than all the
Jews. This is what he says to Esther. For if they altogether
hold aside peace at this time, then shall their enlargement
and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place. But
thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed. and you knoweth
whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this
he wants that she should plead for her own people and so she
heeds the word really from what we read at the end of that fourth
chapter verse 16 go gather together all the Jews this is her sending
instruction, or sending answer now to Mordecai, I go, gather
together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast
ye for me, neither eat nor drink three days, night or day. I also
and my maidens will fast likewise, and so will I go in unto the
king, which is not according to the law. He hath not called
her for several days, And it was a capital offence to go into
the presence of the king without his invitation. I also, my maidens, will fast
likewise, and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according
to the law, and if I perish, I perish. And they are to fast. What is the fasting? Well, the
fasting surely would be associated with prayer. So they're all in
prayer, really, to the Lord God concerning these matters. And
then eventually she goes forth. Sure, you're aware of the contents
of this remarkable book. When she goes in there in chapter
8, And verse 3, Esther spake yet
again before the king, and fell down at his feet, and besought
him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite,
that he had devised against the Jews. Then the king held out
the golden scepter toward Esther. So Esther arose and stood before
the king. The king receives her, and receives
her petition, and all that Haman, wicked Haman had sought to do
it, made gallows even for the hanging of Mordecai and then
we read how he is hanged at the end on his own gallows and there's
a wonderful deliverance for the Jews the city Shushan was perplexed
how perplexing are the Lord's ways and yet we see the outcome
where there's a proper observance of God's providence, where there's
obedience to God's words, where there is that action in the fear
of the Lord, calling upon the name of the Lord. Well, we gather,
of course, for that very purpose. And the Lord stretches out to
us that golden scepter. We find acceptance at his throne
of grace. It is to us, indeed, a mercy
seat where we obtain mercy, where we find grace to help. Well,
the Lord help us as we come to Him tonight in prayer. But before we pray, we're going
to sing two parts of the 107th Psalm. I referred to just now
as one that speaks so clearly of God's providence. We'll sing
the first stanza, really, is verses 1 and 2. Praise ye the
Lord, for He is good. His mercy is lasting burden.
let his redeemed say so whom he from hand of foes did free
and then we'll sing from verse from the end really from verse
40 right to the end on premises
he doth pour contempt and causeth them to stray from wandering
a wilderness wherein there is no way he answers the prayers
of his people. We sing then Psalm 107, the tune
is Kilmarnock 856 and we sing in verses 1 and 2 and then from
verse 40. His mercies lasting be, Let His
redeems and songs be From hands outposted free. On Prince's eager full contempt And wander in a wilderness where
in there is a way. they that are righteous shall rejoice when
they the saints shall see and as a shall all iniquity. If so, his voice and will he
sings, observe and then record. kindness of God.