The Story of Queen Esther, Part 2 (Esther 1-8)

Haman became very angry because Mordecai would not bow down to him, and he decided to use his power with the king to kill Mordecai and all the Jews in the land. Haman told the king that there were people scattered throughout the land with different laws, and it was not good for the kingdom to allow these people to live. The king believed Haman’s words, and the order was written that on a certain day all the Jews in Persia might be slain. When Mordecai heard of Haman’s evil plot he tore his clothes as people did in those days to express deep sorry. He believed, however, that God’s providence had put Esther in her position as queen to help save her people. Esther wanted to help, but she was afraid to go before the king. She had not been in his presence for thirty days, and there was a law in the land that if anyone approached the king without permission he/she would be killed unless the king held out his golden scepter. Esther asked Mordecai to gather Jews together to fast and pray for her for three days and nights. She and her maidens would do the same. After that she said she would go before the king whether she lived or died. Did God hear and answer their prayers? Yes he did, and when Esther approached the king he held out his golden scepter so that her life would be spared. Esther then prepared banquets for the king two days in a row, and during the second banquet she revealed Haman’s wicked plot to destroy her and her people. The king was furious, and Haman was hanged on the very gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. The harm Haman planned for others happened to him. I think that often happens to wicked people. Do you agree?