Dear Angel,
Chapter 1 of the Book of Esther is a show of man’s pride and wisdom. Laws to the effect of the ways that seem right to a man. Proverbs tells us that this way leads to death. In a nutshell, King Ahasuerus calls forth his wife Vashti to show all in the court her beauty. She refuses, thus loses her place as Queen because the men of this society felt threatened. This is not the focus of my letter but leads us to the next part. Chapter 2 takes us into a deeper, more intimate part of the story as King Ahasuerus is convinced by the King’s servants who ministered to him, that fair young virgins should be sought and brought to the palace into the house of women for purification. Thus, the maiden which pleaseth the king was to be queen instead of Vashti. One of these maidens was Hadassah, that is Esther, the young cousin of Mordecai.
Esther 2:1 – 7, After these things, when the wrath of king Ahasuerus was appeased, he remembered Vashti, and what she had done, and what was decreed against her. Then said the king’s servants that ministered unto him. Let there be fair young virgins sought for the king. And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shushan the palace, to the house of women, unto the custody of Hege (Hegai) the king’s chamberlain, keeper of the women; and let their things for purification be given them: And let the maiden which pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king; and he did so. Now in Shushan the palace there was a certain Jew, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimel, the son of Kish, a Benjamite; Who had been carried away from Jerusalem with the captivity which had been carried away with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had carried away. And he brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle’s daughter: for she had neither father nor mother, and the maid was fair and beautiful; whom Mordecai, when her father and mother were dead, took for his own daughter.
Esther was brought unto the King’s house, under the custody of Hegai, the King’s chamberlain, the keeper of the women. Esther found favour with Hegai, giving her all her needs for purification, seven maidens to wait on her, and the best place in the house of the women. Verses 8 & 9 After twelve months of purification, with oils of myrrh and sweet smelling oils, the maiden was allowed one night with the King. She was allowed to take all that she wanted before the King for the evening. The next day, she returned to the second house of the women, which kept the concubines, under a different chamberlain, Shaashgaz. She was only allowed to come to the King when her name was called, from that point forward.
Esther 2:8-9, 12-14, So it came to pass, when the king’s commandment and his decree was heard, and when many maidens were gathered together unto Shushan the palace, to the custody of Hegai, that Esther was brought also unto the king’s house, to the custody of Hegai, keeper of the women. And the maiden pleased him, and she obtained kindness of him; and he speedily gave her her things for purification, with such things as belonged to her, and seven maidens, which were meet to be given her, out of the king’s house: and he preferred her and her maids unto the best place of the house of the women…..Now when every maid’s turn was come to go in to king Ahasuerus, after that she had been twelve months, according to the manner of the women, (for so were the days of their purifications accomplished, to wit, six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with sweet odours, and with other things for the purifying of the women;) Then thus came every maiden unto the king; whatsoever she desired was given her to go with her out of the house of the women unto the king’s house. In the evening she went, and on the morrow she returned into the second house of the women, to the custody of Shaashgaz, the king’s chamberlain, which kept the concubines: she came in unto the king no more, except the king delighted in her, and that she were called by name.
It is Esther’s turn for a night with the King. She takes with her only what Hegai advises her to take. She obtains favour in the sight of all of them in the palace. And the King loved Esther above all the women and he set the royal crown upon her head and made her his Queen.
Esther 2: 15-17, Now when the turn of Esther, the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her for his daughter, was come to go in unto the king, she required nothing but what Hegai the king’s chamberlain, the keeper of the women, appointed. And Esther obtained favour in the sight of all them that looked upon her. So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus into his house royal in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign. And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.
I stop the story at this point, not because it is not vastly interesting and important, but because my point to be made is only in Chapter 2 of Esther. My friend Cindy had a vision of Esther as Our Lord showed her that we, those chosen ones, are like Esther. We have been chosen as the Bride to be, to be brought into the Kingdom of God, for purification and preparation to be able to be brought before our King! Like Esther, we need help with this; thus, we have Hegai, the King’s chamberlain as a type of Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit prepares us, purifies us, readies us to come before Our King. Esther’s job is to submit herself to Hegai’s direction and leading only; to stay in a place of trust and obedience. She is unable to prepare herself as a young Jewish woman but under Hegai’s care, she will be ready for the King when it is time. This is the very same for us as we are unable to prepare ourselves with good works, or our own ideas of purification or holiness. We cannot even get ourselves chosen without our Lord’s leading. We are to submit ourselves to The Holy Spirit’s leading and guidance and trust Him only to prepare us. When I heard my friend tell of this, my heart received this knowledge from Him and I knew that it was truth. As I took it to The Lord later, I saw another truth in this passage. The seven maidens are perhaps the seven spirits of Our Lord. The seven maidens hovered over Esther, dressing her, preparing her hair, her jewels, her fragrance as Esther stood, yielding herself to their care. If this is the case, again, I see us standing in the truth of who we are in Jesus Christ, one with Him, His righteousness, His love and His purity. The seven spirits of The Lord rest upon us; in wisdom and understanding, in counsel and might, in knowledge and finally, in the fear of the Lord. We receive these gifts by faith, by standing in the knowledge of who we now are in Him, our Lord and Saviour. And we move in faith and humility that His Spirit is with us always and these gifts are ours.
Isaiah 11:1&2, And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots; And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;
Hebrews 4:9-11, There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.
May you be continually blessed with the knowledge of His great love and provision for you, my dearest friend. Be beautiful, be prepared, be confident in Him, our Mighty Lord and Saviour.
Love always in Him,
Your friend for life