It is often true that the Lord will change evil circumstances into a blessing for those he loves. Nevertheless, drunken affairs never end well, especially those affairs, in which men of great authority permit themselves to abuse their power over others. Decisions are made therein that they usually regret later in a more sober state of mind. Yet, in order to save face, what was often done in secret is permitted to become reality, even, when in doing so, wouldn’t be wise. Tragedy will ensue, because of their great power, unless the Lord intervenes and uses the evil done to bless his people.
On the face, Vashti was an innocent victim of a drunken debacle, but we know nothing of her character, whether she was a good person or an evil one. All we really know about her is that she refused to submit to the king’s drunken desires. Just as Herod immediately regretted his decision to reward the daughter of Herodias for her suggestive dance, while he was intoxicated on his birthday (Mark 14:6-11), no doubt Ahasuerus, after his drunken rage abated, regretted his unalterable decree to depose Vashti (Ezra 2:1, cp. 1:19).
After the great feast, when the king sobered up and his wrath had cooled, he remembered Vashti and what she had done. Ahasuerus seems to have been brooding aloud, while in the presence of his personal servants (Esther 2:1-2), regretting what he had done to the queen. However, what had been done cannot be changed, because he listened not to the wisdom of his counselors (Esther 1:13, 15) but to the drunken words of the leaders of the first family of the Medes and the Persians, who feasted with him (Esther 1:14-18). He was advised to write down his banishment of the queen in the laws of the Medes and the Persians, which cannot be changed (Esther 1:19). So, after the whole affair was over, the king, while in a more sober state of mind, brooded over what he had done to the queen (Esther 2:1).
No doubt, to encourage their lord, the king’s servants advised him to appoint officers to search for fair young virgins, wherever they might be found in his kingdom. Let them be brought to the palace at Shushan, to the house of women and be placed in the custody of Hegai, the king’s eunuch, who oversaw his harem. Let him provide for their needs, while they prepare themselves for the king. Then, let the king choose from among them, whomsoever he found pleasing enough to forget what was done to Vashti. This advice pleased Ahasuerus and he proceeded to bring it to pass (Esther 2:2-4).
At this point the Book of Esther introduces the reader to its heroine and her guardian, Mordecai. Mordecai was a descendant of Kish, a Benjaminite and of Israel’s first royal family under Saul, the king. His royal family had been exiled to Babylon with Jeconiah, king of Judah (Esther 2:5-6), when Nebuchadnezzar captured Jerusalem (2Kings 24:12-15). We are told in the text that he acted as guardian to a young woman called Hadassah, a Jewish name that means myrtle.[1] Hadassah was the daughter of Mordecai’s father’s brother, and both her parents were deceased. She grew up under the care of Mordecai, who treated her as his own daughter (Esther 2:7). Hadassah’s Persian name was Esther, which is a name derived from the Persian goddess, Ishtar, meaning star,[2] and her new name would serve her well in the purpose of concealing her true identity as a Jew, which is the key, around which the whole storyline of the Book of Esther turns.
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[1] A beautiful fragrant tree; see Hitchcock’s Bible Names.
[2] See The Expository Notes of Dr. Constable at Esther 2:7.
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