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Esther 1:4-11

When he shewed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the honour of his excellent majesty many days, even an hundred and fourscore days. Xerxes is the 4th king of the Persian rule. He was rich and a part of his great wealth was inherited from previous kings and the kingdoms that they had taken. We see this esp. with the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Greek and Roman empires- this idea to expand their kingdoms to rule all of the world. We saw in v.1 that those kingdom had expanded t0 127 provinces from Ethiopia to India. Xerxes was far wealthy than the previous kings. Please look at this phrase : he shewed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the honour of his excellent majesty many days- He shows his wealth for 180 days. Now please think about thisfor 1 half year he does this- he shows off his stuff. Some believed that the feast lasted hese 6 month with different people in the kingdom coming on different days. So they would come in shifts. This idea of a feast or celebration lasting for months was common in Persia and also in China. Many historians and commentators believed the feast and celebration would last these months and then culminate in the end of the time with the climax of the feast.
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And when these days were expired, the king made a feast unto all the people that were present in Shushan the palace, both unto great and small, seven days, in the court of the garden of the king's palace; - The king now opens the feast up to all the people in the palace- the common people- the servants the soldiers.
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Where were white, green, and blue, hangings, fastened with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rings and pillars of marble: the beds were of gold and silver, upon a pavement of red, and blue, and white, and black, marble. Extravagancethe beds- couches
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And they gave them drink in vessels of gold, (the vessels being diverse one from another,) and royal wine in abundance, according to the state of the king. Pride8

And the drinking was according to the law; none did compel: for so the king had appointed to all the officers of his house, that they should do according to every man's pleasure. none did compel- non were forced to drink but each person could drink at their own leisure. So unlike when a king would command a cup be given or if a king or official the wine flowed freely and each person could drink as much or as little as he wanted.
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Also Vashti the queen made a feast for the women in the royal house which belonged to king Ahasuerus.- There is confusion and it is not clear as to exactly who queen Vashti is. It is

reasonableto believe she is of Persian origin by virtue of her name. And in this culture it would have been practice for the women to be in a separate area than the men while drinking and partying. It would not be decent for the women to be in the garden area while men- especial common people there.
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On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven chamberlains that served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king, when the heart of the king was merry with wine-his is the idea of slightly intoxicated. Not necessary drunk. The wine and the conversation is flowing freely. chamberlains We would translate this word today as eunuch. And it was very common for kings to appoint eunuchs over the women of the court.
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To bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to shew the people and the princes her beauty: for she was fair to look on. Now get this is your mind what is going on here. The king has been drinking with all the other men of the palace. You can imagine the conversations. And we have already seen how the king enjoys showing off his possessions and wealth. And now he wants to show off his queen. He asks that she be brought in with her royal crown- again to show off his wealth and splendor. But also to brag on his trophy wife. Look at that last phrase: to shew the people and the princes her beauty: for she was fair to look on. So he wants to show off his bride. Now, as we said earlier this is completely inappropriate for women to be in the presence of men while they are drinking at the feast. Secondly, she is a queen and there are common men there. This would have been insulting to her to have to show off in front of these commoners. And finally this is insulting to her just as a women. She is not merely an object of beauty for the amusement and lusts of men but she is a person. Now, we do not know the heart of the king we cannot judge his motives- but we can judge his actions. Hid actions, at the very least- as a man and as a husband were not respectful to his wife. But as a king he has the authority to basically do whatever he wants. It does not mean it was right and it certainly was not good or even that it was wise. Lets look at few things here before we go any further. Lets look at the decision of king Ahasueres made. With authority must come wisdom. Privilege requires responsibility. We cant help but wonder if the consumption of wine led him to make a wrong decisions. And I would say this was a wrong decision. Think about it. The culture separates men & women during feast times especially when there is drinking. And this makes a lot of sense because the consumption of alcohol does led to lose morals and unclear thinking. Before we move farther to look the decision of king Ahasueres, lets talk a little about alcohol. What does the Bible say about alcohol? There is more Scripture condemning the use of alcoholic beverages than will be found on the subjects of lying, adultery, swearing, cheating, hypocrisy, pride, or even blasphemy.

1) Genesis 9:20-26 - Noah became drunk; the result was immorality and family trouble. 2) Genesis 19:30-38 - Lot was so drunk he did not know what he was doing; this led to immorality 3) Leviticus 10:9-11 - God commanded priests not to drink so that they could tell the difference between the holy and the unholy. 4) Numbers 6:3 - The Nazarites were told to eat or drink nothing from the grape vine. 5) Deuteronomy 21:20 - A drunken son was stubborn and rebellious. 7) Deuteronomy 32:33 - Their wine is the venom of serpents, And the deadly poison of cobras. 8) Judges 13:4, 7, 14 - Samson was to be a Nazarite for life. His mother was told not to drink wine or strong drink. 10) 1 Samuel 25:32-38 - Nabal died after a drunken spree. 11) 2 Samuel 11:13 - By getting Uriah drunk, David hoped to cover his sin. 12) 2 Samuel 13:28-29 - Amnon was drunk when he was killed. 13) 1 Kings 16:8-10 - The king was drinking himself into drunkenness when he was assassinated 14) 1 Kings 20:12-21 - Ben-Hadad and 32 other kings were drinking when they were attacked and defeated by the Israelites. 18) Proverbs 20:1 - Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, And whoever is intoxicated by it is not wise. Prov. 31:4-5 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, It is not for kings to drink wine, Or for rulers to desire strong drink, For they will drink and forget what is decreed, And pervert the rights of all the afflicted. 1 Corinthians 5:11But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindlernot even to eat with such a one.//1 Corinthians 6:10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. We the same idea in 1 Timothy that the elder and the bishop is to be sober- not given to wine and the implication is that wine clouds the judgment. I think wine certainly did cloud the judgment of King Ahasuerus. Is there is verse in the Bible that clearly forbids the drinking of alcohol? No, there is not. But there are over 70 verses that warn against drinking alcohol. And people will say Jesus may have drank wine- Jesus turned the water into wine and Paul tells Timothy to take wine for the sake of his health. This is a case where we have to exegete the culture. There are clear commands in scripture- for example scriptures that read like: no adulterers, fornicators, liars, drunkards shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. That is clear. But what about scripture that says Greet the brothers with a holy kiss. That is not a command but it is a cultural principle. We can extract from that phrase that in this culture where it was appropriate for me to kiss as a form of warm greeting. Now, we do not kiss in our culture but brothers should greet each other warmly. We can have a warm hand-shake or even a hug. That is a principle taken from scripture and applied to our culture. Lets take that some principle and look at the consumption of alcohol & our culture. In the time of Jesus the consumption of wine was very normal. We see this where Jess performs His first miracle where He changed the water into wine. But what would you think if you were

invited to a Christian wedding and wine was served? I will tell you what most people in the south would think: they are not Christians! Right or wrong, that is the culture. What about this? What about if a person you know in the community sees you coming out of a store that sells beer or liquor and you have a small paper bag in your hand? Chances are very good that you will be the subject of the gossip hotline. Or what about this? What about if you pick up a few beer cans on your property and put them on top of the trash can. When the garbage truck picks up the trash who do you think they will believe the cans belong to? I am not saying it is right and I am not saying it is far, I am just saying that is how it is. Drinking in our culture is considered a vice. Now our culture is the South- the Bible belt. Whether we like it or not, we have been heavily influenced by second generation fundamentalism. 1st generation fundamentalism said that there are fundamental beliefs that must be held to be a Christian. Second generation fundamentalism says that if you behave in a certain way- if you do or dont do certain things you are a Christian. And one things Christians dont do is that they do not drink. 1Cor. 10: 23 All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify.24 Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor. 25 Eat anything that is sold in the meat market without asking questions for conscience sake; 26 FOR THE EARTH IS THE LORDS, AND ALL IT CONTAINS.27 If one of the unbelievers invites you and you want to go, eat anything that is set before you without asking questions for conscience sake. 28 But if anyone says to you, This is meat sacrificed to idols, do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for conscience sake; 29 I mean not your own conscience, but the other mans; for why is my freedom judged by anothers conscience?30 If I partake with thankfulness, why am I slandered concerning that for which I give thanks?31 Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 32 Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God; 33 just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit but the profit of the many, so that they may be saved. You may have the freedom of conscience to do something- and by what I mean you may not be convicted but let me be very clear. We do not base our behavior on our convictions we base our behavior on Gods Word. Just because you can do something and not feel guilty about it does not make it right. We dont base our lives on feelings or emotions but on Scripture. Give no offensefor the sake of the other persons conscience. V.33 not seeking my own profit but the profit of the many. What we need see the Bible, especially in the historical narrative- the historical accounts, simple record what happen. It does not mean what happened was good, approved of God or permitted by God. Historical books simple record what occurred. So we balance historical narrative with commands of God and cultural context. We have to guard ourselves and our witness to the world. If you are a Christian Satan is looking for any way he can to discredit you. Grapaco cans in a paper Gas station- illus. Romans 14:21 -It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother stumbles.

We protect our witness. We do not put ourselves in a position where your judgment might be impaired. We can see that King Ahasuerus made a bad decision because of the consumption of the wine. And as we will see this decision led to the rebellion of his wife and ultimately to his divorce. We also have to consider the conscience of other people- whether they are converted or lost- so that our behavior does not offend- does not cause them to stumble and does not hinder them from coming to Christ by virtue of our poor witness.
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But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king's commandment by his chamberlains: therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him. Now, we said in a previous sermon that it was very unwise for king Ahasuerus to have his wife come and parade before the men of the castle. It was a breach of cultural edicite to have women present with men while drinking was occurring.. It would have been an insult to the queen because the people at this time at the feast were commoners. It seems fairly obvious that he kings judgment was clouded by his consumption of alcohol. But despite all of that, the king is still the king and Vashti must submit to his authority. What he asked of her was not wise but was not sin and was not ethically or necessarily on the surface at least, morally wrong. The queen would still be required to obey and submit to his authority. We often here the phrase It is good to be king. But, I really am not sure if it always is good to be queen. How many times in history have we seen the queen losing her throne or losing her head for failure to please the king? What do we see in this account. We have a king who is drunk. Who calls to show off his trophy wife to a bunch of other drink men. We have a queen who is rebellious. There is a lack of wisdom on the art of both the king and the queen. And the Christian must show wisdom in our lives. The decision we make can have an effect on how others view us and how others view Christ. AS we will see in this historical account, God is sovereign and in control of all things and He will work out everything to bring glory to Himself and to fulfill His purpose. But that does not mean we can simply act foolishly and not expect to suffer the results. We should never think that the sovereignty of God will keep us from suffering the consequence of sin nor the cost of our actions. In the grand scheme of all things God works everything to the greater good of His glory. But we are responsible for our actions. Acting rebelliously- whether against parents, governemnt or any God-ordianed authority is going to have ramifications. We are called to holiness. We are called to purity. We are called to set aside personal liberty for the sake of others. And we are called to walk wisely in this world. And this is noly possible by applying the grace that God supplies.

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