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Bible Study Esther: The Story of Purim Part 2A- Queen Vashti

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Esther 1:9-12 NLT

At the same time, Queen Vashti gave a banquet for the women in the royal palace of King Xerxes. On the seventh day of the feast, when King Xerxes was in high spirits because of the wine, he told the seven eunuchs who attended him—Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas— to bring Queen Vashti to him with the royal crown on her head. He wanted the nobles and all the other men to gaze on her beauty, for she was a very beautiful woman. But when they conveyed the king’s order to Queen Vashti, she refused to come. This made the king furious, and he burned with anger.


Today we continue with Part 2 of our new series, “Esther: The Story of Purim”, and our second thread will be about Queen Vashti. There’s not a lot of information about her. What I have extrapolated from the Scriptures is what is presented at FoundedontheBible.com . The question we will address is, what kind of woman was Queen Vashti?

Queen Vashti:

While King Xerxes hosted his male guests, in a designated section of the palace, another feast was being held for all of the women by Queen Vashti. Vashti means “beautiful”, and can also mean “that drinks” and “thread” (1&2). She was considered a woman who was beautiful in countenance, highly intelligent, logical, and reasonable. But, like her husband, she also knew how to make others comfortable by use of alcohol.

She would have been held in high esteem by the King, since he elevated her up to be the role model for all the women of Susa. Evidently, he trusted her completely and allowed her to take the women of the city under her wing. She was probably one of his main advisers. Like her husband, she wined and dined her guests. Like threads on a loom, she would weave her conversation to collect data from the wives of the princes to later share and compare notes with her husband. When wives are separated from their husbands, they are not so guarded in their dialogue. Also, for the security of the women, it would be sensible for them to party away from the men who were drinking to excess in order to avoid potentially dangerous confrontations.

Mistake #1- Xerxes demands Vashti to be put on display:
On the last day of the feast for the city of Susa, King Xerxes was crazy drunk. It wasn’t enough that he ruled and reigned over the most powerful and influential men in the world. It wasn’t enough to display his enormous wealth. It wasn’t enough to prove that he was secure in himself by ruling in his unique sophisticated and collegial style. To prove his alpha dominance over all, he decided to put his wife on display. Naturally, she was the most beautiful woman in the world, and she belonged to him! So he sent seven very capable eunuchs to order Vashti to pose naked on stage in front of all of these intoxicated men.

Tastefully, Vashti refused to comply:

Vashti refused! She did not want to place herself in harm's way and she probably figured that the king would come to his senses once he was sober. Naturally, she would explain to him how undignified, disrespectful, and dangerous it would be to model herself in front of hundreds of drunken, leering, and unstable men. Of course, when he sobered up and came to his senses, he would agree that she took the correct course of action. Her reaction proves that she had a relationship of mutual respect with her husband and that in the past, he was usually a reasonable man. If she had a fear of retaliation, she would not have refused his request. Unfortunately for her, this would not be the case on this particular day.

Esther 1:13-18

He immediately consulted with his wise advisers, who knew all the Persian laws and customs, for he always asked their advice. The names of these men were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan—seven nobles of Persia and Media. They met with the king regularly and held the highest positions in the empire. “What must be done to Queen Vashti?” the king demanded. “What penalty does the law provide for a queen who refuses to obey the king’s orders, properly sent through his eunuchs? ”Memucan answered the king and his nobles, “Queen Vashti has wronged not only the king but also every noble and citizen throughout your empire. Women everywhere will begin to despise their husbands when they learn that Queen Vashti has refused to appear before the king. Before this day is out, the wives of all the king’s nobles throughout Persia and Media will hear what the queen did and will start treating their husbands the same way. There will be no end to their contempt and anger.

The 7 Nobles of Persia:


Let’s take a look at the men who comprised King Xerxes’ “Think Tank”. He was totally dependent on them to craft and execute the laws of the land.

Carshena means “illustrious” (3). He was evidently known for his past achievement

Shethar means “star” (4). He was someone famous in his field and possibly in the area of astrology.

Admatha means “a testimony to them” (5). This man’s life was a testimony of his belief system and achievements.

Tarshish means “yellow jasper” (6). Yellow jasper was considered a very valuable stone and is considered to contain healing properties. It is probable that this person owned quarries and was a wealthy businessman.

Meres means “lofty” (7). This could refer to someone who is very tall and considers themselves superior to everyone else.

Marsena means “worthy” (8). This is a man who is considered deserving of respect.

Memucan means “dignified” (9). This is someone who is considered distinguished among his peers and has earned the respect of others.

That’s quite a group of men Xerxes had surrounding him. Yes, they were intelligent and probably attended the equivalent of military or ivy league schools. Yes, they were considered “Princes among men”. However, they were also competitive, jealous, misogynistic and self preserving.

We will continue Queen Vashti thread Part 2B on the next thread....



REFERENCES:



  1. https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H2060&t=KJV
  2. https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionaries/hitchcocks-bible-names/vashti.html
  3. https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H3771&t=KJV
  4. https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H8369&t=KJV
  5. https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H133&t=KJV
  6. https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H8659&t=KJV
  7. https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H4825&t=KJV
  8. https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H4826&t=KJV
  9. https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H4462&t=KJV
 
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