“If it pleases the king,” replied Esther, “let the king, together with Haman, come today to a banquet I have prepared for him.” –Esther 4:4, NIV
The world “God”, “LORD”, or “Lord” (the first one’s for YHWH, the latter’s for Adonai) never appears in the book of Esther. He is hinted to and fro in the book, but never explicitly mentioned. We know what happens when any words are taken out, yet it’s still in the Bible we have learned to love. It’s a similar issue with the Song of Songs: a sizzling love poem that mentions more about the perfect, utopic marital relationship, yet hinting God’s love in its verses. What happened to the writer, who didn’t include the Name above all Names in this beautiful narrative?
Maybe Persian law strongly discouraged the inclusion of religious influences other than their own gods. Perchance they didn’t have enough time or money or resources to keep writing. Or maybe he was born and raised in Persia –and that influenced his writing. Nevertheless, we will never know what happened.
But God is still weaved somewhere.
Esther prepared for a momentous feast-a feast that would determine the future of her people. It was a gruesome three days of prayer and fasting, of cleansing and preparation. For an orphan who dared face the king with such prowess and grace, it was a scary thought. Just, plain, scary. The weight of the world was upon her shoulders –of those she loved, of those who knew her, of those she would never meet but were hinged and singed on her action.
She had no choice, but to call to the King. Not the king whom she was married to, no; I’m talking about the King of Kings.
Each of those Words were slowly weaved, silky smooth, into the story, created to make a double entendre. She called two men –one human, the other Divine. She called them in a fit of desperation. She called them because she needed help.
Even her story is a beautiful weave of providence over providence. This is the time that God made to shine. It could have been any other time, but no- this is the perfect time for God to shine. Could have been somewhere else, but no- God chose to weave His life through her, a woman, an orphan, a slave.
And God chose to weave His life through you, too.