“If I perish, I perish” (Esther 4-6; Revelation 2)

Esther’s problems did not seem light and momentary, but heavy and enduring. The king (her husband), had just agreed to a plan of ethnic cleansing to totally destroy the Jews. The plan had come about because of the fury of Haman against Mordecai. But behind Haman’s evil intent, was Satan who since Genesis 3 has been trying to destroy God’s people and stop the Messiah from coming.

Esther learned about the plot from her relative Mordecai; he had urged her to go and plead with the king for mercy. We see the faith of Mordecai when he says “for if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place” (4:14). Mordecai knows that God will keep His promises, God will rescue His people. He won’t let them be totally destroyed, for God has made promises to Abraham that through one of his descendants would come someone who would bring blessing to all nations. God had made promises of someone who would come and destroy Satan (Genesis 3:15). Mordecai knows that salvation will come, but that does not free Esther from her responsibility to use her influence for good.

Esther’s response is wonderful. She asks for prayer by asking the Jews to fast (4:16), and then after prayer, she is willing to go and speak to the king. She is willing to take a very costly risk for the sake of her people. As the story unfolds we see the unseen hand of God so clearly at work in a book where his name is not mentioned even once! In chapter 2, God had caused Mordecai to discover a plot against the king, this had led to the king’s rescue, but no reward for Mordecai. Now in chapter 6, the king remembers this when God gives him a sleepless night at just the right time. We see a wonderful reversal as the proud Haman is humbled and Mordecai is lifted up. But the threat is not over. They must keep trusting the unseen hand of the Lord as they face troubles that don’t seem light and momentary.

In our reading from Revelation 2, we see the church facing problems that also seem far from light and momentary. The Christians in the church in Smyrna are facing slander, imprisonment and even death (2:9-10). Again the call is to be faithful, God will get them through death. Some of the problems are brought on the churches in Pergamum and Thyatira, by their own failure to listen to God’s Word. They are tolerating sexual immorality in the church (2:14, 21) with devastating consequences.

Whatever troubles you are facing, God calls us to be faithful to Him. In Esther we see a shadow of our saviour, who was willing not only to risk perishing, but actually facing the agony of death for us. And yet, His death was the very means of God keeping His promises of deliverance and blessing not just for the Jews, but for all nations. His death was the place where He has destroyed the power of the devil. And just as God delivered Esther and the Jews, He has raised our Lord Jesus from the dead and will rescue all those who belong to Him.

Whatever troubles we are facing, no matter how big and heavy they feel, they are light and momentary compared to the glory that awaits all who belong to Jesus.