Then the king held out the golden sceptre toward Esther. So Esther arose, and stood before the king,
The golden sceptre was a token of favor held out to one who entered the king's court unsummoned, granting acceptance and permission to approach and speak, and at its lifting Esther arose and stood before the king. She had come again before him, fallen at his feet and begged with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite and his device against the Jews, pleading that letters be sent to every province reversing his letters to destroy them. In answer the king gave Esther and Mordecai full authority to write as they pleased in his name and seal it with his ring, for writing so written and sealed cannot be reversed. The moment belongs to God's providential deliverance of His people, overruling Haman's plot to bring them salvation and save them from their enemies. In it God frustrated Satan's attempt through Haman under Ahasuerus to destroy all His people, reversing the decree of destruction and bringing Haman to utter defeat on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai.
Immediate Meaning and Setting
The golden sceptre was a token of favor held out to those who entered the king's court unsummoned, and by extending it toward Esther the king gave her acceptance and permission to approach and speak, so that she arose and stood before him. She had come again before him, fallen down at his feet, and begged with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite and his device against the Jews. Her plea was that letters be written and sent to every province reversing Haman's letters to destroy the Jews in all the king's provinces. In answer the king gave Esther and Mordecai full authority to write as they pleased in his name and seal it with his ring, because writing written in the king's name and sealed with the king's ring cannot be reversed.
Her approach was dangerous because the king was wicked and fickle and had not summoned her for a month, so his love had cooled, and it was not uncommon for an Eastern monarch to kill his favorite. She took the step only after prayer by herself and her people. The scene belongs to the history of the Jews under the great Persian king Xerxes, called Ahasuerus, in which in God's providence a Jewish maiden was brought to the throne of Persia. At that time Haman the prime minister, at the head of the Amalekites, the wicked and sworn enemies of God's children, plotted to destroy the Jews, but God's overruling providence saved them from their enemies and brought salvation.
The verse stands in the triumphant vindication of God's people at the close of the book and the utter and absolute defeat of wicked Haman. The book gives the origin of the feast of Purim. In it the name of God does not occur in English and is found in the original only five times in acrostic form.
Divine Deliverance and Purpose
The outstretched golden sceptre belongs to God's deliverance of His people, for His providence overruled Haman's plot and brought salvation and saved the Jews from their enemies at the court of Xerxes. Wisdom enabled Esther to save her people from massacre, and in the crisis facing the Jews Esther and Mordecai acted to meet the danger and help bring about the downfall of Haman. Her appeal as she rose and stood before the king led to the Jews receiving the right to defend themselves from attackers, showing God's care for His people and His power to turn human wrath toward His purposes.
The moment belongs to Heaven's intervention that made a counter-decree possible and preserved the godly line from destruction as she sought relief for her people. The decree of destruction was reversed and Haman was hanged on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai, in the utter and absolute defeat of wicked Haman.
The verse stands in Medo-Persia, the second head of the abnormal satanic church-and-state beast power, where God frustrated Satan's attempt through Haman under Ahasuerus, the devil's agent, to destroy all the people of God, the woman through whom the Man Child should come. The episode shows God defending citizens who stand for religious freedom.
The golden sceptre was a token of favor held out to one who entered the king's court unsummoned, granting acceptance and permission to approach and speak, and at its lifting Esther arose and stood before the king. She had come again before him, fallen at his feet and begged with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite and his device against the Jews, pleading that letters be sent to every province reversing his letters to destroy them. In answer the king gave Esther and Mordecai full authority to write as they pleased in his name and seal it with his ring, for writing so written and sealed cannot be reversed. The moment belongs to God's providential deliverance of His people, overruling Haman's plot to bring them salvation and save them from their enemies. In it God frustrated Satan's attempt through Haman under Ahasuerus to destroy all His people, reversing the decree of destruction and bringing Haman to utter defeat on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai.
Immediate Meaning and Setting
The golden sceptre was a token of favor held out to those who entered the king's court unsummoned, and by extending it toward Esther the king gave her acceptance and permission to approach and speak, so that she arose and stood before him. She had come again before him, fallen down at his feet, and begged with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite and his device against the Jews. Her plea was that letters be written and sent to every province reversing Haman's letters to destroy the Jews in all the king's provinces. In answer the king gave Esther and Mordecai full authority to write as they pleased in his name and seal it with his ring, because writing written in the king's name and sealed with the king's ring cannot be reversed.
Her approach was dangerous because the king was wicked and fickle and had not summoned her for a month, so his love had cooled, and it was not uncommon for an Eastern monarch to kill his favorite. She took the step only after prayer by herself and her people. The scene belongs to the history of the Jews under the great Persian king Xerxes, called Ahasuerus, in which in God's providence a Jewish maiden was brought to the throne of Persia. At that time Haman the prime minister, at the head of the Amalekites, the wicked and sworn enemies of God's children, plotted to destroy the Jews, but God's overruling providence saved them from their enemies and brought salvation.
The verse stands in the triumphant vindication of God's people at the close of the book and the utter and absolute defeat of wicked Haman. The book gives the origin of the feast of Purim. In it the name of God does not occur in English and is found in the original only five times in acrostic form.
Divine Deliverance and Purpose
The outstretched golden sceptre belongs to God's deliverance of His people, for His providence overruled Haman's plot and brought salvation and saved the Jews from their enemies at the court of Xerxes. Wisdom enabled Esther to save her people from massacre, and in the crisis facing the Jews Esther and Mordecai acted to meet the danger and help bring about the downfall of Haman. Her appeal as she rose and stood before the king led to the Jews receiving the right to defend themselves from attackers, showing God's care for His people and His power to turn human wrath toward His purposes.
The moment belongs to Heaven's intervention that made a counter-decree possible and preserved the godly line from destruction as she sought relief for her people. The decree of destruction was reversed and Haman was hanged on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai, in the utter and absolute defeat of wicked Haman.
The verse stands in Medo-Persia, the second head of the abnormal satanic church-and-state beast power, where God frustrated Satan's attempt through Haman under Ahasuerus, the devil's agent, to destroy all the people of God, the woman through whom the Man Child should come. The episode shows God defending citizens who stand for religious freedom.