The Unseen Hand of God in Our LivesНамуна

A Time To Be Silent And A Time To Speak

The party in this chapter is a direct parallel to Esther’s previous party. Ahasuerus and Haman come quickly, there is much drinking of wine, and Esther uses language intending to win an approval. 

This is the third time the king asks Esther the question, “What is your petition?”

Ahasuerus asked her the first time when she first approached him and he held out his scepter and again at the first banquet, but Esther never answered him because the time wasn’t right. Esther had a sensitive ear, and a wise heart; she sensed something wasn’t quite right. So, she didn’t push it. She knew when to act—and she knew when to wait. 

Esther’s persuasive speech in 7:3-4 is flawless. She knows how easily Ahasuerus can be persuaded, and she does so through the manner by which she presents her argument. As before, Esther begins by alluding to the fact that she has won Ahasuerus’s favor and that he delights in her (cf. 5:8). She refers to him as “king,” but this time she personalizes her reply: “If I have won your favor, O king”. The combination of these two details serves to remind Ahasuerus that he is in charge and that he is king and accountable for what happens in his kingdom. 

In her explanation, Esther is careful to present the situation in as nonthreatening a fashion as possible. She is counting on Ahasuerus having forgotten his involvement, just as he forgot to reward Mordecai (6:3). Esther states the problem in the passive voice, with an indefinite subject: “We have been sold.” 

If Esther were to reveal, initially, the person who did the selling, if she were to present the events as they actually occurred, it would make both men feel threatened and defensive. Instead, keeping her language impersonal, she is able to draw Ahasuerus’s sympathies and make him curious as to who would have done such a thing. It also makes Haman feel safe, thinking that perhaps Esther will not reveal his guilt or that perhaps she does not even know that he was behind the decree. 

We also see that for the first time, Esther fully reveals herself as Jewish and identifies herself with her people’s plight when she uses the phrase ‘my life’ and ‘my people’.

Esther's appeal plays up Ahasuerus’s emotions, getting him angry before revealing who deserves to be the object of that anger.

Not only does Esther reveal Haman, but she also stresses his wickedness, so that she is able to switch the king’s allegiance from Haman to herself quickly and decisively and so describes Haman as a “foe and an enemy is this wicked Haman”.

The judgment is passed and the gallows that were prepared by Haman for Mordecai are now used to hang Haman.

The Esther story confirms that, in the end, wicked people will certainly experience shame and condemnation when they come face to face with God on the judgment day.

Solomon tells us in the third chapter of Ecclesiastes that there is a time to keep silent but there is also the right time to speak. (Eccl 3: 7)

Are you as sensitive as that? Do you know when to listen? Do you know when to speak up and when to keep quiet? Do you know how much to say as well as when to say it? Do you have the wisdom to hold back until the right moment?

Quote: "The people who make a difference are not the ones with the credentials but the ones with the concern." - Max Lucado

Prayer: Lord, help me not to be silent when I should be speaking and help me not to be speaking when I should be silent. Amen