Romans 7. Thanks to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we are free from the Law when we belong to Him. Yet, we struggle with sin; “For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.” The chapter ends up with “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.” It will all make sense in chapter 8.
Esther 5. Esther prepared for a banquet with only her, the King and Haman in attendance. Meanwhile Haman’s rage against Mordecai was so great that he had built a seventy-five feet high gallows, on which to hang Mordecai.
Esther 6. As it so happened, the king had a case of insomnia. To become drowsy he had the annals read to him, which told that Mordecai had averted a coup. During the banquet the king wanted to honor somebody, and rather than Haman, Mordecai was honored.
Esther7. And so it was, Haman was hanged on the gallows he had built for Mordecai.
Psalm 61, of David. As so often happened, David was in trouble and cried out to God, proclaiming his trust in God, singing praises.
Romans 6. The three most important truths are: “Reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” “But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.“ and “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” It is a fantastic chapter, read it and meditate.
Esther 2. The search for a new queen was on and Esther became the new queen. Mordecai, Esther’s cousin, uncovered a conspiracy against the king.
Esther3. Enter Haman, an Agagite. (There was great animosity between the Agagites and the Jews since the time of king Saul.) He was great in the kingdom, and everybody bowed down to him – except Mordecai. This enraged Haman, so he offered 750 tons of silver to the king’s treasury for being allowed to kill all Jews. Fair enough, deal signed and sealed, (and the king’s seal cannot be undone.)
Esther 4. Mordecai persuaded Esther to risk her life to save the Jews, and Esther agreed, responding “If I perish, I perish”.
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in his speech Mar 4 2012 to AIPAC said this:
Ladies and Gentlemen,
This week, we will read how one woman changed Jewish history.
In Synagogues throughout the world, the Jewish people will celebrate the festival of Purim. We will read how some 2,500 years ago, a Persian anti-Semite tried to annihilate the Jewish people.
And we will read how that plot was foiled by one courageous woman – Esther.
In every generation, there are those who wish to destroy the Jewish people.
The next day Netanyahu handed US President Barack Obama a gift that spoke volumes about Israel’s tensions with Iran – an ancient Hebrew tome about a Persian plot to annihilate Jews, otherwise known as the Scroll of Esther.
The Scroll, or the Megila, tells a tale of palace intrigue featuring a Jewish beauty, Queen Esther, who charms a Persian king into foiling an evil adviser’s genocidal plans for her people some 2,500 years ago.
“Then too, they wanted to wipe us out,” Netanyahu told Obama, according to an Israeli official.
History was made last week. Did you miss it? There was but a one paragraph mention in most of the news clips.
For what it is worth here is my take on it.
Sarah Palin visited India in 2011 (She came, She spoke, She conquered, Hindustan Times).
On the way back she and her husband Todd visited Israel. She wore a large David’s star as a necklace. One of the stops was to celebrate Purim with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara. At the feast of Purim it is customary to read the entire scroll of Esther. That Purim was no exception. They mentioned they talked about many things, but mentioned Esther in particular.
When Netanyahu spoke Sunday night he was not only talking to all Jews, but it was a coded signal to Sarah Palin. When Sarah Palin abruptly resigned as Governor less than 3 years into her term, she went fishing. The press was there and asked her many questions. She claimed the reasons for her resignation were so obvious that anybody should get it. Liberal interviewers are not just anybody, so they kept asking. In one of her answers she said the phrase from Esther, slightly concealed “If I die, I die”. This was too deep for the interviewers, for they do not even know there is a book in the Bible called Esther, and if they do they would never admit it, for the Bible is not something about which they are supposed to acknowledge any positive knowledge.
Anyhow the exact quote is: Esther 4:13-16 (ESV)
13 Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not think to yourself that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. 14 For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” 15 Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai, 16 “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.”
I believe Netanyahu reminded Sarah Palin about her quote from Esther and the consequences if she doesn’t answer the challenge.
I also believed Sarah wore the same necklace in Hannity’s interview of her the same week to respond in solidarity with the Jewish People.
Excerpts from the interview can be found in a desperate Obama fundraiser video where Sarah’s remarks are taken out of context to deliberately generate a false narrative of Sarah. But there it is: The David’s star necklace. In Obama’s narrative only a racist can support the Jews.
Len Bilén's blog, a blog about faith, politics and the environment. 