Through the Bible – Day 174

Bible text(s)

Esther 4

Mordecai asks for Esther's help

1When Mordecai heard about the letter, he tore his clothes in sorrow and put on sackcloth. Then he covered his head with ashes and went through the city, crying and weeping. 2But he could go only as far as the palace gate, because no one wearing sackcloth was allowed inside the palace. 3In every province where the king's orders were read, the Jews cried and mourned, and they went without eating. Many of them even put on sackcloth and sat in ashes.

4When Esther's servant girls and her other servants told her what Mordecai was doing, she became very upset and sent Mordecai some clothes to wear in place of the sackcloth. But he refused to take them.

5Esther had a servant named Hathach, who had been given to her by the king. So she called him in and said, “Find out what's wrong with Mordecai and why he's acting this way.”

6Hathach went to Mordecai in the city square in front of the palace gate, 7and Mordecai told him everything that had happened. He also told him how much money Haman had promised to add to the king's treasury, if all the Jews were killed.

8Mordecai gave Hathach a copy of the orders for the murder of the Jews and told him that these had been read in Susa. He said, “Show this to Esther and explain what it means. Ask her to go to the king and beg him to have pity on her people, the Jews!”

9Hathach went back to Esther and told her what Mordecai had said. 10She answered, “Tell Mordecai 11there is a law about going in to see the king, and all his officials and his people know about this law. Anyone who goes in to see the king without being invited by him will be put to death. The only way that anyone can be saved is for the king to hold out the gold sceptre to that person. And it's been thirty days since he has asked for me.”

12When Mordecai was told what Esther had said, 13he sent back this reply, “Don't think that you will escape being killed with the rest of the Jews, just because you live in the king's palace. 14If you don't speak up now, we will somehow get help, but you and your family will be killed. It could be that you were made queen for a time like this!”

15Esther sent a message to Mordecai, saying, 16“Bring together all the Jews in Susa and tell them to go without eating for my sake! Don't eat or drink for three days and nights. My servant girls and I will do the same. Then I will go in to see the king, even if it means I must die.”

17Mordecai did everything Esther told him to do.

Esther 5

Mordecai is honoured, not killed

Esther invites the king and Haman to a dinner

1Three days later, Esther dressed in her royal robes and went to the inner court of the palace in front of the throne. The king was sitting there, facing the open doorway. 2He was happy to see Esther, and he held out the gold sceptre to her.

When Esther came up and touched the tip of the sceptre, 3the king said, “Esther, what brings you here? Just ask, and I will give you as much as half of my kingdom.”

4Esther answered, “Your Majesty, please come with Haman to a dinner I will prepare for you later today.”

5The king said to his servants, “Hurry and get Haman, so we can accept Esther's invitation.”

The king and Haman went to Esther's dinner, 6and while they were drinking wine, the king asked her, “What can I do for you? Just ask, and I will give you as much as half of my kingdom.”

7-8Esther replied, “Your Majesty, if you really care for me and are willing to do what I want, please come again tomorrow with Haman to the dinner I will prepare for you. At that time I will answer Your Majesty's question.”

Haman plans to kill Mordecai

9Haman was feeling great as he left. But when he saw Mordecai at the palace gate, he noticed that Mordecai did not stand up or show him any respect. This made Haman really angry, 10but he did not say a thing.

When Haman got home, he called together his friends and his wife Zeresh 11and started boasting about his great wealth and all his sons. He told them the many ways that the king had honoured him and how all the other officials and leaders had to respect him. 12Haman added, “That's not all! Besides the king himself, I'm the only person Queen Esther invited for dinner. She has also invited the king and me to dinner tomorrow. 13But none of this makes me happy, as long as I see that Jew Mordecai sitting at the palace gate.”

14Haman's wife and friends said to him, “Have a tower built about twenty-two metres high, and tomorrow morning ask the king to hang Mordecai there. Then later, you can have dinner with the king and enjoy yourself.”

This seemed like a good idea to Haman, and he had the tower built.

Esther 6

The king honours Mordecai

1That night the king could not sleep, and he got a servant to read him the records of what had happened since he had been king. 2When the servant read how Mordecai had kept Bigthana and Teresh from killing the king, 3the king asked, “What has been done to reward Mordecai for this?”

“Nothing, Your Majesty!” the king's servants replied.

4About this time, Haman came in to ask the king to have Mordecai hanged on the tower he had built. The king saw him and asked, “Who is that man waiting in front of the throne room?”

5The king's servants answered, “Your Majesty, it is Haman.”

“Tell him to come in,” the king commanded.

6When Haman entered the room, the king asked him, “What should I do for a man I want to honour?”

Haman was sure that he was the one the king wanted to honour. 7So he replied, “Your Majesty, if you wish to honour a man, 8get someone to bring him one of your own robes and one of your own horses with a fancy head-dress. 9Tell one of your highest officials to place your robe on this man and lead him through the streets on your horse, while someone shouts, ‘This is how the king honours a man!’ ”

10The king replied, “Hurry and do just what you have said! Don't forget a thing. Get the robe and the horse for Mordecai the Jew, who is on duty at the palace gate!”

11Haman got the king's robe and put it on Mordecai. He led him through the city on the horse and shouted as he went, “This is how the king honours a man!”

12Afterwards, Mordecai returned to his duties at the palace gate, and Haman hurried home, hiding his face in shame. 13Haman told his wife and friends what had happened. Then his wife and his advisers said, “If Mordecai is a Jew, this is just the beginning of your troubles! You will end up a ruined man.” 14They were still talking, when the king's servants came and quickly took Haman to the dinner that Esther had prepared.

Esther 7

Haman is put to death

1The king and Haman were dining with Esther 2and drinking wine during the second dinner, when the king again said, “Esther, what can I do for you? Just ask, and I will give you as much as half of my kingdom!”

3Esther answered, “Your Majesty, if you really care for me and are willing to help, you can save me and my people. That's what I really want, 4because a reward has been promised to anyone who kills my people. Your Majesty, if we were merely going to be sold as slaves, I would not have bothered you.”

5“Who would dare to do such a thing?” the king asked.

6Esther replied, “That evil Haman is the one out to get us!”

Haman was terrified, as he looked at the king and the queen.

7The king was so angry that he got up, left his wine, and went out into the palace garden.

Haman realized that the king had already decided what to do with him, and he stayed and begged Esther to save his life.

8Just as the king came back into the room, Haman got down on his knees beside Esther, who was lying on the couch. The king shouted, “Now you're even trying to rape my queen here in my own palace!”

As soon as the king said this, his servants covered Haman's head. 9Then Harbona, one of the king's personal servants, said, “Your Majesty, Haman built a tower twenty-two metres high beside his house, so he could hang Mordecai on it. And Mordecai is the very one who spoke up and saved your life.”

“Hang Haman from his own tower!” the king commanded. 10Straight away, Haman was hanged on the tower he had built to hang Mordecai, and the king calmed down.

Esther 4:1-7:10CEVOpen in Bible reader

Acts 7

Stephen's speech

1The high priest asked Stephen, “Are they telling the truth about you?”

2Stephen answered:

Friends, listen to me. Our glorious God appeared to our ancestor Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he had moved to Haran. 3God told him, “Leave your country and your relatives and go to a land that I will show you.” 4Then Abraham left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran.

After his father died, Abraham came and settled in this land where you now live. 5God didn't give him any part of it, not even a square metre. But God did promise to give it to him and his family for ever, even though Abraham didn't have any children. 6God said that Abraham's descendants would live for a while in a foreign land. There they would be slaves and would be ill-treated four hundred years. 7But he also said, “I will punish the nation that makes them slaves. Then later they will come and worship me in this place.”

8God said to Abraham, “Every son in each family must be circumcised to show that you have kept your agreement with me.” So when Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him. Later, Isaac circumcised his son Jacob, and Jacob circumcised his twelve sons. 9These men were our ancestors.

Joseph was also one of our famous ancestors. His brothers were jealous of him and sold him as a slave to be taken to Egypt. But God was with him 10and rescued him from all his troubles. God made him so wise that the Egyptian king Pharaoh thought highly of him. Pharaoh even made Joseph governor over Egypt and put him in charge of everything he owned.

11Everywhere in Egypt and Canaan the grain crops failed. There was terrible suffering, and our ancestors could not find enough to eat. 12But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our ancestors there for the first time. 13It was on their second trip that Joseph told his brothers who he was, and Pharaoh learnt about Joseph's family.

14Joseph sent for his father and his relatives. In all, there were seventy-five of them. 15His father went to Egypt and died there, just as our ancestors did. 16Later their bodies were taken back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought from the sons of Hamor.

Stephen continued:

17Finally, the time came for God to do what he had promised Abraham. By then the number of our people in Egypt had greatly increased. 18Another king was ruling Egypt, and he didn't know anything about Joseph. 19He tricked our ancestors and was cruel to them. He even made them leave their babies outside, so they would die.

20During this time Moses was born. He was a very beautiful child, and for three months his parents took care of him in their home. 21Then when they were forced to leave him outside, the king's daughter found him and raised him as her own son. 22Moses was given the best education in Egypt. He was a strong man and a powerful speaker.

23When Moses was forty years old, he wanted to help the Israelites because they were his own people. 24One day he saw an Egyptian ill-treating one of them. So he rescued the man and killed the Egyptian. 25Moses thought the rest of his people would realize that God was going to use him to set them free. But they didn't understand.

26The next day Moses saw two of his own people fighting, and he tried to make them stop. He said, “Men, you are both Israelites. Why are you so cruel to each other?”

27But the man who had started the fight pushed Moses aside and asked, “Who made you our ruler and judge? 28Are you going to kill me, just as you killed that Egyptian yesterday?” 29When Moses heard this, he ran away to live in the country of Midian. His two sons were born there.

Acts 7:1-29CEVOpen in Bible reader
Canadian Bible Societyv.4.24.4
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