“Women’s lib goes sideways”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Friday, September 20, 2024 Esther 1: 1-4, 10-19 (Forward, p. 53) CEV p. 515
Wow! Has there ever been a passage more fraught with ‘danger’ these days? No matter which way one ‘takes’ it, there is bound to be someone offended by it.
King Xerxes [Ahasuerus, in the Hebrew] decided to have two over-the-top banquets in his capital city of Susa, and not only is the food in great abundance, but also the wine. And so it happens, that the King, when flush with wine and feeling rather ‘happy’, decided to ‘show off his wife.’ The text says plainly that he ‘wanted her to wear her crown and let his people and his officials see show beautiful she was’.
Anyway, even with the royal summons, she decided to say ‘no.’ As for her reasoning, we will probably never know, but we can hazard a guess. Perhaps, she felt degraded, seeing herself being treated merely as an object to be gazed upon, leered upon, lusted after, by a bunch of drunken men, a bunch of drunken louts. Or perhaps she felt ill used in having to desert her own guests in favour of the king’s command. (After all, she was hosting a parallel celebration for the women.) Or, maybe, just maybe, she resented being at his beck and call, like some child or servant. Anyway, we will probably never know for sure, at least in this life.
As it turns out, this early attempt at ‘women’s lib’ goes terribly sideways, nipped at the bud. Fearful that this intransience, this wifely disobedience, might become well known—as undoubtedly it would—the king’s advisors make two suggestions. They suggest that he make his queen, Vashti, an example to all wives everywhere by dismissing her as his wife. And they suggest that he should pass a law giving husbands everywhere in his kingdom complete control over their wives and children. (I really wonder where that law ‘ever worked’). However, as much as many today would shake their heads at such an abuse of kingly power, it did set the stage for one of God’s most incredible acts of intervention on behalf of His people.
(But we won’t go into that just now.)
However, in expressing what may be for some people, their disgust and dismay at these proceedings, we should remember and take into account the culture of those times. In Middle Eastern society there were strictly defined male and female spaces and spheres of influence, but with the husband the ‘lord’ over all of it. He literally had the power of life and death over all his family, his wife as well as his children. And, with the king it went even further! And so, there was nothing unusual or untoward in the scenario in today’s account, except, perhaps, that the king and his advisors were determined to ‘keep it that way’, even by legislative means, if necessary, which was probably quite ill advised—and ineffective!
Regardless of how we ‘take’ this incident, it did pave the way for Queen Esther to come to the throne as queen and royal escort and set the stage for her, and God’s, incredible intervention to save the Jewish people from certain annihilation. So then, out of ill, out of what can be seen as a very unfortunate incident, God worked for good—and so it is with each and every one of us. God is there, even when it seems otherwise, and is actively at work for our good. Thanks be to God.
Forward notes: “King Ahasuerus commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him, and she did not come” (verse 17).
“’Well-behaved women rarely make history.’ I’ve always been attracted to this statement. I’m a bit of a rule-breaker, and I’ve frequently taken risks. I moved to a big city for college and traveled to foreign countries alone. I’ve jumped off cliffs and quit jobs without a backup plan. In those moments, the rewards seemed to outweigh the costs. But learning how to discern when a risk is worth taking has taken years of trial and error.
“In this passage, we learn about Queen Vashti, who refused to perform on command of her husband, the king. Scripture doesn’t tell us what exactly happened to Vashti, although we can presume she was either banished or executed. But her bold action paved the way for Esther, who, with wit and wisdom, saved the Jewish people.
“As I continue to take risks and break rules, I pray to have the courage of Vashti and Esther, women who were not well behaved but whose actions made a difference in the lives of many.”
Moving Forward: “When have you broken the rules or taken risks for Jesus?”