1 Chronicles 9:1 “So all Israel was recorded in genealogies, and these are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel. And Judah was taken into exile in Babylon because of their breach of faith.”
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Long before the Jewish people were ever taken captive by King Nebuchadnezzar, before there existed terrible danger to God’s people, He was orchestrating events to preserve and protect them. The story of Esther demonstrates this BETTER than any other. Come and see!
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Warning After Warning.
Over centuries of time, God had warned His people to keep His statutes and, He especially told them NOT TO WORSHIP OTHER gods. He sent prophet after prophet after prophet yet still they rebelled. They were oppressed by many of the surrounding nations each time they strayed, yet they ultimately, FULLY turned away from the One True God. 😔
Why was it so dangerous to turn from true worship? Because that meant they were no longer offering the right sacrifices to God. He was not able to could cover their sins as a result. The ultimate result: He was unable to bless and protect them.
They never understood this. 😞
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Finally, after many years of enslavement to various other nations, He kept his promise and allowed them to be led away from their land entirely and into captivity in Babylon. 70 years; 10 years for every year they refused to let the land rest as God commanded.
Yet…….even though all their troubles were of their own making, He never left them; He never forsook them. He continued to work behind the scenes on their behalf, a fact that you will clearly see when we study the original Hebrew later on in this series. 😉
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Code Book.
The Bible is a code book of sorts. As you know, we didn’t always have a New Testament. The disciples, obviously, taught from the Torah and, in so doing, wrote the New. It is hidden in various places in the Old. kind of like an expanded view of the New Covenant; a “Pictionary,” if you will.
The Apostle Paul was given much of this revelation directly from Messiah Jesus Himself. In fact, EVERYTHING he said is explained in greater detail somewhere in the Old Testament.
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There are also secrets hidden in the Hebrew language of this book itself. Bear in mind, however, that THESE THINGS ARE NOT NEW INFORMATION, No way! THAT WOULD BE FRIGHTENING! 🤯 These things are simply new revelations and new understanding of things that were hidden in the text all along by our wonderful Father. We just didn’t see them.
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Layers Of Meaning.
Why did God hide these things? Well for one thing, since the garden our enemy, the devil, has been working overtime trying to thwart His plan to send His Champion, the Messiah, Jesus. Since old slimy didn’t know who the man would be, he tried every trick in the book to try and stop the One Who would come and crush his head. God’s plan is hidden in these layers of meaning and in hidden messages. There are stories within stories; meanings in names, places, numbers, and even the Hebrew letters themselves.
The book of Esther book is definitely no exception! FYI, pay close attention to any names or words you see in bold print. At the end of this series, we’ll see a wonderful message from our Abba for us in these last days. 😁
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Background.
King Nebuchadnezzar had come down from the North. He attacked the Israelites and took many of them away captive to Babylon. The entire story recorded in this book takes place during the time of their captivity.
Esther, along with her parents, had been taken prisoner along with many other notables, like Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Mordecai, the hero of the book of Esther.
At some point in time, we don’t know where or when, she lost both of her parents, though it is not recorded what happened to them. We do know, however, that Mordecai, her much older uncle, took her in and cared for her as if she was his own daughter.
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Hadassah.
Esther is actually a Persian name meaning, “Star” which has a very illuminating meaning in Hebrew. We’ll cover this topic in a latter part of this series. Her given name, “Hadassah,” means, “Myrtel Tree,” in Hebrew. The Myrtle is a blessing tree that was used in the building of the Tabernacle as well as in the construction of most “Sukkah,” (temporary shelters) during the feast of Tabernacles.
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The Plot.
Every good story needs a hero, a villain, secrets and plots, a beautiful maiden in distress, and an exciting conclusion. On a scale of 1-10, the story of Esther delivers on all points! We have Mordecai, the hero, who overheard all of the evil plans and plots behind the scenes. He made them known to Esther, his niece, who had become Queen at the beginning of the story. Together, they saved both the king and, subsequently, their entire nation from total annihilation.
Then we have Haman, the evil villain, who plotted to destroy the Jewish people out of spite for Mordecai. Finally, we have our exciting conclusion: The preservation of the entire Jewish race from total destruction!
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Nebuchadnezzar’s Sons.
Nebuchadnezzar was first to reign as king over Babylon, having been given his authority by God Himself. Next came his son, “Belshazzar,” who was succeeded by his son, the one we know as, “Good king Darius. He is also known as the “Ahasuerus,” in the story, though historically, he was known as, “Artaxerxes.” Ahasuerus and Artaxerxes are not actually names; they are titles, in the same way that Pharaoh is a title.
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Let’s continue on to part 2 of this series and look at chapter one, which opens with the account of Queen Vashti, the brazen lady who defied the King and was subsequently deposed. (Jewish tradition says that she was killed.)
You may follow the link below continue studying this wonderful story:
Emmaus Road Ministries 
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