HONOUR AND DISHONOUR
Suggested Reading: Esther 5-6
Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).
A horse grazing among the ruins of ancient Jerash in Jordan. Jerash was a Greco-Roman city located 80 miles north of Amman, the capital of the modern kingdom of Jordan, near the place where Gideon and his 300 crossed over Jordan.
GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.
Key Verses: Esther 5:13, 6:1
Yet all this avails me nothing as long as I see Mordecai, the Jew, sitting at the king’s gate…That night the king could not sleep. So he commanded to bring the book of the records of the chronicles, and they were read before the king.
“Great riches,” “multitude of children,” “promotion and advancement,” and the Queen’s invitation to dinner to no one else, was meaningless to Haman because of his wounded ego. When this world’s gain is all we have, the least thing that goes wrong can spoil it all. Scripture teaches, “Godliness with contentment is great gain” (read 1 Timothy 6:3-11).
A couple of movies have been made in recent years on “Esther” (click here for the trailer of one, and here to watch a full length film of the other). It would be humorous if it was not so tragic, that Haman gets his just desserts when he has to do for the Jew what he thought was the honour he, himself deserved. We cannot miss the protecting hand of God on his servant Mordecai. Haman, at the suggestion of his wife, built a gallows so high that everyone in the capital city could see who was hanged on it. Haman was hung on his own gallows. What are we building in our lives? Is it on a foundation of truth and a structure of love and righteousness or is it a gallows on which we ourselves will be hung?
Let us meditate on Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” These words would not be written by Paul for another 540 years, but Mordecai knew the truth of this promise from God. Amen!!! Probably Mordecai knew the truth of God’s promise to Samuel, the prophet of God, written at least 500 years before, “Those who honour Me, I will honour” (1 Samuel 2:30b).
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Lord God, You promised that if I acknowledge You (know who You are and recognize You), You will direct my paths (Proverbs 3:6). I pray that I will fully embrace Your promises and know without doubting that You keep Your promises. Thank You for this amazing grace! Amen!!!
100 PERSONAL WORDS:
Proverbs 3:5-6 are Norma-Jean’s life verses. Among the songs she has written, she has put some verses of Scripture to music. Below is her sheet music for that song “He Shall Direct Thy Paths.” Our daughter, Elaine Stacey, Norma-Jean and I have sung this live on the 100 Huntley Street telecast (if I can locate the video, I’ll give you a link to it in the next day or so).
On my way to the church where Norma-Jean and I were married, (now a French Roman Catholic Church where I have brought the homily) on Ainsley Street in Cambridge, Ontario, I prayed, “Lord if this marriage is not Your perfect will, You can still stop it.” I surely did not want it stopped, but my understanding of the promise of God’s direction is that I must be willing for Him to intervene and change my direction. I’ve experienced His intervention to stop my intentions several times. I have the gas pedal and the brakes of my life under my control, but I take my hands off the steering wheel, trusting Him to steer my life. Is that good advice or not? If I happen to see Mordecai sometime in the eternal future, I’ll ask him what he thinks!
Yours for God’s overruling guidance based on our willingness for Him to be in control of our destinies,
David
P.S. Below is the published sheet music of Norma-Jean’s song that I referred to above. Click on the images to enlarge them (and print, if you wish).
God’s promises won’t fail, they can’t fail, for He is the eternal God of the universe who created and sustains all things by His command and by His mighty hand.. God’s Word is truth, He cannot lie because it goes against the grain of His very eternal and righteous nature. Therefore when we read the Bible and we see a promise, we can be sure that it either has been fulfilled or it will be fulfilled at a later date, for God does not turn back on His own Word. God’s principles and His promises were put into place in order to complete the plan for His creation. Jesus was a huge part of that plan, for bodily, He was and is the fulfillment of God in human form, God with us. Today we live in an age of grace, God is giving us the opportunity to believe upon Himself and His offering of salvation to the world through Jesus … but this opportunity will not last forever. One day, God will fulfill His promise to return, to complete His promise made long ago. For those who believe, it shall be a grand day of rejoicing! But sadly, to the many who didn’t know God … it will be a sad day of despair.
I agree David that it is good advice to give God
the steering wheel of our lives. He alone knows
the end from the beginning and He knows me…
and what is best for me….God bless you and
Norma-Jean today.
Good to see you both on yesterday’s program
and you both look really good.
He leads us in paths of righteousness FOR HIS
NAME SAKE.
Faith
Thank you Pastor David…..always a lesson to learn and turn our eyes to The One who knows what is best for us and we can stand firm, knowing He will keep His promises.
More of HIM and less of me! Blessings to all today.
As you said let God have the steering wheel and we will arrive at the destination He has prepared for us.
Good morning fellow blogers 🙂
It seems to me that Jesus was and is a man of detail. He said all would be fulfilled. Not one jot nor title would be left undone.
So, this morning I have a question.
Why dose the NIV version say Zeresh Hamans wife and all his friends sujested that a pole be built fifty cubits high so that Haman could ask the King to have Mordecai impaled on it?
Yet as you stated David it was a gallows as stated in the KJV and not a pole as stated in the NIV.
I found an interesting study done by a husband and wife who said they use to think people who chose to read only KJV bibles were a little …. well
…. their word was nutty. So they decided to investigate. Their findings they said
Are shocking. They discovered that there was fourteen verses completely missing in the NIV version as well as some miss interpitations.
I think details matter. Exaggeration and miss information are in effect lies ,really. So was it a gallows or a pole ?
Forgive me for being a stickler here but in light of the state of the world today I am very careful about the sources of information I read.
Don’t play it up or down just give me the cold hard truth.Thank you!
Yours for lovingly always seeking the truth!
M.
PS
As wev’e read many times before in the scriptures once again in this mornings scripture reading we see the lack of Gods wisdom played out in a real life sinario.
An extreme case yes but we can clearly see why we should love our(if we have any) enimies and do good by them. And it will be well with us Amen!
Blessings to all 🙂
The truth is both translations are correct. Hanging in Persia at that night meant impalement. Our Western perspective tends to think of hangings as with a noose, so that is the image that comes to mind when we hear the word hang, but the word had a different meaning for the culture of the time. It is like the word gay– a hundred years ago it meant lighthearted or happy, but now most people when they see the word gay will it means a male homosexual
If you need further information just type “Was Haman hanged or impaled?” into your computer’s search engine like Google and some sources should pop up for you to read further on the subject.
I hope that helps.
*night–should be– time, don’t know why it came out as night.
What a lesson we can learn form Haman’s story. Proverbs 16:18 says Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. Col 1:28 says Him(Christ) we preach warning very man and teaching every man in all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. Thank you David you are surely doing this.
Sorry about the typo… should read warning every man……
Thank you David for all the uplifting words and prayers you send us every day. Also a precial thanks for all the pictures from Israel. It is my dream to visit Isreal but because I need a scouter to get around I have long learned that the places we would go to is not suitable for scouters. So thanks to you I get to see quite a bit of Israel. God bless and again thank you. Elisabeth
Permit me to make a few remarks about the NIV translation of the Bible.
1- Which “Version” are you using.? The 1979-1983 Version states in Esther 5:14 Have a gallows built 75 ft. high and ask the king to have Mordechai hanged on it in the morning. This Version is now out of print and no longer available. The newer version is not very popular as it is all inclusive. Many churches are now deciding which Bible translation to use in the near future.
2- In Bible study classes we have always encouraged the use of several different translations, since we do not all have access to the Hebrew and Greek original texts. May I suggest that you read the introduction to the NIV to see who initiated the NIV translation and recognize the interpretation held by the majority of its committee. The most blatant example of Replacement Theology is found in Matthew 26:28 “This is My Blood of the Covenant” omitting the word New. This is just one example of their distinct bias.
3- Most newer translations attempt to adapt the Holy Scriptures to today’s vocabulary, but in the efforts for clarity, accuracy easily suffers. That is a real danger at this time, when people are often too busy to spend deliberate time in studying God’s Word.
4- The greater concern is the effects the NIV has had in the churches which have used it in the last 30 years. The most important approach to the Bible is the high view of Scripture, the Authority of God’s Word is based on it’s verbal inspiration. God speaks to us personally. That’s why we view the Bible as inerrant and infallible. God is immutable so His Word never changes either.
People who dare to place question marks in the Bible, are in danger of losing the entire Bible in 20 years. We have seen this happen all too often.
5- Verse-by-verse Bible study is the most precious use of our time. Not just to hear the Word, but also to read the Word, study the Word, memorize the verses, even at our age, and to meditate on the Word. Remember that the Holy Spirit
reminds us of every Word Jesus said. John 14:26 As seniors we tend to forget names and even what we did yesterday, but not the Bible verses we have memorized. PTL.
Thank you, Pastor David for the prayer. I pray along and sincerely ask God to keep my heart fully dedicated in worshipping and honoring Him and Him alone, and may He reveal His purpose for me and the very reason that I was place in His kindom at this particular time.
Esther 4:14 “If you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance … will arise from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
This verse had had a burning impact in my hearts for the longest time. It has kept me walking with the Lord and trying to obey Him in action. May we all cherish God’s calling of us at different times and places to carry out specific tasks faithfully, with little holdback for personal reasons. May His Spirit inspire and empower us all!!
Janet
Amen, Janet. Good blog, postings and prayer today David. I watched the movie and I remembered the movie,” Esther” they showed on The Christian Television Channel more than once a few years ago. I really liked that production. Inspirational song Norma-Jean. God bless.