The Hidden Hand in a Pagan Pageant Text: Esther 1:1-9
Introduction: God Behind the Curtain
The book of Esther is unique in the canon of Scripture for one glaring reason: the name of God is never mentioned. Not once. There are no prophets, no miracles, no direct divine speech. If you were a certain kind of fastidious evangelical, you might be tempted to dismiss it as a secular book that somehow wandered into the Bible. And yet, to do so would be to miss the entire point. In the book of Esther, God is not absent; He is hidden. His providence is the central character, the unseen hand moving every piece on the board, from pagan kings to rebellious queens, all to accomplish His sovereign purpose for His covenant people.
This book is a masterclass in divine sovereignty. It teaches us that God’s rule is not limited to the spaces we designate as "religious." He is not just the God of the temple; He is the God of the pagan palace. He is not just at work when His name is being praised; He is just as much at work in the midst of drunken feasts, political maneuvering, and harem intrigues. This is a profound comfort for us, because we too live in a world that refuses to name God. Our culture is a determinedly secular one, and it is easy for Christians to feel that God has been pushed to the margins. But Esther reminds us that God is never marginalized. When the world throws a party to celebrate its own glory, God is there, quietly setting the stage for His own glory.
We begin the story in the court of Ahasuerus, a pagan king of immense power and even more immense ego. The scene is one of extravagant, almost ludicrous, human pride. It is a six-month long festival of self-congratulation. And it is precisely here, in this carnival of carnal glory, that God begins to weave the threads of a great deliverance. He will use the foolishness of a drunken king, the rebellion of a proud queen, and the vanity of a pagan court to save His people. He does not need our piety to accomplish His purposes. He is perfectly capable of using the world’s impiety against itself.
This first chapter sets the stage by showing us the pinnacle of human power and splendor. But in doing so, it also reveals the rot at its foundation. The Persian empire, for all its marble pillars and golden couches, is built on the unstable ground of human ego and excess. And God is about to give it a little push.
The Text
Now it happened in the days of Ahasuerus, the Ahasuerus who reigned from India to Ethiopia over 127 provinces, in those days as King Ahasuerus sat on his royal throne which was at the citadel in Susa, in the third year of his reign, he held a feast for all his princes and servants, the military officers of Persia and Media, the nobles and the princes of his provinces being in his presence, while he displayed the riches of his royal glory and the splendor of his great majesty for many days, 180 days. And when these days were fulfilled, the king held a feast lasting seven days for all the people who were present at the citadel in Susa, from the greatest to the least, in the court of the garden of the king’s palace. There were hangings of fine white and blue linen held by cords of fine purple linen on silver rings and marble pillars, and couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and precious stones. And drinks were served in golden vessels of various kinds, and the royal wine was plentiful according to the king’s hand. And the drinking was done according to the law; there was no compulsion, for so the king had established it for each official of his household, that he should do according to what pleased each person. Queen Vashti also held a feast for the women in the royal house which belonged to King Ahasuerus.
(Esther 1:1-9 LSB)
The World's Glory on Display (vv. 1-4)
We begin with the setting, which is intended to overwhelm us with the scale of this pagan kingdom.
"Now it happened in the days of Ahasuerus, the Ahasuerus who reigned from India to Ethiopia over 127 provinces, in those days as King Ahasuerus sat on his royal throne which was at the citadel in Susa, in the third year of his reign, he held a feast for all his princes and servants, the military officers of Persia and Media, the nobles and the princes of his provinces being in his presence, while he displayed the riches of his royal glory and the splendor of his great majesty for many days, 180 days." (Esther 1:1-4)
The Ahasuerus mentioned here is most likely the historical Xerxes I, the same king who would later launch a massive, failed invasion of Greece. The author wants us to understand the sheer scope of his dominion: 127 provinces, from India to Ethiopia. This is the superpower of the day. This is the man who sits on the throne of the world. He is the king of kings.
And what does a man with this much power do? He throws a party. But this is no ordinary party. This is a 180-day exhibition of his own glory. For six months, he puts "the riches of his royal glory and the splendor of his great majesty" on display. This is a feast dedicated to the worship of self. The central idol in Susa is Ahasuerus himself. This is the worldview of the pagan. Power, wealth, and majesty are things to be accumulated and displayed for the purpose of self-aggrandizement. The goal is to awe and intimidate, to make every other man feel small in your presence.
This is a direct contrast to the economy of God's kingdom. In God's kingdom, glory is something to be given away. True majesty is found in service. The Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). Ahasuerus gathers everyone to look at him. God gathers His people to look at Christ, and in looking at Christ, to be transformed into His likeness. The world’s glory is a dead-end street. It terminates on a finite, fallen man. God’s glory is a fountain, overflowing to His people.
But God is at work here. This ridiculous, six-month ego-trip is the context for what is to come. Ahasuerus thinks he is demonstrating his absolute power. In reality, God is setting him up to demonstrate his absolute foolishness. This feast is the high-water mark of Persian pride, and it is from this height that the fall will begin. Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18). And this is a very haughty spirit indeed.
The People's Feast and Lavish Excess (vv. 5-8)
After the six-month affair for the elites, the king throws another, shorter feast for the common people in the capital.
"And when these days were fulfilled, the king held a feast lasting seven days for all the people who were present at the citadel in Susa, from the greatest to the least, in the court of the garden of the king’s palace... And drinks were served in golden vessels of various kinds, and the royal wine was plentiful according to the king’s hand. And the drinking was done according to the law; there was no compulsion..." (Esther 1:5-8)
The description of the setting is meant to dazzle. We have fine linens, silver rings, marble pillars, and couches of gold and silver. This is opulence on an imperial scale. The wine flows freely from golden vessels, each one unique. The point is to communicate limitless wealth. Ahasuerus wants his people to see that his resources are endless.
But there is a fascinating detail in verse 8: "the drinking was done according to the law; there was no compulsion." At first glance, this might seem like a point in the king's favor. He's not forcing anyone to get drunk. But in the context of a pagan feast, this was actually a strategy for maximum indulgence. The custom at many such feasts was for guests to be required to drink when the king drank. By removing this "compulsion," Ahasuerus was not promoting moderation; he was unleashing libertinism. He was telling his guests to drink as much as they pleased, and given the context, this was an invitation to excess. He is a king who rules by indulgence.
This is the counterfeit of true Christian liberty. Christian liberty is freedom from sin in order to serve righteousness. The world’s liberty is freedom to sin, to do whatever pleases the flesh. Ahasuerus says, "do according to what pleased each person." This is the motto of our modern age. It is the creed of expressive individualism. But a society built on this foundation will inevitably crumble, because what pleases fallen people is, ultimately, self-destruction. God, in His providence, is about to use this very principle of self-indulgence to unravel the king's household. The king’s decree of "no compulsion" will lead directly to the drunken command that Vashti will refuse, setting the entire plot in motion.
The Queen's Feast and the Coming Conflict (v. 9)
While the king is feasting with the men, the queen has her own party.
"Queen Vashti also held a feast for the women in the royal house which belonged to King Ahasuerus." (Esther 1:9)
On the surface, this is simply a description of the cultural norms. The men and women feasted separately. But in the narrative, it establishes Queen Vashti as a figure of some standing and independence. She is not merely one of the women in the harem; she is the queen, hosting her own official function. This detail is crucial for what comes next.
We have two feasts running in parallel: the king's feast and the queen's feast. This sets up a collision course. The king, in his drunken state, will attempt to merge these two worlds by demanding that Vashti be put on display before his men. He wants to show her off as the ultimate trophy, the most beautiful of all his possessions.
But Vashti has her own dignity, her own sphere. Her refusal, which we will see in the next section, is often hailed by modern feminists as a heroic stand. And while we can certainly sympathize with her refusal to be paraded as a sex object before a crowd of drunken louts, we must be careful not to read our modern ideologies back into the text. The Bible does not present Vashti as a heroine. It presents her as a proud and rebellious woman whose actions, whatever their motive, serve as the unlikely catalyst for God’s plan.
God is not endorsing Vashti's rebellion, nor is He endorsing Ahasuerus's chauvinism. He is using both. He is using the clash of two proud wills to create a vacancy on the throne. The conflict between the king and queen will open the door for a humble Jewish orphan to become the queen of Persia. God’s providence is not squeamish. He is not afraid to get His hands dirty in the messy affairs of fallen people. He can draw a straight line with a crooked stick. And in this case, the crooked sticks are a foolish king and a defiant queen.
Conclusion: The Stage is Set
So, what have we learned from this opening scene? We have seen the world in all its glory, and we have seen that it is a hollow glory. It is the glory of pride, excess, and self-worship. The kingdom of Ahasuerus is a picture of the kingdom of man. It is impressive on the outside, but it is morally and spiritually bankrupt on the inside.
And yet, this is the world in which God has placed His people. The Jews are exiles in this pagan empire. They are seemingly powerless, living at the mercy of a capricious king. But the central message of Esther is that they are not at the mercy of Ahasuerus; they are in the hands of Almighty God.
This extravagant, pagan festival is not the main event. It is the backdrop. It is the stage upon which God will perform a drama of redemption. He is working behind the scenes, in the midst of all this godless revelry, to position His chosen instruments for the task ahead. The story of Esther begins with the world’s feast, but it will end with God’s feast, the feast of Purim, a celebration of deliverance and reversal.
This should be a profound encouragement to us. We live in our own Susa, surrounded by a culture that celebrates its own glory and has no time for God. But God is not intimidated by the splendor of the world’s kingdoms. He is not impressed by their power. He is the one who raises up kings and brings them down. And He is still at work, in ways we often cannot see, to protect His church and to advance His kingdom. He is still turning the pride of pagan kings into the means of salvation for His people. The curtain has just risen, and though the Author's name is not on the playbill, His signature is on every page.