Intrigues, lies, deception, sexual sins, greed, jealousy, unequal yoke, gambling, treachery, hatred, subtle manoeuvring, disobedience to God’s laws, imbalance of power, hatred, harlotry, wickedness,
These are some of the plots which makes the bible The bestseller.
Lying on my bed during my teen years, the adventurer in me would be lost traveling with the Isrealites through their journeys. I envied them their adventures. For me, they were living the life.
I love the Author’s authenticity. No filters. We get a front row seat to see the foibles of humanity.
Even after God regretted making man he still did not reconfigure the original formula.
The story of Esther is one which today would not be retold in the Church. It would have been tagged ‘unequally yoked’ and hidden under the pews. Imagine the narration; a teenage born again sister from a believing home entering into a secular beauty pageant. She was taking a gap year to go study how to spend one night with the king. A night of orgy not vigil. Then after the fornication, if he does not like her well enough; makes her spend the rest of her life in seclusion and competition with other women. Instead of releasing her to go and marry someone else. Did I mention that the king was a divorcee too?
Yet, it was worth the gamble.
Meanwhile, I have no idea how Mordecai pulled off that move. Although we do grasp the fact that females have always been vassals.
At that point, the Torah which is the National Law Library for the Jews was conveniently ignored by him. How that family must have become a reference point. Negatively. A marker for mothers with their daughters. Reminding them not to be as that girl who has lost her way. Shaking their heads in derision because if only the poor girl’s parents were alive, her uncle would not have forced her into defiling herself. The Pharisees probably ex-communicating Mordecai for that.
Yet, out of that, God makes something great.
When he uses her to rescue them all from imminent death, I do not see any of them preferring to die than be saved by ‘that girl’.
Like a thread, redemption is a constant theme through the bible. Be you Cain, Lot, Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Esther, Gomer or even Mary.
What do you think? share your views below.