Esther : Unspoken Lessons about the Unseen God (Welwyn Commentary Series | WCS)
Overview
When it seems that God is not active in human affairs, he may be most at work. He may be most present when he seems most hidden. Nowhere is this more clearly illustrated than in the book of Esther. Although God's name is not mentioned in the book, the discerning reader may see the hand of God throughout the narrative, as he brings his purposes to pass for the good of his people.
Derek Prime shows how the message of Esther is one of encouragement for God's people in times of crisis. God is in command of human actions and human delays. Nothing escapes his notice, or happens without his permission. Even the worst things will work out for our good. We see only links in the chain, but he sees the end from the beginning, as the source, guide, and goal of all that is. Sovereignty and providence are attributes of our heavenly King. Providence, not chance, rules.
The book of Esther challenges all believers to maintain a faithful witness in an unbelieving and hostile world, secure in the knowledge that their lives are in the hands of the God who has already accomplished on their behalf the greatest deliverance of all, through the death on the cross of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Top Highlights
“The four principal lessons are about God: his preservation of his people, the mysteries, yet certainty, of his providence, the severity of his judgement and the importance of remembering his past mercies.” (Page 12)
“The book is remarkable for its number of ‘coincidences’, as” (Page 9)
“The word translated ‘command’ in the NIV is ‘law’, a word used throughout the book of Esther in regard to all royal decisions, from simple instructions to stewards (as here), to the judicial sentence punishing an illegal action (4:11) and to royal edicts allowing genocide.” (Page 29)
“Strangers were not allowed to look at the beauty of Persian wives,37 and Queen Vashti’s defiance, therefore, was a modest and totally justifiable refusal to appear before a group of men who, if not drunk, were probably on the verge of intoxication.” (Page 33)
“Her statement tells us what she did not trust in: she did not place her confidence in her own beauty, position or eloquence. To fast could well have detracted from her beauty. The mention of fasting indicates where Esther placed her trust.” (Page 82)
- Title: Unspoken Lessons About the Unseen God: Esther Simply Explained
- Author: Derek Prime
- Series: Welwyn Commentary Series
- Publisher: Evangelical Press
- Print Publication Date: 2001
- Logos Release Date: 2011
- Pages: 144
- Era: era:contemporary
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subject: Bible. O.T. Esther › Commentaries
- ISBNs: 9780852344712, 0852344716
- Resource ID: LLS:WCS17ES
- Resource Type: Bible Commentary
- Metadata Last Updated: 2023-08-28T17:41:18Z