Chapter 1 of Esther

ESTHER - Chapter 1

1.  King Ahasuerus was reigning over the Persian Empire, which included 127 provinces, from India to Ethiopia. (vs.1)  ... Where did the King have his royal throne? vs. 2 the palace of Shushan 
2.  What did he do in the 3rd year of his reign? vs. 3 He made a fest for all of His upper class men(Nobles)

2.  What did he do in the 3rd year of his reign? vs. 3 He mad  a feast and   all of  his  high 

3.  What did the king have on display for 180 days? vs. 4 - Name 2 things 1) HIs riches  
2)His golry.  All that  he got  threw battles.

4.  When these days were completed, the king gave a banquet for all the people present at the citadel in Susa, from the greatest to the least. (vs.5) .. How many days did the banquet last and where was it celebrated? vs. 5  7days   The  gardens at the palce

5.  How was the king's court decorated for the banquet for all of these people? vs. 6 - Name 7 items used - 1) There  were whit,green, and blue hangings
2)Fastened  with cords of fine of white linen
3) material to silver rings
4)couches of gold
5)mosaic pavement of porphyry
6)silver rings on marble pillars
7)mother-of-pearl and other costly stones

6.  What kind of vessels were drinks served in? vs. 7gold

7.  The royal wine was plentiful according to the king's bounty. (vs.7) ... What restrictions were put on the people in regard to drinking? vs. 8 no restrictions

8.  The king's wife, Queen Vashti, also gave a banquet. (vs.9)  Who came to this banquet? vs. 9  the women in the royal palace

9.   What did the King command his 7 eunuchs to do on the 7th day of the banquet when his heart was merry with wine? vs. 10 to bring before him Queen Vashti

10.  What was his purpose in wanting her to be brought? vs. 11  in order to display her beauty to the people and nobles

11.  How did Queen Vashti respond to this? vs. 12  refused to come

12.  How did the king respond to her refusal to come? vs. 12 became furious and burned with anger.

13.  The king asked his 7 princes what to do to the queen according to the law, since she wouldn't do as he had commanded. (vs.13-15).  What did they suggest the king do and why? vs. 16-19 For the queen’s conduct will become known to all the women, and so they will despise their husbands and say, ‘King Xerxes commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him, but she would not come.’

14.  What did they believe this would cause to happen amont all the women in his kingdom? vs.20 all the women will respect their husbands, from the least to the greatest.

15.  This word pleased the king and the princes, and the king did as Memucan proposed. (vs.21).  He sent letters to all the king's provinces, to each province according to its script and to every people according to their language. (vs.22) ... What did the letters say? vs. 22 - Name 2 things - 1)every man should be ruler over his own household
2)using his native tongue

Applications:

 1.  The King of Persia was so proud of all of his accomplishments and possessions that he wanted to display them for the public to see.  He had them on display for 180 days or 6 months!  The pride of man is also the downfall of man.  What does the Bible tell us about pride and boasting?

• Proverbs 16:5 -Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: thoughhand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.
• Proverbs 16:19 -Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.
• Proverbs 18:12 -Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour ishumility.
• Habakkuk 2:4 -Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
• Matthew 23:12 -And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
• James 4:6 -But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble
• 1 Peter 5:5 -Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of yoube subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.
• The Bible tells us that  we need that  we need to summit  ourselves  to God and realize that  instead of doing  for our selves and  making ourselves  look  good in others eyes we need  to make  the effort to put  others before ourselves.  this does not mean that  we are to stop caring  about  ourselves  but we need  to help  others  feel  the love  of God  through us.

2.  At the end of the 6 months, the King threw a 7 day banquet.  He was outside in the king's court serving the finest of wine and allowing people to drink without compulsion or law.  On the 7th day his heart was 'merry' with wine and he wanted to show off another thing - his trophy wife, Queen Vashti.  He was so angry when she refused to come.  Alcohol gives a person more courage to make demands and then more anger to react to refusal.  Why are we told to avoid drunkenness in the Bible?

• Proverbs 20:1 -Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
• Proverbs 23:29-35 -Who has woe? Who has sorrow?
           Who has contentions? Who has complaining?
           Who has wounds without cause?
           Who has redness of eyes?

  30Those who linger long over wine,
           Those who go to taste mixed wine.

  31Do not look on the wine when it is red,
           When it sparkles in the cup,
           When it goes down smoothly;

  32At the last it bites like a serpent
           And stings like a viper.

  33Your eyes will see strange things
           And your mind will utter perverse things.

  34And you will be like one who lies down in the middle of the sea,
           Or like one who lies down on the top of a mast.

  35“They struck me, but I did not become ill;
           They beat me, but I did not know it.
           When shall I awake?
           I will seek another drink.”
• Proverbs 31:4-7 -It is not for kings, O Lemuel,
           It is not for kings to drink wine,
           Or for rulers to desire strong drink,

  5For they will drink and forget what is decreed,
           And pervert the rights of all the afflicted.

  6Give strong drink to him who is perishing,
           And wine to him whose life is bitter.

  7Let him drink and forget his poverty
           And remember his trouble no more.
• Luke 21:34 -Be on your guard, so that your minds are not dulled from carousing, drunkenness, and worries of life, or that day will come on you unexpectedly
• Romans 13:13,14 -Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. 14But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.
• Ephesians 5:18 -And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
• 1 Peter 4:3-5 -For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties and abominable idolatries. 4In all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them into the same excesses of dissipation, and they malign you; 5but they will give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.
• 1 Peter 5:8 -Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.

Scripture has much to say regarding the drinking of alcohol (Leviticus 10:9;Numbers 6:3;Deuteronomy 29:6;Judges 13:4,7,14;Proverbs 20:1;31:4;Isaiah 5:11,22;24:9;28:7;29:9;56:12). However, Scripture does not necessarily forbid a Christian from drinking beer, wine, or any other drink containing alcohol. In fact, some Scriptures discuss alcohol in positive terms.Ecclesiastes 9:7instructs, “Drink your wine with a merry heart.”Psalm 104:14-15states that God gives wine “that makes glad the heart of men.”Amos 9:14discusses drinking wine from your own vineyard as a sign of God’s blessing.Isaiah 55:1encourages, “Yes, come buy wine and milk…”

What God commands Christians regarding alcohol is to avoid drunkenness (Ephesians 5:18). The Bible condemns drunkenness and its effects (Proverbs 23:29-35). Christians are also commanded to not allow their bodies to be “mastered” by anything (1 Corinthians 6:12;2 Peter 2:19). Drinking alcohol in excess is undeniably addictive. Scripture also forbids a Christian from doing anything that might offend other Christians or encourage them to sin against their conscience (1 Corinthians 8:9-13). In light of these principles, it would be extremely difficult for any Christian to say he is drinking alcohol in excess to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).

Jesus changed water into wine. It even seems that Jesus drank wine on occasion (John 2:1-11;Matthew 26:29). In New Testament times, the water was not very clean. Without modern sanitation, the water was often filled with bacteria, viruses, and all kinds of contaminants. The same is true in many third-world countries today. As a result, people often drank wine (or grape juice) because it was far less likely to be contaminated. In1 Timothy 5:23, Paul was instructing Timothy to stop drinking the water (which was probably causing his stomach problems) and instead drink wine. In that day, wine was fermented (containing alcohol), but not necessarily to the degree it is today. It is incorrect to say that it was grape juice, but it is also incorrect to say that it was the same thing as the wine commonly used today. Again, Scripture does not forbid Christians from drinking beer, wine, or any other drink containing alcohol. Alcohol is not, in and of itself, tainted by sin. It is drunkenness and addiction to alcohol that a Christian must absolutely refrain from (Ephesians 5:18;1 Corinthians 6:12).

Alcohol, consumed in small quantities, is neither harmful nor addictive. In fact, some doctors advocate drinking small amounts of red wine for its health benefits, especially for the heart. Consumption of small quantities of alcohol is a matter of Christian freedom. Drunkenness and addiction are sin. However, due to the biblical concerns regarding alcohol and its effects, due to the easy temptation to consume alcohol in excess, and due to the possibility of causing offense and/or stumbling of others, it is often best for a Christian to abstain from drinking alcohol.

3.  We are not told Queen Vashti's reason for "refusing" to come at the King's demand to put her on display; to show off her beauty.  We can speculate that she simply did not want to be paraded in front of drunken people in that way.  Whatever the reason, it would cost her the crown and she would no longer be the King's wife or the queen.  What does the Bible teach us about being a woman of modesty and integrity?

• Proverbs 31:10-31 -10An excellent wife, who can find?
  

           For her worth is far above jewels.

  11The heart of her husband trusts in her,
           And he will have no lack of gain.

  12She does him good and not evil
           All the days of her life.

  13She looks for wool and flax
           And works with her hands in delight.

  14She is like merchant ships;
           She brings her food from afar.

  15She rises also while it is still night
           And gives food to her household
           And portions to her maidens.

  16She considers a field and buys it;
           From her earnings she plants a vineyard.

  17She girds herself with strength
           And makes her arms strong.

  18She senses that her gain is good;
           Her lamp does not go out at night.

  19She stretches out her hands to the distaff,
           And her hands grasp the spindle.

  20She extends her hand to the poor,
           And she stretches out her hands to the needy.

  21She is not afraid of the snow for her household,
           For all her household are clothed with scarlet.

  22She makes coverings for herself;
           Her clothing is fine linen and purple.

  23Her husband is known in the gates,
           When he sits among the elders of the land.

  24She makes linen garments and sells them,
           And supplies belts to the tradesmen.

  25Strength and dignity are her clothing,
           And she smiles at the future.

  26She opens her mouth in wisdom,
           And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

  27She looks well to the ways of her household,
           And does not eat the bread of idleness.

  28Her children rise up and bless her;
           Her husband also, and he praises her, saying:

  29“Many daughters have done nobly,
           But you excel them all.”

  30Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain,
           But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.

  31Give her the product of her hands,
           And let her works praise her in the gates.
• 1 Peter 3:3,4 -Your adornment must not be merely external—braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; 4butlet it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God

• women who are exhausted from trying to juggle the demands of job and family
• women who are desperately lonely
• women who feel trapped in unhappy marriages
• women who battle a pervasive sense of hopelessness and despair
• women who live under a crushing load of guilt and failure
• women who are struggling to find a sense of purpose in the midst of the “daily-ness” of life
• women who have never known what it is to have whole relationships built on mutual love and commitment
• women who live with crippling fears and chronic anxiety

I find that many women have given up hope that they can ever be released from their emotional and spiritual prisons. But over and over again, I have seen a light kindled in their eyes when they discover that the “abundant life” God promised truly can be a reality, regardless of their circumstances. The purpose of this booklet is to help us discover the path to that abundant life and to examine our lives in light of God’s design and plan.

4.  Regardless of Queen Vashti's reason for refusing, we know that this will open the way for Esther to be the new Queen of Persia, and she will be able to save her people through her actions and respect for the King.  The princes gave counsel to the King that he should be rid of Queen Vashti because her refusal of him would set a bad precedent to the other women not to respect their husbands. 
1 Cor?inthians 11:3; 8,9 -But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

• For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man.  Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man

• Colossians 3:18 -Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.
• Ephesians 5:22-24 -Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. 24But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.
• 1 Timothy 2:9-15 -Likewise, I want women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments, 10but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness. 11A woman must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. 12But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet. 13For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve.14And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression. 15But women will be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self-restraint.
• Titus 2:3-5 -Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, 4so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, 5to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored
• 1 Peter 3:1-6 -In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, 2as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. 3Your adornment must not be merely external—braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; 4but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God. 5For in this way in former times the holy women also, who hoped in God, used to adorn themselves, being submissive to their own husbands; 6just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear.

Marriage is the sacred and lifelong union of a man and a woman giving themselves to each other in love and trust. It signifies the mystery of the union between Christ and His bride, the Church. Marriage is a gift from our heavenly Father given so that husband and wife may enrich and encourage each other in every area of their life together. Marriage is given so that with delight and tenderness they may know each other in love, and through their physical union they may celebrate oneness and strengthen the union of their lives while glorifying God as a living testimony. Marriage is given that children may be born and brought up in security and love, that home and family life may be strengthened, and that society may continue to multiply and stand upon firm foundations. Marriage is a covenant between you and God and as such cannot be broken. It is meant to be forever, “until death us do part.” Marriage is a way of life which should be kept pure and a spiritual amalgamation which the community is called upon to uphold and honor (Heb. 13:4); it is not to be entered into lightly or selfishly, but responsibly and in the love of God. I believe outside of one’s choice to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior, to marry or not to marry (and/or spousal selection) is the single most important decision you’ll make in your life.

And since I believe the institution of marriage was created by our Creator, I believe the answers to most of our questions concerning marriage can be found by looking in His Good book, the Bible. The Bible has a lot to say about marriage. In fact, the very institution of marriage originates from the Bible. Our parents and basic Biblical instruction about marriage are our primary sources of reference for marriage. And when we search for guiding principles regarding marriage in the Bible, we must consider the teaching we’ve been given concerning marriage in the Bible? Let me explain a bit more. I have been blessed with parents and in-laws that have both celebrated over 50 years of marriage together. What an incredible witness they have been to the commitment it takes, not only to survive, but to grow and thrive. And, since our parents are our primary earthly examples of marriage, logic dictates that we must consider what our parents in the Bible teach us about marriage as well? Which parents am I referring to? Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Jacob and his wives, Leah and Rachel, have a lot to teach us about marriage! If you want a better understanding of a Biblically foundational marriage, then by all means, please continue reading, prayerfully.

5.  Summarize this lesson and post a prayer if you would like.
We  need  to be careful How we  treat  others.  We need  to remember  that  not  everyone are  self assured with themselve.  Sometimes  we need  to lefted  up others  to help them to like  themselves  other  times  e need  to help  other  just  by listening  to  them and not  judge them.  The King's  nobles  were  worried  more  about  what  their  wives  would  do  that is  not  listen to  them  and their images with others.  I*f  that  is all that  we worry about then we  are not  Doing God  just because he  tell us  to  help  others  to get to  heaven also.  to do  tis  sometimes  we  need  to build  them  us  and people  are  wrth  our time  each and every day.  Just  think  what If Christ  said they are neo worth it  I don't  want  to die for thwm.  were would  we be today?