Vashti was queen, wife of Xerxes... Xerxes was a generous king.. he was having a celebration... a feast and all of the officials and rulers of the time were there... at the same time, Vashti was having a similar celebration for all the women of the men...
during this celebration Xerxes decides that he wants Vashti to come and stand before the men in her royal crown so they could admire her beauty... she refused to go... now I heard someone say that they thought possibly he wanted her to come out naked, with only the crown on... I tend to disagree with that because in my own experience, men don't want any other man to ever see or think he could see what is his... so while Xerxes may have wanted the men to say that he was really lucky to have her because of her beauty, I don't think he would have wanted them to think about her in a way that might lead them to desire her for themselves... I could be wrong, but I am just saying this is what I think...
well, because she refused to go to him, he was really mad... and all these "advisors" tell him that he cannot let this go unpunished because soon all the women of the country would be rebelling against their husbands... so what they tell him to do is to take her title from her as queen and that she could never be in his presence again... and he agrees...
actually, a woman in those days could have been one of hundreds of wives... or she could have been a concubine, which is basically a slave that is set aside for the kings pleasure... so for her to even be considered the queen in the first place was a very high honor... she was obviously very beautiful, or he wouldn't have wanted to display her... he was proud of her... she must have carried herself in a very regal manner...
my personal opinion is that he loved her... because after he decreed that she could not be queen and could never be in his presence again... then he started to have second thoughts about it, started missing her.... so these advisors... then determine that he needs to get a new woman and in a hurry so he doesn't go back on his word...
all of us are beautiful in one way or another... I think that God gives all of us the ability to use something He has given us to draw others to us... for some it is physical beauty... some it may be a wonderful personality... some it may be intelligence... some it may be the ability to talk others into things... whatever your gift is, make sure that you are using it to the glory of God... not self glory...
I don't know that I think Vashti was wrong... well, that's not true... she was wrong because she had an authority figure over her and she did not submit to the authority... I think she should not have been subjected to parading herself in front of drunken men... but she didn't have a choice in the matter... she made the choice to rebel and it cost her dearly...
I think this is a story to show us that maybe the authority figure in your life might make bad choices for you... but that doesn't change the fact that he is still the authority... we like to think that we shouldn't have to listen if something is wrong... I don't see it that way... one of the good things about being a female, and having a man over you is that what he does is between him and God, not him and you... if he makes a bad choice, it is for God to fix... he stands between you and God... I would surely think you should pray and cry out to God, asking Him to open the man's eyes, but in the end, he still is the one in charge... she could have been so much more powerful in the position of queen, but instead, she allowed pride to get in the way and her position was taken from her... be careful what we allow pride to get in the way of... we may just lose our position...
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Ruth
Ruth was married to a man from Judah named Mahlon (I don't know why I know which one she was married to, I just do...) Mahlon's father took his mother, him and his brother from Bethlehem to Moab. There was a famine in the land, so they moved. As time went on, the two men, Mahlon and Kilion took Moabite women to marry. The father dies, then the two brothers were killed 10 years later. It doesn't say how they died. Because her family was dead, Naomi, the mother in law, decides to go back to Bethlehem where she originally was from. She releases Orpah and Ruth, the wives of the sons to go back to their own families. Orpah goes back. Ruth refuses. She tells this woman that Naomi's people are her people and Naomi's God is her God and where Naomi dies is where Ruth will die also. So they go on to Bethlehem.
When they get there, Ruth goes into the fields to glean (pick up scraps basically...) behind the men that are harvesting the grain. There is a man there that owns the field and he asks who Ruth is. The men that are working tell him that she is the daughter in law of Naomi. The man tells the workers to look out for her, to leave extra behind them for her to pick up. He also goes to her and tells her to stay in this field and that his workers will protect her from danger. She drops to her knees before him (there goes that bowing down to a man thing again...) and asks him why would he be so kind to her and that she is exceedingly thankful. She continues to glean in his fields. He continues to watch her and watch over her. It doesn't say that he said anything else to her, just watched over her.
So Naomi, decides to tell Ruth that Boaz (the owner of the field) is in relationship to their family and called a kinsmen redeemer. In those days, if your husband died, you were handed down to the next family member in order to keep the family name going. (yeah... pretty sick.. I know it... ) So she tells Ruth to go the the threshing floor while they are working in there, but to go at night, after everyone is asleep. To lay at this man's feet and that he would cover her. Now to anyone that doesn't know what any of that means... that is really bold... really bold... When I have read this for the last 100 years I really never understood it. But for personal reasons, I decided to go look it up. First of all, a woman should not be in the presence of a man in the middle of the night who is not her husband, basically, she was offering herself to him by even going there. THEN... to lay at his feet... turns out this meant she asked him to marry her... CAN YOU IMAGINE??? Oh I am so sure that she had NO IDEA what this meant when she did it... and when he covered her, he accepts... sheesh... But he tells her that there is another who is eligible to redeem her before him and that he would speak with that man the next day. Luckily, he was a gentleman, he realized that she was clueless about what she really did and so he didn't take her up on the offer of herself physically.... (good grief...)
So Ruth, clueless as can be, goes back to scheming Naomi and tells her what happened and Naomi, beaming says that the man will not rest until it is taken care of.
She was right, Boaz goes the very next day and asks the man who is next in line if he intends to redeem the property of Naomi's husband. Doesn't talk about the woman/women he makes this all about a business deal. What a typical man thought, right? So the other man says yes, he will take the property, then slick Boaz says.. well there is Naomi and her daughter in law involved too... So the other man decides he doesn't want to do it because it would affect his own household. So Boaz says that he will do it then.
Boaz married Ruth and they have a child named Obed. He is the grandfather of David....
What does this story say to me? God will have us do ridiculous things in order to work His will out in our lives. (it is better when we don't even know what we really did...) God will use who he chooses to use. Ruth was a Moabite. There are times when God tells the men of Israel that they cannot marry foreign women. Ruth's 1st husband died. I am sure she was heartbroken at the time, but God works ALL things for the good of those who love Him.
When they get there, Ruth goes into the fields to glean (pick up scraps basically...) behind the men that are harvesting the grain. There is a man there that owns the field and he asks who Ruth is. The men that are working tell him that she is the daughter in law of Naomi. The man tells the workers to look out for her, to leave extra behind them for her to pick up. He also goes to her and tells her to stay in this field and that his workers will protect her from danger. She drops to her knees before him (there goes that bowing down to a man thing again...) and asks him why would he be so kind to her and that she is exceedingly thankful. She continues to glean in his fields. He continues to watch her and watch over her. It doesn't say that he said anything else to her, just watched over her.
So Naomi, decides to tell Ruth that Boaz (the owner of the field) is in relationship to their family and called a kinsmen redeemer. In those days, if your husband died, you were handed down to the next family member in order to keep the family name going. (yeah... pretty sick.. I know it... ) So she tells Ruth to go the the threshing floor while they are working in there, but to go at night, after everyone is asleep. To lay at this man's feet and that he would cover her. Now to anyone that doesn't know what any of that means... that is really bold... really bold... When I have read this for the last 100 years I really never understood it. But for personal reasons, I decided to go look it up. First of all, a woman should not be in the presence of a man in the middle of the night who is not her husband, basically, she was offering herself to him by even going there. THEN... to lay at his feet... turns out this meant she asked him to marry her... CAN YOU IMAGINE??? Oh I am so sure that she had NO IDEA what this meant when she did it... and when he covered her, he accepts... sheesh... But he tells her that there is another who is eligible to redeem her before him and that he would speak with that man the next day. Luckily, he was a gentleman, he realized that she was clueless about what she really did and so he didn't take her up on the offer of herself physically.... (good grief...)
So Ruth, clueless as can be, goes back to scheming Naomi and tells her what happened and Naomi, beaming says that the man will not rest until it is taken care of.
She was right, Boaz goes the very next day and asks the man who is next in line if he intends to redeem the property of Naomi's husband. Doesn't talk about the woman/women he makes this all about a business deal. What a typical man thought, right? So the other man says yes, he will take the property, then slick Boaz says.. well there is Naomi and her daughter in law involved too... So the other man decides he doesn't want to do it because it would affect his own household. So Boaz says that he will do it then.
Boaz married Ruth and they have a child named Obed. He is the grandfather of David....
What does this story say to me? God will have us do ridiculous things in order to work His will out in our lives. (it is better when we don't even know what we really did...) God will use who he chooses to use. Ruth was a Moabite. There are times when God tells the men of Israel that they cannot marry foreign women. Ruth's 1st husband died. I am sure she was heartbroken at the time, but God works ALL things for the good of those who love Him.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Samson
Samson's mother's name is not mentioned in the bible. It says that she was barren and childless and the the angel of the LORD appeared to her and said, "You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son. Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean, because you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines." So the husband prayed and asked God to send the angel back to teach them how to raise their son. And God in his graciousness sends the angel back so Manoah asked him, "When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule for the boy's life and work?" The angel of the LORD answered, "Your wife must do all that I have told her. She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean. She must do everything I have commanded her." So not only must the boy be raised a particular way, but the mother must change the way she eats too. I found it interesting that the angel comes back and tells the husband exactly what the wife told him, but he had to hear it for himself. (men... I tell ya...)
This child was born into this world with a purpose in his life. God is still in the business of birthing children of purpose. Are the parents of the children of this day bothering to ask God how their children are to be raised? What is the rule for the child's life and work? Are we even consulting God about our children from birth at all? Or are we instead doing the best we can and only start the true praying after the problems start?
So the bible says that the woman gave birth to a son and they named him Samson and he began to feel the spirit of the Lord at an early age. Samson's gifts were the spirit of the Lord, riddles, and amazing strength. No one was stronger than Samson. But Samson had a weakness, it was foreign women. And instead of staying with the women of his own God, he had relationships with women who did not know his God. And his parents arranged a marriage for him with a woman from Philistia. Now wasn't that about amazing? The angel had told the woman before the boy was born that he would be used to destroy the Philistines... yet the father gives in and arranges a marriage with one of the very people he was born to destroy. That was just amazing to me. The marriage was actually arranged by God though and there was a fight at the wedding. Samson killed 30 men. The bride was given to the best man. Amazingly, Samson goes back to sleep with her some time later and her father had to tell him that she had been given to the best man. Samson destroys the Philistines. He rules over Israel as judge for 20 years.
I would like to end the story there, but it is not to be so....
Samson falls in love with a woman that the Philistine rulers use to find the secret to his strength. He doesn't give in to telling her what it is right away. But as she keeps nagging him, saying that he must not love her, eventually on the 4th time.. he tells her the truth. The Philistines are in wait and they come in and she has cut his hair (the symbol of his strength) and they tie him up and gouge his eyes out and have him pushing this grinding stone. I wonder if he had known that the true source of his strength was God, not his hair, would this have turned out differently for him? Eventually his hair starts to grow back and his strength is returning with it. The Philistines were going to use him as some sort of circus act at a big feast, and he prays and asks God for strength just one more time, to destroy the Philistines. God grants his request, and he pushes down big pillars that are holding the building up and he along with many, many Philistines die.
God can make good come of any circumstance and the will of God will always be fulfilled. Even if we screw up the way that it is supposed to happen, He will still get His end result. I don't know if Samson screwed up or if things worked out exactly as God planned. The bible doesn't tell us that. It seems to me though, that if he had been obedient to the ways of God, God still would have raised him up as the ruler/judge over Israel and possibly he would have reigned even longer. Possibly he would have destroyed the Philistines in wars instead of the way it worked out. My thoughts are not the thoughts of God. I don't know which way was His planned outcome. I just know that He worked all that Samson did to still have the same ending.
This child was born into this world with a purpose in his life. God is still in the business of birthing children of purpose. Are the parents of the children of this day bothering to ask God how their children are to be raised? What is the rule for the child's life and work? Are we even consulting God about our children from birth at all? Or are we instead doing the best we can and only start the true praying after the problems start?
So the bible says that the woman gave birth to a son and they named him Samson and he began to feel the spirit of the Lord at an early age. Samson's gifts were the spirit of the Lord, riddles, and amazing strength. No one was stronger than Samson. But Samson had a weakness, it was foreign women. And instead of staying with the women of his own God, he had relationships with women who did not know his God. And his parents arranged a marriage for him with a woman from Philistia. Now wasn't that about amazing? The angel had told the woman before the boy was born that he would be used to destroy the Philistines... yet the father gives in and arranges a marriage with one of the very people he was born to destroy. That was just amazing to me. The marriage was actually arranged by God though and there was a fight at the wedding. Samson killed 30 men. The bride was given to the best man. Amazingly, Samson goes back to sleep with her some time later and her father had to tell him that she had been given to the best man. Samson destroys the Philistines. He rules over Israel as judge for 20 years.
I would like to end the story there, but it is not to be so....
Samson falls in love with a woman that the Philistine rulers use to find the secret to his strength. He doesn't give in to telling her what it is right away. But as she keeps nagging him, saying that he must not love her, eventually on the 4th time.. he tells her the truth. The Philistines are in wait and they come in and she has cut his hair (the symbol of his strength) and they tie him up and gouge his eyes out and have him pushing this grinding stone. I wonder if he had known that the true source of his strength was God, not his hair, would this have turned out differently for him? Eventually his hair starts to grow back and his strength is returning with it. The Philistines were going to use him as some sort of circus act at a big feast, and he prays and asks God for strength just one more time, to destroy the Philistines. God grants his request, and he pushes down big pillars that are holding the building up and he along with many, many Philistines die.
God can make good come of any circumstance and the will of God will always be fulfilled. Even if we screw up the way that it is supposed to happen, He will still get His end result. I don't know if Samson screwed up or if things worked out exactly as God planned. The bible doesn't tell us that. It seems to me though, that if he had been obedient to the ways of God, God still would have raised him up as the ruler/judge over Israel and possibly he would have reigned even longer. Possibly he would have destroyed the Philistines in wars instead of the way it worked out. My thoughts are not the thoughts of God. I don't know which way was His planned outcome. I just know that He worked all that Samson did to still have the same ending.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Abigail
Abigail was beautiful and intelligent. That is how she is described. Strangely, she was married to a man named Nabal and he was a fool. How often are intelligent people married to fools? More often than we care to admit I am sure.
And so it happens that during the time that David was hiding out from king Saul who was trying to kill him, David and his men protected the livestock and servants of this man named Nabal. When it was shearing time, they had big festivities and feasts. David sends a messenger to Nabal and says to him, we have protected your servants and your livestock, please send us whatever you will to provide for us. He could have demanded a specific price, but he knew that his true Provider was God above, so he said whatever you will. Nabal, fool that he was, sends the message back stating that he did not even know David and owed him nothing. Needless to say, David is surely on the way to destroy the entire house as he is a warrior.
One of Abigail's servants comes and tells her what Nabal said to David. She quickly puts together meat, wine, and bread along with blankets and other items David and his men may need and puts this on the back of donkeys and sends it ahead of her. She then gets on a donkey herself and goes to David. She did not tell her husband the fool, what she was doing. She goes out to meet David as he is on the way to destroy her entire household. She falls down on her face, bowing low before him and she tells him to place all the blame on her. She asks him to forgive her, that she was not there when his servant came to her house and that she hopes the gifts she brought will be enough for him to spare her household. David tells her to rise and that she is very much appreciated for saving him from destroying the house of Nabal. He tells her to go home, that she will receive what she asked him for, meaning her house would not be attacked.
She goes home, Nabal is drunk so she cannot tell him what she did right then, and she decides to go to bed and tell him in the morning. She wakes up, he is sober, she tells him how she saved his household. God strikes his heart and it becomes a stone in his chest, which means he went into a coma. He was in the coma for 10 days, then the Lord struck him again and he died.
This is what I find amazing about Abigail... She is in an ugly situation, her marriage was not chosen by her, her family arranged it and she is married to a fool. There is no out, no divorce, no options. So she tries to work around her situation and save her servants and the fool too. She falls down in humility before David. He had already been annointed as the king of Israel, and she gives him the respect of his future position. She talks sense into an angry man. How often will we yell back instead of trying to diffuse the situation? Obviously it is better to try to diffuse it. She did this with both David and Nabal. With David, she tried to appease him and give him more than enough to compensate for the wrong of Nabal. With Nabal, she tried to wait until the right time, then calmly tell him the truth, willing to accept the consequences of her actions. On both occasions, God stepped in and fixed the situation.
The ending of the story is that David sent his servants back to Abigail and asked her to be his wife. She tells the servants of David, that she is a servant to their master and willing to wash the feet of his servants. This is an amazing show of humility. She is willing to put herself below the place of the servant and wash their feet. She goes back and marries David. Man gave her a fool in marriage, God gave her a king.
And so it happens that during the time that David was hiding out from king Saul who was trying to kill him, David and his men protected the livestock and servants of this man named Nabal. When it was shearing time, they had big festivities and feasts. David sends a messenger to Nabal and says to him, we have protected your servants and your livestock, please send us whatever you will to provide for us. He could have demanded a specific price, but he knew that his true Provider was God above, so he said whatever you will. Nabal, fool that he was, sends the message back stating that he did not even know David and owed him nothing. Needless to say, David is surely on the way to destroy the entire house as he is a warrior.
One of Abigail's servants comes and tells her what Nabal said to David. She quickly puts together meat, wine, and bread along with blankets and other items David and his men may need and puts this on the back of donkeys and sends it ahead of her. She then gets on a donkey herself and goes to David. She did not tell her husband the fool, what she was doing. She goes out to meet David as he is on the way to destroy her entire household. She falls down on her face, bowing low before him and she tells him to place all the blame on her. She asks him to forgive her, that she was not there when his servant came to her house and that she hopes the gifts she brought will be enough for him to spare her household. David tells her to rise and that she is very much appreciated for saving him from destroying the house of Nabal. He tells her to go home, that she will receive what she asked him for, meaning her house would not be attacked.
She goes home, Nabal is drunk so she cannot tell him what she did right then, and she decides to go to bed and tell him in the morning. She wakes up, he is sober, she tells him how she saved his household. God strikes his heart and it becomes a stone in his chest, which means he went into a coma. He was in the coma for 10 days, then the Lord struck him again and he died.
This is what I find amazing about Abigail... She is in an ugly situation, her marriage was not chosen by her, her family arranged it and she is married to a fool. There is no out, no divorce, no options. So she tries to work around her situation and save her servants and the fool too. She falls down in humility before David. He had already been annointed as the king of Israel, and she gives him the respect of his future position. She talks sense into an angry man. How often will we yell back instead of trying to diffuse the situation? Obviously it is better to try to diffuse it. She did this with both David and Nabal. With David, she tried to appease him and give him more than enough to compensate for the wrong of Nabal. With Nabal, she tried to wait until the right time, then calmly tell him the truth, willing to accept the consequences of her actions. On both occasions, God stepped in and fixed the situation.
The ending of the story is that David sent his servants back to Abigail and asked her to be his wife. She tells the servants of David, that she is a servant to their master and willing to wash the feet of his servants. This is an amazing show of humility. She is willing to put herself below the place of the servant and wash their feet. She goes back and marries David. Man gave her a fool in marriage, God gave her a king.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
