God’s Own Vashti


Esther 2:
1. After these things, when the wrath of king Ahasuerus was appeased, he remembered Vashti, and what she had done, and what was decreed against her:
2. Then said the king’s servants that ministered to him, Let there be fair young virgins sought for the king
3. And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shushan the palace to the house of women, unto the custody of Hege the king’s chamberlain, keeper of the women and let their things for purification be given them
4. And let the maiden which pleaseth the king be queen instead of Vashti. And the thing pleased the king, and he did so.

We inadvertently left the issue of God’s own Vashti hanging in the last post. The first couple in the garden of Eden were a type of God’s queen, his wife; they’re his tender plant in the garden to which He returned often. Just when there was a lull in the frequency of visit, the interloper intruded violently into their space and sowed a seed of discord into the heart of the garden. Suddenly, the eyes of the couple saw into the far future and were fascinated by the glory into which they could step into outside of and without God! It was a quiet coup d’etat against God; His creatures on whom he’d generously devoted attention in creation revolted against His authority.


This treasonable act, by the law of divine nature and righteousness, demanded death, spiritual; the couple were banished from the divine presence. This was death in reality. It’s not the physical ceasation of vital life of the organs of the body, but total exclusion from God’s eternal presence. This was a great victory for the usurper who painted doubts against God as good news. Though the law of divine nature was in motion, God had His hidden plan that was called, in later days by apostle Paul, the mystery.


Man didn’t earn the total banishment from God’s presence as He Himself found a way of sneaking into his creation and made it possible for the creature to be welcomed yet again into His presence. Why use the verb sneak? Because technically, as soon as the treasonable act subsisted, God automatically ceased being the Lord, the king of His created world!
The first thing God did for man’s redemption was to kill an animal whose skin He used as covering for the sinning couple. The shedding of blood of the innocent animal points to the future of the innocent God who would come as man to shed His blood to make at-one-ment (atonement) for the guilty and sinful man; the skin of the victim-animal for the covering of the sinful souls of the garden signifies redemption offered by God in Jesus Christ.


However, the prophet of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was a noxious individual infecting man with his own toxic nature and man, though trying hard to climb unto the absolute righteous nature of God, was not successful. As a matter of fact, only one man in that world of suffusing miasma of evil was in the presence of God so real as to disappear into Him! I speak of Enoch. But the decaying nature of man continued to assume greater speed and was, careering off, unstoppable. By the days of Abraham, life of man was but snuffed out completely. Again, God’s wisdom overruled the devil’s usurpation of the world and succeeded in making covenant with Abraham (a groomed wife, a Vashti) whose descendants He groomed to be a kingdom of priests standing between man and the Creator of heaven and earth.
“And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation…” (Exodus 19:6). Yet, the reign of death (Romans 5:21) was unrelenting in its vice like grips. And that was another rebellious Vashti in the offing. God divorced the descendants by the name of Israel, a nation. “And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce…” (Jeremiah 3:8). By the time of the Lord Jesus, death’s reign had completely taken over man. No nation ever failed their gods and goddesses like Israel did God. She failed to fulfill the reason for her call to give God His satisfaction. “I the Lord have called you in righteousness…. for a covenant of the people, for a light to the Gentiles” (Isaiah 42:6). The satisfaction to God was that this nation should stand in the office of priest to the nations and peoples of the world, but she cornered God for her own national interest. And God’s righteous nature responded: “The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing the fruits thereof” (Mathew 21:43).

Vashti decided she had enough of the king and became contemptuous. She settled down to pleasing and satisfying herself instead of the king. May my strength, o Lord, to come to this way of thinking fail if I’m inadvertently induced. You see, Lord, I frequently encounter this inducer of the heart with evil, contemptuous thoughts. But, I pray that strength for contempt will fail me so that I’ll do a walkover… The kingdom of your eternal presence shall not be taken away from me. Thank You Lord for the safeguard