A Queen who foreshadowed the King
In the book of Esther, though God’s name is never explicitly mentioned, God’s providential hand unmistakably weaves His thread of redemption. And in Queen Esther’s positioning, courage and mediation we glimpse Jesus; the ultimate Regal Redeemer.
Esther is divinely positioned into the Persian palace, as cousin and guardian Mordecai ponders: “Who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14) Behind political intrigue and palace drama, God orchestrates events, as He still does in today’s world of princes and politicians. God sovereignly sets His servant Esther in the right place at the right time. Likewise, Jesus came into the world “when the fullness of time had come” (Galatians 4:4). Augustine observes, “The New Testament lies hidden in the Old, and the Old is made plain in the New.” Esther pictures Christ: the mediator raised up in obscurity, elevated to royal authority, and interceding for their people’s salvation.
May we each realise we are not where we are by accident or a quirk of fate. Discern the Divine providence in your unique placement: in your family, workplace and community. Christ’s church must awaken to its ambassadorship for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20). We are lights, carefully and timely placed in a world of darkness and hostility. God remains sovereign even in the shadows.
Esther’s courage shines most brightly when she resolves to risk all in her approaching the king uninvited, endangering her own life to plead for her people: “I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” (Esther 4:16). Her words anticipate Christ’s costly obedience. Jesus entered not merely the throne room of an earthly king but the courts of sin and death. He faced divine wrath against sin for the sake of us sinners.
Jesus’ Gethsemane prayer carries the tone of courageous surrender: “Not my will, but Yours be done.” (Luke 22:42). Esther and Jesus embody bravery born of trust in a higher and greater purpose. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.” Courage in the Kingdom of God is never about self-preservation but about sacrificial obedience born from love and realised through faith. Jesus said, “Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 16:25)
Intercessor Esther, risking her life, intervening to prevent annihilation of her people, foreshadows Jesus, laying down his life, intervening on our behalf on the cross as He “offered Himself once for all” (Hebrews 10:10). Esther faced an unjust law and Jesus fulfils God’s perfect Law - for all those who have broken it – and that includes you and me. Esther’s crown of gold gives way to Christ’s crown of thorns. Esther’s words of courage prefigure Christ’s words of surrender. May we each choose to live in faith and love, “for such a time as this”.
Revd Michael Hogg