The whole search was necessitated by the vacancy in the palace. Queen Vashti was deposed, her throne empty, and the King was lonely. For someone who had access to myriads of women to prefer one was testament to the fact that his bride was special and if he then lost her, he would obviously miss her absence. He woke up, the morning after a drunken spree and desired his Queen, he sent for her only to be told she had been taken out. His action was regretted, but he could not break his own laws.
It was at this point that the story of Esther’s life became interesting.
At the King Ahasuerus’ command, the guards combed the length and breadth of the land picking every young girl that they saw fit to replace Queen Vashti. Word made their rounds, and everyone tried to stay home. Mordecai even tried to hide Esther but the nosy neighbours already let it slip that Mordecai lived with a young maiden and she was definitely home. They marched in and searched everywhere until they found where she was hiding. Esther was taken, and she joined other young and extremely beautiful girls on their journey to the harem.
Let us face it, the prospect of being queen was not a bad idea, but for Esther, what were the odds? she was not even Persian, plus she was one of four hundred stunningly beautiful virgins. The King only needed one Queen but all four hundred of them would have go through the selection process that lasted a whole year! They took a whole year to prepare for one night with the king and there were at least four hundred maidens. So, in essence it took almost three years to find a worthy replacement for Vashti. What kind of a kingdom preoccupies itself for three whole years sampling all kinds of maidens ostensibly in search of a Queen?
It does not end there, If a virgin was chosen, she would be queen and if not, she would return to the second harem where the King kept his concubines. Once in the second harem, she could only appear before the king if he sent for her by name. One can only exclaim, really! Waste the lives of 400 promising young girls just so one man can fulfil his desires? Amazing!
The prospects of that kind of life could not have been exciting to a young girl who had her whole life in front of her. She was young and if she returned to Jerusalem, would most likely find a nice young man who would be delighted to have her. To be caught in the vain traditions of this strange land was in itself a contradiction to the life promised to God’s chosen race. Esther was chosen alright but for the purpose of pleasuring a crazy heathen king who surrounded himself with friendly foes whose preoccupation was to jostle for positions? was not a worthy cause. If providence did not wade in, it would be a terrible way to waste God’s inheritance.
Books by Anne Ajadi (Available on Amazon)
Walk With Me In The Footsteps Of Jesus
Heart Matters Life Matters
Navigating The Night Season
You Will Marry Well
Strength For The Journey
God’s Lady In Waiting
Prayer Works
