Esther 5:5-8

B. Curiosity

TEXT: Esther 5:5-8

5

Then the king said, Cause Haman to make haste, that it may be done as Esther hath said. So the king and Haman came to the banquet that Esther had prepared.

6

And the king said unto Esther at the banquet of wine, What is thy petition? and it shall be granted thee: and what is thy request? even to the half of the kingdom it shall be performed.

7

Then answered Esther, and said, My petition and my request is:

8

if I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it please the king to grant my petition, and to perform my request, let the king and Haman come to the banquet that I shall prepare for them, and I will do to-morrow as the king hath said.

Today's English Version, Esther 5:5-8

The king then ordered Haman to come quickly, so that they could be Esther's guests. So the king and Haman went to Esther's banquet. Over the wine the king asked her, Tell me what you want, and you shall have it. I will grant your request, even if you ask for half my empire.
Esther replied, If your Majesty is kind enough to grant my request, I would like you and Haman to be my guests tomorrow at another banquet that I will prepare for you. At that time I will tell you what I want.

COMMENTS

Esther 5:5-6 Piqued: It is evident from the emperor's immediate reaction that his curiosity is aroused. He knew that Esther had not risked her life just to invite him to a banquet! Xerxes insists that Haman hurry to the banquet. Esther has again used her female wiles to good advantage. Xerxes can hardly wait to find out Esther's real reason for approaching him. The Hebrew text uses not only the word mishetteh (drinking bout, see Esther 1:8-9) but also uses the word yayin (wine) to describe Esther's feast. It was a party! Xerxes repeats his grandiose promise of half his kingdom if Esther shall request it.

Esther 5:7-8 Postponed: Dangerous as it must have been to keep this impetuous monarch hanging on the hooks of curiosity, Esther postpones a second time the revelation of her real reason for violating the sacred law of the Persians about approaching the emperor uninvited. Esther begins as if she is about to divulge her secret request and then cleverly holds the king in suspense. Some think Esther hesitated to state her request because she was afraid. However, as Mordecai has already convinced her, she has little to lose by pleading with the king since she will perish with all her kinsmen once it is know that she too is a Jew. Esther seems already to have committed herself to making the pleas. She knows that, if she succeeds, one more postponement of her real request will only intensify the desire of the king to please his queen by granting what must be a very spectacular request from her. He may even be thinking about the glory that will be his once this magnificent request Esther has is fulfilled in his emperial name,

We may learn the following lessons from this chapter:

1.

God's providential assistance does not preclude Esther's (and our) best use of human capabilities.

2.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

3.

Although the urgency of some situations might seem to call for haste, if time permits one's first reaction should be postponed,

4.

There is nothing like piqued curiosity as a tool for manipulation.