Every year Jewish children read the book of Esther twice, wearing masks, and they learn to boo at the name of Haman and cheer at the name of Mordecai. The name Esther itself means hidden. That tradition opens a sermon about three things that come back in every story of the heroes of exile (Esther 5-8): the choice a person has to face, the good that can stay forgotten for years, and the great reversal, when everything changes in a moment. The king simply could not sleep, and the fate of a whole nation hung on that one sleepless night. Listen if you too sometimes think that nobody remembers your faithfulness any more.
Is It Just Coincidence?
The Absent One
God is invisible-we know that, but sometimes we also fail to see His hand at work in our daily lives and wonder if He truly rules this world. The Book of Esther is the only book in the Bible in which the word “God” does not appear, and yet it is hard not to notice that everything that happens there is under His control. It is a remarkable book describing very ordinary and imperfect people who, despite their shortcomings, played an important role in God’s plans. This is possible for us, too.
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