The party is over! The king is angry, the court officials are appalled, and the queen is realizing that she made a big mistake!
King Xerxes in his anger and frustration turned to his court advisors to figure out what to do considering Queen Vashti’s disobedience. Memucan, one of the advisors, might have stood up and said, “Good king, ‘no man/woman is an island!’ What the queen did affected not just you but your whole kingdom!”
It is true for us as well. What we do or don’t do has an effect on others around us. The Word exhorts us in Romans 13:5, that “everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities….” And in Hebrews 13:17 it says, “Obey your leaders and submit to their authority.” We are also told in I Timothy 4:12 to “set an example for the believers…” and in I Thessalonians 1:7-8 [to be] ”a model to all the believers….”
If we don’t submit to our authorities, why should we expect others to submit? A simple example would be obeying the speed limits. To obey them is to submit to the Transportation Authority that has set those limits for our safety. If we don’t submit to that authority and don’t obey the limits, why should we expect our youth when they start driving to submit to and obey the limits? Others are watching our example and are likely to follow us–even possibly to a greater extent.
Remember the saying, “Actions speak louder than words?” Well, these are the things that Memucan was so concerned about when he said,
For this deed of the queen shall become known to all women, and so shall they despise their husbands…There will be no end of disrespect and discord. (verse 17)
He was greatly concerned that others would follow Vashti’s example to even greater extremes. Therefore, to stop that potential fallout there had to be consequences for her actions. She lost favor with the king, she lost her position of respect, and she lost those precious possessions that go along with the position. The punishment corresponded to the crime: she wouldn’t go before the king–so she was denied access to the king from that point on.
Now remembering that King Xerxes was a foreshadow of a greater King, Jesus, we need to recognize Vashti as a foreshadow of the Jewish people. Time and again the Jews refused to submit to God’s commandments. They chose to “do their own thing.” And thus they lost favor with God and were even separated from Him by exile to foreign lands. As with Vashti, the punishment corresponded to the crime.
When Jesus came, he came to be the Jews’ King. Through His example, His teachings, and His miracles, He tried to draw the Jews to Himself. Matthew 23:37 says, “I longed to gather your children together…and you were not willing”—you would not submit.
Our author, Darlene, writes, “righteousness is conformity to God’s laws,” —submitting to God’s Will and God’s Way. I think of righteousness as “being in right standing with God.” But most of us, like the Jews, like to do things our own way. Surely we are good enough. We do good deeds! Vashti thought her beauty and position were enough to sustain her! We, as Vashti did, try to define our own righteousness by our own rules. “Beauty is only skin deep,” and so is our “goodness” unless we come before God in submission and in faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 3:22, 4:3-5).
If Vashti had come in submission before the King it would have shown everyone that she trusted him. It would have put her in “right standing” with the king. Perhaps he would have presented her with some lovely gift or a new royal robe! In Matthew 22:1-14 (the parable of the wedding banquet) many were invited to come but most refused to attend. They were doing their “own thing” and didn’t have time for the king’s banquet. Others came and accepted the wedding garment and enjoyed the party. The man in verses 11 and 12 refused to submit to the king and his offer of security and right standing (righteousness) and, like Vashti, he was forever separated from the one who wanted to save him (verse 13).
ALL of us are invited to Christ’s banquet, but only those prepared can come and stay. For us, the garment represents our covering of righteousness provided through our faith in Jesus Christ to make us acceptable in God’s presence. God wants to clothe us with His robe of righteousness. He wants us to sit with Him in His heavenly realms (Ephesians 2:6). Have you accepted God’s invitation? Have you submitted to Him and allowed Him to clothe you with His robe of righteousness? If not, do it today, and join the greatest banquet ever!
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Let’s Pray:
Dear Lord,
Today we are reminded that our submission to You, our King, makes the difference between separation from you or being welcomed into Your presence. Help us, Lord, to also remember that what we do or don’t do does affect others. Thank You, Jesus, for offering through Your shed blood Your robe of righteousness. We cannot earn it and certainly don’t deserve it, but You are offering it to us freely as we have faith in You. We submit our lives to You, and ask You to clothe us with Your robe of righteousness. Thank You. In Jesus’ Name.
Amen.
