Sermon: Purified For The King (Esther 2:11-19)

Purified For The King Sunday, January 12th, 2025 Christ Covenant Church – Centralia, WA

Esther 2:11-19 And Mordecai walked every day before the court of the women’s house, to know how Esther did, and what should become of her. Now when every maid’s turn was come to go in to king Ahasuerus, after that she had been twelve months, according to the manner of the women, (for so were the days of their purifications accomplished, to wit, six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with sweet odours, and with other things for the purifying of the women;) Then thus came every maiden unto the king; whatsoever she desired was given her to go with her out of the house of the women unto the king’s house. In the evening she went, and on the morrow she returned into the second house of the women, to the custody of Shaashgaz, the king’s chamberlain, which kept the concubines: she came in unto the king no more, except the king delighted in her, and that she were called by name. Now when the turn of Esther, the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her for his daughter, was come to go in unto the king, she required nothing but what Hegai the king’s chamberlain, the keeper of the women, appointed. And Esther obtained favour in the sight of all them that looked upon her. So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus into his house royal in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign. And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti. Then the king made a great feast unto all his princes and his servants, even Esther’s feast; and he made a release to the provinces, and gave gifts, according to the state of the king. And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai sat in the king’s gate.

Prayer

Our Father, we thank you for the sevenfold purity of your word, through which our hearts are made clean, and we are fashioned by your hands into vessels of mercy, honorable and sanctified for every good work. Please form us and reform us as we hear your word now, for we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Introduction

This morning, we come to a very happy section in the book of Esther which is her marriage to King Ahasuerus and her elevation to the office of Queen instead of Vashti. And this royal marriage also marks the conclusion of one of the important sub-plots of this book which is that the King needs a new and better queen, and it also sets up the second sub-plot where the King needs a new and better advisor or prime minister.

• So the basic flow of this book is that first Esther will replace Vashti, then Mordecai will replace Haman, and then through a series of great reversals, God shakes the nations, many Gentiles are converted, and God’s enemies are destroyed.
• So while we are focusing in on just one part of that story, we don’t want to forget the broader narrative which all of Scripture testifies to and that is God’s love for the human soul, and Christ’s love for the church. The Bible begins with the marriage of Adam and Eve, and it ends with the marriage of God to Humanity, Christ to His Bride, and we will see that marriage foreshadowed here as Esther is purified, chosen, and wed to the King.

So in the sermon this morning I am going to first give you the literal or historical sense of these verses. And then we’ll double back and consider the spiritual sense that those realities point to.

The Literal Historical Sense

We can divide our text into two sections.

• In verses 11-14, Esther is Purified.
• In verses 15-19, Esther is Glorified.

Verse 11

11And Mordecai walked every day before the court of th