A Queen's Refusal (Est. 1:13-18)

The king called in the seven highest officials of Persia and Media … These men were very wise and understood all the laws and customs of the country, and the king always asked them what they thought about such matters. The king said to them, "Queen Vashti refused to come to me when I sent my servants for her. What does the law say I should do about that?" Then Memucan told the king and the officials: Your Majesty, Queen Vashti has not only embarrassed you, but she has insulted your officials and everyone else in all the provinces. The women in the kingdom will hear about this, and they will refuse to respect their husbands. They will say, "If Queen Vashti doesn't obey her husband, why should we?" Before this day is over, the wives of the officials of Persia and Media will find out what Queen Vashti has done, and they will refuse to obey their husbands. They won't respect their husbands, and their husbands will be angry with them.”
(Esther 1:13-18, CEV)

Today’s passage is longer than usual, but the verses really need to be studied together. As I read them, a couple of things stand out to me.

First, King Xerxes really is a bit of a wimp. He can’t make any decision on his own. And he’s a bit of a whiner. You can almost see his pouty lip as he cries, “She wouldn’t come and dance naked for my friends. Tell me what I can do to punish her?”

Second, the men of the day aren’t in any way concerned about the feelings of women. I mean really. Vashti is Xerxes' queen. His wife. He must have some kind of love for her. But he thought nothing of asking her to debase herself in front of hundreds. He only wanted to feed his own ego.

Finally, the only thing the rest of the men were concerned about is how Vashti’s refusal would affect them. No worries about what she was asked to do. If the queen would “disobey,” then any women could do the same. They would refuse to respect their husbands.

The really sadly ironic part? I don’t think Vashti was being disrespectful to Xerxes. Had he asked her to come and politely greet his guest, she probably would have gladly done so. But to be asked to parade naked in front of a bunch of drunken men? Any self-respecting wife would refuse.

Yes, I do believe Vashti knew the risk she took in refusing, and she was absolutely right.

Tomorrow, we’ll look at the consequences of her right, but risky choice.