Lesson focus: continuation of the Second Exodus study in Esther, covering chapters 5 and 6 and following directly from Esther 4.
Encouragement to read or reread Esther 5–6 before the lesson to prepare heart and mind for the teaching (Esther 5–6).
Contextual illustration: protocols for meeting British royalty (e.g., the Queen) show how failure to follow royal protocol can lead to embarrassment or removal; in ancient Persia, failure could result in immediate execution.
Connection to Esther: Esther’s approach to King Ahasuerus in Esther 5 is dangerous because violating court protocol carries the penalty of death (Esther 4:11; Esther 5:1–2).
Recap of Esther 4: Esther and Mordecai learn of Haman’s decree to destroy all the Jews; Esther calls for a three-day fast and resolves to go to the king, saying, “If I perish, I perish” (Esther 4:13–17).
Esther’s Plan: Prayerful, Thoughtful, and Measured Action
Overview of Esther’s plan:
Scott organizes Esther’s strategy under three aspects: prayer, thoughtfulness, and just the necessary action.
Chapters 5–6 unfold over only two days, yet they showcase how Esther’s plan works within God’s providence (Esther 5–6).
First aspect: Prayer and fasting before acting:
Esther’s plan begins in chapter 4 as she calls all the Jews in Susa to fast for three days and nights, while she and her young women fast as well (Esther 4:15–17).
Scripture does not record the specific answers God gave, but Esther brings the whole impossible situation—an irreversible decree, the threat to all Jews, and her unique placement—to God rather than rushing ahead.
Psalm 118 (cited as Psalm 18 in the lesson) reminds believers that God hears and delivers: “Out of my distress I called on the Lord; the Lord answered me and set me free … What can man do to me?” (Psalm 118:5–7).
Second aspect: Thoughtful preparation and protocol:
The three days of fasting likely provided a quiet space for Esther to think through when and how to approach the king, whether alone or in a group, and what setting would be best (Esther 4:16; Esther 5:1).
Esther dresses in her royal robes, ensuring the king clearly recognizes her from a distance in the court, signaling careful preparation for this moment (Esther 5:1).
When the king extends the golden scepter, Esther follows protocol exactly, approaching respectfully and touching the tip of the scepter, assuming a posture of humility and honoring his authority (Esther 5:2–3).
Third aspect: Just the necessary action—two feasts and measured requests:
Rather than impulsively asking the king to reverse the decree, Esther invites him and Haman to a feast that same day, creating a controlled and favorable setting (Esther 5:4–5).
At the first feast, when the king asks her petition, she delays the specific request and invites him and Haman to a second feast the following day, building suspense and buying time without ad‑libbing (Esther 5:6–8).
This planned pause—where “nothing happens” outwardly—is actually part of her careful strategy, allowing God’s unseen work to unfold between the two feasts (Esther 5–6).
Throughout, Esther remains respectful, mindful of her place in the hierarchy, and does not presumptuously exploit her position as queen.
Haman’s Plan: Hatred, Emotional Instability, and Evil Counsel
Haman’s background and hatred:
Haman is an Agagite, a descendant of the Amalekites, the nomadic people who attacked Israel shortly after the Exodus, forming a long-standing enmity with Israel (Exodus 17:8–16; Esther 3:1).
This deep-seated hatred of the Jews is in Haman’s bloodline and fuels his genocidal intent against the Jewish people (Esther 3:5–9; Esther 5:9).
Haman’s “best day ever” quickly poisoned by hatred:
Haman enjoys a remarkable honor as the only person invited by the queen to a special feast with the king, and he is invited again for the next day, leaving the palace joyful and glad of heart (Esther 5:9, Esther 5:12).
His joy evaporates within minutes when he sees Mordecai at the gate refusing to rise or tremble before him; he is filled with wrath, revealing how completely hatred dominates him (Esther 5:9).
Emotion-driven planning and pride:
At home, Haman gathers his wife and friends, boasting of his riches, sons, promotions, and exclusive access to the queen, reveling in his glory (Esther 5:10–12).
Yet he admits that all of this means nothing to him as long as he sees Mordecai sitting at the king’s gate, showing how his rage empties his successes of any real joy (Esther 5:13).
Haman’s emotional life is a roller coaster—soaring pride and deep rage—making his decisions unstable and dangerous (Esther 5:9–13).
Evil counsel and the plan to execute Mordecai:
Instead of calming him, Haman’s wife Zeresh and his friends escalate the evil by advising him to have a gallows (likely a tall execution stake) fifty cubits high made and to ask the king in the morning to have Mordecai hanged on it (Esther 5:14).
Ancient Persians were known for brutal, drawn-out executions, so this plan represents a desire not merely to kill but to torture and publicly shame Mordecai (Esther 5:14).
Haman gladly adopts their counsel, demonstrating that evil people surrounded by like-minded supporters will pursue increasingly extreme and horrendous plans.
Contrast with Esther’s plan:
Esther’s plan is led by prayer, marked by thoughtful patience, and expressed in precise, restrained actions under God’s providence; Haman’s plan is fueled by hatred, driven by uncontrolled emotions, and encouraged by evil counsel (Esther 4:16; Esther 5:1–8; Esther 5:9–14).
This contrast highlights two ways of living: trusting God and seeking His wisdom versus allowing fleshly passions and pride to drive destructive choices (James 1:19–20; Galatians 5:19–21 implied).
God’s Hidden Plan: Love, Care, and Detailed Providence in Esther 5–6
Framing the main question:
Beyond Esther’s and Haman’s plans, there is a larger, unseen plan at work—God’s plan that runs through Esther 5–6, through the whole book, and through all of Scripture and history.
Main question for the lesson: How do these chapters in Esther demonstrate God’s love and care for His people? (Esther 5–6).
Key truth 1: God is the initiator—His redemptive plans precede and undergird history:
God’s purposes in Scripture are not reactive; His plan for redemption, culminating in Jesus’ incarnation, death, resurrection, and ascension, was set from the beginning, not as “Plan B” after Adam and Eve’s fall (Ephesians 1:3–10; 1 Peter 1:20).
In Esther, God’s providential placement of Esther, Mordecai, and even a pagan king unfolds a plan already in motion long before the crisis emerges (Esther 2–6).
Key truth 2: God works in the details, not only in the “big” events:
Psalm 40:5 teaches that God has multiplied His wondrous deeds and thoughts toward His people; they are more than can be told, indicating limitless, personal care (Psalm 40:5).
Believers often think of God’s power in massive events like the first Exodus—plagues, Red Sea crossing, wilderness provision—but Esther 5–6 showcases God’s intricate orchestration of small, seemingly mundane details (Exodus 7–14; Esther 5–6).
Detailed providence in Esther 6:
Each person—Ahasuerus, Esther, Haman, and Mordecai—has separate plans and limited knowledge; none knows what the others are planning, yet God weaves their actions together like puzzle pieces (Esther 5–6).
On a specific night, the king cannot sleep and, among many possible remedies, chooses to have the book of chronicles read to him (Esther 6:1).
The volume brought happens to contain the record of Mordecai’s uncovering of the assassination plot from five years earlier, with Mordecai correctly identified as the one who saved the king’s life (Esther 2:21–23; Esther 6:1–2).
The king realizes Mordecai has never been honored and decides to act that very day, rather than postponing recognition (Esther 6:3).
At that precise time, Haman arrives early in the court intending to ask for Mordecai’s execution on the gallows he has just built (Esther 5:14; Esther 6:4).
The king asks Haman how to honor “the man whom the king delights to honor,” and Haman, assuming the king means him, proposes an elaborate public honor—royal robes, the king’s horse, and public proclamation—never imagining it is for Mordecai (Esther 6:6–9).
The king commands Haman to do exactly this for Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king’s gate, requiring Haman to lead the honor procession for the man he came to destroy (Esther 6:10–11).
These finely tuned details reveal God’s unseen hand working through timing, memory, pride, insomnia, and court routines to protect His servant and humble the wicked.
Key truth 3: God uses even evil instruments and creates outcomes that bring Him glory:
Proverbs 21:1 affirms that “the king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it wherever He will,” and this is seen as God directs Ahasuerus’s decisions without violating his humanity (Proverbs 21:1; Esther 6:1–3).
God uses an evil man, Haman, as the very instrument to devise and carry out the public exaltation of Mordecai, turning Haman’s pride and hatred back on his own head (Esther 6:6–12).
The events of this single day become a pivot point—a kairos moment—in Israel’s history, moving the story from an impending path of destruction toward a path of life and deliverance to be unfolded in the following chapters (Esther 6–10).
Application: Recognizing God’s Initiating Work, His Details, and His Outcomes
Seeing God as the initiator in personal life:
God has already started a work in each believer’s life; His plans and purposes for them predate their awareness, and Esther’s story encourages reflection on what God has already begun (Philippians 1:6; Esther 2–6).
Question for reflection: Do I recognize what God has done and is doing in my life, especially the things He has already started that I can now see in hindsight?
Noticing the details of God’s care:
Esther 5–6 invites believers to look for specific “small” details—timings, relationships, closed and open doors—in which God has clearly been at work in their stories (Psalm 40:5; Esther 6:1–11).
Question for reflection: When I look back over my life, where do I see detailed evidences of God’s hand—particular circumstances, conversations, or “coincidences” that He used for my good?
Praying for God’s outcomes instead of settling for one’s own:
God’s outcomes, as in Esther, are designed to bring Him glory and ultimately to bless His people, whereas human plans often aim only at personal comfort or short-term relief (Romans 8:28; Esther 6:13–14).
Question for reflection: Am I praying specifically for God’s outcomes in my life, or am I mostly pursuing my own plans and asking Him to bless them?
Preparing for Vertical Endeavor and ongoing growth:
Men attending the Vertical Endeavor retreat (or similar events) are encouraged to approach these questions with a humble, quiet, and soft heart, perhaps journaling as they seek God’s perspective.
These questions are not limited to a retreat setting but are helpful anytime believers want to discern how God has initiated, detailed, and guided the outcomes of their lives for His glory and their good.
Closing prayer emphasis:
The lesson closes with prayer, thanking God for His Word, His gospel, His love and care, and His detailed plans and purposes for His people.
Closing prayer: that God would reveal His planned outcomes that bring Him glory and bless His people, asking for God’s blessing on all who listen to and apply these truths from Esther 5–6.
