Have you ever thought about the unseen hand of God? Although the hand of God is at work in our daily lives, we usually don’t see it. But the Lord is ever present, working when He seems to be most noticeably absent, as we see in the book of Esther.
Esther is unique in respect and is the only book of the Bible that does not mention God directly. Yet, the Lord’s fingerprints are everywhere in this book. In our story today, we will see how God is at work behind the scenes and is firmly and sovereignly in control.
God’s Fingerprints are Everywhere
The hand of God is evident when the king couldn’t fall asleep. As a result, he ordered an attendant to read to him from the book of the history of his reign. As the attendant read the records, he discovered an account of how Mordecai had saved the King. Mordecai exposed a plot to kill the king by two eunuchs who guarded the door to the king’s private quarters. Esther 6: 3 “What reward or recognition did we ever give Mordecai for this?” the king asked. His attendants replied, “Nothing has been done for him.”[1]
While the king couldn’t sleep, Haman was building a gallows to kill Mordecai. Even though Haman was second in command, the fact that Mordecai wouldn’t bow to him distressed him. Haman had already sent out a decree to kill all Jews in eleven months, but he wanted Mordecai dead now. Esther 6: 4 “Who is that in the outer court?” the king inquired. As it happened, Haman had just arrived in the outer court of the palace to ask the king to impale Mordecai on the pole he had prepared. [2]
The timing of the sleepless night and choice of reading material had to be the hand of God. Xerxes asked Haman how a man should be honored. Haman assumed he was the one to be honored and named all the things he desired. Then the king ordered Haman to do this for Mordecai! Haman was forced to publicly honor the one he wanted to publicly kill.
The Unseen Hand of God in Your Life
The Lord guides and controls events, which gives us great comfort as believers. People like to think they are in control, but that is untrue. Some even like to think our enemy, satan, is in control. The reality is God is in control and always has been.
The Lord is working out His plan and purpose in our lives and the world, although it may not look like it. No matter what type of situation you find yourself in, remember that God is in control, and His invisible hand is at work. Sometimes, only in retrospect do we realize God’s hand was upon us. To learn more about the unseen hand of God, listen here:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/mordecai-honored
[1-2] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Tyndale House Publishers.