Kings and Kingdoms
30 Days in Ruth and Esther - day 15
The opening scene of Esther takes us to Shushan (Susa), the capital of the Medo-Persian Empire. King Ahasuerus sits on the throne. His kingdom is vast, stretching from India to Ethiopia, centered in what we would call modern-day Iran.
This is, without exaggeration, the ruling power of the world at that time. Other nations exist, but none rival this empire’s wealth, reach, or authority. No king appears greater than Ahasuerus.
History has seen others like it. Egypt. Greece. Rome. Each rose to power. Each produced rulers who carried themselves with near god-like authority. Each looked permanent and unstoppable.
Where are they now?
They are studied in books and covered in the dirt.
The book of Esther is unique. God is never mentioned by name. There are no recorded prayers, no miracles, no acts of worship. What we see instead is politics, power, pride, and human ambition.
And yet…
God is everywhere in the story.
With every turn of the page, events unfold in ways no human power could orchestrate. What appears to be the absolute authority of a king is quietly overruled by a greater hand.
The message becomes clear: everything that appears ultimate, everything that seems unstoppable—if it is rooted in this world alone—will come to an end.
“Kings and kingdoms will all pass away…”
What remains is what cannot be shaken.
The Kingdom of God.
When Dietrich Bonhoeffer was given the opportunity to remain in America and avoid the danger of Nazi Germany, he refused. He believed he could not abandon his people in their time of need and then return later to help rebuild. What is striking is that he spoke this way when Nazi power was still rising, not falling.
He saw what others could not yet see.
He understood that no earthly kingdom, no matter how powerful, can endure.
As Hebrews tells us, everything that can be shaken will be shaken...so that what cannot be shaken will remain.
The Kingdom of God.
The question we must personally face is not which kingdom will win, but which kingdom you will be a part of.
