Esther 2:5-7

Tuesday September 9, 2014 Read: Esther 2:5-7 5 Now there was in the citadel of Susa a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin, named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, 6 who had been carried into exile from Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, among those taken captive with Jehoiachin king of Judah. 7 Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah, whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother. This young woman, who was also known as Esther, had a lovely figure and was beautiful. Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died.

Scripture: James 1:27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Commentary http://www.easyenglish.info/bible-commentaries/: Esther Verses 5-7 The writer interrupts the story to tell us about Esther and Mordecai. They are very important people in the story. They were Jews.

The king of Babylon had taken King Jehoiachin and many of the Jews away from Jerusalem over 100 years earlier. Esther’s Jewish name was Hadassah. The name Esther might be the same as Ishtar, who was the female god of love in Babylon. Often the people in Babylon gave Jews the names of false gods. They did this because they wanted the Jews to forget the real God. Esther was very beautiful. God made her beautiful, because he was going to make her the queen. God makes each of us what he wants us to be.

James 1 Verse 27 This is not a full description of what true and pure religion is. It does show the kind of religion that God accepts. There must be these two parts to it. There must be a real love for God and a love for men and women. Love always wants to do good things. Religion must be more than words. It must show our love for God in what we do and what we are. An example of that love in action is the care of those who are in need. Orphans and widows had no help and no-one to look after them. These were the two groups most in need of aid. Pure religion is to go to these to comfort and to help them. Pure religion has to do with what we are as well as what we do. We have to love God and to please him. He demands that we should be holy, as he is holy. This means that we should keep ourselves from all the moral evil that is in the world. But God does not accept people because of their good works. He accepts them because they have a true relationship with him. And those who know God like this will do good works. He is not only their God but he is their Father. They have become his children by trusting in the Lord Jesus

Application: Mordecai life was filled with challenges that he turned into opportunity to serve God. He showed great love for Esther. At the time she was left orphaned by her parents death, he was over a hundred years. He took her in and raised her as his own. Had Mordecai not stepped up Esther would have had beg, sell herself, or she would have starved. Mordecai put his faith in action. He had no hope of receiving anything in return but still he served God. As Christians we need to keep ourselves from being polluted by the world and things of the world. We need to be committed to Christ’s value and moral system. The world’s moral system is based on money, power and pleasure. True faith can mean nothing if we are committed to such values. Instead our focus should be faith, God and family.

Prayer: Jesus you have given me so much. I have a home, food, friends, and family. You have blessed me with so much. I am forever grateful for each blessing. Father their are so many that have nothing. They face hunger and homelessness, protect them Father, keep them safe and feed. Help them find their way through life, to hear You and know Your voice. Father I pray You would give me a heart for the less fortunate. I pray that I can lift them up and help them in some way. In Your name I pray. Amen