The Gospel According to Esther: The Gospel of Jesus Christ Within the Book of Esther

By VM Juliao

This book will take you through the Gospel of Jesus Christ from within the story of the old testament book of Esther. The characters in this book all have a very particular role that enables you to see its counterpart in the new testament. God has concealed truth within these old testament Scriptures and these stories contain these truths. Esther is one of them stories that contain the Gospel Message within its pages. Mordecai, the King, Esther, Hege, these are characters that illustrate the message of the new testament covenant. Though God is not even mentioned once in this book, we will see that Gods message is in every page. The Gospel according to Esther is about the message of salvation, it is about the story of the redemption of the chosen people of God. How they entered into condemnation and how they were delivered from it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Aug 31, 2016
• ISBN: 9781483579412

Book preview

Preface

Throughout these last years, I have attempted to write the things that the Lord has placed in my heart concerning the book of Esther. I have come to love this book for in it once again God makes known the mystery of the gospel of His Son Jesus Christ. It is my purpose to show forth how God conceals truth within the Scriptures, truth, and doctrine in the old testament that is clearly and outwardly taught in the new testament. Although the stories in the old testament like Esther seem to be just that, stories, they are much more than that, they are conduits of doctrine, ways in which God teaches His People His Beloved Truth. The Bible itself testifies to this truth, Proverbs 25:2 It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honor of kings is to search out a matter. The Scriptures are filled with such examples as we will see in the book of Esther, all revealing and pointing to the Glory of Jesus Christ. One such example is from the book of Jonah, Matthew 12:40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Jesus Christ was attributing to himself the story of Jonah. It was not about Jonah, Jonah was pointing to Christ. Jonah was but a shadow of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord said to His disciples on one occasion, Luke 24:44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. Concerning me says the Lord, of Him it is written in all the Scriptures yet we read nowhere of the name of Jesus in the old testament. How is it that it is written of Him? Concealed within the stories; that is how we read of Christ in the old testament Scriptures, Christ concealed within the stories. Christ told his disciples that the old testament contained information concerning Him. Before His birth, during His humanity, and after his ascension. The Law, the prophets and the psalms, they all speak of Him. God intentionally concealed truth and doctrine in the stories we read in the old testament to teach us concerning His Son Jesus Christ. This is the purpose of this book, to show forth Christ and His glorious gospel and the story of the redemption of God’s chosen people from the bonds of death and sin. It has pleased God our Father to conceal the story of redemption within the pages of the Book of Esther. The apostle Paul said in his epistle to the Hebrews, Hebrews 10:1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. The law is then but a shadow of the real things, an illustration of the true substance. We have king David for example, he was a type or an illustration of the Lord Jesus Christ. We see in Psalm 22 the famous Psalm where he cries out, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Did not Christ say this on the cross at Calvary? David in this psalm is the shadow of the Lord, a type of Christ. Moses also was a type of Christ. He delivered a people from the bonds of slavery and brought them to the borders of the promised land. So did Christ, He delivered a people from the bonds of sin and brought them to the promised inheritance of eternal life. We see Joseph who after great suffering in the hands of his own people became the author of a great salvation. Peter speaks of the flood as a type of baptism,

•1 Peter 3:20-21

(20) Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.

(21) The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

Paul writing to the Romans explains that Adam was a type or figure of Jesus Christ, meaning that in a certain way certain things about Adam point out to certain things about Jesus Christ. For example, Adam represented all those that would come from him, his posterity. So with Christ, He represents all His posterity. Adam’s one transgression affected all those that would come after him. So with Christ, His one act of obedience affected those in Him.

•Romans 5:14

Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.

Adam was a type of the Lord Jesus Christ; they have things in common yet are different. Adam was the federal head of the whole human race and anything he did would affect his posterity, so it was with Christ, He was the Federal Head of all those in Him and whatever he did would affect each and every one of those in Him.

In this book, I will attempt to draw forth the gospel of Jesus Christ from the wonderful story of Esther.

Chapter 1

Israel's Disobedience

•Esther 1:1

(1) Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus, (this is Ahasuerus which reigned, from India even unto Ethiopia, over an hundred and seven and twenty provinces:)

It is difficult to determine who this king was because the name Ahasuerus was the title or name given to many of the kings of Persia. Some commentaries place him as Xerxes I, yet it is not possible to know with certainty who this particular king was. One thing we do know, he was a mighty king, ruling over all the known territories. The Scriptures go out of their way to make clear to us that his reign was from India till Ethiopia, 120 provinces in all. The Bible teaches us that he was a powerful king, his was the ruling empire at the time.

•Esther 1:2

(2) That in those days, when the king Ahasuerus sat on the throne of his kingdom, which was in Shushan the palace,

The king reigned from Shushan over all his kingdom, the term sat seems to indicate that he enjoyed a time of peace and prosperity. God sits on the throne of His kingdom, He alone reigns supreme over all things in heaven above or on earth below or even under the earth. Nothing escapes His Sovereignty, everything is subjected to His scepter. Like this king sat upon his throne reigning over his kingdom, so does God sit upon His throne and reigns over His kingdom. As we read on through the book of Esther it will become evident that this king is a type of the King of Heaven who reigns over all.

•Esther 1:3

(3) In the third year of his reign, he made a feast unto all his princes and his servants; the power of Persia and Media, the nobles and princes of the provinces, being before him:

The king had decided to make a feast in order to show forth to all his princes and nobles, leaders and governors of all the 120 provinces, the riches of his majesty and the glory of his kingdom. It is important to remember that it was the king who wanted to show the glory of his majesty and that it was to the princes and the leaders of his kingdom that he wanted to show it to.

•Esther 1:4

(4) When he shewed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the honour