Once again, we see the sovereign hand of God invisibly at work in the life of King Ahasuerus. God was working out His purposes whether the king knew it or not, and you can see in this paragraph at least five evidences of God’s providence.
The king’s insomnia (v. la). “Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown,” wrote Shakespeare. Solomon agreed: “The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much; but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep” (Eccl. 5:12). Was it the cares of state that kept the king awake? Was he worried about his finances? Did he eat and drink immoderately at the queen’s feast? Or, was he puzzled about the queen’s mysterious request?
Some or all of these worries may have played a part in the king’s wakefulness, but behind them was the sovereign hand of the living God who watches over His people and never slumbers or sleeps (Ps. 121:3–4). God wanted the king to stay awake because He had something to tell him.
While visiting the zoo, I became fascinated with the “nocturnal exhibit.” Here were animals that most of us never see because they sleep in the daytime and do their active living at night. “While you are resting,” said one of the posters, “Nature is busily at work helping to keep the balance of life stable.” I thought to myself, “While I’m asleep, my Heavenly Father is busily at work making sure the new day will be just what He wants it to be.” God’s compassions never fail but are “new every morning” (Lam. 3:22–23) because God never sleeps and never stops working all things together for our good (Rom. 8:28).
The king’s choice of entertainment (v. lb). Ahasuerus wasn’t at a loss for sources of entertainment! He could have called a concubine from the harem, or he might have brought in the court musicians to play for him. He and his guards could have played a game together, or he might have asked for a troubadour to entertain him with a ballad. His decision to have a book read to him was certainly of God.
Can God direct us even in such minor matters as our recreations? He certainly can. When I was a young Christian, my attendance at a friend’s birthday party turned out to be one of the most important events in my life. Because of that evening, I made a decision about my educational plans. That decision eventually led to my changing schools and meeting the girl who became my wife. Never underestimate the extraordinary things God can do through an ordinary event like a birthday party.
The servant’s choice of books (v. lc). God directed Ahasuerus to ask for the kingdom chronicles to be read to him. (That would put anybody to sleep!) But God also directed that the servant take from the shelf the very book that recorded Mordecai’s service to the king five years before. Certainly there were other volumes available, but that’s the one the servant selected.
Can God direct in the books that people pick up and read? Yes, He can. Late in February 1916, a British student bought a book at a used-book stall in a railway station. He had looked at that book and rejected it at least a dozen times before, but that day he purchased it. It was Phantastes by George MacDonald, and the reading of that book eventually led to that young man’s conversion. Who was he? C. S. Lewis, perhaps the greatest and most popular apologist for the Christian faith of the middle-twentieth century. He wrote to a friend that he had picked up the book “by hazard,” but I believe God had directed his choice.
God can even direct what we read in a book. A young man in North Africa sought peace, first in sensual pleasures and then in philosophy, but only became more miserable. One day he heard a neighbor child playing a game and saying, “Take it and read! Take it and read!” The young man immediately picked up the Scriptures and “happened” to open to Romans 13:13–14, and those verses brought him to faith in Christ. We know that young man today as Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, and author of numerous Christian classics.
The king’s servant picked out the very book that told about Mordecai’s good deed and read that section to Ahasuerus. How marvelous is the providence of God!
The king’s delay in rewarding Mordecai (vv. 2–3). This is a key matter, for had Mordecai been honored five years before, the events of this critical day could not have occurred. Rewards and punishments were basic to the Persian system of maintaining loyalty, and it was unusual for meritorious service not to be rewarded. Then why was Mordecai’s good deed written down but forgotten? Did some junior clerk in the bureaucracy have a grudge against Mordecai? Did an office memo go astray? We don’t know, but this we do know, that God was in charge and already had the day selected for Mordecai to be honored.
Is God in charge of schedules? He certainly is! After befriending Pharaoh’s butler, Joseph thought it would lead to his being released from prison, but Joseph had to wait two more years until the time God had chosen for him to become second ruler in Egypt (Gen. 40:23—41:1). God had a specific day selected for the Jews to leave Egypt (Ex. 12:40–42; see Gen. 15:13–16), and even the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem occurred “when the fullness of the time was come” (Gal. 4:4). In the midst of a confused and troubled world, the dedicated believer is able to say, “My times are in Thy hand” (Ps. 31:15) and find peace in God’s will.
It has often been said that “God’s delays are not God’s denials.” We sometimes get impatient and wonder why the wicked are prospering while the righteous are suffering, but God is never in a hurry. He is longsuffering toward the wicked because He wants them to repent, and He is patient with His people because He wants them to receive the right reward at the right time for the right purpose. If Mordecai was ever puzzled because the king promoted Haman but ignored him, he would soon find out that God had not made a mistake.
The timely arrival of Haman (v. 4). It’s possible that Haman had been up all night, enjoying the supervision of the construction of the gallows on which he planned to hang (or impale) Mordecai. It was very early in the morning, but Haman wanted to see the king as soon as possible and get permission for the execution (Prov. 6:18). From Haman’s point of view, the earlier the hanging, the better. Mordecai’s body would be on exhibition all day, and this would delight Haman and also put fear into the hearts of the Jews in the city. After executing Mordecai, Haman could be certain that everybody would obey the king’s command and bow down to him.
Suppose Haman had arrived two hours later? The king would have consulted with other advisers, and Haman would have been left out of the celebration for Mordecai. God wanted Haman to spend the day honoring Mordecai and not gloating over Mordecai’s corpse on the gallows. God was actually warning Haman that he’d better change course or he would end up being destroyed.
When you review these evidences of the providence of God, you can’t help but want to praise and thank Him for the great God that He is. “The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations” (Ps. 33:10–11 nkjv). “There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord” (Prov. 21: niv). “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31)