Esther 1: 13 – 22
Then the king consulted the sages who knew the laws (for this was the king’s procedure towards all who were versed in law and custom, and those next to him were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven officials of Persia and Media, who had access to the king, and sat first in the kingdom): ‘According to the law, what is to be done to Queen Vashti because she has not performed the command of King Ahasuerus conveyed by the eunuchs?’ Then Memucan said in the presence of the king and the officials, ‘Not only has Queen Vashti done wrong to the king, but also to all the officials and all the peoples who are in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus. For this deed of the queen will be made known to all women, causing them to look with contempt on their husbands, since they will say, “King Ahasuerus commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him, and she did not come.” This very day the noble ladies of Persia and Media who have heard of the queen’s behaviour will rebel against the king’s officials, and there will be no end of contempt and wrath! If it pleases the king, let a royal order go out from him, and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and the Medes so that it may not be altered, that Vashti is never again to come before King Ahasuerus; and let the king give her royal position to another who is better than she. So when the decree made by the king is proclaimed throughout all his kingdom, vast as it is, all women will give honour to their husbands, high and low alike.’
This advice pleased the king and the officials, and the king did as Memucan proposed; he sent letters to all the royal provinces, to every province in its own script and to every people in its own language, declaring that every man should be master in his own house.
Reflection
Vashti, Queen Consort of Persian king Ahasuerus, had been summoned to her husband’s Court and she refused to attend. We know not why she refused but refused she did. Refusal brought upon her a catalogue of punishment which according to some Jewish interpretations might well actually have ended in her being put to death.
An extreme outcome of wanting to stay away from a drunken party and to have an early night. But scratch beneath the surface and there’s more going on than initially meets the eye. What sanction is made against a wife who refuses the authority of her husband? Why does this domestic incident take on a national and imperial significance? We might also ask questions about why Ahasuerus immediately consulted his lawyers on such a matter. It seems that there was no relevant law available and it seems extreme to resolve the situation by creating a law that may not be altered or presumably revoked.
But I wonder what point is being made here? One commentator describes the book of Esther as burlesque. Not in the sense of a risqué show but rather as what my online dictionary defines as “an absurd or comically exaggerated imitation of something, especially in a literary or dramatic work; a parody”. We aren’t meant to take the story too seriously but there might be something worth learning behind it.
How a simple request might result in a ridiculous outcome? To take a balanced approach to legal matters? The human tendency to read into situations something that isn’t there and to take deep offence when none is intended?
We ponder too the final statement in the story, about every man being master in his own house. In our times, in cisgender-heterosexual partnerships, we emphasise the understanding of partnership, of the equality and equity of spouses in a marriage or relationship. Perhaps Ahasuerus and his advisors/lawyers/sages are the ones being shown as absurd in their attempt to discredit Vashti? Perhaps Vashti, whatever her fate, was glad if nothing else to no longer be Queen to such a character?
Prayer
God of justice,
today we give thanks for that
which shows us
those things which are absurd.
We give thanks for the literary and film genres
of the absurd, the burlesque and for comedy
that enable us to look and learn differently.
We pray for those like Vashti
who find themselves victim of
someone else’s ridiculousness.
We pray for those who give professional advice,
for lawyers, financial advisors, civil servants,
and others.
Give them the gift of wisdom.
Give us all the gift of reasonableness
in all our dealings with others.
Amen.