For Ever, O Lord, Thy Word Is Settled in Heaven" (continued)
In this scripture, we have the first occurrence of the word "write" in the Bible. Over and over again, God would command his servants, "Write thou," in order that His Written Word would be brought forth; and all through the ages, these Words have been rehearsed in the ears of "the Joshuas" as they prepare for battle. Repeatedly the Lord has said to them as He said to Joshua:
"Be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law ... turn not from it to the right hand or to the left (this is how we stay on direct course by letting the Written Word become a living reality in us through Christ) ... this book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein" (Joshua 1:7, 8).
No wonder satan sent Amalek to attack Israel: The Book of the Law was being written, the Words that could not come back to God void were being recorded, and would continue to be recorded until the Written Word of God was complete. Enraged, the enemy set out to stop the Word of God from being fulfilled, for if he can nullify one Word, one Jot or Tittle of the Word of God, then his doom cannot happen; but even though satan may cause, and fight, many battles, he has already lost the war - because God's un-annullable Word says:
"For ever, O Lord, Thy Word is settled in heaven." (Psalm 119:89).
So we find that Mordecai will not bow nor reverence Haman because Haman is a descendant of Amalek, he is of that seed of the serpent who seeks to nullify the Word of God. Through Jeremiah, God had recorded that a remnant would return from captivity and build His temple; and through Isaiah, He had written that out of this remnant would come the Messiah. For this reason, satan would now try to destroy the whole nation of Israel, and Haman would be his evil emissary.
Haman, inspired by satan, was full of wrath toward the people of Mordecai; he and his evil cohorts spent months seeking just the right time to destroy God's people. Haman's goal was to destroy the Lord's people, thereby accomplishing satan's ultimate object, which is to destroy the promised "SEED." In Esther, we have three thirteens connected with this gigantic effort of satan against God's purpose (3:12, 13; 8:12). We must always go back to Genesis 14:4 to discover the significance of the number thirteen, because its first occurrence is also found in that evil list of the seed of the serpent: "in the thirteenth year they rebelled." So, the number thirteen speaks of the terrible rebellion and apostasy and iniquity of satan himself, when he chose to reject the position given to him by God and tried to exalt himself above the Most High.
Month after month Haman and his forces sought the best time to destroy all the Jews (men, women, and children); and after Haman had convinced the king to do so, the Word says they chose "the thirteenth day of the twelfth month" to cause all Jews to perish "in one day." But we have a God WHO HIDETH HIMSELF so that He can take the enemy in his own craftiness; and in this book, God had hidden the Power of His Might in the vessels of Mordecia and Esther. "With Secret Hand" He fighteth against Amalek, and "With Secret Hand" Esther is made queen "for such a time as this" (Esther 4:14).
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 20)
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