Esther 1:10-22
Vashti’s refusal to respond to her husband’s bidding to show her beauty rouses the king to fury. Ahasuerus is clearly a violent man. Now anger is in no way a mark of strength or authority. Generally it denotes the opposite: weakness of character and lack of self-control. We know from our own experience how difficult it is to control our reactions when faced by difficulties, especially when they pile up. Let us ask the Lord for strength to control ourselves.
Vashti is a picture of Christendom, drawn out from the heathen world and responsible to the Lord. Christ expected His Church to display her beauty to the world and thus exalt His own glory. Alas, how has she responded to this desire? By a total disdain for the Lord’s wishes! The day is coming when she will hear the awful words, "I will spue thee out of my mouth" (Revelation 3:16). Christian, if the Church as a whole has lost sight of the witness which it is her duty to bear, let us for our part never forget to do so! God expects each of his children to show the world something of the moral beauty of the Lord Jesus.