Lesson in Dignity

Esther 1:1-12

"Queen Vashti refused." Oh, a moment in history that can never forget. She stood up to her husband, who was the King as well. I am not sure if it was actually a good or bad thing that she refused. But if my husband was drunk and wanted to show me off to his drunk party guests, I would refuse too. The woman may have very beautiful, but she also had some dignity to refuse to go where men from all 127 Providences were sitting, and getting drunker by the moment. The king had been sharing his glory with those he wanted to impress, but he had one more trick up his sleeve. He had his beautiful wife, and had to show her off. She was summoned by the king to make her appearance as the 6 month party and 7 day feast were finishing up, and she refused. This woman would have to pay for choosing to not go with her husband, but something excites me about this account. She had dignity. She refused to be someone's prize. She was a woman of worth. She was the Queen of Persia for goodness sakes.

As some of us know how the story goes, she loses her husband and the crown. The law prohibited women from disobeying their husbands. If the Queen did not follow her husband, what would other women do? Would the ordinary women follow in her footsteps?

As I wrestle with this passage of scripture, I cannot held but be excited about this scripture. She is not talked about much, but she is seen as a woman of some character. She had the task of entertaining the women from the Providences, when her husband summoned her. She was to go parade herself among the drunk, nobles of the providences. But, she refused. I have to throw out a "Rock on!" , for the following reason: She was a woman of character. She was not going to go walk into an open bar full of drunken men. Her husband should have protected her, by not summoning her to go and bring the crown. But as a man of insecurity, he did.

As I read the scriptures, and think about what a godly woman would look like, I think we could learn a great deal from Vashti who once was the Queen of Persia. She stood up for herself, when her husband did not. She showed her dignity, and carried it from what we can see in the scriptures. Her dignity is seen in her refusal. She refused to go and parade around drunken men. She refused to ruin her reputation or be a possession. She denied the king's request. We can learn about submission through this passage of scripture, as we see the king's actions of not diligently having the best interest for his wife in store, when he summoned her. She did not submit--she refused to submit. He merely felt insecure and tried his best to impress all of the nobles, princes, and other important people in the Providences. When those attempts failed, he summoned for his beautiful wife to come in and save the day. On the other hand, she was not insecure. She held on to her dignity with her head held high, knowing it would cost..

Dignity is just as important now for us, as it was back in the days of Queen Vashti. She could have chuckled the words, “do you know who I am?” when asked to go and make her grand appearance in front of the providences’ men as they continued to drink and become intoxicated by her appearance. She refused. Her stand for dignity is one that all can learn from, as she sought to be respectable after all she was a queen. Still, we are respectable and royalty. As a child of God, I am a princess. I am the daughter of the King. We are royalty. We should seek to live life in such a way that makes us reject certain demands and continue to live a life of self-worth and pursue our Lord Jesus.