Trophy Wife

Trophy Wife

Queen Vashti

Read: Esther 1:10-19

When Lady Diana and Prince Charles married in 1981, hundreds of thousands of spectators waited along the streets for a glimpse of the couple. After the ceremony, people around the world couldn’t get enough details about Princess Diana—what she wore, how she styled her hair, how she spent her time. Reporters and photographers dogged her every step. Diana later admitted to being unhappy with the pressure of constantly being in the public eye. She died in a car crash as she and her companion fled from photographers.

Queen Vashti also knew about being on public display. The king capped off a six-month celebration with a banquet that featured heavy drinking. Xerxes had displayed his wealth and majesty, and now in his drunkenness, he decided to show off his wife. He ordered her to come to the banquet so that all the men in attendance could admire her beauty. Many commentators think that this request went against Persian etiquette. The queen was typically shielded from the public eye, and separation of the sexes was customarily observed at the time. Vashti must have been horrified at the king’s request, because she refused to obey the order, probably hoping that he would come to his senses when he sobered up.

We may not be princesses or queens, but we can still identify with the feeling of being viewed as an object. We may sense that someone is interested only in our physical appearance. Perhaps we feel that we’re just a means to getting a job done or of meeting someone’s needs. We all long to be known and valued for who we are on the inside. That’s just the kind of intimate relationship that Jesus wants to have with us. This King of kings calls us to come to him in quietness and solitude where we can simply be ourselves—and be loved for it.

Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty!

Psalm 32:2