Casting Lots

Haman did not wait very long to bring about his evil plans. After casting lots to determine the month, Haman hurried to the king to get permission to put to death all of the Jews in the land.

7 In the first month, which is the month of Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast Pur (that is, the lot), before Haman to determine the day and the month, until it fell on the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar.

8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of your kingdom; their laws are different from all other people’s, and they do not keep the king’s laws. Therefore it is not fitting for the king to let them remain. 9 If it pleases the king, let a decree be written that they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who do the work, to bring it into the king’s treasuries.”

10 So the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. 11 And the king said to Haman, “The money and the people are given to you, to do with them as seems good to you.”

(Esther 3:7-11, New King James Version)

Casting Lots

Haman did not wait very long to bring about his evil plans. After casting lots to determine the month, Haman hurried to the king to get permission to put to death all of the Jews in the land.

Was Haman honest with the king? While everything he told the king was true, look at the things he left out. He did not tell the king that it was the Jews who would not bow down to him. He also did not tell the king that, other than their unwillingness to bow to anyone other than their God, the Jews were model citizens.

Would this have made a difference to King Ahasuerus? Maybe not! Of course, it did not help that Haman was willing to put a significant amount of money into the king's treasury to help carry out his plan.

Unfortunately, when the king passed a law and signed it with his signet ring, it was not allowed to be annulled at a later date.

What would happen now? After casting lots, Haman determined that the Jews were to be put to death in the 12th month. What about Queen Esther? Would she be put to death as well?

God is greater than the laws of man; nothing is beyond His control. There is still much drama to come in the book of Esther, but we will save that for another day.

What about your own life? Do you feel that the lot is cast and there is nothing you can do to change it? Are we just led around by fate, totally unable to change the events of our lives?

It is an amazing thing; God is totally in control, but we never lose our own free will in the process. Do you understand that? I do not? But, I know it is true, and I know it will be perfectly clear to us when we stand before Christ.

Who leads you? I know the messes I have gotten myself into when I took the reigns of my life! Praise God we have a Savior who loves us so much that He died to save us from eternal life, and will raise us to live with Him forever. This same Jesus is available 24/7 to be with us and guide us in the way we should go. How amazing is that?

We do not need to find ourselves casting lots to determine God's will for our lives. We must go to Christ; He will lead us all the days of our lives!