King Xerxes imposed tribute throughout the empire, to its distant shores. And all his acts of power and might, together with a full account of the greatness of Mordecai, whom the king had promoted, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Media and Persia? Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Xerxes, preeminent among the Jews, and held in high esteem by his many fellow Jews, because he worked for the good of his people and spoke up for the welfare of all the Jews.

Parallel verses:
‭‭Habakkuk‬ ‭2‬:‭4‬ (emphasis mine)
See, the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright — BUT THE RIGHTEOUS WILL LIVE BY FAITH

James‬ ‭5‬:‭16‬ (emphasis mine)
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. THE PRAYER OF A RIGHTEOUS MAN IS POWERFUL AND EFFECTIVE.

With Mordecai now the second-in-command, King Xerxes was very successful. With Mordecai’s position under the King, he shared the riches and power he gained for the benefit of his people — and the Jews were very successful!

Mordecai, unlike his wicked predecessor Haman, did not get puffed up about himself or his position or power. He knew it was a gift from God and he never took it for granted. And this is why God heard Mordecai’s prayers — because he was a righteous man who lived by faith and not by sight. “For we live by faith, not by sight.” (‭‭II Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭7‬)

I love this passage early in II Corinthians in regard to how we build our faith in Christ to act as he did and to be gracious in suffering as he was: “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” ‭‭(II Corinthians‬ ‭4‬:‭16‬-‭18‬)

What we focus on matters. If we focus on the wind and waves of this world around us, we will sink with them. But if we learn to focus on Jesus, and his ways and works, we will walk through the trials by walking on top of them as God promised!

This is my prayer of promise prayed over you, my family and friends: ‭‬‬“For he [God] will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” (‭‭Psalms‬ ‭91‬:‭11‬-‭16‬)

And with that, we finish our study of the Book of Esther!