Esther's Serpent Wisdom
It’s often comforting to remember that Jesus himself knew what it was to live under empire, to navigate the tangible and intangible threats of evil. Speaking to his friends, he counseled them:
“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes [alternatively, wise as serpents] and as innocent as doves… So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.” - Matt. 10:16, 26-28
What elements of serpent wisdom - not evil, but practical, insightful, strategic - do you spot in Esther’s words to the king, begging him to intervene in Haman’s genocidal plot?
“If I have found favor with you, Your Majesty, and if it pleases you, grant me my life—this is my petition. And spare my people—this is my request. 4 For I and my people have been sold to be destroyed, killed and annihilated. If we had merely been sold as male and female slaves, I would have kept quiet, because no such distress would justify disturbing the king.” - Esth. 7:3-4
Perhaps:
She builds connection first, hosting him at not just one, but two banquets.
She works hard to disarm him, flattering rather than challenging his presumptions of power. (Perhaps there are echoes here of the strategic words of the Israelite midwives Shiphrah and Puah in Exodus 1, who used the king’s stereotypical assumptions about Israelite women against him to convince him it was not their fault the babies he had told them to kill survived.)
She skillfully exposes the way Haman had tricked him in Esther 3, when he asked the king to destroy the Jews with a word implying enslavement while sending out a written edict with a similar sounding but much more severe word, this one authorizing their slaughter. How helpful for the king to have Haman to direct his anger at, rather than blaming himself!
Now, reflecting honeslty - how do you feel about Esther’s careful efforts? Are you impressed? Are you frustrated that she has to go such lengths, do such emotional labor? Do you wish she could have called out more of the structural evils at work, the hierarchies and the egos and the lack of true leadership? Have you ever felt called to build bridges and create partnerships that required this kind of serpent wisdom? What did it require of you mentally, emotionally and spiritually? What do you imagine it required of Esther?
Perhaps it would be good to spend some time praying for those walking as sheep among wolves today, asking God to protect their bodies and their hearts.