ABANDONED Part 3…Mister, Need A Toilet? Find a Bush Because This Party Is For Girls Only

The story of Queen Vashti…King Xerxes first love…

Vashti enters this story at a young age.  History tells us that she had been found as a child after her father had been killed in battle against another kingdom. As she sat weeping in her father’s castle, the opposing king found pity on her and took her back to his kingdom.  Once she had grown, the king gave her as a gift to his own son. She was now Queen Vashti married to King Xerxes.

King Xerxes was a great king who ruled 127 provinces from India to Ethiopia, approximately 2,682 miles. 

So, you have a powerful king.

…and a beautiful queen.

There is no better way to start a story!

So, let’s begin…

The days of King Xerxes and Queen Vashti were filled with great pomp and splendor.   The king was young and early in his reign.

He was new and naïve, but he was powerful and persuasive.

I imagine the days being filled with the couple sitting happily on their throne.  Day in and day out, power and beauty sat perched peacefully on their thrones.  So, as they sat on their thrones, the people of the province strolled by to catch just a glimpse of their splendor. 

Day after day, week after week, month after month,

the royal couple enjoyed watching the people in their kingdom.

Then one day, the thrones were empty. 

The people of the kingdom were shocked and dismayed.  Fear crept in as they wondered why the king and queen had abandoned them.  The filled thrones gave them a sense of security.

As the people stood in dismay, the empty courtyard began to transform.  The servants appeared like ants working to care for their queen. The thrones were removed, tables carried, chairs positioned, lights hung, and curtains draped.

There was going to be a party!

Because the King and Queen were known for their amazing parties, none of this shocked the people. Once the parties had ended, the conversation and stories of the parties carried the people’s interest day after day until the next party was thrown. 

But girls, listen to this…we are getting ready to have PARTY WITHIN A PARTY WITHIN A PARTY!

Things are going to get wild!

Party number one…please pass the Grey Poupon (some of you may be too young for that one!)

This party lasted for 180 days. Yes girls, that is one hundred and eighty days; 4,320 hours; 540 meals; countless snacks; and a massive amount of liquor.

As the guests arrived, they toted only the finest in luggage and apparel.  These were the nobles and princes, and all the military leaders of Persia and Media.

King Xerxes displayed his vast wealth for this party.  He wore his best suit, lavished his guests with only the finest food and served the most exquisite wine.

Once every morsel was eaten and every drop of liquor drank, it was time to restock for…

Party number two…FOR MEN ONLY!

“When it was all over, the king gave a banquet for all the people, from the greatest to the least…it lasted for seven days…” Esther 1:5 NLT

Try to picture this scene.  The King and the Queen had just thrown a party for 180 days!!! They had to have had a hangover to trump all hangovers! Their stomachs were filled with the richest of foods. They had networked at nauseam. Their heads were about to explode from the amount of liquor. But once they closed the door to the final guest, they opened another door to their new guests.  

The second was a party for the people, all the people, but the second party was for men only.   The invitation was sent to the poorest of poor and the richest of rich; the commoners to the wealthy; the greatest to the least. 

Think about what this looked like.  There were men at this party from all walks of life and every socio-economic status. I think this testifies to the heart of this king and queen.  They loved their people no matter where they stood on the societal rung.

So because of this, the king wanted only the greatest of decorations; the greatest of food; and the greatest wine served to his guests.  Everyone at this party was the guest of honor; they were his family; his people.

“The courtyard was beautifully decorated with white cotton curtains and blue hangings, which were fastened with white linen cords and purple ribbons to silver rings embedded in marble pillars. Gold and silver couches stood on a mosaic pavement…” Esther 1:5,6 NLT

“Drinks were served in gold goblets of many designs, and there was an abundance of royal wine, reflecting the king’s generosity.” Esther 1:7 NLT

Imagine this…each goblet was designed with a uniqueness. Was this another master mind of the King? This uniqueness of each goblet may have not only allowed the men to feel honored but also provided a conversation starter in those awkward moments…

“Hello Sir George. I like your goblet…

And the conversation continues therefore eliminating the awkwardness of the moment!

“By edict of the king, no limits were placed on the drinking, for the king has instructed all his palace officials to serve each man as much as he wanted.” Esther 1:7,8 NLT

What????? It’s an open bar! Life was good for these boys!

As the men got comfortable in the courtyard, there was a commotion coming from inside the palace.   

Party number three…FOR WOMEN ONLY! Now we’re talking, girls!

“At the same time, Queen Vashti gave a banquet for the women in the royal palace of King Xerxes.” Esther 1:9

“FOR WOMEN ONLY” … NO MEN ALLOWED!

Men, need a toilet? Find a bush!

Because this is the Queen’s party!

No men allowed…EVER!

The décor for Queen Vashti’s party was not mentioned but come on…it’s inside the palace!  Do we really need to hang a disco ball or streamers and ribbon with coordinating colors? It was beautifully, organically party ready! Who wouldn’t want to hang out inside the palace for a party?

We can assume that the guest list consisted of the wives of the MEN ONLY party. Therefore, they too were from the greatest to the least; popular to pauper; extraordinary to ordinary. 

This mixture of socio-economic women probably would not go as smoothly as the socio-economic mixture of the men.  Let’s be honest ladies…this is not a good idea for women.  It is not good idea to put pompous women with pauper women.  We have way too big of a reputation at stake.  If the rich and famous hang with the poor, we could lose our reputations. If the poor are caught hanging with the rich and famous, we could be accused of being traders.

This party looked like the Great Divide.  Pauper on one side and pompous on the other. We need an ice breaker, and we need it fast!

Queen Vashti looks to her servants and gives them the signal. They begin the serving of the hors d’ oeuvres. As the first round of hors d’ oeuvres make it around the room, the women still stay close to their own kind. Queen Vashti is beginning to get a little concerned.  How will she get these women to mix? She decides to use her influence a bit and make a small demand of the women.  She has her servants’ hand some of the trays of the second round of hors d’ oeuvres to her guests.  A couple of full trays are handed to the popular and a couple of trays are handed to the poor.  The women look at the servants in disbelief not quite knowing what to do with the trays. Queen Vashti uses her influence and asks the women to hand out the hors d’ oeuvres to the other guests on the other sides of the room.  As the women carrying the trays make their way around the room, Queen Vashti notices a bit of interaction between her diverse guests.  She sees a few smiles and quiet thank you’s given.  She smiles inwardly as she sees that this may work. 

Then she whispers to her servants to have the musicians to play something a little more upbeat; maybe a little bit of Queen’s Fat Bottom Girls. That should get some smiles.  And it did!  There were a few giggles amongst the girls as barriers began to break.  The food continued to come as did the goblets of fine wine.  Vashti breathes a sigh of relief.  We are off to a good start.

As the days of partying ticked by, the guests were feeling more comfortable with one another. The men connected in conversations about sports and hunting.  The women talked fashion and child rearing.

But as the wine flowed more freely, conversations took a turn.

The more drunk the men got the more they talked about sex and their women. 

The more drunk the women got the more they talked about how they didn’t like their men and that their men were losers. Come on ladies…we know that is true! We don’t even have to be drunk to get to those discussions.

As Vashti was enjoying her moments with the girls, she heard a knock on the door.

Join me next week as we learn who was on the other side of that door.