daily reading 35.3 (7:1–7)

5-days-a-week through Daniel and other late OT books in 2023

Our opening prayer for this week:

Judge me, O Lord, and prove my ways,
And test my will, and try my heart
My faith upon your promise stays,
Nor from your law my feet depart.

I hate to walk, I hate to sit
With wicked blowhards, men of lies.
The scoffer and the hypocrite
Are nauseating in my eyes.

In your assembly I appear,
By mercy, bold, in innocence;
But when I stand before your bar,
Christ's blood will be my sole defense.

I love your sacred dwelling, Lord,
The house in which your honors dwell;
There shall I hear your holy word,
And there your wondrous works retell.

Do not let me be joined at last
To men of treachery and blood,
Before you, I, no more harassed
Will shout your thanks and bless my God. Amen.

 

Esther 7:1–7

  • The king and Haman came to feast with Esther the queen. 2 Once again, on the second day while drinking wine, the king asked Esther, "Queen Esther, whatever you ask will be given to you. Whatever you seek, even to half the kingdom, will be done."
  • 3 Queen Esther answered, "If I have found favor in your eyes, Your Majesty, and if the king is pleased, spare my life; this is my request. And spare my people; this is my desire. 4 For my people and I have been sold to destruction, death, and extermination. If we had merely been sold as male and female slaves, I would have kept silent. Indeed, the trouble wouldn't be worth burdening the king."
  • 5 King Ahasuerus spoke up and asked Queen Esther, "Who is this, and where is the one who would devise such a scheme?"
  • 6 Esther answered, "The adversary and enemy is this evil Haman." Haman stood terrified before the king and queen.
  • 7 The king arose in anger and went from where they were drinking wine to the palace garden. Haman remained to beg Queen Esther for his life because he realized the king was planning something terrible for him.
Helpful notes on Esther 7:1–7




For yourself pray:

  • That God makes you bold when you need to be bold to speak up for others

For others pray:

  • That God frees people trapped in human trafficking and punishes those profiting from it

A psalm to listen to and ponder, as time allows:

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