A friend of mine mentioned that when she was young, her father bought them a children’s bible with pictures, and there were all these captivating stories in the Bible with colourful images and illustrations. The stories in the bible that her father bought them were inclusive of the story of Joseph, the story of Daniel, and the story of Esther. These stories form the basis of today’s discussion. The stories all had one thing in common, they are a testament to God’s providence for his people. They are a story of how God used ordinary people for his plans and his glory at a time when all hope seemed lost. The stories are rich in morals and values; they are a tale of bravery and determination, but mostly they are about troubled kings who find help in the least expected places.
Joseph the dreamer
A popular tale among Christian circles and a favorite of my daughter, the story of Joseph is about a young boy who is favoured by his father, which makes him unpopular with his brothers, who later on sell him into slavery. He finds himself in Egypt, and while serving in the house of Potiphar, he is falsely accused of trying to seduce his master’s wife and finds himself in prison. While in prison, he interprets the dreams of two of Pharaoh’s servants, and this gets him an audience with Pharaoh, who (as per my interpretation) is losing sleep because of his dreams. However, there is no one else in the kingdom who can interpret the dreams for Pharaoh but the long-forgotten Joseph, rotting in the prison cells. Joseph interprets the dreams of Pharaoh as impending famine and is put in authority second only to Pharaoh to oversee that the Egyptians are saved from certain death due to the famine.
The Story of Esther
One of the most widely read books in the Bible is the Book of Esther. It is also a favorite of mine because it is full of impactful lessons that can be used to motivate and heal the soul. I mean, what’s not to love about the story of Hadassah (Esther), a Jewish woman who is orphaned, exiled, and raised by an uncle, finds favour in the eyes of King Xerxes of Persia, becomes his queen, and saves the Jewish nation from annihilation? The story of Esther illustrates how God can use anyone for his plans so that his name may be glorified. To read more of the story of Esther for context, click on this link but remember to hurry back to this post so we can finish off the discussion for today.
A Night with the Lions: The Story of Daniel
Daniel, a young lad of Jewish nobility, was captured from his home and trained to serve in the palace of King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. While in training, he refused to defile himself by eating unclean, fancy food and remained faithful to God. In turn, God rewarded him and gave him the ability to interpret dreams. One night the King had a dream that none of his seers, advisors, or officials were able to interpret. Daniel, however, managed to interpret the dream, and this garnered him favour with the kings. He went on to serve many kings who succeeded Nebuchadnezzar and offered counsel, advice, and prophecy throughout his lifetime. The book of Daniel deserves a blog post dedicated to dissecting it as it draws a multitude of lessons; however, the focus of today’s blog is on Daniel chapter 6, where we see Daniel thrown into the lion’s den because he had refused to honour the King’s petition, which decreed that for 30 days no one was to make requests to any god aside from the King. Now this brings to mind a vivid image of Daniel kneeling at his window, praying to God three times a day. Despite having the decree passed, Daniel stuck to his routine in honour of God and thus found his life in danger. The passage explains that the king was devastated. He went on a fast that night, and he was unable to sleep.
When Kings Do Not Sleep
The three biblical stories narrated above all have something in common. The kings were troubled, and the people who managed to bring about the solutions were none other than the exiled Jews, the nobodies, whom the people looked down upon.
When kings don’t sleep, it is a sign that there are problems arising within the kingdom that cause them to lose sleep. In the story of Joseph, for example, the king was troubled because of the dreams he had and the fact that no one in his whole kingdom was able to interpret them, but God raised a man, Joseph, and set the whole plot for his life so he could later save Egypt and his family from certain doom from the impending famine.
When kings don’t sleep, it is God who intervenes to set the events that will save his people.
In the story of Esther, the King cannot sleep, so he requests that the chronicles of his rule be read to him, and in so doing, he remembers Mordecai, the Jew, who saved his life when a plot to kill him was unveiled in the earlier chapters of the book of Esther. This allows Queen Esther to request that the Jews be spared from certain doom and destruction—a holocaust that could have seen a whole race vanquished from the face of the earth.
When kings don’t sleep, there is redemption. In the literal sense of the word, “joy” comes in the morning. The King cannot sleep because he is troubled that night, and at dawn, he rushes to the lion’s den to check on Daniel and let him out. In earlier chapters, there are several instances where the King is troubled, and Daniel, a young man from the Jewish tribe, steps in to give the King answers.
In our modern-day society, we have many troubled kings: Trump is troubled, Biden is troubled, and Putin is troubled. I have gone too far from the context, but take a look at my home, where I hail from Zimbabwe. The kings are troubled, but we can draw lessons from the stories of these ordinary men who came to the rescue of troubled kings and arose to save nations.
The solutions lie in the most unexpected places and with the most unexpected people. God raises a man who allows his glory to be seen. So there is still hope for the African nation and for those who are troubled the world over. God uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things, as we see in these texts and the Bible in its entirety. It is not the perfect or those from very pure backgrounds, but God uses the less seen, the ones looked down on, to form the lineage of Jesus and to save his people through and through.
God is the sovereign ruler over governments.
At a time when we find ourselves doubting our leaders, we must be assured that God himself has allowed them to be in power. His sovereignty encompasses each and every ruler of the government, and his sovereignty rules every evil plan that has been set forth. Like in Daniel’s case, he holds the mouths of the lions so that no harm can befall his trusted servants.
Psalm 33:10 states, "The LORD nullifies the counsel of the nations; He frustrates the plans of peoples." "The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of His heart from generation to generation" (Psalm 33:10–11).
Similarly, in the book of Esther, God saves her from certain death when she enters the King’s courts without invitation and sets forth the events that see the destruction of Haman’s evil plot against the exiled jews.
I am tempted to liken the Zimbabwean situation to the story of Joseph, long forgotten to rot in jail for crimes he did not commit, but God remembers him. I was watching an animation that depicted just how forgotten Joseph was with my daughter. In this certain depiction, Joseph enters prison when there is a small tree, but, that grows to become a big tree and actually bears some fruit before Pharaoh is told of his presence. Sometimes we may feel that we are forgotten, but no, God works in miraculous ways to unfold his plan. We are not forgotten he is constantly working in the background for our good.
God is a sovereign ruler over us.
Sometimes we are faced with difficult circumstances in our lives, and we believe we are at the end of the road. Sleep evades us (like the kings, we cannot sleep). However, we are reminded that no matter what circumstances we face, God delights in setting up “coincidences” in our lives just as he did for Joseph, Esther, and Daniel. Though we may call them coincidences, these are well-planned, orchestrated events that lead to the ultimate plan that he has for us. I am going to deviate a little here and take you to the story of Jeremiah, who in the initial stages feels less hopeful and weary, but we see a more hopeful Jeremiah emerge in Jeremiah 29, verse 11. “I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord. “Plans to prosper you and not harm you, to give you hope and a future.”
God’s timing is perfect.
Ecclesiastes 3, verse 11: He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart, yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
I thought to add this verse here to encourage someone out there. God makes things beautiful in their time; his timing is perfect. I will once again set the scene here. Take a look at the book of Esther. When she learns of the plot to assassinate the Jews, she waits for God to give her a prompt to enter the king’s courts. She prays and fasts and sends instructions for the other Jews to follow suit, and while she is fasting, King Xerxes, whose court is full of all the entertainment one can ever think of, cannot sleep (Esther 6 verses 1–2) and orders the book of his reign to be read to him. Setting the scene for Esther’s request and thus saving generations.
Again, we take a look at how Joseph’s story unfolds, everything works perfectly in its time, from slave to ruler, second only to the highest office in a foreign nation. We are reminded to keep trusting God’s plan for our lives. Joseph, was 17 when he was taken into slavery, and he only became second to the pharaoh in his 30s. It took many more years to be reunited with his family. Joseph himself was not aware that this is how his story would unfold but he renained steadfast. Be mindful of all that God is doing in your life, working in the background, setting the scene. You are not forgotten!
The final take-home
When kings don’t sleep, God raises an ordinary man to do the extraordinary!
Stay Blessed!
Reg
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