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Continuing our discussion from part one, and leaving behind that wicked Abimelech, let's move on to the story of Queen Esther. Regarding Esther -- whose Hebrew name was Hadassah, which means "myrtle" -- we discover that while a lot of Christians and Jews like to highly exalt this heroine of the ancient Israelites, and while the Lord did in fact greatly use her to save her people, the point still remains that even though she was queen over an empire, nevertheless, Esther was still required to be subservient to the Persian king, Ahasuerus. As I also discuss in the series entitled "The Seven Heads", some scholars believe that the Ahasuerus of the Scriptures was actually Xerxes.

At any rate, Queen Esther -- whose English name is derived from the false Babylonian goddess Ishtar, meaning "star", and from which we also get the name Easter -- risked being killed if she dared to enter into the presence of the king without his express permission, which was symbolized by his holding out the golden sceptre. Consider the following set of verses which verify this point:

"Again Esther spake unto Hatach, and gave him commandment unto Mordecai; All the king's servants, and the people of the king's provinces, do know, that whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner court, who is not called, there is one law of his to put him to death, except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden sceptre, that he may live: but I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days."


"Now it came to pass on the third day, that Esther put on her royal apparel, and stood in the inner court of the king's house, over against the king's house: and the king sat upon his royal throne in the royal house, over against the gate of the house. And it was so, when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, that she obtained favour in his sight: and the king held out to Esther the golden sceptre that was in his hand. So Esther drew near, and touched the top of the sceptre."


"And Esther spake yet again before the king, and fell down at his feet, and besought him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite, and his device that he had devised against the Jews. Then the king held out the golden sceptre toward Esther. So Esther arose, and stood before the king,"


We need to remember that the primary reason why Esther was chosen to be the new queen, aside from the fact that it was obviously God's Will, was because the previous queen -- that is, Vashti -- had humiliated Ahasuerus by refusing to appear before him after she had been summoned. Greatly angered by Vashti's blatant rebellion, the king then passed an edict which was to be obeyed throughout his empire; that is, from India to Ethiopia. What were the terms of that particular edict? Consider the following verses:

"And when the king's decree which he shall make shall be published throughout all his empire, (for it is great,) all the wives shall give to their husbands honour, both to great and small. And the saying pleased the king and the princes; and the king did according to the word of Memucan: For he sent letters into all the king's provinces, into every province according to the writing thereof, and to every people after their language, that every man should bear rule in his own house, and that it should be published according to the language of every people."


It becomes evident then that the story of Queen Esther is not just a lesson in bravery, love and self-sacrifice, but is likewise a lesson in humility, and it carries the strong message that all women are supposed to remain submissive to their husbands, in spite of whatever his lot may be in life. Please notice that we are told "both to great and small." In other words, a man's particular social status does not in any way diminish the requirement that his wife should remain submissive to him. Ladies, if you are with a husband, it is your duty to respect him, obey him, and submit to him. Some of you liberal-minded girls may find that hard to swallow. However, as we will see again in just a moment, this is in fact the Biblical mandate for Christian couples.

While this is personal speculation on my part, perhaps it was because of Esther's humility and obedience to her Uncle Mordecai, that the Lord knew that He could trust her. Thus, He honoured Esther with the great responsibility of being queen over the entire Persian Empire. On the other hand, as I point out in a number of other articles, it is when we foolishly choose to yield to our sinful pride, that we may end up suffering a severe demotion; as was the case with Queen Vashti. The Scriptures actually contain quite a few admonitions regarding the danger of pride, and the rewards of remaining humble. Consider the following examples:

"The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts."


"The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate."


"When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom."


"Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom."


"In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride: but the lips of the wise shall preserve them."


"The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility."


"Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud."


"A man's pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit."


"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."


"At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven."


"And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them, When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee. For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."


"But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble . . . Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up."


"Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:"


"For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world."


To reiterate my earlier point, the Bible makes it very clear that women are supposed to remain spiritually and physically submissive to their God-fearing husbands; because just as Christ is the Head of the Church, the husband is likewise the spiritual head of his own family. Thus, in honoring her husband, a woman is also honoring Christ as well. Of course, at the same time, husbands are also supposed to love their wives. Consider the following verses that are found in the writings of the Apostles:

"Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband."


"And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them."


"In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression."


"Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives; While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear. Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands:"


"Have we not POWER TO LEAD about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas?"


For any Christian woman to deny the truth that is plainly revealed in the previous set of verses is to be in open rebellion against God's ordained plan for His Church. The previous verses serve as our outline and guide, and also guarantee harmony and unity in Christian relationships. It is only when these Scriptural mandates are not honored, and are in fact abrogated, that we find ourselves in the midst of a broken marriage relationship. At the same time, it is by returning to and abiding by these very same Biblical admonitions, that a marriage relationship can be healed and restored. Pride divides and kills, while humility unites and brings alive.

As we have now seen, a few rare exceptions aside, the pages of the Old Testament reveal that, for the most part, the leaders of ancient Israelite society were all men. This can be applied to the kings of Israel, the Prophets of Israel, and the Levitical priesthood as well. At the same time, the women of Israel were supposed to remain respectful to, and submissive to, their husbands. Being as Christianity was an offshoot of the religion of the Jews, these same principles were later applied to the Christian Church as well. Thus, it seems evident to me that God purposely chose men for leaders in these different areas of Israelite society, as an earthly reflection of the way that things are likewise run in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Turning our attention to the New Testament, insofar as the Christian Church was concerned, it is plain to see that the position of Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, Teacher, Deacon and other administrative positions were all filled by men and not by women. That being the case, what justification can be made for delegating authority and leadership roles to women in the modern Church? There appears to be no scriptural precedent for this in the New Testament. Allow me to share a few more verses of Scripture with you in order to validate this particular point. I will offer some personal commentary afterwards:

"Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will."


"Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?"


"And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:"


"Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them."


In the previous verses, it is plain to see that the various positions of spiritual and administrative authority were all filled by men. The Apostle Paul specifically states several times "every man", and not "every woman and every man". Now, some people may take a legalistic approach and suggest that the original Greek word that is used in those verses -- that is, "hekastos" -- also means "every one", and thus could be stretched so that it includes women. However, if we simply take the time to study the Scriptures thoroughly, and see how the Lord and His followers operated, it is rather easy to conclude that the phrase "every man" means precisely that. That is, every man.

As I noted in part one, it is after describing the various positions within the Church body, that in 1 Corinthians 14, the Apostle Paul plainly informs his readers that women are supposed to keep silent in the Church. There is absolutely no way then that they can fulfill any of these spiritual or leadership responsibilities if they are to keep silent. Now, I realize that some modernists like to accuse Paul of being old-fashioned. "We are living in modern times" they claim. "Things have changed; the Church has changed; the Church has been liberated"; and on and on they go with their misguided assertions. Yes, sadly, the Church has changed so much, that there are now gay and female priests, and some are going so far as to bless gay and lesbian relationships! Perhaps these modern priests and priestesses would like to explain the following verses to me. Obviously, they must understand them a lot differently than I do:

"Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever."


"For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed."


As far as I am concerned, the way God designed the Church to be run during the First Century, is the same way He expects it to be run today. The people who say otherwise, such as these liberal thinkers who accuse the Apostle Paul of being a woman-hater, are simply trying to void Paul's words, in order to validate their erroneous interpretations of the Scriptures. They are basically saying that Paul was overly legalistic and wrong. I disagree with them wholeheartedly; and do you know why? Quite plainly, because the practice of choosing men for all of these positions did not begin with Paul. Even before Paul came along, the brethren knew that the Lord expected them to choose men to fill the various spiritual and leadership positions, because this is the example that Jesus set Himself.

The Lord Himself specifically chose Twelve Men to carry on His Work; and women such as the Marys, Martha, Joanna and Susanna only served in supportive roles. This is not meant to belittle them or minimize their importance by any means. We all know that following His Resurrection, some of these women were the very first ones to see Jesus. So it is quite obvious that He loved them dearly. Yet they knew their place in God's order of things, and they accepted it gladly. In the four Gospels, women are always presented in a supportive role, such as we see in these verses:

"And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him, And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, And Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance."


In these verses, we see a clear division between The Twelve, and the other women, who it seems helped to provide some of their needs. We see this same kind of division in the very first chapter of the Book of Acts when they were gathered in the Upper Room, prior to the day of Pentecost. Notice that protocol seems to be kept here. The Eleven are named first; followed by the other women; who are then followed by Mary, Jesus' mother; and finally, by Jesus' other brethren. It is my belief that the phrase "with his brethren" may possibly be a reference to the Lord's biological brothers; some of whom apparently believed in Him after their initial doubts had passed. Consider these two verses:

"And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren."


In the Book of the Acts, we also discover that the traitor Judas Iscariot was likewise replaced by another man named Matthias, so that the Original Twelve could be maintained, as we can determine by the following verses:

"And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place. And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles."


When a problem arose in Acts chapter six between the Hebrew and Greek Disciples, regarding the daily serving of tables, notice again that the Apostles clearly tell the Disciples to choose seven men amongst them to resolve the matter:

"And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them."


Now, if we consider that this problem dealt with the serving of food and the setting of tables, which is normally viewed as being a woman's job, one would think that if the early Disciples were of the belief that it was alright for women to hold positions of responsibility, then surely some women would have been chosen to resolve this problem. Yet none are chosen. They are all men. In my mind, this again points to the fact that in the First Century Church, women were not to hold any kind of spiritual positions or leadership positions in which decision-making was involved. What other reason can be offered to explain why women were not chosen to resolve what was obviously a woman-related job?

Moving on, as I point out in "Where Are the First Century Churches?", when bishops were selected for various Churches in the New Testament, they were also men. Specifically, in the Epistles of Paul, we find Titus and Timothy mentioned as being two of the first bishops. Consider these verses:

"The Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be with you. Amen. [The second [epistle unto Timotheus, ordained the first bishop of the Church of the Ephesians, was written from Rome, when Paul was brought before Nero the second time.]"


"All that are with me salute thee. Greet them that love us in the faith. Grace be with you all. Amen. (It was written to Titus, ordained the first bishop of the Church of the Cretians, from Nicopolis of Macedonia.)"


So from the time that Jesus chose His Original Twelve, we discover over and over again, that only men were chosen to fill the various positions of spiritual and administrative responsibility. We read of Apollos, Barnabas, John Mark, Justus, Luke, Matthias, Nicanor, Nicolas, Parmenas, Philip, Prochorus, Silas, Stephen, Timon, Timothy, Titus and others as well. They were all male leaders in the First Century Church, chosen, directed by, and filled with God's Holy Spirit. Women clearly played a secondary role.

A final argument which some offended women pastors, liberals and legalists might try to use is this: "Well, doesn't Paul state that there is neither male nor female in Christ Jesus? And doesn't that mean that God makes no difference between us when it comes to the administration of the Church?". To be honest, I believe that I have already provided sufficient Scriptural evidence to show that the people who teach this doctrine are utterly wrong. But let us look at the verse:

"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus."


Now, if for the sake of argument we accept the previous interpretation of this verse, then we force ourselves to admit that not only is the Apostle Paul contradicting himself -- and contradicting what God has ordained since the Book of Genesis -- but it also forces us to conclude that the First Century Church must have been wrong. In other words, it was really out of the Spirit when they chose all men to head the various Churches and bishoprics. Obviously, Paul, a man who had at least several direct, close, personal encounters with the Resurrected Christ, and who was taught the Word by Jesus Christ Himself, is not going to write one Epistle to one church stating that women are to be quiet in the church, and submit to their husbands, and then turn around and tell the Galatian church that there is no difference between men and women in God's eyes. Therefore, there must be something wrong with the aforementioned doctrine.

As I have stated a number of times before, when we come across a seeming contradiction in the Bible, it usually lies in our own understanding of what we are reading. The very same holds true in this case. The themes addressed in the Epistles to the Corinthians and to the Galatians are very different. Instead of taking the previous single verse, and applying a twisted interpretation to it, in order to support the women pastors doctrine, we need to read the surrounding verses and chapters, in order to place Galatians 3:28 in its proper context. If we do that, we quickly see that in this Epistle, Paul is specifically dealing with the issues of bondage to the Law, and the availability of Salvation to all men. That is the background for the above verse; and that is what Paul means when he states that there is neither male nor female in Christ. In other words, as I clearly point out in articles such as "Is the Message of Salvation Meant for All Men?", when Jesus died on the Cross, He opened the way to Salvation for all men everywhere; regardless of gender, or national origin. That is why He said the following in th Gospel of John:

"And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me."


On the other hand, if we go to Paul's first Epistle to the Corinthians, and read the three chapters which come before the verse where he tells women to keep silent in the Church, we discover that they have absolutely nothing to do with the topic of Salvation. What they actually do deal with, is the administration of the Church, and the distribution of Spiritual Gifts and ministries within the Church Body. That is when Paul writes the following verses, which we examined earlier in this series:

"Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church."


Please go to part three for the conclusion of this series.

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