Two Great Feasts

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Chapter 1 shows how Esther became Queen. The story begins when Ahasuerus (Xerxes) was King of Persia. Strangely enough, nowhere is he mentioned in Persian history. His Queen was Vasheta (Vashti). There was a King of Persia who reigned during the time of Ezra by the name of Arte-xerxes, it is possible that this was the King spoken of here in the book of Esther.
The Persian Empire was huge at this time. It ran from India on the east, to the Mediterranean Sea on the west and from Ethiopia, on the south, to Media, on the north, 127 provinces. The Capitol was at Susa, 150 miles north of the Persian Gulf.
The King gave two great feasts. One for his nobles and princes that lasted 180 days and one for the people, great and small, which lasted 7 days. All the conveniences of home were provided. Only the men attended the feast but Vasheta, the Queen, feasted the women in her own apartment.
For the King's celebration, certain rules were established:

Each person would drink from his own glass.
Each would drink as much or as little as he pleased.
Each was cautioned not to "over drink".
Health standards were mandatory.
There was no "mixing" of the sexes.

It would appear that by the seventh day, these rules soon went by the way side. Everybody was drunk and the King sent for his wife, Vasheta. She refused his call. She knew he was drunk and she also knew that it was against the custom for women to appear at the men's feast. The King became very angry and said to his councilors, "What can we do legally to the Queen for her disobedience?" They proposed that she should be divorced for what she did, and not only her but also all the wives of the kingdom for certainly none were any better than the Queen. Then the king could choose another Queen more worthy than her.

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