The Image of God Objectified

Esther 2:2-3a: "The king’s personal attendants suggested, 'Let a search be made for beautiful young women for the king. Let the king appoint commissioners in each province of his kingdom, so that they may assemble all the beautiful young women to the harem at the fortress of Susa.'"

To gratify his pride and his lust, the king of Persia abuses his power to round up beautiful women from every province to add to his harem. Lust, and the greed that exploits it, not only harms the people enslaved to it and the spouses and children who suffer its consequences, it also powers an enormous industry where women (and sometimes men) are treated as objects to be rounded up, displayed, and sold to gratify the lust of those who will pay for it. Sometimes the "price" for which these women are sold is nothing more than the nearby ads on a webpage. Some women end up in these industries after being abused in many other ways first; a significant number are forced into it against their will and intimidated into staying. But the story of Esther also gives us hope. God was able to use even this horrific event to demonstrate His power and to save the lives of countless Israelites. We know also that one day God will make a new heaven and a new earth where no person is ever treated as a product to be sold to satisfy someone else's lust. It is this knowledge that teaches us how to pray.

A starter prayer: Father, we know that you hate sin and you hate the oppression it leads to. We know that you hate the lust and greed that fuel the pornography and prostitution industries which bring such harm to those who consume and those who provide. But we know your power and we know your heart to free the oppressed, so we ask that you would heal those whose sin fuels this fire and rescue those caught in its clutches.