LESSON 3 GOD'S WORD IS ETERNAL 

OBJECTIVE: God's eternal Word provides a plan for you to have eternal life.

 MEMORY VERSE: MATTHEW 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. 

GOD IS ETERNAL

Deuteronomy 33:27 "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them."

 Psalms 90:2 "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting thou art God.

 GOD'S WORD IS ETERNAL

Matthew 24:35 "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away." 

1 Peter 1:23-25 "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

THIS LIFE IS TEMPORAL

2 Corinthians 4:18 "While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."

 2 Corinthians 5:1 "For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens."

EVERYONE WILL EXPERIENCE ETERNAL LIFE OR DEATH

Matthew 25:46 "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal."

Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

THE PROMISE OF ETERNAL LIFE

Titus 1:2 "In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;"

 1 John 2:25 "And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life."

 HOW CAN I HAVE ETERNAL LIFE?

Matthew 19:16 "And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?"

 John 3:15 "That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life."

 John 5:39 "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."

                              CYRUS

 Isaiah was God's prophet to several succeeding kings of Judah beginning with King Uzziah. God allowed him to see future events. One of those prophecies was made in Isaiah 44:28-45:3 "That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid. Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut; I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron: And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the LORD, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel."

 I'm not sure the people understood the scope of what Isaiah was saying here. They saw several of the tribes of Israel taken captive and the remainder paying heavy tribute to Assyria. Isaiah warned the people that although Judah would be taken into slavery, God would use a man named Cyrus to bring the people back to their homeland.

 Ten years went by and they continued to occupy Jerusalem. Twenty years went by  maybe God didn't really mean what He had said. They saw the remainder of the 10 tribes of Israel taken into slavery. Thirty years went by. Forty years passed. A hundred years passed. Surely God had forgotten all about the prophecy He had given Isaiah's. Not even God remembers something He said a hundred years ago, or does He? Oh yes! God watches over His Word to perform it. God was there 200 years later to see that His prophecy came to pass. Yet God was patient with Judah. He wanted them to turn from their idols and serve Him with their whole hearts.

 One hundred and twenty years past. The prophet Jeremiah lived in Jerusalem during the turbulent days prior to exile. False prophets were saying that they would remain in Jerusalem. But Jeremiah remained firm, yes, they would go into slavery for their sins of idolatry. Along with news of judgment, he reiterated a promise similar to Isaiah's. They would return to their homeland. Let's look at the prophet Jeremiah's exact words. Jeremiah 29:10 & 11 "For thus saith the Lord, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." One hundred and thirty years and they were carried off into slavery. I should say they walked into slavery. Chained, they walked all the way to Babylon which was approximately 500 hundred miles. (Make a reference to a popular place 500 miles from your city. It's like walking to Disney World from where I live.) 

God's judgment was sure. They had broken the first commandment "Thou shalt have no other god's before me." But His mercy was just as dependable. Isaiah called a king's name before the child was ever born. Two hundred years before he ever sat on the throne Isaiah prophesied that Cyrus would send Judah back home. Let's look at Ezra for the details.

 A Persian man named Cyrus became the king. In the first year of his reign God stirred up his heart to return the Jewish people to their homeland. 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 "Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, All the kingdoms of the earth hath the LORD God of heaven given me; and he hath charged me to build him an house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people? The LORD his God be with him, and let him go up."

He said, "God has given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charge me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Everyone that wants to return may do so. Those that wish to remain here, should help them build the temple by giving them silver, gold, goods, animals and offerings."

The leaders of the tribes of Benjamin and Judah and all the people God had stirred up to return to Jerusalem prepared for their departure. Cyrus returned all the containers and utilizes that had been used in the temple prior to Nebuchadnezzar bringing them to Babylon.

 Ezra lists the families that returned. What an excited group of movers. God was sending them back to their homeland.

 The priest rebuilt the altars and began the difficult tasks of rebuilding the temple. Everyone from 20 years old and upward participated in the building. Upon completing the foundation of the temple the priest dressed in holy, priestly apparel and blew trumpets. The Levites praised God on the cymbals. They sang together giving praise and glory to God. Many of the priest and Levites were older men who remembered Solomon's temple. They wept loudly as they compared this plain beginning to that of the glorious splendor of Solomon's temple.

 The inhabitants of the land wrote letters to Cyrus, Ahasuerus, and Artaxerxes. Finally, Artaxerxes stopped the building process. But in the second year of Darius God sent the prophets Haggai and Zechariah to the Jewish people. They encouraged the people to continue the building. Once again the sound of hammers was heard as the people began to build the temple. The neighbors were upset and more letters began to make their way to King Darius. Darius searched the records. He discovered that Cyrus had given them permission to build the temple. Darius warned the neighbors, "Leave them alone. Let them build this house of God in Jerusalem." He also sent financial aid, salt, wine, animals for sacrifice and provisions for the priest.

 Satan wanted to stop them from building the temple, but instead it opened the door to the financial means to complete the building. God was watching over His Word to perform it.

 Yes, the people were punished for their sins, but He had provided an escape. A Persian King released and financed the re-building of the temple. Jesus took the punishment for our sins when he died on the cross. You must choose to accept Jesus or reject Him. No one can choose for you. In God's great provision He saw you before you were born. He provided a way for you to be saved hundred of years before your birth. He will not force you to accept Him.

                           SCHEDULE

SINGING

 OFFERING

 ARISTO RAT HISTORY 12 BOOKS 

PUPPET SONG THE AMAZING LIBRARY (BLACK LIGHT)

 TODAY'S NUGGET: ASSAYER

 PROFESSOR VON CLUCK & ESTHER

 PROSPECTOR BOOM TOWN OR GHOST TOWN

 IT'S ALL GONE UGH & LEE

  GOD'S WORD IS ETERNAL

 ALTAR CALL

 PUPPETS & PROPS

BIBLE, UGH AND LEE, BLACK LIGHT PUPPETS,  VISUALS FOR MOUSE

                        IT FITS WHERE?

 The Bible is divinely inspired, but its order was determined by people. The Bible is not in chronological order. That makes it a little hard to see how the books fit together sometime. We covered the Law which was written by Moses. Those books fit together giving us a concise picture. Then comes Joshua. Then Judges. Ruth takes place during the time of the Judges. Many of the major and minor prophets were sent to the kings and lived during the time of I & II Kings and I & II Chronicles. Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther all fit into the period of captivity and restoration of Jerusalem. But so do Daniel and Ezekiel. Daniel was just a youth when he left Jerusalem for Babylon in the first group of slaves. The book of Daniel takes place during the 70 years of captivity. Ezekiel was deported in the second group. Ezra is a priest and he writes about their return to Jerusalem at the end of captivity. Nehemiah returns to help build the walls. Esther is the wife of the Persian King Ahasuerus.

                       DUCKS OR SPONGES 

Are you like a duck or a sponge? Before you say neither, listen carefully. Ducks oil their feathers from a special gland in their body. This oiling process causes the water to run off the ducks. The water doesn't soak the duck, it just runs off. But the sponge soaks up the water and actually feeds off the nutrients and the oxygen in the water.

 Now to repeat my question are you like a duck or a sponge? When the Water of the Word goes out in this classroom, do you let it roll off or do you soak it up like a sponge?

                     GOD'S WORD IS ETERNAL 

Bring in a large wall clock. We live in a world that is constantly changing. Life itself is uncertain. Spring and summer arrive with their warm sunny days and beautiful flowers, but it slips away so quickly into the barrenness of winter. Only one thing is certain- change. Our life is ruled by the clock. In this life  years, days and minutes are numbered. But God is not limited to a clock. God lives forever. Yet God does not change. His laws do not change. We discussed at length last week the permanence of God's rules, but His promises are just as permanent. His promises do not change. God was in the beginning. He will be there when time and this world are over. God has no end.

 But what does that mean to me? Moses told the Israelites in Deuteronomy 33:27 "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them." God wants you to know that He will be there for you. He is your refuge. He is holding you in his everlasting arms. My arms would get so tired from holding my chubby babies. God's arms don't get tired. He is there for you. He will never leave you nor forsake you.

 God doesn't change. He isn't moody. He doesn't get up today and decide He's going to change the rules. He doesn't decide he doesn't like that promise in John 3:16, so He'll just delete that one. No! God put the promises in the Bible to bless His children. He loves you. He wants good things for you. Every promise in the Bible is there for you. It is God's personal love letter to you.

 In Genesis 3:15 we see God's first promise of redemption. From that point Satan determined that he would stop God's plan of redemption-he would prevent the messiah. Then God pinpointed the prophesy. He told David that the messiah would be born from his seed. Satan didn't know which one, so he would stop God's word from coming to pass by destroying the Jewish nation. God's promises would not fail. God would move all heaven and earth to prevent that from happening. In Esther, we see a plot to destroy the Jewish people. The plot was not devised by a mere man, but devised by Satan himself. A plan that although carefully thought out was destined to fail because Almighty God had promised that the nation of Israel would not be destroyed. Not one time in the book of Esther do we see the word God, yet it vividly portrays God's sovereign power and love. You see God as Jehovah-Jireh. He sees ahead and provides. We can depend on His word. His Word will not fail. Not a single promise, not one.

 The world's resources are not inexhaustible. We are hearing conservationist warn, we must recycle. In spite of limited natural resources, there is no shortage of God's power or ability to move in our behalf. The shortage comes in our lack of faith and commitment to obey his instructions. 

Our God is the mighty Alpha and Omega. He is the beginning and the end. Omega means Great "O". God is the great O. You can trace around the "O" forever, because it doesn't have a beginning or end. There are no getting on ramps or getting off ramps. God has all power. There is no end to his power. God has all knowledge. There is no end to His knowledge, power or ability.

 God wants to give you eternal life. Jesus paid for your redemption on the cross. There is only one way to receive eternal life and that is through believing on Jesus Christ as your savior.

                    BOOM TOWN OR BUST TOWN

 The bone weary traveler could not believe his eyes as he scanned the empty street. Windows were boarded. Litter lined the streets, while the wind haphazardly rolled tumbleweed onto the sidewalks. "Anybody here," the frail traveler screeched. The loud banging of a loose sign over the town salon was the only reply. As the traveler approached the end of the board buildings erected in the heyday of gold mining, he repeated his inquiry. "Anybody here? Somebody please answer me." An old dusty man appeared from the doorway. He was bent and his face was wrinkled and cracked. His clothes were dusty and thread bare. 

"What do you want. I'm just a tired old man. Leave me alone." 

Running to the stranger, the anxious traveler began, "Tell me what's happen ed to this place. The letter told me this was a prosperous mining town. It said there was enough gold here to make a man rich. Where are all the people? Where's all the gold?

 Oh there was once gold here, but it's all gone now and so are the people. A few struck it rich, but when the gold was all gone, the people left. I'm too old to leave. I don't have anywhere to go so I'm just gonna stay here till I die. 

I don't understand. This was a boom town with lots of people, lots of money, lots of everything.

 Boom towns become bust towns when the gold is gone. All the heyday and hilarity that accompanied the gold rush is in the past. That day is gone. You can't live in the past, it's over. Fellow, don't you realize nothing in this life lasts forever.

 2 Corinthians 4:18 "While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."

                         NO END TO IT?

 (Prior to the routine put a spool of heavy thread of a contrasting color in the inside pocket. Pull it up through the lapel and lay the string on the lapel. Unravel socks of a matching color to the thread and wear them with the clown costume.) Clown enters the room dignified yet excited with a note in his hand. He has been given the prestigious job of making the announcements. He straights his jacket. Waves at the kids. Wipes the dust off his pants. Claps his hands. Looks down at the list. Sighs excitedly, spots a string on his jacket and wipes at it. It doesn't wipe off. He tries again a little embarrassed. Motions to the audience one minute by extending his forefinger to indicate one. He picks up the thread and begins to pull. The thread will continue and continue. He should become entangle in the thread. He should get down in the floor and try to get untangled with his feet. He gets his feet entangled as well. The thread continues to come. He should comment, isn't there an end to this string. Where is it coming from. Pull up his pants leg to show the sock half gone. He is embarrassed gives the announcement to one of the children and exits still tangled.

 Even though the string may be long, it has an end. Believe me. Even though our life spans may seem long, this life is so short in comparison to eternity. Believe God's Word, it will still be there when this life is over.

                   THE ASSAYER- MEMORY VERSE 

Good Morning! I've been busy all morning weighing gold. I've got a fine nugget for you today. Yes, sir I do. Now "fine" may not mean much to you young folks, but to us assayers, that means it's 24 carat. Now, I don't "mine," (giggle) get it, "mine, gold mine," ain't that cute. If I do say so myself, 24 carat means pure gold. And I've got a fine 24 carat nugget for you today. I'm not joking neither. It's found in Matthew 24:35 "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away." God's word will last forever. This life and everything we see will not last, but God's Word will. Now why is that so important? Cause you can depend on it. It's a sure thing. Mining gold nuggets is a real gamble, but God's Word is a gold mine you can depend on. Gotta get back to the business. Good bye!

                            GOLDIE

 Well, Hello there you sugars. I'm Goldie the Rock Hound and I just love hunting for rocks especially diamonds and gold nuggets. I have the unique ability to sniff (sniffs into handkerchief) out rocks (throws over her hand). That's why they call me a rock hound. I'm a pedigree hound dog that sniffs out rocks, but not just any kind of rocks. No sir! Not me, I sniff out jewels and gold (giggles). That's right would you like to see one of my jewels. (shows hand) I traveled half way around the world to find gold and diamonds here in Witwatersrand. A couple weeks ago, I met Aristo Rat. He gave me a wonderful book and told me to do some mining in it. So I did. I found wonderful jewels. Jewels more valuable than all my other jewels put together. (Brings out Bible) I just love it. I just love it. It's my very favorite mine yet! Well, I want to sniff out some more diamonds. Four T's. That means ta ta 'til tomorrow! (EXITS)

                         IT'S ALL GONE 

Ugh & Lee and candy bar. Ugh needs an opening in his mouth to stuff the candy bar through. Line his mouth with plastic wrap to keep it from being soiled. 

Ugh: What you got there, Lee?

 Lee: (don't say a word just eat the candy bar)

 Ugh: A (name your favorite candy bar), huh?

 Lee: (continue to eat)

 Ugh: So you like _______, huh?

 Lee: (continue)

 Ugh: You know, Lee. Your favorite candy bar is one of my favorite candy bars.

 Lee: (finishes candy bar)

 Ugh: Could I have a bite?

 Lee: Sorry, it's all gone. (wads paper and throws behind him)

 Ugh: What do you mean it's all gone?

Lee: I ate it all. It's all gone Ugh!

 Ugh: All of it.

 Lee: That's right. Now let's say today's memory verse. 

Ugh: Sorry Lee, I gotta go get me ________ candy bar. Come on!

 Ugh darts off dragging Lee behind. Lee hollers for him to wait up.

 Voice: Life is filled with temporary things, things that are here today and gone tomorrow. God's Word will last forever. "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my Word will not pass away." Matthew 24:35

                       HISTORY 12 BOOKS  

Well good morning, children. My it's good to see you again! Here we are back at the famous Witwatersrand Gold Field in Johannesburg, S. Africa. We're not here to explore a mine to find gold that will perish, but a far more valuable gold. We are "Mining Wisdom from God's Word." Today we move to the next division of the Bible - History. This section has 12 books in it. They are Joshua, Judges, Ruth, I & II Samuel, I & II Kings, I & II Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther. All these books tell about the history of the nation of Israel. Some of my friends from the gold mine will assist me in a brief synopsis of these 12 books of history.

 Puppet: (enters waving banner) See my banner, this is a symbol of victory. The first book of history is Joshua. It tells all about (show banner) the victory and rest that God gave Israel. God gave Joshua the secret to success- Meditate on the Word. Joshua records their entrance into Canaan, the division of the land and it's conquest. 

Bear: (enter chanting and holding a gavel or show a picture of a gavel) Here comes da Judge. Here comes da Judge! Dats 'cause Judges is the name of our next book. It's like an all day sucker, cause the book lasts a long, long time. I don't mean it takes a long time ta read it, but Judges takes place over a period of 490 years. That's all da way from da first leader after Joshua to da berry last one before King Saul. (Make voice sound sad.) It's a sad story of da nation of Israel turning away from God. I think Samuel musta wrote this book. There was thirteen Judges, and one of them was a girl. God used these Judges to make all da bad "Ines and Ities" leave them alone. I didn't say "ines and outtes," or "ines and outs," I said "Ines and Ities." You know about those "Ities and Ines."  Oh, sure you do the "Ities" and the "Ines." The Moabites, The Emphraimites, the Midianites they were the Ities. The Philistines were the Ines. God sent the Judges to get rid of the "Ities" and the "Ines".

 Girl Puppet: (wheat) Oh, I just love the book of Ruth. It's so romantic. (giggles) But more than just romantic, it tells the story of God's provision and love. I think Samuel wrote Ruth, yeah, I think so. Ruth is one of only two books named after a girl. Ruth means friend and she lived during the time of the Judges. Matthew lists her in the direct lineage of Jesus Christ, although she was a Moabite. Bye!

 Duck Puppet: (mouth) Quack! Quack! Furst Samuel is witten by Mister Samuel. It tells all about Mister Samuel's life. Quack! Did you know dat Samuel became da priest 'cause Eli's sons were so bad. He was a good priest for a long time, too. Quack, Quack! Den da people wanted a king, so God said O.K! Samuel anointed their very first king by pouring oil all over his head. (giggle) I sure wish I could've seen that. But da new king wanted to, Quack, please people more than he wanted to please God. The rest of dis story is no quack up believe me, cause King Saul and his good son Jonathan died on da battlefield. Ain't dat sad. Quack, quack!

 Sheep: (harp) Baaa! Baaa! I w-w-wanted to tell you about II Samuel c-c-cause it's the h-h-history of Da-a-avid, the great sheph-er-er-erd King. It rec-or-or-ords the full establishment of Jerusalem as the re-re-religious and po-li-li-litical center of I-I-Israel. In this boo-oo-ook we cle-ar-ar-arly see the c-c-coming of the Mess-i-i-iah from the fam-am-ily of D-D-David. B-b-bye!

 Boy: (crown) Boy, it would be great to be a real live king. I guess the next best thing is reading about them in Kings and Chronicles. The prophet kept records of each of the kings. These records were later compiled by Jeremiah to make Kings and Ezra to make Chronicles. Kings is considered the political history, while Chronicles is the religious history. These both were originally one book, but the translators separated them into two books each. The books close with both Israel and Judah in exile and slavery. Do you wonder how I know all this stuff? Aristo Rat told me.

 Bro. Gray: (temple) Well, Glory! Glad to be with you today. I here to tell you about a great man and book in the Bible. Yes I am! Praise, the Lord. That book is . . . a . . . Ezra. That's right. Amen Let me get my notes. Now Ezra, Hallelujah! is all about tomatoes, ketchup, no that's my grocery list. Ezra was a preacher, well they called him a priest in the Bible, but it's the same thing. He was a writer too, cause he wrote all about Israel's return to their homeland after 70 years of exile. Hallelujah! It covers a history of about 80 years. Being the good preacher he was, he helped the people rebuild the temple and re establish worship. Hallelujah, it's time to go.

Puppet: The puppet should have the hiccups. (wall) Nehemiah means comforter. He held an important position as the king's cup bearer. He asked for a leave of absence and financial assistance to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. He was a tremendous organizer, with the commitment to match the arduous task. Nehemiah was a man of prayer.

 Star: (star) Esther means star. She was a beautiful orphan that became the queen used by God to save Israelites from annihilation. The name of God is not mentioned once in this entire book.  The books of Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther are contemporary. That means they all took place around the same time period. Don't mix in the crowd, you can be a shining star by obeying God's Word.

 Aristo: In all the books of history we see that although leaders failed and people failed, God's Word never failed. He kept a careful watch over his Word to fulfill His Word, when His people met the conditions. God's love is never ending. God's faithfulness is limitless. He remained faithful despite their faithlessness. You are writing the history of your life everyday. Are you writing a story of commitment to see God's promises fulfilled in your life? You make the choices. You hold the pen, the future depends on your obedience to God's word.

                 PROFESSOR VON CLUCK & ESTHER

 I found my mistake. It is right here. You see the square root of the hypotenuse times the . . . oh never mind. Anyway, I found my mistake and today I'm going to bring Moses to this church. And now . . . (set dials, music plays, lights flash) Here's Moses. (professor opens the door and out walks Esther) 

Professor: Oh, no you're not Moses.

 Esther: Of course not, (with great pomp) I am Queen Esther.

 Professor: Queen Esther?

 Esther: That's right. Surely you have heard of me or perhaps my contemporaries Ezra and Nehemiah. I live in Shushan, which is far from my homeland, for I am of the tribe of Benjamin. As punishment for serving idols my people were taken as slaves to Babylon. After the death of Nebuchadnezzar, his son Belshazzar became King in his place. Belshazzar's kingdom was overthrown by Darius the Persian king and my people once again were scattered even further from our precious homeland.

Professor: If you are a Jewish woman, how did you become a Persian Queen?

 Esther: I won a beauty contest.

 Professor: My that sounds exciting.

 Esther: Oh, my yes it was exciting, but it was long until Mordecai, my precious cousin that raised me like a father, sent me the terrible news.

 Professor: What do you mean "terrible news"?

 Esther: The news that wicked Haman had devised and secured the King's signature to a terrible law. An irrevocable law that required all Jewish people everywhere to be killed. Mordecai reminded me that just because I was the queen I would not escape death. I didn't know what to do. My maidens and I, along with Mordecai and his friends fasted for three days. Afterwards, I dressed in my most beautiful clothes and jewels. Daring to risk my life I approached the King.

 Professor: Did you tell him about Haman's wicked plan.

 Esther: Not at first. Instead I invited the King and Haman to a banquet.

 Professor: Did you tell him at the banquet?

 Esther: No, I invited them both to another banquet!

 Professor: What?

 Esther: That's right. At the second banquet King Ahasuerus repeated his question from the day before, "What do you want Esther? It shall be granted thee: and what is thy request?" Then I asked that my life and the life of my people be spared. Shocked Ahasuerus wanted to know who presumed to kill us? Without hesitating I replied, "It is none other than that wicked Haman." King Ahasuerus stomped out of the palace and into the garden. When he came back into the palace, Haman was begging me to spare his life. This further enraged the king. Harbonah one of the chamberlains spoke up and said, "King, did you know that sitting in Haman's back yard are gallows fifty cubits high. They were prepared for Mordecai, that good man that once saved the king's life." Then Ahasuerus bellowed, "Hang him there."

 Professor: So he got hung on his own gallows. And what about the law that the King had signed. I understand even he could never revoke a law once it is made.

 Esther: That's right, but he sent out another degree. This decree read that all Jews in every city were to band together and defend themselves. They were given official permission to kill anyone that attacked them and to take all of that person's possessions for spoil. When the Jews heard the news they rejoiced. The held a great feast and many people of other nationalities became Jews. Instead of our enemies defeating us, we defeated them.

 Professor: Excuse me Queen Esther, but I really must get you back. You see I have some adjustments I need to do on my time machine. Thank you so much for coming. (Esther exits through the time machine) I just don't understand what's wrong with this machine. Excuse me children, but I must return to the old drawing board. (Roll the machine out through the door.)

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