She would then become his concubine, whose sole purpose was to entertain the king at his whim.Įsther’s turn came, and they took her to the king. They took each girl into the king’s presence at night, and in the morning, she would return to the king’s harem. He worried about her terribly, walking back and forth every day near the courtyard of the harem to discover how Esther was faring. They took many young women (who had no choice), including Esther, described as “ lovely in form and features.” (2:7) She immediately became a favorite, received special food, seven maids to attend to her, and moved “ into the best place in the harem.” (2:9)Įsther hid her Jewish background because her cousin Mordecai feared for her safety and forbid her to reveal it. They would bring them to the palace and spruce them up with 12 months of beauty treatments. The king’s advisers proposed to round up beautiful young virgins from throughout the kingdom. “ There will be no end of disrespect and discord.” (1:18b) So a royal decree went out declaring a new law- every man would be ruler of his own house and included a provision for the removal of Vashti. Queen Vashti’s actions, they impulsively decided, would cause other women to act in the same way. On the seventh day, the King was “ in high spirits from the wine.” Xerxes instructs the king’s eunuch to bring the Queen to him so he could flaunt her beauty to all.īut Queen Vashti refused- it went against Persian custom for women to appear before a public gathering of men.įearing the fallout from his wife’s refusal, the King huddled with his advisors. Queen Vashti, meanwhile, was holding her own banquet for the women of the palace. (He was preparing to invade Greece and needed to flex some muscle/show off…) This sumptuous banquet was followed by yet another great banquet where the “royal wine was abundant” (1:7) and free flowing. “At the time King Xerxes reigned from his royal throne in the citadel of Susa, and in the third year of his reign he gave a banquet for all his nobles and officials… For a full 180 days he displayed the vast wealth of his kingdom and the splendor and glory of his majesty.” Esther1:2-4. We read about a banquet held in the king’s palace for Xerxes to show off his wealth and majesty. History of EstherĮsther’s rise to Queen begins with the Persian King Xerxes’ problems with his present Queen, Vashti. It is one of the many times we see how God worked behind the scenes to provide for her and her people. Losing her parents at a young age must have been very difficult for Esther. And Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died.” Esther 2:7 NIV. “Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah, whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother…. Esther Family TreeĮsther’s father’s name was Abihail and her parents named her Hadassah at birth- (it was a common practice of the Jews to have double names).¹ Her parents both died at some point, and Esther’s cousin Mordecai adopted and raised her. She lived in Susa, the capital city of Persia. But Esther’s parents were among those who opted to stay. By decree, they had given the Jews permission to return to Jerusalem. Where did Esther Live?Įsther was living in exile in Persia, as were many Jews scattered throughout this vast empire. What made Esther so special? The book of Esther is one of only two books in the Bible named for women! Facts about Queen EstherĮsther didn’t start out as Queen, but God placed her in that situation to carry out His sovereign plans. One of the more intriguing stories is that of Esther. The Bible is full of encouraging stories about the lives of women, which is quite amazing considering their second-class status of their day.
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