The Story Of Queen Esther : The Book Of Esther

The Persian Empire is arguably one of the greatest and largest empires ever in the history of the world. It was in place from approximately 550 to 334 BCE in Asia Minor and Persia. Throughout the time the empire was in place there were multiple kings that ruled it changing the cultures of the people living in the empire. The Book of Ester is a book from the Hebrew Bible written during the fourth century BCE that tells the story of a Persian king Achashvairosh. In the story information is given on how Persian Kings were able rule their vast empire for such a long period of time. The Persian Kings that ruled the Persian Empire were able to do their job successfully, deal with problems they faced, and keep their empire culturally vast because

Also seen in the Old Testament, Esther parallels Joseph by assimilating from being a passive commoner to a queen, the highest royal position for a woman. Her life entirely changes when she marries King Ahasuerus

The book of Esther is full of mysteries that has grasped the attention of Biblical scholars and audiences throughout ages and still presents some challenges to the contemporary audiences. It is important to understand the purpose and theme of the book in order to better understand the text in its context. Many Christian scholars and audiences’ alike eisegesis the text instead of using exegesis therefore there have been many misconceptions regarding Esther. The book of Esther is a very important book for it is the only book in the bible to be without the name of God in its entire text. Though there is no reference to God or Torah in the text does not necessarily mean that God is not revealed through circumstances and challenges faced by His

Out of all the female characters in the Bible, Esther stands out as one of the most heroic and complex figures. As a comparison, she could easily be equated to the heroic Joseph from the book of Genesis as they both have similar experiences in the royal court. But unlike Joseph, Esther’s most heroic trait is not that she can analyze dreams. Rather, her most important feature is that she is a wise strategist, which allows her to save the Jews and her cousin, Mordecai. Yet, Esther does not begin her journey as a cunning tactician. She is molded and shaped by her surroundings and other heroic features. In fact, it is these additional qualities that accumulate and extend to her becoming a

Queen Vashti was the daughter of King Nebuchadnezzar and was very self-seeking and stubborn. She was also very beautiful, which in some ways was her downfall, for during the concluding week of the great feast, King Xerxes demanded Queen Vashti come before him and have her beauty paraded before his guests. Queen Vashti refused to come and be humiliated in this manner, for it was not proper for a woman to appear before a room of men. This angered King Xerxes, and he turned to his advisors for what appropriate actions should be taken against the queen for disobedience. “If it pleases his majesty, let him issue a royal decree – and let it be written as one of the laws of the Persians and Medes, which are irrevocable – that Vashti is never again to be admitted into the presence of King Achashverosh, and that the king give her royal position to someone better than she” (Stern 1089-1090). King Xerxes had Queen Vashti removed from her position as queen, and she was never summoned before him again, for the word of the king was final and could not be rescinded. Upon the advice of his closest trustees and advisors, a beauty pageant was held at the palace, and all of the most eligible virgins of all the provinces were to come to Susa as prospects to replace Queen Vashti.

Jewish history and its overall themes are expressed through The Book of Esther, which is in The Holy Bible. This sacred text takes place in 486 BC, when King Xerxes I ruled Persia. This story is an historical interpretation of the life of Queen Esther along with the lives of the Jewish people. Even though The Book of Esther is only ten chapters, it contains many rich themes. Also, the characters exercise many different traits such as: fortitude, empathy, and divine providence. The Book of Esther explores many themes, such as faith, manipulation, and courage in order to show the Jews, who are living in exile, that it is possible to gain success in the country of one’s exile without showing one’s true identity.

In the short fiction “The Reverend Rebecca Esther”, Steven Allaback is weaving in a criticism of the treatment of people with mental illness as well as elitism in religion. Allaback uses secondary characters such as the owner of the restaurant Peter took Mrs. Esther to, and the Christian college students Mrs. Esther encountered in that same restaurant, further proving the notion that fiction can be a mask for social critique, and Allaback builds that critique on the way society treats Mrs. Esther.

Esther was an orphan who was raised by her cousin Mordecai (Leath, 2010). There came a time that she would go from orphan to queen. Esther lived in Persia, where King Ahasuerus ruled. A day arrived that Queen Vashti refused to obey King Ahasuerus and was soon replaced by Esther (Leath, 2010). During this time, the King held ultimate power and everyone was subject to the king’s authority. Consequently, Queen Vashti displayed disobedience by not obeying the King and was punished by being removed as queen (Leath, 2010). However, the removal of Queen Vashti paved the way for Esther and she was purposefully placed in position as queen. This seized

She was sold in a slave auction, along with a few other slaves, few other slaves, and purchased by the slave owner Joseph Parish. The walk about the plantation was a long one as the very people she loved so dearly was forced to be only a batch of memories, she knew that she would never see her mother, or father again. The last words of her mother repeatedly played over, and over in her head as she walked with the other newly bought slaves on the way to the cotton plantation. Be strong my child, know that this is what you were born to do, but promise me, if you bear a child of your own, please make them free, said Esther 's mother as she had her daughter stripped right out of her arms. Her father would console her mother as the very thing her family hoped, and prayed wouldn 't happen, happened. This wasn 't new to Esther as both her parents brought her into the world of slavery, they all knew that possibly one day their family could be split up. The first couple of weeks without having her parents by her side were difficult, without having their guidance. She was lost. Even though tears may have flown down her face that did not stop her from doing her duties as a field slave. Day in and day out, Esther picked hundreds of pounds of cotton a day, outdoing the rest of the slaves. This would later grab the attention of one the plantation 's overseers, Seth Parish. My, my, my, you all let this young, beautiful, negro girl out pick you all by the

I find myself in a palace, drinking tea with the queen of Persia. Queen Esther, a woman who had to step out of her comfort zone and face new challenges. Her appearance, soft yet powerful. Back then, a queen couldn’t enter the king’s throne room unless he summoned her, and if she did, the queen could’ve been killed. Esther knew this fact, but she risked her life by entering the throne room to ask the king to save her people who were about to be killed. She beat down the stereotype of queen’s being too scared to go up to the king. Esther inspires me to step up for what I believe is right and I aspire to be like her. Just getting a few precious minutes to pray with her would help me grow into a more confident woman. I’ve always wondered as a little

The book of Esther is a story of a young, beautiful, Jewish girl who ultimately became queen. At the time, King Ahasuerus reigned over the Persian Empire. He threw lavish banquets for his officials as well as all the people in Susa. The night of the seventh banquet, he called for Queen Vashti so he can flaunt her in front of the people but she refused to come. He sought council on how to handle the queen’s actions, he gave a decree and then ordered her to leave the kings presence and her position is to be given to someone more deserving.

Esther was living in the city of Susa with her older cousin Mordecai, who had raised Esther since she was a little girl. King Xerxes selected Esther to be his queen, after she won a beauty contest, which prompted complete turmoil. Mordecai refused God’s instruction to move Esther where he wanted them to live. In fact, God had ordered all of the Jewish people to return to their homeland to congregate and rebuild His temple. Esther’s cousin informed her to not tell the king that she was a Jew (Hooper, 2012). When it became apparent that a scheme was being formed to assassinate King Ahasuerus, Mordecai told Esther, who in turn, told the king. The king displayed gratitude towards Mordecai and Esther for notifying him. Mordecai found out later

also discuss the life, times, and major events of Esther's life. Last but not least I will cover the

At first read the book of Esther is a story of a Queen who was able to achieve a heroic act that saved her people from being destroyed. However as you examine the story it’s more than a historic story of triumph, but through the actions of the characters in the story it becomes a blueprint for many aspects of leadership. By examining the different dimensions of the leadership traits of King Ahasuerus, Haman, Mordecai and Esther will represent the different facet of developing into a leader.

I also love the story of Esther and had thought about using this for my review until I found dead poets Society. I appreciate how you brought into context the deontological ethics as a theory and how Mordecai chose to handle the situation with Haman by following God’s Commandments not man’s. Furthermore, you mentioned Esther’s decision to have Hammons family killed as a teleological theory that you disagreed with, do you think there could have been a better solution in how she dealt with those who wanted the Jews killed? What do you think another option could of been?