Esther 2
The Introduction of Mordecai and His Cousin Esther, Who Becomes the New Queen of Persia in Place of Vashti
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Lesson 2

background notes

doctrinal points

  1. God can use personal beauty to accomplish His purposes.
  2. God can use political office to accomplish His purposes.

practical application

Let’s remember our roots.

questions

  1. Why was King Ahasuerus seeking a new queen? How long did it take him to find one?
  2. What does the historical record tell us about this time span?
  3. How did the king choose his new queen?
  4. Did Esther commit adultery when she went in to the king?
  5. What does it mean the Mordecai “sat within the king’s gate”?
  6. Was the “book of the chronicles” the biblical book of Chronicles?

answers

  1. The king removed Queen Vashti from her position as queen, because she refused to display herself at the king’s feast. Four years later Esther was crowned queen.
  2. During these years without a queen, King Xerxes lost a major military battle to Greece in 479 B.C.
  3. Many virgins from the kingdom were brought to the king’s palace, where they underwent a year of beauty treatment. Then they took turns appearing before the king. But God was working behind the scenes the whole time to save His chosen people.
  4. No, all of the virgins and concubines were considered the king’s legal wives. King Xerxes was a polygamist, with many wives, but only one served as queen.
  5. In ancient times, the city gate was the place where civil transactions were carried out. This probably indicated that Mordecai help a political office.
  6. No, this book of chronicles or records was the official record of the reign of King Xerxes of Persia.

discuss\ consider

  1. God can use personal beauty to accomplish His purposes. Have you ever witnessed this principle in action? It is easy to be jealous or critical of a man or woman who is more beautiful than yourself. The next time you feel this way, think instead of how the Lord could be using them to minister.
  2. Review how God was working behind-the-scenes in this chapter of Esther.

challenge

Esther and Mordecai remembered their roots and did what they could to save the Jewish people. Do you have a heritage of Christianity? What are you doing to preserve this heritage and pass it along to your children? If you are the first Christian in your family, how will you begin a heritage for your children?

memorize

  • “The king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins; so he set the royal crown upon her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.” Esther 2:17

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