 Esther 1 - 10 Questions and Answers |
| Q. What timefram did the story of Esther take place? | A. Notes: Post-Babylonian exile, when the Jews still lived in Persia. |
| Q. Who was king? | A. Esther 1:1 = Xerxes 2. He ruled from Susa. |
| Q. Was he rich? | A. Esther 1:4 = Very! Celebrations lasted six months. |
| Q. How far did Xerxes 2's empire extend? | A. Esther 1:1 = From India to Ethiopia. |
| Q. How did his wife, Vashti, embarrass him? | A. Esther 1:12 = He was drunk when he issued an order to summon her to be displayed before his buddies. She was in the middle of her own banquet and refused to go. |
| Q. Was Xerxes 2 fair to women before this time? |
A. Esther 1:22 = Apparently. Afterwards, he sent decrees throughout the land that every man should start being the ruler of his home. Note: This decree he sent out seems to still affect husbands today. Don't walk on one another starting today! |
| Q. How did Xerxes 2 handle his embarrassment? |
A. Esther 1:13 = In his anger, he gathered his advisers to help him deal with it. He wanted legal action to be taken against her. Note: Legal action? Stay sober and humble yourself before your spouse and your God and talk it over. Otherwise, you may act impulsively and regret it later. |
| Q. Did Xerxes 2 seem to regret it later? |
A. Esther 2:1 = Yes. Once he cooled off, he realized he just complicated his life and had to find a new queen. |
| Q. What tribe was Mordecai from? | A. Esther 2:5 = Benjamin. |
| Q. Esther was Mordecai's cousin? | A. Esther 2:7 = Yes. |
| Q. How did Xerxes 2 treat his wives? | A. Esther 2:12-14 = Like toys -- They were beautified, slept with, then sent to a haren until next time he desired to play with one. |
| Q. How did Esther distinguish herself? | A. Esther 2:15 = She could ask for anything while being prepared for the king and she didn't. She was admired by all for it. |
| Q. What happened to Mordecai? | A. Esther 2:19 = He became a palace official. |
| Q. Why did Esther keep her Jewish nationality a secret? |
A. Esther 2:20 = Because Mordecai told her to and she trusted him. Note: Do your kids trust your word? Though Esther was young and Mordecai's cousin, she knew she should trust his wisdom. Mordecai loved God and that was enough for Esther. Wouldn't it be nice to see young people trust their parents and potential mentors this way? |
| Q. How did Mordecai distinguish himself? | A. Esther 2:22 = He exposed an assassination plot on the king. |
| Q. What was Haman's job? | A. Esther 3:1 = Prime minister - the 2nd most powerful man to the king. |
| Q. Why was Haman upset with Mordecai? | A. Esther 3:4 = Mordecai wouldn't bow to Haman because he was a Jew. |
| Q. What did that lead to? | A. Esther 3:10 = Hatred for the Jews. Haman plotted to exterminate them completely. |
| Q. How did Haman convince Xerxes 2 to help? | A. Esther 3:8 = Haman lied about what the Jews were like. |
| Q. What lies make kings go to war? |
A. Esther 3:8 = 1) Being different than everybody else to the point of not obeying the king's laws 2) Paying a bribe (which Xerxes 2 did not take). |
| Q. How did the Jews react to the decree that they should be completely annihilated from the planet? | A. Esther 4:1 = With mourning, prayer, bitter crying and sackcloth and ashes. |
| Q. Esther was too scared to get involved? | A. Esther 4:10-11 = Yes. She could lose her life if she went to the king without being called. Mordecai implored her to ask for his help. |
| Q. What truth did Mordecai embrace about the fate of the Jews? | A. Esther 4:14 = If she wouldn't help, God would send another to deliver Israel, for it wasn't in God's plan for them to be killed off. Esther might die at the hands of God if she backed out right when she was needed. |
| Q. Did Mordecai see God's sovereignty over Esther being queen? | A.Esther 4:14 = Yes. |
| Q. Esther agreed to risk her life. How did she go about it? | A. Esther 4:16 = By calling together all the Jews in Susa for prayer and fasting for her. She and her maids would pray and fast too, and they would do it day and night for 3 days. |
| Q. Why? | A. Esther 4:16 = Esther could be sure that if she died for her deed (in going to the king uncalled for), she was willing to die. |
| Q. Did the king have murder in his heart when he saw Esther after the prayer and fasting? |
A. Esther 5:3 = Not at all. He offered her half his kingdom if she asked. Note: God changes the hearts of kings. Believe him to change the hearts of those you are praying salvation for, those you are in conflict with, or whatever confusions arise. Even in praying, your perspective becomes clearer about what is really happening. Remember that spiritual warfare is a constant and order those demons out of every situation too. |
| Q. Did Mordecai tremble before Haman since his evil decree was made known? | A. Esther 5:9 = No. |
| Q. How many banquets did Esther order? | A. Esther 5:5,7 = Two. One to whet Haman's lips for the next. |
| Q. What did Haman plan to ask the king that very night? | A. Esther 5:14 = Haman made gallows to hang Mordecai on. He'd ask permission from the king to do it in the middle of this night. |
| Q. Did God intervene? |
A. Esther 6:1 = Yes. A series of events happened: 1) Xerxes 2 had insomnia so he got up and read the royal records. He discovered Mordecai's heroism in having saved his life from assassins and realized that Mordecai had not been honored for it 2) Haman just happened to be outside to ask the king for permission to hang ths same man, Mordecai, at the banquet tomorrow! 3) The king asked his servant to fetch the nearest official for advice on rewarding Mordecai. Haman was it. |
| Q. Haman went into great detail about how to honor this hero, while imagining it was himself. Did the king know Mordecai was a Jew and due to be officially killed? |
A. Yes. Xerxes 2 planned to this honor based on the document recording Mordecai's deed. Note: Keep good records! |
| Q. So the heroic Mordecai is in the front of Xerxes 2's mind when Haman is summoned? |
A. Yes! Note: Do you think you know how your authorities and foreign authorities think? Newspapers don't tell all. God is at work behind the scenes -- in foreign countries -- in total control. Your job is to pray. How powerful a job praying is! The one document was used so efficiently by the powers that be! |
| Q. What did Haman do for Mordecai? | A. Esther 6:10 = Haman was ordered to honor Mordecai and did all he wished for himself for Mordecai instead. |
| Q. What other facts are still hidden at this point? | A. Esther 7:6 = That Queen Esther was a Jew and Mordecai was her cousin. |
| Q. What did Haman's sudden overwhelming panic, when Esther revealed her nationality and the fact that he decreed she would be killed cause him to do? | A. Esther 7:8 = Fall on Esther's couch. The king accused him of assaulting her too. |
| Q. What happened to the gallows in Haman's yard? | A. Esther 7:9 = They hung Haman it. |
| Q. What happened to Haman's estate? | A. Esther 8:1 = Xerxes 2 gave it to Esther. |
| Q. Did the king ever learn Esther's relation to Mordecai? | A. Esther 8:1 = Yes. She finally told him. |
| Q. Who oversaw Esther's new property? | A. Esther 8:2 = Mordecai. |
| Q. Did Xerxes 2 give Mordecai anything else? | A. Esther 8:2 = Yes. Xerxes had taken back his signet ring from Haman and now gave it to Mordecai. |
| Q. Did Xerxes 2 reverse the decree to kill the Jews? | A. Esther 8:4 = No. Esther had to go again to him and request something be done about it. |
| Q. Haman dictated the first decree to kill the Jews, sending messages throughout the land that were sealed with the king's ring. Who wrote the second decree to help prevent the first one from being fulfilled? | A. Esther 8:10 = Mordecai did, and he sealed it with the same ring. |
| Q. The first decree could not be revoked? | A. Esther 8:8 = No. But the 2nd one allowed the Jews to defend themselves and gave them license to kill anyone who attacked them. |
| Q. What happened next? | A. Esther 8:15 = The people celebrated the new decree. The Jews were honored and Mordecai wore royal robes. |
| Q. Did some folks even become Jews? |
A. Esther 8:17 = Yes. They feared what the Jews might otherwise do to them. Note: The desire to serve God and be His child makes you His; not fear of His people. I hope you're not a believer because you wanted to escape hell. Search for God and He'll find you! You'll love Him forever! |
| Q. What happened on March 7, the day the first decree Haman sent out would go into effect? | A. Esther 9:1 = The opposite. The Jews were ready and the people feared their wrath and joined them against any enemies. |
| Q. And Mordecai? | A. Esther 9:4 = Mordecai was promoted and became very powerful. This is why no one dared touch the Israelite/Jew. |
| Q. Did the Jews kill their enemies anyway? | A. Esther 9:5 =Yes. They killed 500 enemies in Susa, plus Haman's ten sons. |
| Q. Did that frighten the king? | A. Esther 9:12 = No. Xerxes 2 was impressed. He called Esther and asked if she wanted anything else. |
| Q. What did Esther ask Xerxes 2 for? | A. Esther 9:13 = Haman's ten sons' bodies to hang from the gallows the next day. |
| Q. Is there a special day set aside to remember this event in the Book of Esther? | A. Esther 9:26 = Yes. The Festival of Purim (or Lots). |
| Q. What is purim? | A. Esther 9:24 = The act of casting lots to make decisions is called purim. Haman used it to decide the day on which the Jews would be annihilated. |
| Q. So March 7 and 8 is the Festival of Purim? | A. Yes. |
| Q. What is special about the Festival of Purim? | A. Esther 9:29 = The Festival of Purim was made official and ratified into law by the Jewish Queen Esther in Persia. |
| Q. Was Mordecai promoted again? | A. Esther 10:3 = Yes. He was made prime minister in place of Haman. This put the Jew, Mordecai, 2nd in command in Persia. |
| Q. What did the Jews think of that? | A. Esther 10:3 = They loved Mordecai and he became great amongst his countrymen. |
| Q. Why? | A. Esther 10:3 = Mordecai worked for the good of his people and was a friend at the royal court for all of them. |
| Q. What other lessons can be drawn from the Book of Esther? |
A. 1) God takes care of His own, even in foreign lands. 2) Don't worry about the outcome before it comes. God wants your obedience and He will reward you for it! 3) God is always at work, everywhere at once, to see that His name is honored, especially when we ask Him to do it! 4) Only God can turn the hearts of kings. 5) God expects us to defend ourselves from enemies, but to do it His way. 6) Ask God to go before you in all things. He will work out all the details. 7) Pray hard and passionately. Love God with everything you are. He will always rescue you! 8) Be thorough, leaving no loose ends to be used for evil purposes. 9) I'm sure Xerxes 2 had more pressing matters to attend to. Care about the most important ones. Whatever God is involved in is most important. Don't wait for circumstances to personally threaten you before you confront sin. 10) No matter how pompous your enemies are, God wins. He has a way with dealing with evil people. Poetic justice? God is the author of that turn of phrase! |