Esther In The Hebrew Scriptures

Esther is a Jewish name, which means ‘star’, which the Persian or Babylonian form is Hadassah, meaning ‘myrtle’. The name Esther may also have a connection to the name of the common Semitic goddess, Ishtar. In the Hebrew Scriptures the book occurs in the third section among the Five Scrolls (Megilloth), which were read at the great feasts. Esther was read at the Festival of Purim (Lots). The story of Esther began at a banquet at the court of the Persian king, Ahasuerus, usually thought to be the emperor Xerxes. There were two separate banquets being held: one for the king, his councilors and all the men of Susa; the other given by Queen Vashti, for the women of the court and nobility. While he was drunk, King Xerxes sent for the Queen to appear before the men at his banquet.

She didn’t like the fact that he was just showing off her body to those men, it was not a suitable thing for a queen to do. Vashti refused to come and to be shown off like some common concubine. She behaved with haughty dignity when she refused the king 's command, but unfortunately her answer was given in front of the officers of the empire, and she paid the price for humiliating the king. Xerxes, still half-drunk, acted hastily. On the advice of his councilors, he made the situation worse by making it publically known that Vashti was to be banished. This drew even more attention to the fact that Vashti had flouted his command, and made him look a fool to everyone who was at that party. After a while Xerxes found that without Vashti, he was lonely. He could not call her back because his word, once spoken, was law and he didn’t want his subjects to think that he didn’t stick to his word. So his courtiers suggested a solution: to find another queen, a young and beautiful woman who would take Vashti 's place and be by his side. A nation-wide search for a new queen