The Book of Esther
The book of Esther tells how a young Jewish woman became queen of Persia and used her place to save her people from a decree of destruction. It is set in the citadel of Susa under King Xerxes, called Ahasuerus in the Hebrew text, when many Jews lived scattered across the Persian Empire.
In the ten chapters of the Hebrew text, the story moves from a royal banquet to a new yearly festival. Esther, an orphan raised by her cousin Mordecai, is made queen. Mordecai will not bow to Haman, whom the king has raised above all his princes, and Haman wins a decree to destroy every Jew in the empire. Esther risks her life to go to the king unsummoned and exposes Haman at her own banquet. A second decree lets the Jews defend themselves, and the book closes with the founding of Purim.
The Hebrew text never mentions God by name, yet many readers find His care in the story's well-timed turns: a sleepless night, a good deed remembered just in time, and a gallows that catches its own builder.
This study walks through Esther in order, opening with an overview of the book and then following the story scene by scene. In Your Bible App, it comes as short, fun rounds that make the drama stick.
Key people
Esther
A Jewish orphan, also called Hadassah, who becomes queen and risks her life to save her people.
Mordecai
Esther's cousin and guardian, from the tribe of Benjamin, whose refusal to bow to Haman sets the story in motion.
Xerxes
The Persian king, called Ahasuerus in the Hebrew text, whose banquets and decrees frame the whole story.
Haman
The Agagite whom the king raises above all his princes, and who plots to destroy every Jew in the empire.
Vashti
The queen whose refusal to appear at the king's banquet opens the way for Esther.
Themes
Care behind the scenes
God is never named in the Hebrew text, yet many readers see His quiet care in the timing of the story's events.
Courage at a cost
Esther goes to the king uninvited, knowing it could cost her life: "And if I perish, I perish!"
Great reversals
Haman's plot turns back on him, and the Jews' mourning is turned into a holiday.
A people far from home
The book shows Jews scattered across a foreign empire, accused by Haman of keeping laws unlike everyone else's.
Remembering a rescue
Purim is set up so that every generation will remember how the Jews were delivered.
Key verses
For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows if perhaps you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
“Go and assemble all the Jews who can be found in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day, and I and my maidens will fast as you do. After that, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish!”
Esther quiz: sample questions
The king loved Esther more than all the other women. According to Esther 2:17, what did she gain with him that the other virgins did not?
- She was given royal robes of blue and white with a cloak of fine purple linen
- She received the signet ring taken from the king's hand
- She found favor in the eyes of the chief jailer, who put her in charge of the prison
- She was granted favor and compassion from the chief of the court officials in Babylon
- She found grace and favor in his sight more than all the other virgins
Show the answer
Answer: She found grace and favor in his sight more than all the other virgins
Why: Esther 2:17 says that she found grace and favor in his sight more than all the other virgins, and so the king made her queen in place of Vashti. The wrong options come from later scenes in Esther or from other books entirely.
And the king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she found grace and favor in his sight more than all of the other virgins. So he placed the royal crown upon her head and made her queen in place of Vashti.
Whose plot against the Jews drives the conflict of the book of Esther?
- Sanballat the Horonite, who opposed the rebuilding of the wall
- Sennacherib king of Assyria, who attacked the fortified cities of Judah
- Goliath the Philistine champion from Gath
- Haman the Agagite, who sought to destroy all the Jews
- Pharaoh of Egypt, who refused to let Israel go
Show the answer
Answer: Haman the Agagite, who sought to destroy all the Jews
Why: The book presents Haman the Agagite as the man who sought to destroy all the Jews throughout the empire after Mordecai refused to bow to him. The other figures are opponents of Israel in other books.
And when he learned the identity of Mordecai’s people, he scorned the notion of laying hands on Mordecai alone. Instead, he sought to destroy all of Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout the kingdom of Xerxes.
According to Esther 3, how much silver did Haman promise to pay into the royal treasury to secure the order against the Jews?
- Ten thousand talents of silver
- One thousand talents of silver
- One hundred talents of silver
- Three hundred talents of silver
Show the answer
Answer: Ten thousand talents of silver
Why: Haman offered ten thousand talents of silver for the king's treasury. The king waved the payment aside and handed Haman his signet ring, which mattered more than the money because a sealed decree could not be revoked.
If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will deposit ten thousand talents of silver into the royal treasury to pay those who carry it out.”
According to Esther 7, what became of Haman once the king learned of his plot against the queen and her people?
- He was hanged on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai.
- He was sent away to govern a distant province.
- He escaped from Susa by night and was never found.
- He was pardoned and kept his place at the king's table.
Show the answer
Answer: He was hanged on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai.
Why: Esther 7:10 reports that Haman was hanged on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai, and that the fury of the king then subsided. The book records no exile, pardon or escape for him.
So they hanged Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the fury of the king subsided.
The book of Esther explains the origin of which yearly Jewish observance?
- The Passover, commemorating the exodus from Egypt
- The Day of Atonement, a day of denying oneself
- The Festival of Tabernacles, kept in the seventh month
- Purim, named from the lot that was cast
- The Festival of Weeks, counted from the sheaf offering
Show the answer
Answer: Purim, named from the lot that was cast
Why: Esther closes by explaining why the Jews keep these days each year, and it ties the name of the festival to the lot that Haman cast. The other observances listed are commanded in the Law of Moses, not in Esther.
Therefore these days are called Purim, from the word Pur. Because of all the instructions in this letter, and because of all they had seen and experienced,
Frequently asked questions
Is God mentioned in the book of Esther?
Not by name. The Hebrew text of Esther never mentions God, though many readers see His care in the way the events unfold. Some Bibles also include longer Greek additions to Esther that do mention God.
What is Purim?
Purim is the yearly Jewish festival that remembers the rescue told in Esther. It takes its name from the pur, the lot Haman cast to choose the day for destroying the Jews (Esther 3:7; 9:26), and it is kept on the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar (Esther 9:21).
Who wrote the book of Esther?
No one knows for certain, because the book does not name its author. Some have suggested Mordecai, since the book says he recorded these events (Esther 9:20), and Jewish tradition credits the Men of the Great Assembly.
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