Esther tells the story of a young Jewish woman who becomes queen of Persia at the very moment her entire people faces the risk of extermination.
The plot takes place in the citadel of Susa, winter capital of the Persian Empire, decades after many Jews had been carried into exile by Babylon and never returned to Judah. Vashti, the previous queen, is deposed early in the story, opening the way for Esther to take her place.
A striking detail stands out from the opening chapters: the name of God never appears in the text, not even once, from beginning to end.
Even so, every chapter reveals his hand at work behind the scenes of the story: in the chance event that places Esther on the throne, in the king’s unexpected sleeplessness, in the coincidence that exposes Haman’s secret plot against the Jews.
Mordecai sums up the heart of the book when he tells his cousin Esther that perhaps she came to the position of queen for exactly such a time as this.
Esther responds with rare courage, willing to risk her own life to intercede for her people before the king, even without being summoned.
The plan of destruction devised by Haman against the Jews turns back against him, and the day set for the ruin of God’s people becomes the day of their victory.
From this deliverance comes the Jewish feast of Purim, celebrated to this day in memory of the salvation God worked without needing to appear on stage.
Esther invites the reader to trust that God remains in control of history even when he seems silent, and this deliverance is well worth getting to know closely.