The Courage and Faith of Esther
On February 28, the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury against Iran. Since 1979, when Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini overthrew the shah of Iran, Iran has been operating as the world’s number one state sponsor of terrorism. Iran, largely unchecked and unmitigated, has been permitted to intensify its international trade network of terrorism and develop a nuclear program.
While this nuclear program was significantly crippled after the 12-day war last summer, Iran’s ultimate goal did not change. For nearly 50 years, Iran has been pursuing the complete destruction of the Jewish state. Nearly a month into the recent war, its top officials have been taken out and yet it continues to bombard Israel daily with missiles.
One man, in particular, has been acutely aware of Iran’s ultimate goal. This was something that weighed heavily on his mind in 2015. It was then that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to the United States and spoke to our Congress on March 3.
He was trying to get America to consider Iran’s quest for nuclear weapons because it also often chants “Death to America.” So Netanyahu spoke to Congress about survival—which is a concern for the entire world, especially Israel.
In his speech, Netanyahu spoke about something I’m sure Congress was not expecting: the biblical book of Esther.
“We are an ancient people,” Netanyahu said. “In our nearly 4,000 years of history, many have tried
repeatedly to destroy the Jewish people. Tomorrow night on the Jewish holiday of Purim, we will read the book of Esther. We will read of a powerful Persian viceroy named Haman, who plotted to destroy the Jewish people some 2,500 years ago. But a courageous Jewish woman, Queen Esther, exposed the plot and gained for the Jewish people the right to defend themselves against their enemies. The plot was foiled. Our people were saved.”
Queen Esther showed us how to solve our problems. She took this grave issue to God. She fasted about it. She asked all the Jews in the capital city—and even her Persian handmaids—to fast about it.
It is worth deeply considering the history of Esther now more than ever. I believe that book has everything to do with continuing God’s plan on this Earth, and I believe it is tied to the coming of the Messiah.
Our July-August 2024 issue had several articles on the history surrounding this book of the Bible, proving its historicity.
Persia at this time, led by Xerxes the Great, was a world-ruling kingdom. A very evil and influential man, named Haman, was advising Xerxes. Like Iran today, he wanted to destroy the entire Jewish race.
Esther had to get the truth to the king. Yet Esther 4 shows the laws of the king’s court and how this could have gotten her killed. But her older cousin Mordecai told her: “‘Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king’s house, more than all the Jews. For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then will relief and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place, but thou and thy father’s house will perish; and who knoweth whether thou art not come to royal estate for such a time as this?” (verses 13-14). In other words, Who knows, but could it be that God sent you here for this very purpose? That was a hard, hard question for Esther to answer. Sometimes God calls individuals to do things they don’t want to do. But God also rewards those individuals when they step out in faith and heed His call.
Verse 16 says Esther responded by calling for a three-day fast. Then she said: “[A]nd so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law; and if I perish, I perish.” What a courageous woman! She was willing to die for her people. How many people on Earth today are willing to die for their people? Willing to give their lives for their own family? What person would stand up like this beautiful queen, and say, “OK, the king has to get this message, and if he kills me, he kills me, but I’m going to get this message to him if I can”? She set out to do exactly that.
This world needs more of the courage and faith of Esther! Are we willing to take a stand and maybe even die for our own people? The prophets who delivered God’s message anciently were certainly willing to do so.
It was shortly after this that Ezra went to Jerusalem. He operated during the reign of Artaxerxes, the son of Xerxes. Artaxerxes recognized Ezra as “the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven” (Ezra 7:12).
After Ezra established the law, along came Nehemiah, who, as governor of Jerusalem, had more power than Ezra. He built a wall around Jerusalem—a wall that we were involved in excavating under the direction of the late Dr. Eilat Mazar (See “DISCOVERED: Nehemiah’s Wall”).
What amazing things these men were able to accomplish thanks to what Esther did during the previous Persian administration. We really need to understand about Esther because she paved the way for building up and protecting Jerusalem! (For more fascinating detail about Esther’s connection to Jerusalem, read “The Curious Connection Between Esther, the Number 40 and Jerusalem”.)
Today, the Jews have neighbors that again want to wipe them off the face of the Earth. How terrible and mad is this world! The Jewish people greatly value the book of Esther. It is a story they are deeply familiar with—one they read every year during the festival of Purim, celebrating the survival of their people.
Surrounded by enemies, the Jewish people can see the need for the spirit of Esther to survive.
What courage and faith Esther had—to say, If I die, I die. She knew she had to do what she believed was God’s will! That is the kind of courage, faith and commitment we all need toward God.
What a great lady Esther was, and what a hero she is to the Jewish people—and beyond—even today.