Navigating the Bible: Esther

On this second occasion, while they were drinking wine, the king again said to Esther, “Tell me what you want, Queen Esther. What is your request? I will give it to you, even if it is half the kingdom!” Queen Esther replied, “If I have found favor with the king, and if it pleases the king to grant my request, I ask that my life and the lives of my people will be spared.  For my people and I have been sold to those who would kill, slaughter, and annihilate us. If we had merely been sold as slaves, I could remain quiet, for that would be too trivial a matter to warrant disturbing the king.” – Esther 7:2-4Esther holds an interesting place in the Old Testament. It’s a post-exilic narrative similar to Ezra and Nehemiah, but rather than focusing on the Jewish community returning to Jerusalem, it tells the story of some of the Jewish remnant in Susa – people who for one reason or another chose not to return to Jerusalem. In many ways, Esther reads like a thriller. There’s a nefarious plot, divine providence, and bold actions culminating in a decisive moment for Esther herself and the Jewish people. But, at its heart, Esther is a very relatable story. There are no demonstrative miracles, just people making the choice to stand up for a cause important to them and the God who is ever-present, even if not specifically named. To help us navigate the book of Esther is Dr. Iain Duguid, Professor of Old Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary and author of a commentary on Esther. Doable Discipleship is a podcast produced and hosted by Jason Wieland. Resources Related to This Episode:https://www.amazon.com/Esther-Ruth-Reformed-Expository-Commentary/dp/0875527833Subscribe to the Doable Discipleship podcast at Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/doable-discipleship/id1240966935) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/1Zc9nuwQZOLadbFCZCmZ1V)Related Doable Discipleship Episodes: Navigating the Bible: Nehemiah - https://youtu.be/zWR-5pSzk1cNavigating the Bible: Ezra - https://youtu.be/23Sdch-pZK0Navigating the Bible: 2 Chronicles - https://youtu.be/Xs7k9ntEcuENavigating the Bible: 1 Chronicles - https://youtu.be/eagXyo9oepgNavigating the Bible: 2 Kings - https://youtu.be/vuCefx3wha0Navigating the Bible: 1 Kings - https://youtu.be/EQjzZ0lvLjoNavigating the Bible: 2 Samuel - https://youtu.be/9UOoIvfwXy0Navigating the Bible: 1 Samuel - https://youtu.be/kWKqWlB8pkENavigating the Bible: Ruth - https://youtu.be/shGuoDkiFkgNavigating the Bible: Judges - https://youtu.be/Sz6TL_w-gpcNavigating the Bible: Joshua - https://youtu.be/5gldD5FM-wkNavigating the Bible: Deuteronomy - https://youtu.be/JidwMnYL51kNavigating the Bible: Numbers - https://youtu.be/V60gGr-9pHwNavigating the Bible: Leviticus - https://youtu.be/1-I-QdjB700Navigating the Bible: Exodus - https://youtu.be/1ELkgAlWFGgNavigating the Bible: Genesis - https://youtu.be/5zXHObysL6gInspiring Dreams by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonMusic promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/Creative Commons CC BY 4.0https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/