# Esther the Jewish Queen of Persia - The Book of Esther

An episode of [Kids Bible in a Year with Julia Jeffress Sadler](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1696638708), 26 Jan 2024, 12 min.

Audio: https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/f8ddd7fd-69c6-48d0-804f-b4d6010c327c/5486399e-2a32-41fe-8f9f-b4d601880ae4/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=14e8ed60-20b2-4d5c-a832-b4d6010c3283

Join Julia Jeffress Sadler as she takes us on an incredible adventure in Episode 140. Learn how Esther, a Jewish woman, becomes the queen of Persia and faces a dangerous challenge. Her uncle Mordecai uncovers a plot by the evil Haman to kill all the Jews, including Esther. Bravely, Esther decides to risk her life by going to King Xerxes uninvited to save her people. Sign up to receive Kids Bible in a Year devotionals in your inbox every weekday: https://www.kidsbibleinayear.com/ Get ready to experience the Bible designed specifically for children with the official KidsBibleinaYear.com podcast, led by Julia Jeffress Sadler. This captivating audio series presents the age-old wisdom of the Bible in an engaging format that will captivate your kids. Each episode Julia translates biblical teachings into real-life applications, making Bible comprehension a breeze for young minds. And if you want more Christian resources and content, you can download the Pray.com app. Pray.com is the digital destination for faith, offering over 5,000 daily prayers, meditations, bedtime Bible stories, and cinematic stories inspired by the Bible. For more resources on how to live a successful Christian life, visit Julia Jeffress Sadler's website at https://ptv.org/julia/. This episode is sponsored by Little Passports. Visit LittlePassports.com/blessed and use promo code BLESSED to receive 20% off. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: When her father and mother were dead, Mordecai took her
[0:04] Speaker 1: for his own daughter, Esther 2-7. Dear God, thank you
[0:10] Speaker 1: that when we feel alone, you are with us. And
[0:13] Speaker 1: when we feel like we don't belong, you welcome us
[0:17] Speaker 1: into your family. You love us and call us your
[0:20] Speaker 1: child no matter what happened. And we're so grateful. Help
[0:25] Speaker 1: us to learn even more about your beautiful love in
[0:28] Speaker 1: our story today. Thank you. We love you. In Jesus' name, amen.
[0:35] Speaker 2: Thank you for praying with us today. The Kids Bible
[0:38] Speaker 2: in a Year podcast is sponsored by Little Passports, delivering
[0:42] Speaker 2: monthly activity kit subscriptions that help kids explore the world,
[0:45] Speaker 2: cultivate curiosity, and discover new interests with hands-on crafts and
[0:50] Speaker 2: activities in cooking, science, crafts, and more, all with a
[0:54] Speaker 2: unique cultural twist. Visit littlepassports.com to learn more. and save 20%
[1:00] Speaker 2: with code BLESSED.
[1:09] Speaker 3: Esther, the Jewish queen of Persia. In our last story,
[1:14] Speaker 3: God's people were allowed to return home and rebuild the temple.
[1:17] Speaker 3: In this story, we will learn about Esther and the
[1:21] Speaker 3: Jews that were still living in exile in Persia. Esther
[1:25] Speaker 3: becomes queen and how she will deal with the plot
[1:29] Speaker 3: by Haman to kill all the Jews, as inspired by Esther.
[1:39] Speaker 1: Hi there, it's Julianne Thompson, guest hosting for Julia Jeffer
[1:42] Speaker 1: Sadler with the Kids Bible in a Year podcast. I
[1:45] Speaker 1: am so happy you're here today. Today we get to
[1:48] Speaker 1: hear a story about a young orphan girl who grew
[1:51] Speaker 1: up to become the loveliest queen in all the land.
[1:56] Speaker 1: How did it happen? Well, let's jump in and find out.
[2:01] Speaker 3: King Circes ruled Persia and had a wife, Vashti. One day,
[2:07] Speaker 3: Circes hosted a party. Vashti embarrassed him so much, he
[2:11] Speaker 3: disposed her. He wanted to replace her, so he commanded
[2:16] Speaker 3: men to gather all the beautiful virgin women of Persia.
[2:20] Speaker 3: They were to be taken from their homes and receive
[2:22] Speaker 3: beauty treatments before seeing the king. Whoever attracted King Circes
[2:27] Speaker 3: would take Vashti's place as queen. A Jewish woman named
[2:32] Speaker 3: Esther was one of the beautiful women who lived in
[2:34] Speaker 3: Persia with her uncle, Mordecai. She was summoned to enter
[2:38] Speaker 3: the king's palace and display her beauty. Before she was
[2:42] Speaker 3: sent off, Mordecai told her to hide her Jewish identity.
[2:47] Speaker 3: The king met Esther and was very pleased with her
[2:50] Speaker 3: beauty and virtue. Esther was crowned the new queen. At
[2:55] Speaker 3: the time of Esther's coronation, Mordecai discovered a plot of
[3:00] Speaker 3: officers that wanted to kill King Circes. He told Esther
[3:03] Speaker 3: about this, and she reported it to the king. The
[3:07] Speaker 3: king's life was saved, and Esther gave Mordecai the credit.
[3:10] Speaker 3: His good deed was recorded. King Circes also promoted a
[3:16] Speaker 3: man named Haman to highest-ranking official. Everyone obeyed the king's
[3:21] Speaker 3: command to bow to Haman, except Mordecai. This made Haman furious.
[3:28] Speaker 3: He plotted a way to get rid of Mordecai and
[3:31] Speaker 3: his people, the Jews. Haman went before the king and said,
[3:36] Speaker 3: There is a group of people called the Jews who
[3:38] Speaker 3: are different from everyone else in the kingdom. They refuse
[3:42] Speaker 3: to obey your laws because they only listen to their
[3:44] Speaker 3: own rules. They need to disappear before they try to
[3:48] Speaker 3: overtake this kingdom. If you would like, I propose a
[3:52] Speaker 3: plan to destroy the Jews. I will even help to
[3:55] Speaker 3: pay for this process. The king was grateful that Haman
[3:59] Speaker 3: was willing to serve the kingdom, so he authorized the
[4:02] Speaker 3: decree to kill the Jews. A date was set that
[4:06] Speaker 3: proclaimed the decree to kill every single Jew. Mordecai heard
[4:11] Speaker 3: about Haman's plot and was distressed. He wept for days
[4:15] Speaker 3: with the other Jews. Fear took over the Jews. Esther
[4:19] Speaker 3: was in the palace, so she did not hear about
[4:22] Speaker 3: the decree. When she heard that Mordecai was publicly mourning,
[4:26] Speaker 3: She asked her servant to find out why Mordecai is upset.
[4:30] Speaker 3: He wrote to Esther, telling her the Jews' fate and
[4:33] Speaker 3: attached a copy of the decree. Mordecai wanted Esther to
[4:37] Speaker 3: go to the king and stop it. He told her,
[4:40] Speaker 3: beg the king to have mercy on your people. Esther
[4:43] Speaker 3: was afraid of what was to happen. She felt powerless
[4:47] Speaker 3: and wrote, I cannot show up to the king uninvited.
[4:52] Speaker 3: Unless he points the golden scepter, whoever goes before the
[4:55] Speaker 3: king uninvited will be put to death. I wish I
[4:59] Speaker 3: could help, but the king hasn't called for me in
[5:01] Speaker 3: 30 days. Mordecai was determined to convince Esther. He wrote,
[5:07] Speaker 3: Even though you are in the king's palace, don't think
[5:10] Speaker 3: that you are safe from the fate of your people,
[5:13] Speaker 3: the Jews. Even if you do nothing, I am sure
[5:16] Speaker 3: we will be rescued another way.
[5:19] Speaker 1: You will die either way.
[5:21] Speaker 3: Maybe you were purposely placed in this position for such
[5:25] Speaker 3: a time as this. Esther was moved by the words
[5:28] Speaker 3: of Mordecai and replied, Gather all the Jews to pray
[5:32] Speaker 3: and fast for three days. My servants and I will
[5:35] Speaker 3: do likewise. Even though it is against the law, I
[5:38] Speaker 3: will go before the king.
[5:40] Speaker 2: If I die, then I die.
[5:44] Speaker 3: After three days of fasting and prayer, Esther went to
[5:47] Speaker 3: enter the king's court. The king saw it was Esther,
[5:50] Speaker 3: so he pointed his gold scepter at her because of
[5:53] Speaker 3: how much he admired her. He told her, Tell me
[5:57] Speaker 3: what you would like, and I will give it to you.
[6:00] Speaker 3: Esther said, If it pleases you, I want you and
[6:04] Speaker 3: Haman to attend a dinner banquet I have prepared. The
[6:07] Speaker 3: king agreed and brought Haman to dinner. At the banquet,
[6:10] Speaker 3: the king told Esther, Tell me your request, and I
[6:14] Speaker 3: will grant it. Esther took advantage of this and said,
[6:18] Speaker 3: If you are truly offering to grant my request, come
[6:21] Speaker 3: to my dinner tomorrow with Haman.
[6:23] Speaker 1: I will tell you then. Wow, there are a lot
[6:31] Speaker 1: of books and movies about beautiful princesses. But did you
[6:35] Speaker 1: know that there was one in the Bible? Yes, that
[6:39] Speaker 1: makes it even better because it's true. And it reminds
[6:44] Speaker 1: us again of what a good king God is. You see,
[6:48] Speaker 1: in his kingdom, it doesn't matter what other people see
[6:52] Speaker 1: when they first look at you. You might worry that
[6:54] Speaker 1: your hair sticks out or your ears are a little
[6:57] Speaker 1: too wiggly. You might be insecure about the way you look.
[7:02] Speaker 1: But when God looks at you, everything he sees is
[7:05] Speaker 1: beautiful because he made you. And when you let him,
[7:10] Speaker 1: he'll show everybody how amazing you are. That's what happened
[7:15] Speaker 1: to Esther. Though in the beginning, it seemed like nothing
[7:18] Speaker 1: about her life was lovely at all. Do you remember?
[7:22] Speaker 1: Esther's great-grandfather had been carried off to Babylon with Daniel, Hananiah, Azariah,
[7:28] Speaker 1: and Mishael by King Nebuchadnezzar. So her family had been
[7:32] Speaker 1: living far from their home for three generations. Then... When
[7:37] Speaker 1: Esther was a young girl, her parents died. Do you
[7:41] Speaker 1: think Esther felt very beautiful then? I don't think so.
[7:45] Speaker 1: I think she probably felt very sad. When people looked
[7:50] Speaker 1: at her, all they could see was a poor Jewish
[7:53] Speaker 1: orphan who didn't belong. Sometimes it's easy to feel like
[7:58] Speaker 1: you don't belong, isn't it? When people around you look
[8:01] Speaker 1: different or sound different or you don't know anyone who
[8:05] Speaker 1: feels the way that you feel. it's easy to think
[8:08] Speaker 1: that you're all alone or you'll never belong. But when
[8:12] Speaker 1: God sees you, he sees someone he loves, someone he'll
[8:16] Speaker 1: never leave all alone. When the Lord looks at you,
[8:20] Speaker 1: he sees someone who will always belong in his family.
[8:24] Speaker 1: And oftentimes the very things that make you different are
[8:28] Speaker 1: exactly what God will use to do something amazing, something
[8:32] Speaker 1: no one can do but you. You see, Even though
[8:36] Speaker 1: Esther's life didn't start out very lovely, she belonged in
[8:40] Speaker 1: God's family, and he had a perfect plan. When her
[8:44] Speaker 1: uncle Mordecai adopted her, she learned from him how to
[8:48] Speaker 1: fast and pray and ask God for wisdom. Esther developed
[8:52] Speaker 1: a heart that was kind, a mind that was sharp,
[8:56] Speaker 1: and courage to stand for her convictions. That's what made
[9:01] Speaker 1: her the loveliest woman around. How do I know? Because
[9:06] Speaker 1: the Bible says Esther won the favor of everyone who
[9:09] Speaker 1: saw her. Everyone who met her, loved her, including the king.
[9:15] Speaker 1: Now we've all known people who are pretty on the outside,
[9:18] Speaker 1: but not so nice on the inside. Is that the
[9:22] Speaker 1: kind of person you want to be around? No, me neither.
[9:27] Speaker 1: And if Esther was just pretty on the outside and
[9:31] Speaker 1: not so nice on the inside, people wouldn't want to
[9:34] Speaker 1: be around her either, including the king. Learning to trust
[9:39] Speaker 1: the Lord, even though her life hadn't been easy, is
[9:43] Speaker 1: what made Esther's heart so beautiful that no one could
[9:47] Speaker 1: miss it. It's the thing that made her different. It
[9:50] Speaker 1: shaped her into exactly who the king loved and who
[9:54] Speaker 1: God would use to save his people. So if you
[9:59] Speaker 1: sometimes feel sad, or different or your hair sticks out
[10:03] Speaker 1: or your nose turns up or your chin turns down
[10:06] Speaker 1: and your ears are a little too wiggly, think about
[10:10] Speaker 1: Queen Esther just like her. You belong in God's family
[10:16] Speaker 1: and you can become the loveliest person around. Because trusting
[10:21] Speaker 1: the Lord will make your heart so beautiful that no
[10:24] Speaker 1: one can miss it. I'm so glad you joined me
[10:27] Speaker 1: for today's story. Come back next time to hear the
[10:29] Speaker 1: rest of Esther's exciting story and what happens to wicked Haman. Remember,
[10:35] Speaker 1: the Bible is the best story ever told. It's God's
[10:38] Speaker 1: story to you. And it's all true. Did our podcast
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[10:46] Speaker 1: to us and scatter joy across the world. Thank you
[10:49] Speaker 1: for listening to Pray.com's Kids Bible in a Year. For
[10:52] Speaker 1: more inspiring stories and wisdom to last a lifetime, download
[10:56] Speaker 1: the Pray.com app for free today. See you next time.
[11:07] Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to Kids Bible in a Year. I
[11:10] Speaker 1: want to invite our adult listeners to check out my
[11:12] Speaker 1: other show, Unapologetic, God's Truth on Today's Topics. It's unfiltered, important, inspiring,
[11:21] Speaker 1: and we have awesome conversations and amazing guests such as
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